SSB 3098 (LSB 5209XC (2) 91)

SENATE FILE _____ 

BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL BY CHAIRPERSON WEBSTER)

A BILL FOR

An Act related to boundary adjustments between cities by petition of property owners.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 368.25A, subsection 3, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  a.  If the city councils of both cities approve the petition, the petition shall be filed with the board. Approval by either city council may be conditioned upon an agreement entered into by the cities providing for the transition of property taxes or the sharing of property tax revenues from the real property described in the petition for a period not to exceed forty years and providing for all necessary zoning ordinance changes within a period not to exceed ten years. An agreement between cities under this subsection shall be filed with the board at the same time the approved petition is filed. An agreement may include additional transition provisions relating to the transfer or sharing of property tax revenues for property outside the boundaries of the territory described in the petition and any other provisions deemed by the cities to be in the public interest if such actions are within the authority of the cities.
   b.  If the city council of one of the cities denies the petition, the real property owner may file the petition again. After the petition has been filed three times and has been denied by the city council of one of the cities three times within a one-year period, the petition shall be filed with the board for review in a manner consistent with subsections 4 and 5. The board shall facilitate an adjustment agreement between the two cities. This paragraph only applies if the land at issue is undeveloped or unimproved. This paragraph does not apply to any of the following:
   (1)  Land subject to an agreement that includes the use of incremental taxes collected pursuant to section 403.19.
   (2)  Land subject to any special assessment.
   (3)  Land that has been sold at a tax sale pursuant to chapter 446.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with

the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to boundary adjustments between cities by petition of property owners.
   Under current law, a real property owner within the boundaries of a city may file a petition for severance with the city council if the property would then be eligible for annexation by a different city. If both of the cities approve the petition, the petition is then filed with the city development board (board). The board then initiates proceedings to sever the territory from the city in which the property is currently located and annex the property to the annexing city.
   The bill provides that when the petition has been filed three times and also denied by the council of one of the cities three times within a one-year period, the petition shall still be filed with the board. The board shall then initiate proceedings in a manner consistent with current law and facilitate an adjustment agreement between the two cities.
   The bill only applies when the land at issue is unimproved or undeveloped. The bill does not apply to land that is subject to an agreement that includes the use of incremental taxes collected pursuant to Code section 403.19, land subject to any special assessment, or land that has been sold at a tax sale.