HF 862 (LSB 2631HV (3) 91)

HOUSE FILE 862

BY  COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

(SUCCESSOR TO HF 414)

(As Amended and Passed by the House 2025-03-26)

A BILL FOR

An Act concerning conflicts of interest involving a county attorney, and including effective date provisions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 331.755, Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
   331.755  Prohibited actions.
   1.  A county attorney shall not:
   1.  a.  Accept a fee or reward from or on behalf of a person for services rendered in a prosecution or the conduct of official business.
   2.  b.  Engage directly or indirectly as an attorney or an agent for a party other than the state or the county in an action or proceeding arising in the county which that is based upon substantially the same facts as a prosecution or proceeding which that has been commenced or prosecuted by the county attorney in the name of the state or the county. This prohibition also applies to the members of a law firm with which the county attorney is associated.
   3.  c.  Receive assistance from another attorney who is interested in any civil action in which a recovery is asked based upon matters involved in a criminal prosecution commenced or prosecuted by the county attorney.
   2.  A board of supervisors may, with a majority vote of the board, obtain outside counsel to represent the board of supervisors or any other county official.
   3.  If a county sheriff reasonably believes that a conflict of interest exists between the county attorney and the county sheriff, and if the board of supervisors refuses to obtain outside counsel for the county sheriff, the county sheriff may, through notice pleadings, petition a district court for a determination of whether a conflict exists and request a stay on any pending proceedings. The district court shall issue a ruling on the merits within thirty days and may authorize the county sheriff to retain outside counsel to represent the county sheriff or issue any other order in the interest of justice. All court costs and expenses shall be paid by the county unless the district court finds that a conflict of interest does not exist between the county attorney and the county sheriff, in which case all court costs and expenses shall be paid by the office of the county sheriff.
    Sec. 2.  EFFECTIVE DATE.  This Act, being deemed of immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment.