ISAC Legislative Update - Iowa State Association of Counties



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ISAC Update: 3.4.16

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86th Iowa General Assembly, Second Session, Week Eight

This week again was primarily dominated by floor debate to set up committee work for the second funnel next week. With Medicaid privatization implementation in Iowa pushed off to April 1, the Senate passed SF 2213 on Wednesday with a bi-partisan 32-18 vote on a bill to provide oversight moving forward. Next week on Wednesday, Governor Branstad will address the ISAC delegation during our County Day at the Capitol legislative briefing starting at 11:00 at the Wallace Building in the State Capitol Complex. He will be addressing his plan for water quality improvement in Iowa and answering questions about the ISAC legislative priorities.

• NEW Food Inspection Fees

• NEW Bridge Funding Reporting

• NEW Competitive Bid Notices

• NEW Open Meetings

• NEW Iowa Public Agency Investment Trust

• NEW Tax Increment Financing Reform

• NEW County Day at the Capitol

• Environmental Lobby Day and REAP Day at the Capitol

• Weekly Legislative Forums

New and Noteworthy

• NEW Smart Connections Conference

• Iowa County Fiscal Reports

• Rural Impact County Challenge: A National Effort to Combat Rural Child Poverty

• Iowa Employment Conference

Food Inspection Fees

On Thursday, a Senate Ways and Means subcommittee passed SSB 3165, a bill that modernizes the fee structure for food inspection in Iowa. As we have seen funding for county food inspection not meet the cash flow needs of the county programs, many of these programs have reverted back to the Iowa Department of Inspection of Appeals. Further, many counties are maintaining their programs with local tax dollars. This bill enhances funding for county inspection programs and provides relief for local tax payers and increased public safety. This is a legislative priority for ISAC and we encourage our members to let their legislators know how important these food inspection programs are for their county.

Click here to comment on food inspection fees.

Bridge Funding Reporting

HF 2345 (successor to HF 2241) passed out of the House on Tuesday. The bill requires county engineers to file annual reports with the Department of Transportation (DOT) on the use of Road Use Tax Fund (RUTF) dollars to repair or replace structurally deficient bridges. The report would include details on fully functional bridges and work completed or pending on deficient bridges. ISAC is registered Undecided on the bill.

Click here to comment on bridge funding reporting.

Competitive Bid Notices 

SF 2170 passed out of the Senate on Monday and out of the House on Wednesday. Currently, if the cost of a public improvement project exceeds the competitive bid threshold, the county has to advertise the project to bidders no fewer than four and no more than 45 days before the bid letting. The county also has to publish notice no fewer than four and no more than 20 days before the public hearing. The bill as amended removes the requirement to advertise for bidders and instead requires the notice to bidders to be published in contractor organization publications, a statewide contractor plan room service, and on either the governmental entity’s website or a statewide association representing the governmental entity. The requirement for the notice of public hearing is amended to include not only the time and place, but also a description and the location of the project. ISAC is registered Undecided on the bill, which now goes to the Governor.

Click here to comment on competitive bid notices.

Open Meetings 

Two bills that we reported on last week dealing with the open meetings law were passed out of the House on Wednesday. HF 2364 (successor to HF 2223) would allow an exception to the 24-hour meeting notice requirement if a governmental body is prevented from meeting at the posted time and location due to circumstances outside of its control. The body must post an updated notice of the meeting, but would not be required to publish notice. ISAC is registered For the bill. HF 2363 (successor to HF 2226) would prohibit a governmental body from excluding a member of the body from closed session unless there was a conflict of interest and the member did not voluntarily recuse themselves from the closed session. ISAC is registered Undecided on the bill. Both bills now go to the Senate.

Click here to comment on open meetings.

Iowa Public Agency Investment Trust 

HF 2261, ISAC’s objective addressing the Iowa Public Agency Investment Trust (IPAIT), passed out of a Senate Commerce subcommittee on Wednesday. The bill would allow a joint investment trust like IPAIT to be operated in accordance with the requirements of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB). This change is necessary because of recent changes to SEC Rule 2a-7 that will affect the way money market funds are required to value the securities in their portfolios. If IPAIT is able to be regulated by GASB it would be able to continue with the same valuation methods and types of investments as current. Click here for a more in-depth explanation of the IPAIT legislative objective. ISAC is registered For HF 2261, which now goes to the full Senate Commerce Committee.

Click here to comment on IPAIT.

Tax Increment Financing Reform

Three bills dealing with tax increment financing (TIF) saw subcommittee action on Wednesday. HSB 639 would prohibit TIF revenue from being used for public buildings, would amend the definition of blighted areas, would sunset current urban renewal areas in 2036 (or 2041 if blighted area) if they don’t currently have a sunset, and would limit all future urban renewal areas to 20 years or 25 years if a blighted area. ISAC is registered Undecided on HSB 639.

SF 2005 and SF 2006 would prohibit the division of revenue for property taxes collected from wind turbines. SF 2006 has additional language that would sunset any existing division of revenue 20 years after the first division of revenue. The bills effectively prohibit the ability to TIF wind turbines. ISAC is opposed to both SF 2005 and SF 2006 because it eliminates the ability of counties to make taxing and financing decisions at the local level. None of the three bills received immediate approval during the subcommittee meetings so we will continue to monitor the legislation.

Click here to comment on TIF reform.

County Day at the Capitol

We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the Wallace Building and the Capitol on Wednesday, March 9 for County Day at the Capitol. Click here for more information and please note that we will be accepting at-the-door registrations.

Don’t forget to download the County Day at the Capitol and Spring School of Instruction conference app by clicking here or searching for “ISAC Spring School” in your App or Google Play Stores. If you need help getting started, please refer to the conference app tutorial, give us a call, or visit an “app specialist” with a neon green name badge insert during both events.

There is a “County Day at the Capitol” tab within the app. It contains the ISAC Legislative Priorities documents and handouts to which you can refer when discussing issues of concern to counties with your legislators.

Within the app we will be asking members to hashtag the bills and issues that you discuss with your legislators. We will also have a designated area set up in the rotunda for taking official app photos with your legislators and colleagues. Although the standard #selfiewithasenator #ISACCDC2016 is also great, this area will help to promote why #CountiesMatter.  

At the conclusion of the day we will be running some statistics on which bills and issues were discussed the most, and we’ll also crown the first #ISACCDCMVP for their work in promoting ISAC’s top priorities with legislators throughout the event within the conference app. This information will be shared and the MVP will be named during the ISAC Spring School General Session on Thursday.

Environmental Lobby Day and REAP Day at the Capitol

Join individuals and organizations from across Iowa on Tuesday, March 22 at the Iowa State Capitol to advocate for Iowa’s natural resources at Environmental Lobby Day and REAP Day at the Capitol. There is no cost to attend for individual attendees, but an RSVP is requested. Click here for a schedule, additional information for individual attendees and perspective exhibitors, and to RSVP.

Weekly Legislative Forums 

Most legislators conduct forums back in their home districts on Fridays and the weekends to seek constituent feedback on a variety of topics. These can be an effective tool to advance and address issues that are vital to counties. A link to these forums can be found here:









Smart Connections Conference

ISAC, the Iowa League of Cities, and County Strategic Technology Advisory Resource (CoSTAR) in cooperation with the Iowa Communities Assurance Pool (ICAP) wish to announce the 2016 Smart Connections Conference being held on April 28, 2016 at the Holiday Inn Airport in Des Moines. This one-day conference is meant for all local government officials who want to learn to become secure and safe at home and in the workplace while using email, mobile devices and more. The conference will feature Keynote Speaker Bryan Seely. Please click here for more information and to register. Due to limited seating, pre-registration is required for a minimal $75 fee that includes all materials, lunch and morning refreshments.

Iowa County Fiscal Reports

The Iowa State University – Iowa Government Finance Initiative released the “Annual Fiscal Conditions Reports for Iowa Counties” last week for FY 2014. There is a separate report for each of the 99 counties in Iowa. Click here to access the reports and to print a PDF of your county’s report.

ISAC will be hosting a Spring School educational seminar on March 10, 2016 from 9:00 am - 10:15 am titled “Fiscal Trends and Situation of Iowa Counties: Introduction of the new ISUEO Initiative.” Biswa Das, Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, ISU Extension and Outreach, will be presenting on the new fiscal reports.  You are encouraged to print out your county’s report and bring it to the seminar.

Rural Impact County Challenge: A National Effort to Combat Rural Child Poverty

Recognizing the critical role local officials play in supporting innovation and change, the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the White House Rural Council have come together on a national initiative to help advance counties’ efforts to reduce the number of rural children and families living in poverty. The Rural Impact County Challenge (RICC) seeks to recognize and support counties making real difference in the lives of children in rural communities. Click here for more information, a sample resolution and to sign up.

Iowa Employment Conference

The Iowa Employment Conference is being held April 20-21, 2016 in Altoona at the Meadows Events and Conference Center. This conference is the largest of its kind, in the state of Iowa, offering over 60 informative, interactive and educational sessions delivered by some of the top employment lawyers, payroll professionals, workforce development leaders and many others, from Iowa and surrounding states. It remains an essential event for those who want to stay up-to-date and compliant with the latest developments in labor and employment law, best practices, healthcare reform, how-to's, wellness and analysis and trends, and more. Click here for more information and to register. The early bird registration rate ends on March 1.

Contact Information:

Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC)

5500 Westown Parkway, Suite 190, West Des Moines, IA 50266 

Phone: 515.244.7181 Fax: 515.244.6397



This ISAC Update is being sent to all ISAC members.

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