More than 100 Iowa boards and commissions could be cut or consolidated under a final proposal that a committee will submit to Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Legislature.
The state’s Boards and Commissions Review Committee met Monday to unanimously approve a final report that it will release later this week.
The group’s recommendations would eliminate 111 of Iowa’s 256 boards and commissions while leaving 145 in place — a 43% reduction.
The committee also recommends repealing Iowa’s law that requires a balance of men and women on boards and commissions.
The panel was created earlier this year as part of a sweeping government reorganization law Gov. Kim Reynolds signed in April that reduced cabinet-level state government agencies from 37 to 16.
The committee released its initial recommendations in August and heard public feedback in a 2½-hour hearing at the Iowa Capitol earlier this month.
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Slightly fewer boards and commissions would be eliminated under the panel’s final recommendations than under the committee’s initial proposal after it received input from public comments at a hearing earlier this month and through email.
“That outreach was important. It impacted this final report,” said Kraig Paulsen, the review committee’s chair. “This committee listened to Iowans and made changes to its recommendations because of that dialogue. That’s how this is supposed to work.”
Friday’s recommendation to the governor and Legislature marks the conclusion of the committee’s work. It will be up to Iowa lawmakers to decide whether to act on the recommendations.
“I hope Iowans continue this conversation,” Paulsen said Monday. “Iowans have 105 days before the start of the 2024 legislative session to engage with their elected leaders.”
Panel recommends eliminating gender balance requirements for boards and commissions
The final report recommends repealing Iowa’s law requiring gender balance on state and local boards and commissions.
The committee’s initial recommendations had described the requirement as “arbitrary,” but the final report removes the word from its recommendation.
A draft of the final report notes that in 1987, the first year the gender balance requirement was in effect, women had not been elected to any of Iowa’s top political positions. In 2023 all of the state’s top offices have been held at one time or another by a woman.
“Legislative history clearly indicates the goal of the gender-balance requirement was to place more Iowa women into places of leadership in state government,” the draft states. “But the foregoing makes clear that Iowans have changed their collective mind on any perceived inequities between men and women representing the state of Iowa in leadership positions.”
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State Sen. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, a nonvoting member of the committee, said requirements like Iowa’s gender balance law help to ensure Iowans, including those from underrepresented communities, can have a voice in state government.
“I’ve been involved in boards and commissions and Senate confirmations for a long, long time,” he said. “And my concern has always been that we reflect who Iowa is when we put these boards and commissions together.”
Commission on Volunteer Service no longer recommended for elimination
One board that is no longer recommended for elimination is the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service.
Advocates had argued that getting rid of the board could put at risk millions of dollars of federal funds that the state receives for the AmeriCorps community service program.
Federal law requires states to set up a commission that meets certain requirements to receive the money.
David Faith, a committee member and assistant Iowa attorney general who was recently appointed as a judge, said the law allows states some flexibility in how they oversee AmeriCorps funding.
“It should be noted that the AmeriCorps regulations do allow an alternative administrative entity so I don’t believe actually it is the case that the state would not have been able to get access to AmeriCorps funding,” Faith said. “However, we received a whole lot of feedback and wanted to listen to Iowans about the existing commission doing its function.”
Commission for the Deaf won’t be consolidated under Human Rights Board
The group’s final recommendations also backtrack on the idea of consolidating the Commission for the Deaf with a number of other commissions it recommends placing under the Iowa Human Rights Board.
Under the committee’s final recommendations, the commissions on the Status of African Americans, Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs, Persons with Disabilities, Latino Affairs, Native American Affairs and the Status of Women would all be folded into the Human Rights Board.
But the Commission for the Deaf would instead be merged with the state’s Dual Party Relay Council, a group that oversees Iowa’s dual party relay service, which assists Iowans who are deaf, hard of hearing or who have speech disorders with using the telephone.
“Based on feedback we heard from the Deaf community we concluded that this commission is really different than all the others in that it’s providing a fairly unique set of services to Deaf Iowans,” Faith said.
Committee urges other changes, including stipends for some board members
One of the report’s final recommendations is to provide an annual salary of $10,000 for members of the Iowa Board of Regents, the Council on Health and Human Services and the Board of Education.
“Each of these boards and commissions have significant responsibilities and require a significant breadth of expertise,” the draft report states. “And a nominal salary for its members will increase engagement and compensate members according to the true value of their work.”
The final report recommends creating an ongoing process to review boards and commissions, including implementing sunset provisions for new boards and commissions.
Its other recommendations include requiring any new advisory boards to sunset after two years, allowing virtual or hybrid participation at board meetings, allowing boards to meet only when needed, rather than a certain number of times each year, and creating consistent licensing standards across professions.
Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.