Iowa Code Title IX. Local Government [Chs. 331-420] § 331.235. Commission procedures and reports

1. Within sixty days after its organization, the commission shall hold at least one public hearing for the purpose of receiving information and material which will assist in the drafting of a charter. Notice of the date, time, and place of the hearing shall be given as provided in chapter 21.

2. Within seven months after the organization of the commission, the commission shall submit a preliminary report to the board, which report may include the text of the proposed charter. If a proposed charter is included in the preliminary report, the report shall also include an analysis of the fiscal impact of the proposed charter. Sufficient copies of the report shall be made available for distribution to residents of the county who request a copy. The commission shall hold at least one public hearing after submission of the preliminary report to obtain public comment. Notice of the date, time, and place of the hearing shall be given as provided in chapter 21.

3. Within twelve months after organization, the commission shall submit the final report to the board. However, a commission may adopt a motion granting itself a sixty-day extension of time for submission of its final report. If the commission recommends a charter including a form of government other than the existing form of government, the final report shall include the full text and an explanation of the proposed charter, an analysis of the fiscal impact of the proposed charter, any comments deemed desirable by the commission, and any minority reports. The final report may recommend no change to the existing form of government and that no charter be submitted to the electorate, in which case, the report shall state the reasons for and against a change in the existing form of government. The final report shall be made available to the residents of the county upon request. A summary of the final report shall be published by the commission in the official newspapers of the county and in a newspaper of general circulation in each participating city.

4. If a provision of this part is amended by enactment of the general assembly after a charter commission has submitted its final report to the board and before the proposed charter is submitted at an election, the commission may amend the proposed charter, only to the extent the charter amendment addresses the changes in the newly enacted law, and shall submit the amended proposed charter and an amended final report to the board in lieu of the original proposed charter. The amended proposed charter shall be placed on the ballot for the next general election if it is received by the board within the time set out in section 331.237, subsection 1. A summary of any amendments to the proposed charter shall be published by the commission as provided in subsection 3.

5. The commission is dissolved on the date of the general election at which the proposed charter is submitted to the electorate. However, if a charter proposing the city-county consolidated form or the community commonwealth form is adopted, the commission is dissolved on the date that the terms of office of the members of the governing body for the alternative form of government commence. If a charter is not recommended, the commission is dissolved upon submission of its final report to the board.