68B.32B - COMPLAINT PROCEDURES.
68B.32B COMPLAINT PROCEDURES.
1. Any person may file a complaint alleging that a candidate,
committee, person holding a state office in the executive branch of
state government, employee of the executive branch of state
government, or other person has committed a violation of chapter 68A
or rules adopted by the board. Any person may file a complaint
alleging that a person holding a state office in the executive branch
of state government, an employee of the executive branch of state
government, or a lobbyist or a client of a lobbyist of the executive
branch of state government has committed a violation of this chapter
or rules adopted by the board. Any person may file a complaint
alleging a violation of section 8.7 or rules adopted by the board.
The board shall prescribe and provide forms for purposes of this
subsection. A complaint must include the name and address of the
complainant, a statement of the facts believed to be true that form
the basis of the complaint, including the sources of information and
approximate dates of the acts alleged, and a certification by the
complainant under penalty of perjury that the facts stated to be true
are true to the best of the complainant's knowledge.
2. The board staff shall review the complaint to determine if the
complaint is sufficient as to form. If the complaint is deficient as
to form, the complaint shall be returned to the complainant with a
statement of the deficiency and an explanation describing how the
deficiency may be cured. If the complaint is sufficient as to form,
the complaint shall be referred for legal review.
3. Unless the chairperson of the board concludes that immediate
notification would prejudice a preliminary investigation or subject
the complainant to an unreasonable risk, the board shall mail a copy
of the complaint to the subject of the complaint within three working
days of the acceptance of the complaint. If a determination is made
by the chairperson not to mail a copy of the complaint to the subject
of the complaint within the three working days time period, the board
shall approve and establish the time and conditions under which the
subject will be informed of the filing and contents of the complaint.
4. Upon completion of legal review, the chairperson of the board
shall be advised whether, in the opinion of the legal advisor, the
complaint states an allegation which is legally sufficient. A
legally sufficient allegation must allege all of the following:
a. Facts that would establish a violation of a provision of
this chapter, chapter 68A, section 8.7, or rules adopted by the
board.
b. Facts that would establish that the conduct providing the
basis for the complaint occurred within three years of the complaint.
c. Facts that would establish that the subject of the
complaint is a party subject to the jurisdiction of the board.
5. After receiving an evaluation of the legal sufficiency of the
complaint, the chairperson shall refer the complaint to the board for
a formal determination by the board of the legal sufficiency of the
allegations contained in the complaint.
6. If the board determines that none of the allegations contained
in the complaint are legally sufficient, the complaint shall be
dismissed. The complainant shall be sent a notice of dismissal
stating the reason or reasons for the dismissal. If a copy of the
complaint was sent to the subject of the complaint, a copy of the
notice shall be sent to the subject of the complaint. If the board
determines that any allegation contained in the complaint is legally
sufficient, the complaint shall be referred to the board staff for
investigation of any legally sufficient allegations.
7. Notwithstanding subsections 1 through 6, the board may, on its
own motion and without the filing of a complaint by another person,
initiate investigations into matters that the board believes may be
subject to the board's jurisdiction. This section does not preclude
persons from providing information to the board for possible
board-initiated investigation instead of filing a complaint.
8. The purpose of an investigation by the board's staff is to
determine whether there is probable cause to believe that there has
been a violation of this chapter, chapter 68A, section 8.7, or of
rules adopted by the board. To facilitate the conduct of
investigations, the board may issue and seek enforcement of subpoenas
requiring the attendance and testimony of witnesses and subpoenas
requiring the production of books, papers, records, and other real
evidence relating to the matter under investigation. Upon the
request of the board, an appropriate county attorney or the attorney
general shall assist the staff of the board in its investigation.
9. If the board determines on the basis of an investigation by
board staff that there is probable cause to believe the existence of
facts that would establish a violation of this chapter, chapter 68A,
section 8.7, or of rules adopted by the board, the board may issue a
statement of charges and notice of a contested case proceeding to the
complainant and to the person who is the subject of the complaint, in
the manner provided for the issuance of statements of charges under
chapter 17A. If the board determines on the basis of an
investigation by staff that there is no probable cause to believe
that a violation has occurred, the board shall close the
investigation, dismiss any related complaint, and the subject of the
complaint shall be notified of the dismissal. If the investigation
originated from a complaint filed by a person other than the board,
the person making the complaint shall also be notified of the
dismissal.
10. At any stage during the investigation or after the initiation
of a contested case proceeding, the board may approve a settlement
regarding an alleged violation. Terms of a settlement shall be
reduced to writing and be available for public inspection. An
informal settlement may provide for any remedy specified in section
68B.32D. However, the board shall not approve a settlement unless
the board determines that the terms of the settlement are in the
public interest and are consistent with the purposes of this chapter
and rules of the board. In addition, the board may authorize board
staff to seek informal voluntary compliance in routine matters
brought to the attention of the board or its staff.
11. A complaint shall be a public record, but some or all of the
contents may be treated as confidential under section 22.7,
subsection 18, to the extent necessary under subsection 3 of this
section. Information informally reported to the board and board
staff which results in a board-initiated investigation shall be a
public record but may be treated as confidential information
consistent with the provisions of section 22.7, subsection 18. If
the complainant, the person who provides information to the board, or
the person who is the subject of an investigation publicly discloses
the existence of an investigation, the board may publicly confirm the
existence of the disclosed formal complaint or investigation and, in
the board's discretion, make the complaint or the informal referral
public, as well as any other documents that were issued by the board
to any party to the investigation. However, investigative materials
may be furnished to the appropriate law enforcement authorities by
the board at any time. Upon the commencement of a contested case
proceeding by the board, all investigative material relating to that
proceeding shall be made available to the subject of the proceeding.
The entire record of any contested case proceeding initiated under
this section shall be a public record.
12. Board records used to achieve voluntary compliance to resolve
discrepancies and deficiencies shall not be confidential unless
otherwise required by law. Section History: Recent Form
93 Acts, ch 163, § 16; 94 Acts, ch 1092, §8; 2006 Acts, ch 1035,
§5; 2007 Acts, ch 126, §16
Referred to in § 68A.101, 68B.32A, 68B.32C