24FC:0013 Iowa Public Information Board/Union County Emergency Management Agency - Informal Settlement Report – Iowa Code § 17A.10 

Date:
01/16/2025

Subject:
Iowa Public Information Board/Union County Emergency Management Agency  - Informal Settlement Report – Iowa Code § 17A.10 

Opinion:

The Iowa Public Information Board

 On February 2, 2024, Bonnie Castillo filed formal complaint 24FC:0013, alleging that the Union County Emergency Management Agency (UCEMA) violated Iowa Code Chapters 21 and 22. The Iowa Public Information Board (IPIB) accepted this Complaint, which was later presented to the IPIB as a Probable Cause Order. On December 19, 2024, the IPIB voted to accept the Probable Cause Order and proceed to a contested case. 

Applicable Law

Iowa law encourages the settlement of contested cases. “Unless precluded by statute, informal settlements of controversies that may culminate in contested case proceedings according to the provisions of this chapter are encouraged.” Iowa Code § 17A.10(1). This Informal Settlement is agreed to by the UCEMA in lieu of a contested case proceeding. IPIB will move to a contested case proceeding if the terms of this Informal Settlement are not met by February 7, 2025, and reserves the right to advance to a contested case.

Informal Settlement

Pursuant to Iowa Code § 17A.10(1), the IPIB presented the following Informal Settlement terms as resolution of this matter and in lieu of a contested case:

The UCEMA will complete the following terms by February 7, 2025. If all terms are not met to the satisfaction of IPIB by February 7, 2025, IPIB will proceed to a contested case proceeding.

1. The UCEMA will agree to the full terms of this Informal Settlement at a public meeting of the UCEMA to be held on January 15, 2025. The full Informal Settlement will be read into the record at the public meeting and will be formally approved by the UCEMA. The following statement will be read at the public meeting of the UCEMA and will be included in the minutes: “The UCEMA agrees to the terms of the Informal Settlement and further agrees to fulfill all terms of the Informal Settlement by February 7, 2025. Failure to complete all terms of the Informal Settlement by February 7, 2025, will result in a contested case proceeding before the Iowa Public Information Board.” The minutes will be published, at a minimum, on the UCEMA website. The minutes will also be provided to IPIB. If the minutes cannot be formally approved by the February 7, 2025 deadline, the draft minutes will be utilized.
2. The UCEMA will formally acknowledge that a violation of Iowa Code Chapter 21 occurred at a meeting of the UCEMA on January 24, 2024, when a de facto closed session was held. This formal acknowledgement will occur in a public meeting of the UCEMA to be held on January 15, 2025. The full formal acknowledgement will be included in the minutes, which will be published, at a minimum, on the UCEMA website. The minutes will also be provided to IPIB. If the minutes cannot be formally approved by the February 7, 2025 deadline, the draft minutes will be utilized. 
3. The UCEMA will develop policies and procedures to ensure compliance with Iowa Code chapters 21 and 22. Policies and procedures will address the following elements: Notice of meetings, setting agendas, minutes, response to public records requests, closed sessions, and maintenance of existing policies. All policies and procedures reviewed and developed for this Informal Settlement will be provided to IPIB and will be formally reviewed and approved in a public meeting of the UCEMA. All policies and procedures will be included in the minutes, which will be published, at a minimum, on the UCEMA website. The minutes will also be provided to IPIB. If the minutes cannot be formally approved by the February 7, 2025 deadline, the draft minutes will be utilized.
4. The UCEMA understands that this Informal Settlement is a recommendation to the IPIB by IPIB staff. The IPIB may reject this Informal Settlement and advance to a contested case proceeding. The IPIB will review the Informal Settlement on January 16, 2025.

This Informal Settlement has been reviewed and informally agreed to by the UCEMA. If the UCEMA rejects this Informal Settlement at the UCEMA meeting on January 15, 2025, this complaint will move to a contested case proceeding.

This document was executed by the Union County Attorney on January 10, 2025. The UCEMA indicates intent to formally approve the Informal Settlement at their meeting on January 15, 2025.

Based on Iowa Code § 17A.10(1), IPIB staff recommend that IPIB approve the Informal Settlement Report and adopt the terms of the Informal Settlement.

By the IPIB Deputy Director, 

_________________________

Kimberly M. Murphy, J.D.