26AO:0001 - Additional Questions on Section 21.12

Advisory Opinion 26AO:0001

DATE: February 19, 2026

SUBJECT: Additional Questions on Section 21.12

This advisory opinion responds to a series of miscellaneous additional questions submitted to IPIB following our previous advisory opinion on the recently enacted Iowa Code § 21.12, which imposes a mandatory training requirement for any “newly elected or appointed public official who is a member of a governmental body.” See 25AO:0011, Individuals Subject to Section 21.12 Training Requirements.

“Any person may request a board advisory opinion construing or applying Iowa Code chapters 21, 22, and 23. An authorized agent may seek an opinion on behalf of any person. The board will not issue an opinion to an unauthorized third party. The board may on its own motion issue opinions without receiving a formal request.” We note at the outset that IPIB’s jurisdiction is limited to the application of Iowa Code chapters 21, 22, and 23, and rules in Iowa Administrative Code chapter 497. Advice in a Board opinion, if followed, constitutes a defense to a subsequent complaint based on the same facts and circumstances.

FACTS PRESENTED:

In 2025, the legislature passed HF 706, “an Act relating to open meetings and open records, providing penalties, and making penalties applicable.” HF 706 introduced a new section, Iowa Code § 21.12, which imposes a “member education course” requirement. Iowa Code § 21.12(1) provides as follows:

A newly elected or appointed public official who is a member of a governmental body shall complete a course of training of not less than one and not more than two hours regarding the responsibilities of the governmental body and the governmental body’s members under this chapter and chapter 22 not later than the ninetieth day after the date the member does one of the following, as applicable:

1. Takes the initial oath of office.

2. Assumes responsibilities, if the member is not required to take an oath of office.

3. Is elected to the office.

Following Advisory Opinion 25AO:0011, IPIB has received a variety of additional questions about ambiguities in the application of this training requirement which were left unanswered in the original opinion. This opinion provides further guidance on the following six questions:

1. If a person was elected or appointed to a governmental body prior to July 1, 2025 but did not take their oath of office or assume the responsibilities of office until after this date, are they subject to mandatory training?

2. If a person who is not (yet) subject to Iowa Code § 21.12(1) voluntarily attends an approved course of training, does this satisfy the training requirement for any future election or appointment to a governmental body?

3. If a person is appointed to a governmental body subject to Iowa Code § 21.12(1), can they satisfy the training requirement by attending an approved course of training prior to the time that they either take their oath of office or assume responsibilities of their office?

4. Does Iowa Code § 21.12(1) apply to a person who is elected or appointed to a governmental body if the position is set to expire in fewer than 90 days?

5. Does a person who was previously exempt from Iowa Code § 21.12(1) based on a legacy position held prior to July 1, 2025 become subject to mandatory training if they are later elected or appointed to a different position within the same governmental body?

6. Are members of bodies which are required to follow the open meetings requirements of Chapter 21 but which are not described by any definition of “governmental body” in Iowa Code § 21.2(1) subject to mandatory training under Iowa Code § 21.12(1)?

OPINION:

1. If a person was elected or appointed to a governmental body prior to July 1, 2025 but did not take their oath of office or assume the responsibilities of office until after this date, are they subject to mandatory training?

No; this person would not be required to attend training. As discussed in Advisory Opinion 25AO:0011, the phrase “newly elected or appointed” covers only members of governmental bodies who are elected or appointed after the statute came into effect on July 1, 2025. 25AO:0011, Individuals Subject to Section 21.12 Training Requirements. While the three events described in Iowa Code § 21.12(1)(a)–(c) are relevant to the time a person is allowed to satisfy the training requirement, these events do not affect whether a person is subject to Iowa Code § 21.12(1) in the first place.

For this reason, if a board of supervisors appointed an individual to serve on a county commission on June 30, 2025, that individual would have a legacy position exempted from the training requirement even if they did not “assume responsibilities” associated with that appointment until the first commission meeting at a later date. However, exemption is based on position, meaning that the same individual may later become “newly elected or appointed” and thus subject to Iowa Code § 21.12(1) if they are later appointed to a different governmental body.

2. If a person who is not (yet) subject to Iowa Code § 21.12(1) voluntarily attends an approved course of training, does this satisfy the training requirement for any future election or appointment to a governmental body?

No. The plain language of the statute provides that a person subject to mandatory training is required to complete a course of training “not later than the ninetieth day after the date the member does one of the following.” Iowa Code § 21.12(1) (emphasis added). As discussed in Advisory Opinion 25AO:0011, the original version of the law was written with only two mutually exclusive qualifying events, such that the 90-day timer for completing training would begin when a new member’s oath of office is administered (subsection a) or, if no oath was required, at the time they assumed the responsibilities of office (subsection b). However, the section was amended in the Iowa House before its passage to add the time of election as a third qualifying event (subsection c), with the express purpose of ensuring newly elected school board members could meet their training requirements at a conference held shortly after statewide elections.[1]

Both the letter of the law and apparent legislative intent point to the same conclusion: Training completed before any of the three events listed in Iowa Code § 21.12(1)(a)–(c) does not satisfy the training requirement, though a person elected to a governmental body may take training within ninety days of any listed event for the same reasons. See 25AO:0011. Additionally, Iowa Code § 21.12(3)(a) provides that a member who completes mandatory training for one governmental body satisfies the requirements of the section for other governmental bodies the same individual may serve on.

Those who are not subject to the requirement may nevertheless benefit from Section 21.12 training, and there is nothing in the law which would prevent a person from voluntarily attending an approved course.

3. If a person is newly appointed to a governmental body, can they satisfy the training requirement by attending an approved course of training prior to the time that they either take their oath of office or assume responsibilities of their office?

No. As discussed in the section above, the mandatory training requirement may only be satisfied within the 90-day window defined by Iowa Code § 21.12(1). When the legislature amended the statute to add subsection c, the explicit intent of the bill’s sponsor (who also introduced the amendment) was to provide extra accommodation for newly elected officials. Because similar accommodation was not given for appointed officials, it must be assumed that the statute was intended to differentiate between election and appointment in this context.

Therefore, an appointed official must wait to complete their required course of training until the 90-day period after they either take their initial oath of office or assume responsibilities of office, if the member is not required to take an oath.

4. Does Iowa Code § 21.12(1) apply to a person who is newly elected or appointed to a governmental body if the qualifying position expires within 90 days?

Yes. There are certain situations in which a person’s membership with a governmental body may naturally expire within the 90-day window given to complete training, as in the case of a member appointed to fill a vacancy shortly before a general election or a limited purpose task force created by executive order. In these cases, the determining factor is still whether a person was “newly elected or appointed” to a governmental body, as the term is defined in Iowa Code § 21.2(1). A person in this situation is still required to training within the 90-day window.

5. Does a person who was previously exempt from Iowa Code § 21.12(1) based on a legacy position held prior to July 1, 2025 become subject to mandatory training if they are later elected or appointed to a different position within the same governmental body?

Yes, a person in this situation would continue to be exempt, provided their membership with the governmental body is otherwise continuous. In Advisory Opinion 25AO:0011, IPIB interpreted the “newly elected or appointed” language of Iowa Code § 21.12(1) to provide an implied legacy status for individuals who were members of governmental bodies before July 1, 2025. A member of a governmental body may be “exempted by virtue of their pre-existing role,” to include later reelection or reappointment to “a new term in the same position.” However, for reasons explained in that opinion, the exemption is limited to so-called “legacy positions,” rather than providing a lifetime exemption for other governmental bodies to which the same person may later be “newly” elected or appointed. See 25AO:0011.

The term “position,” as used in both the prior opinion and this one, is intended to refer to membership with the governmental body, not a member’s role within the body. Thus, a school board member who was appointed to an at-large position before July 1, 2025 does not become “newly elected or appointed” to the governmental body if they are re-elected to a district-specific position on the same board, so long as they are continuously “a member of [the] governmental body.” The same would be true in the case of a member who wins reelection after redistricting places them in a new district, as well as to a member who is selected for a new role within the same governmental body (e.g. a member who is chosen to serve as chair of their board by other members). Because none of these scenarios actually cause the affected member to be “newly elected or appointed” to a distinct governmental body, the position-based exemption would remain, and the training requirement would not apply.

As noted in Advisory Opinion 25AO:0011, this does not extend to an individual who was a member of a governmental body at the time the law came into effect who leaves and is later “newly elected or appointed” to the same governmental body after a period of inactivity.

6. Are members of bodies which are required to follow the open meetings requirements of Chapter 21 but which are not described by any definition of “governmental body” in Iowa Code § 21.2(1) subject to mandatory training under Iowa Code § 21.12(1)?

No; by its own terms, Iowa Code § 21.12(1) only applies to a member of a “governmental body.” If another statute or rule specifies that a particular entity is required to follow the open meetings requirements of Chapter 21 but that entity is not covered by any of the definitions of “governmental body” provided in Iowa Code § 21.2(1), members of that entity would not be subject to the mandatory training requirement.

Nevertheless, new members belonging to such an entity may still benefit from attending training on a voluntary basis to better understand their responsibilities under Chapters 21 and 22.

BY DIRECTION AND VOTE OF THE BOARD:

Joan Corbin

E.J. Giovannetti

Barry Lindahl

Catherine Lucas

Luke Martz

Joel McCrea

Monica McHugh

Jackie Schmillen

SUBMITTED BY: 

Alexander Lee
Agency Counsel
Iowa Public Information Board

ISSUED ON:

February 19, 2026

Pursuant to Iowa Administrative Rule 497-1.3(3), a person who has received a board opinion may, within 30 days after the issuance of the opinion, request modification or reconsideration of the opinion. A request for modification or reconsideration shall be deemed denied unless the board acts upon the request within 60 days of receipt of the request. The IPIB may take up modification or reconsideration of an advisory opinion on its own motion within 30 days after the issuance of an opinion.

Pursuant to Iowa Administrative Rule 497-1.3(5), a person who has received a board opinion or advice may petition for a declaratory order pursuant to Iowa Code section 17A.9. The IPIB may refuse to issue a declaratory order to a person who has previously received a board opinion on the same question, unless the requestor demonstrates a significant change in circumstances from those in the board opinion.