26FC:0081 Chey Hixson v. City of Mitchellville Mayor - Dismissal Order

The Iowa Public Information Board

COMES NOW, Charlotte Miller, Executive Director for the Iowa Public Information Board (IPIB), and enters this Dismissal Order:

On March 19, 2026, Chey Hixson (Complainant) filed formal complaint 26FC:0081, alleging that the Mayor of the City of Mitchellville (Respondent) violated Iowa Code Chapter 22.

Facts

On March 19, 2026, Complainant filed formal complaint 26FC:0081, alleging Respondent violated Chapter 22. The complaint included multiple related allegations, including:

1. An allegation that Respondent was forwarding city business through a personal email account rather than his official government-issued email;

2. An allegation that Respondent shared city emails with his wife without a formal Chapter 22 request for the same, and the emails were later shared on social media; and

3. General concerns about records retention and government ethics in light of the above.

Applicable Law

“Every person shall have the right to examine and copy a public record and to publish or otherwise disseminate a public record or the information contained in a public record.” Iowa Code § 22.2(1).

Analysis

1. Forwarding of City Emails to a Personal Inbox

Although IPIB advises that keeping personal and public email accounts separate is best practice for the ease of handling Chapter 22 requests, there is nothing in Chapter 22 which actually mandates this separation. If the emails sent or shared with Respondent’s personal email constitute public records “of or belonging to” the city as a government body, then they would still be subject to disclosure under Chapter 22 regardless of their location, as “[i]t is the nature and purpose of the document, not the place where it is kept, which determines its status.” Linder v. Eckard, 152 N.W.2d 833, 835 (Iowa 1967). Because there is no allegation that any public records have been improperly withheld from Complainant as a result of this forwarding, the allegation does not present a facial violation of Chapter 22.

2. Disclosure of Records to the Mayor’s Wife

While the public typically obtains access to public records through a Chapter 22 records request, there is also nothing in Chapter 22 which suggests an affirmative request must be filed before a government official or employee is permitted to disclose a record.

If the city email records allegedly disclosed by Respondent to his wife were non-confidential, then Iowa Code § 22.2(1) would give her the same right as any other member of the public “to publish or otherwise disseminate a public record or the information contained in a public record.” This would include publication to social media.

Complainant does not allege the records were entitled to confidentiality. While it is likely that Respondent would be a “person duly authorized to release [the] information” for the purposes of the first sentence of Iowa Code § 22.7 based on his position as mayor, IPIB does not need to reach this issue in its analysis if the complaint is only alleging a lack of a formal Chapter 22 request prior to the release of records.

3. Records Retention & Government Ethics Concerns

Chapter 22 does not impose general retention requirements for public records, though other areas of the law may. IPIB also does not have the jurisdiction to address ethics concerns outside of Chapter 21 or Chapter 22.

Conclusion

Iowa Code § 23.8 requires that a complaint be within the IPIB’s jurisdiction, appear legally sufficient, and have merit before the IPIB accepts a complaint. Following a review of the allegations on their face, it is found that this complaint does not meet those requirements.

Because neither Respondent’s forwarding of emails nor his disclosure of city emails to his wife constitute potential violations of Chapter 22, and because any retention or ethics concerns raised as a result would be beyond IPIB’s statutory jurisdiction, the complaint must be dismissed on facial review.

IT IS SO ORDERED:  Formal complaint 26FC:0081 is dismissed as it is legally insufficient and outside of IPIB’s jurisdiction pursuant to Iowa Code § 23.8(2) and Iowa Administrative Rule 497-2.1(2)(b).

Pursuant to Iowa Administrative Rule 497-2.1(3), the IPIB may “delegate acceptance or dismissal of a complaint to the executive director, subject to review by the board.”  The IPIB will review this Order on April 16, 2026.  Pursuant to IPIB rule 497-2.1(4), the parties will be notified in writing of its decision.

By the IPIB Executive Director,

_________________________

Charlotte J.M. Miller, J.D.

CERTIFICATE OF MAILING

This document was sent on April 8, 2026, to:

Chey Hixson, Complainant