HomeMy WebLinkAboutA006 - Email from City Attorney dated August 4, 2021 - Correction Voss, Diane
From: Lambert, Mark
Sent: Wednesday, August 4, 2021 2:15 PM
To: City Council and Mayor; Schainker, Steve; Phillips, Brian; Schildroth, Deb; Diekmann,
Kelly
Cc: Voss, Diane
Subject: CORRECTION from last night's Council meeting
Importance: High
Mayor and Council:
In response to a question from a Council member, staff last night said that a petition calling for a public vote on
the bonds must be filed "by the end of the public hearing." That was incorrect. The Code of Iowa states
that such petitions must be filed no later than the day before the date of the public hearing. Iowa Code
section 384.26(5)(b) —"If at any time before the date fixed for taking action for the issuance of the bonds, a
petition is filed with the clerk of the city..." So, a petition coming in the morning or afternoon of the day of the
public hearing, or during the public hearing, would not be valid --the petition must be filed with the Clerk no
later than close of business the day before the public hearing.
The Trib reporter, Danielle, asked me during the break to confirm when the petition would have to be filed. I
told her I didn't know the answer, and I had to look it up. I looked it up and then informed her at the end of the
Council meeting. So, Danielle has the correct information for her article. I didn't know what the requirement
was at the time the question was asked, or I would have spoken up.
Here are a few other items about the process:
1. The notice of public hearing must be published at least 10 days prior to the date of the public
hearing. Iowa Code section 384.26(5)(a).
2. The notice has to include a statement of the amount and purpose of the bonds, the time and place for
the public hearing, and notice of the right to petition for an election.
3. We've already determined that 477 is the number of signatures required on a petition to force an
election on bond approval.
4. That's 477 "eligible electors." Iowa Code section 49.3 defines "eligible elector" as "a person who
possesses all of the qualifications necessary to entitle the person to be registered to vote, whether or
not the person is in fact so registered." So, an eligible elector in this case is someone who is 1) 18
years of age 2) lives in the Ames city limits and 3) hasn't been deemed ineligible to vote (such as a
convicted felon). You do not need to actually be registered to vote to be an eligible elector.
5. Petitions must include the signatures of the petitioners, their address, and the date on which they
signed the petition. Iowa Code section 362.4(1).
6. The petition must be filed with the City Clerk no later than the day before the public hearing. Iowa Code
section 384.26(5)(b) —"If at any time before the date fixed for taking action for the issuance of the
bonds, a petition is filed with the clerk of the city..."
7. Our practice has been to require the original petition pages with actual signatures be physically filed
with the City Clerk. We've had one lawyer argue with us about that in the past, but that's standard
practice in elections in Iowa -- candidates for office filing their petitions to get on the ballot cannot just e-
mail in scanned copies of their petitions.
If any questions, please let me know.
Mark
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