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Commission told state law will require ordinance to expand civil service commission to five members
Summary
Staff updated commissioners that new state law requires cities to establish civil service commissions by ordinance and allows commissions of five to seven members; staff said city council has completed a first reading and vacancies will be posted after ordinance adoption.
City staff told the Iowa City Civil Service Commission on July 16 that a change in state law will require the city to adopt an ordinance formally establishing the civil service commission and increasing its size.
Staff said the law requires ordinance adoption to establish a civil service commission of not less than five and not more than seven members (the transcript referenced "house or senate file 311"). City staff said an ordinance has already had its first reading at city council and could be adopted as early as Aug. 5 if the council expedites action. Once adopted, the city clerk will post vacancies for 30 days; staff estimated appointments would likely be made in mid-September or early October, at which point the commission would increase from its current three members to five.
Staff told the commission the draft ordinance includes provisions for four-year overlapping terms and details for assigning initial terms to new appointees so terms rotate. Because a larger commission changes administrative logistics, staff said they plan to review and update the commission's administrative procedures and appeals-handling procedures and will convene the current members for a work session in August to gather input.
Why it matters: the ordinance will change the commission's membership size and term structure and requires staff and commissioners to prepare administrative procedures for a larger body.
Discussion and next steps: commissioners asked for a copy of the draft ordinance before the next meeting; staff agreed to provide it. Staff also said some older commission procedures (including a separate appeals document dating to the 1980s) may need revision and that they will request guidance from the city attorney's office as needed.
The commission did not take formal action on the ordinance at this meeting; staff framed the update as preparatory and signaled further meetings to review procedures.
