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Ames human-relations panel asks council to explore local civil-rights ordinance after state changes; council orders data request
Summary
The Ames Human Relations Commission presented its 2024 report and urged the city to consider a local ordinance after state law changes narrowed protections. Councilors directed the mayor to request missing complaint data from the Iowa Office of Civil Rights and asked the city attorney to pursue a public-records request.
Annabelle Marquez, chair of the Ames Human Relations Commission, told the Ames City Council that the commission expanded membership, marked its 50th anniversary and stepped up outreach in 2024 — but noted a key gap: “the Iowa Office of Civil Rights failed to send us their data regarding civil complaints here in Ames.”
That missing data focused attention on recent state legislative changes and prompted public testimony urging local action. Senator Kornbach, a longtime Ames resident who addressed the council during public comment, said the city has relied on chapter 216 of the Code of Iowa and the renamed state Office of Civil Rights but that…
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