Ames human-relations panel asks council to explore local civil-rights ordinance after state changes; council orders data 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 recent legislation removed gender-identity protections and limited the state office’s powers. “Ames has long opposed such discrimination,” Kornbach said, and he urged the council to consider drafting a local ordinance and procedures so prohibitions can be enforced at the municipal level.

Council members responded by approving two steps to pursue more information and analysis. A councilor moved that the mayor contact the Iowa Office of Civil Rights to request the data or an explanation; the motion passed on a voice vote. The council then directed the city attorney to pursue a Freedom of Information request for the records the commission expected to receive.

Council discussion stressed practical concerns staff said must be addressed before pursuing local enforcement. Members asked staff to produce a memo analyzing legal authority under home-rule, the potential costs and staffing implications of reinstating local investigatory or enforcement capacity, and implementation steps. Staff noted that the AHRC moved away from investigating individual complaints around 2019 because of resource constraints; councilors said any return to local enforcement would require clarity on funding, personnel and whether municipalities legally can reestablish protections that the state removed.

Public commenters who identified as students and residents asked the council to prioritize protections for transgender residents and other groups now excluded at the state level. Aaron O’Brien, representing the Coalition for University Equity, said that removing gender-identity protections from the Iowa Civil Rights Act “has jeopardized my ability to stay in Ames” and asked the council to consider city-code protections to preserve housing and employment access.

What happens next: City staff were asked to produce a detailed memo on legal authority, costs and possible ordinance language and to place the item on a future council agenda for fuller consideration.