Legislation

Legislation is one of the most important functions of the Central Iowa Apartment Alliance.  A strong grassroots effort is needed in order to affect change in legislation that will benefit our industry.  The CIAA Legislative Committee will stay on top of current legislative issues, declare our support or opposition to certain bills, and lead the charge for positive change.

It's important to know who your legislators are and how to contact them.  The links below will help you find this information.

To search for your legislator, click here and enter your address.

To see Iowa's Congressional Districts, click here.

For a map of Senate districts, click here.

For a map of House districts, click here.

  Legislation to Watch

2010 - Was part of a coalition of groups that included the Iowa State Bar Association. Landlords of Iowa, the Attorney General, the Iowa Association of Realtors and Legal Aid to draft and pass a bill that changed the notice provisions of 562A as a result of the War Eagle decision. CIAA was an important part of these meetings.

• Worked against a bill (HF 2038) that would have required landlords to pay interest on rental deposits. That bill died.
• Monitored legislation on attorneys fees in landlord/tenant disputes, increasing the small claims jurisdictional limit to $10,000, carbon monoxide detectors, fire sprinkler and evictions as a result of clear and present danger.

2011 - Worked against a bill 9SSB 1049/HSB 78) that would have allowed telecommunitcations providers unfettered access to your property under the guise of "serving (their) customers". That bill died.

• Worked in favor of several variations of property tax relief. SF 522, which was amended by the House to include their much more expansive view, now sits in the Senate Ways and Means committee.
• Worked on a proposal by a domestic violence group that would have given landlords the ability to bifuricate leases; however, the bill was poorly worded and needed additional clarity in order to be truly effective. The bill died.
• Monitored legislation on lead paint, retention of rental deposits, disposition of an evicted tenant's property, access by political candidates to multi-unit housing and local ordinances prohibiting discrimination against renters.

2012 - We will introduce a bill that creates a framework for landlord liability with regard to bedbugs. The draft is an NAA Model bill that will undoubtedly be tweaked in the process; however, it is important for us to be proactive on this issue specifically.

• We will also introduce a bill that overhauls Iowa Code Chapter 562A, the Iowa Uniform Residential Landlord Tenant Act. The bill, which is the work of CIAA Counsel Ross Barnett and Joe Wallace, will give some much-needed clarity to judges, magistrates, landlords and tenants when applying and interpreting 562A.

The Legislative Committee will meet shortly to establish legislative priorities for 2012-2013. Let us know what your most important issues are.  Email your ideas to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

The Rules Committee is working on the specifics of the smoking ban that will take effect on July 1.  If you are interested in joining a roundtable discussion on the impact of this ban to the rental industry, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  It's important to know what you will need to do to comply with the ban, as well as what rights you and your residents have retained.

This is the single-most important piece of legislation for us.  

YOUR HELP IS URGENTLY NEEDED! Contact your legislators and tell them it's time for tax relief for rental properties and the taxpayers who reside at them.  It is important for them to know how this will positively affect businesses as well as their renter constituents!  You can reach your Senator's office by calling (515) 281-3371, and your Representative's office by calling (515) 281-3221.

You can find you legislator by clicking here and typing in your address.  You can also go back to our Legislative page for maps and other contact information.

Share your progress with us.  Email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and let us know who you contacted and what the results were.