HomeMy WebLinkAboutSupplemental Attachments - 10/14/2019City of Waterloo
Finance Committee Preliminary Draft Invoice Report
For October 14 2019 Approval
Finance Committee Accounts Payable Open Invoice Report Total
As of Friday, October 11, 2019
EFT Transactions:
Add: Wellmark Claims
Add: Wellmark Claims
Remove Menards
Remove United States Department of the Interior
2,299,712.19
200,346.45
153,174.32
(33.89)
(9,530.00)
Workers Compensation Issued by TPA
Housing Authority Housing Assistance EFT's
Housing Authority Housing Assistance EFT's
Payroll
2,643,669.07 1
9,684.31
4,874.98
1,763,486.41
Bill Payment Total - Monday, October 14, 2019
4,421,714.77
Payment to Council bears or related en
BELINNICORMICK
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
Ryan G. Koopmans
Direct Dial: (515) 283-4617
Direct Fax: (515) 558-0617
E-mail: rkoopmans@belinmccormick.com
October 14, 2019
VIA E-MAIL
Waterloo City Council Members
Sharon Juon (sharon.juon@waterloo-ia.org)
Steven J. Schmitt (steve.schmitt@waterloo-ia.org)
Margaret Klein (margaret.klein@waterloo-ia.org)
Bruce Jacobs (bruce.jacobs@waterloo-ia.org)
Patrick Morrissey (pat.morrissey@waterloo-ia.org)
Jerome Amos Jr. (jerome.amos@waterloo-ia.org)
Ray Feuss (ray.feuss@waterloo-ia.org)
Re: Criminal History Ordinance
Dear Council Members:
I represent the Iowa Association of Business and Industry (ABI) in relation to the City's
ordinance regulating the use of criminal history in hiring decisions.
ABI is Iowa's largest business organization, representing 1,500 companies across the state
that, collectively, employ 333,000 Iowans, including thousands in Waterloo. Many—indeed, most—
of these employers are struggling to find workers to fill vacant positions. With an unemployment
rate at or near an all-time low for the last two years, and with the changing demand for workforce
skills, ABI's interest is to encourage as many Iowans as possible to become fully employed.
To that end, ABI supports the City Council's focus on the underemployment of Iowans with
criminal records. These Iowans have made mistakes, some of them serious, but have served their
sentence and now want nothing more than to be productive members of society. ABI joins the
Waterloo City Council, the Governor, and others who are looking for ways to help these Iowans and
to encourage employers to give them a second chance. But the ordinance passed by the City Council
on October 7 is not the answer, and we believe it may even harm the City Council's laudable goal.
Biu. McCormick, P.C. 666 Walnut Street 1 Suite 2000 1 Des Moines, Iowa 50309 P 515.243.7100 1 BelinMcCormick.com
October 14, 2019
Page 2
The ordinance, which expands state and federal discrimination laws by giving protected
status to applicants with criminal records, is extremely broad (possibly one of the broadest in the
country) and will create serious regulatory and practical hurdles for businesses that have chosen to
locate in Waterloo. It goes well beyond the ban -the -box policies of many states and cities (a policy
that, by itself, has been shown to actually increase discriminatory practices in employment'), and will
likely lead to fewer businesses locating or expanding in Waterloo.
The ordinance also violates Iowa law. In 2017, in response to a patchwork of county and
municipal ordinances regulating employment policies, the legislature passed and the Governor
signed a bill that forbids a city from adopting an ordinance that will "exceed or conflict with the
requirements of ... state law relating to ... hiring practices." Iowa Code Ann. § 364.3.
Iowa law, most notably the Iowa Civil Rights Act, places limitations on what employers
cannot consider in making employment decisions. Waterloo's new ordinance exceeds State
requirements, adding a new protective class (applicants with criminal histories) and places additional
limits on employers' hiring practices. The criminal -history ordinance is therefore unenforceable and
will likely lead to litigation costs for the City, its taxpayers, and employers.
We understand that the City Council is considering amendments to the ordinance. We
instead ask that you repeal it in full and work with the Governor, the legislature, and stakeholders in
finding ways to encourage and foster employment of rehabilitated Iowans. Continuing to implement
and enforce this ordinance will only lead to unnecessary litigation costs and will distract (maybe even
detract) from the City Council's well-intentioned purpose.
ABI appreciates the City Council's efforts to expand employment opportunities for all
Iowans and welcomes further efforts in that regard.
1 Agan, Amanda, and Sonja Starr. 2018. Ban the Box, Criminal Records, and Racial Discrimination: A Field
Experiment. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 133., available at
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract id=2795795;
Doleac, Jennifer L., and Benjamin Hansen. 2018. The unintended consequences of "ban the box": Statistical
discrimination and employment outcomes when criminal histories are hidden. Working paper, available at
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract id=2812811.
BELIN MCCORMICK, P.C. 666 Walnut Street 1 Suite 2000 1 Des Moines, Iowa 50309 P 515.243.7100 1 BelinMcCormick.com
October 14, 2019
Page 3
Sincerely,
Ryan G. Koopmans
RGK/1m
cc: The Honorable Quentin M. Hart
Martin M. Peterson
Mike Ralston
Nicole Crain
BELINMCCORMICK, P.C. 666 Walnut Street 1 Suite 2000 1 Des Moines, Iowa 50309 P 515.243.7100 1 BelinMcCormick.com