The Iowa Open Records Law is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels. The law includes all records of government agencies except where the documents have been deemed confidential. Exemptions include:
Personal information on accepted students, current students, and past students
Medical records
Trade Secrets
Records of attorneys who represent the state
Reports that result in unfair competition
Appraisal information for public land purchases
Criminal files
Military confidential records
Personal information in records of employees and elected officials of public agencies
Library records
Information on the donors of charitable contributions
Corrections department information that would jeopardize security.
Communications made to the government but not required by statute
Examinations
Archaeological and historical ecologically sensitive material locations and information
Marketing and advertising budgets and strategies for non-profits
Information maintained by mediators employed to solve the disputes with government agencies
Anyone can request public records and the law does not require a statement of purpose for records requests. There are no restrictions for use of the records in the law and you must allow 10-20 days for a record request response to be completed.
