Relating to the Mississippi river parkway commission

Under current law, the Mississippi parkway planning commission is composed of 10 members appointed by the governor. This bill renames the commission to the Mississippi river parkway commission (MRPC) and requires the 10 members to each reside in a different county adjacent to the Mississippi river in Iowa. Current law requires seven advisory, ex officio members to serve on the MRPC, one each from the state transportation commission, the natural resource commission, the state soil conservation and water quality committee, the state historical society of Iowa, the faculty of the landscape architectural division of the Iowa state university of science and technology, the economic development authority, and the environmental protection commission. The bill instead requires four advisory, ex officio members, one member each from the state department of transportation, the natural resource commission, the economic development authority, and the state historical society of Iowa. The bill requires the MRPC to submit a report regarding the economic impact of the great river road on Iowa on or before December 15 each year to the general assembly and to the governor. As used in Code chapter 308, “great river road” means a scenic and recreational highway consisting of a designated system of roads and streets along the Mississippi river in Iowa. The bill authorizes the MRPC to establish a technical committee to advise the MRPC. If established, members of the committee must include at least one employee each from the departments of transportation and agriculture and land stewardship, from the consumer protection division of the office of the attorney general, and from the economic development authority, designated by the applicable head of the entity. The MRPC may also request any other state agency to designate an employee to serve on the committee.