The bill establishes a Rural Attorney Recruitment Assistance Program aimed at helping rural counties and municipalities in Iowa recruit attorneys. The program will be administered by the department, which will conduct assessments to determine the eligibility of counties and municipalities based on their population and distance from larger cities. Eligible counties or municipalities must have a population of less than 26,000 and be located more than 20 miles from a city with at least 50,000 residents. The program will provide incentive payments to participating attorneys, amounting to 90% of the University of Iowa College of Law resident tuition and fees, distributed in five equal annual installments.

Additionally, the bill outlines the responsibilities of both the counties or municipalities and the attorneys involved in the program. Counties or municipalities must contribute 35% of the total incentive payments, while attorneys are required to practice law full-time in the eligible area for at least five years and participate in volunteer legal projects. A Rural Attorney Recruitment Assistance Program Fund is created to manage the financial aspects of the program, which is limited to supporting five attorneys in its initial year. The bill also stipulates that individuals who have previously participated in similar programs are ineligible for this assistance.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 8.33