Decorah approves MEU info ahead of March 4 vote

By Seth Boyes,

Officials with the city of Decorah are moving forward with plans to distribute educational materials to residents ahead of a March ballot measure to potentially establish a municipal electric utility. 

Alliant Energy, which currently supplies electricity to most of the city, took issue with the city’s drafted materials, claiming the information was biased and that disseminating such materials might violate state law. However, officials with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board said on Dec. 19 they foresaw no issues with the city’s plans to share the proposed information. The Decorah City Council held a special meeting Monday, Dec. 23 and approved a master list of information for the materials on a 5-1 vote, with Ward 5 Councilman Randy Schissel casting the lone dissenting vote. 

Decorah voters will be asked to decide on March 4 whether the city should establish an MEU. 

City staff indicated the recently-approved master list of information — which is available on the city’s website — will allow those tasked with creating flyers and mailers ahead of the March vote to draw from a bank of neutral statements. Staff indicated materials which use information from the master list could potentially be approved by Decorah City Manager Travis Goedken, rather than being individually approved by the city council or other body.

Local residents previously voted down a 2018 proposal to create an MEU — that ballot item fell three votes shy of approval.

Full article available in the January 2 Decorah Leader.

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