Terms Used In Iowa Code > Chapter 384 - City Finance

• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Amendment: means a revision or repeal of an existing ordinance or code of ordinances. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Amortization: Paying off a loan by regular installments.
• and: includes the disjunctive "or" and the use of the disjunctive "or" includes the conjunctive "and" unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. See Iowa Code 384.23
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Charter: means the form of government selected by a city as provided in chapter 372. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Child: includes child by adoption. See Iowa Code 4.1
• child care: means providing for the care, supervision, and guidance of a child by a person other than the parent, guardian, relative, or custodian for periods of less than twenty-four hours per day on a regular basis. See Iowa Code 384.24
• City code: means the city code of Iowa. See Iowa Code 362.2
• City enterprise: means any of the following, including the real estate, fixtures, equipment, accessories, appurtenances, and all property necessary or useful for the operation of any of the following:
   a. See Iowa Code 384.24
• City utility: means all or part of a waterworks, gasworks, sanitary sewage system, storm water drainage system, electric light and power plant and system, heating plant, cable communication or television system, telephone or telecommunications systems or services offered separately or combined with any system or service specified in this subsection or authorized by other law, any of which are owned by a city, including all land, easements, rights-of-way, fixtures, equipment, accessories, improvements, appurtenances, and other property necessary or useful for the operation of the utility. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Clerk: means the recording and recordkeeping officer of a city regardless of title. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
• Combined city enterprise: means two or more city enterprises combined and operated as a single enterprise. See Iowa Code 384.80
• Combined service account: means a customer service account for the provision of two or more utility or enterprise services, regardless of whether those services are being provided by a single city, or by any combination of city utilities, combined utility systems, city enterprises, or combined city enterprises of one or more cities. See Iowa Code 384.80
• Combined utility system: means two or more city utilities owned by a single city, and combined and operated as a single system. See Iowa Code 384.80
• Construction: includes materials, labor, acts, operations and services necessary to complete a public improvement. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Council: means the governing body of a city. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Council member: means a member of a council, including an alderman. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• District: means the lots or parts of lots within boundaries established by the council for the purpose of the assessment of the cost of a public improvement. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Engineer: means a professional engineer, licensed in the state of Iowa, authorized by the council to render services in connection with the public improvement. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Essential corporate purpose: means :
   a. See Iowa Code 384.24
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Fee simple: Absolute title to property with no limitations or restrictions regarding the person who may inherit it.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• General corporate purpose: means :
   a. See Iowa Code 384.24
• General obligation bond: means a negotiable bond issued by a city and payable from the levy of unlimited ad valorem taxes on all the taxable property within the city through its debt service fund which is required to be established by section 384. See Iowa Code 384.24
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Governing body: means the public body which by law is charged with the management and control of a city utility, combined utility system, city enterprise, or combined city enterprise. See Iowa Code 384.80
• Governmental body: means the United States of America or an agency thereof, a state, a political subdivision of a state, a school corporation, a public authority, a public district, or any other public body. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Grade: means the longitudinal reference lines, as established by ordinance of the council, which designate the elevations at which a street or sidewalk is to be built. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Gravel: includes gravel, crushed rock, cinders, shale and similar materials suitable for street construction or repair. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Internet: means the federated international system that is composed of allied electronic communication networks linked by telecommunication channels, that uses standardized protocols, and that facilitates electronic communication services, including but not limited to use of the world wide web; the transmission of electronic mail or messages; the transfer of files and data or other electronic information; and the transmission of voice, image, and video. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Internet site: means a specific location on the internet that is determined by internet protocol numbers, by a domain name, or by both, including but not limited to domain names that use the designations ". See Iowa Code 4.1
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Landlord: means the owner of record of a rental property, or a real estate manager or management company appointed by the owner to administer rental property. See Iowa Code 384.80
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Lot: means a parcel of land under one ownership, including improvements, against which a separate assessment is made. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Main sewer: means a sewer which serves as an outlet for two or more lateral sewers, and which is commonly referred to as an intercepting sewer, outfall sewer or trunk sewer. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Measure: means an ordinance, amendment, resolution, or motion. See Iowa Code 362.2
• month: means a calendar month, and the word "year" and the abbreviation "A. See Iowa Code 4.1
• motion: means a council statement of policy or a council order for action to be taken, but "motion" does not require a recorded vote. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Net revenues: means gross revenues less operating expenses. See Iowa Code 384.80
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Officer: means a natural person elected or appointed to a fixed term and exercising some portion of the power of a city. See Iowa Code 362.2
• Oil: means any asphaltic or bituminous material suitable for street construction or repair. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Ordinance: means a city law of a general and permanent nature. See Iowa Code 362.2
• owner: means the owner or owners of property, as shown by the transfer books in the office of the county auditor of the county in which the property is located. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Parking facilities: means parking lots or other off-street areas for the parking of vehicles, including areas below or above the surface of streets. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Paving: means any kind of hard street surface, including, but not limited to, concrete, bituminous concrete, brick, stabilized gravel, or combinations of these, together with or without curb and gutter. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Person: means an individual, firm, partnership, domestic or foreign corporation, company, association or joint stock association, trust, or other legal entity, and includes a trustee, receiver, assignee, or similar representative thereof, but does not include a governmental body. See Iowa Code 362.2
• personal property: include money, goods, chattels, evidences of debt, and things in action. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Pledge order: means a promise to pay out of the net revenues of a city utility, combined utility system, city enterprise, or combined city enterprise, which is delivered to the contractors or other persons in payment of all or part of the cost of the project. See Iowa Code 384.80
• preschool: means child care which provides to children ages three through five, for periods of time not exceeding three hours per day, programs designed to help the children to develop intellectual skills, and motor skills, and to extend their interest and understanding of the world about them. See Iowa Code 384.24
• Pretrial conference: A meeting of the judge and lawyers to discuss which matters should be presented to the jury, to review evidence and witnesses, to set a timetable, and to discuss the settlement of the case.
• Private property: means all property within the district except streets. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Project: means the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, extending, remodeling, improving, repairing, and equipping of all or part of a city utility, combined utility system, city enterprise, or combined city enterprise, or a water resource restoration project within or without the corporate limits of the city. See Iowa Code 384.80
• property: includes personal and real property. See Iowa Code 4.1
• property owner: means the contract purchaser if there is one of record, otherwise the record holder of legal title. See Iowa Code 364.12
• Proposal: means a legal bid on work advertised for a public improvement under chapter 26. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Public debt: Cumulative amounts borrowed by the Treasury Department or the Federal Financing Bank from the public or from another fund or account. The public debt does not include agency debt (amounts borrowed by other agencies of the Federal Government). The total public debt is subject to a statutory limit.
• Public improvement: includes the principal structures, works, component parts and accessories of any of the following:
   a. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Publication: means public notice given in the manner provided in section 362. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Railways: means all railways except street railways. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Rates: means rates, fees, tolls, rentals, and charges for the use of or service provided by a city utility, combined utility system, city enterprise, or combined city enterprise. See Iowa Code 384.80
• real property: include lands, tenements, hereditaments, and all rights thereto and interests therein, equitable as well as legal. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Repair: includes materials, labor, acts, operations and services necessary for the repair, reconstruction, reconstruction by widening or resurfacing of a public improvement. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Revenue bond: means a negotiable bond issued by a city and payable from the net revenues of a city utility, combined utility system, city enterprise, or combined city enterprise. See Iowa Code 384.80
• road: include public bridges, and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" "common road" and "state road". See Iowa Code 4.1
• Rule: includes "regulation". See Iowa Code 4.1
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Sewer: means structures designed, constructed and used for the purpose of controlling or carrying off streams, surface waters, waste or sanitary sewage. See Iowa Code 384.37
• Signature: includes an electronic signature as defined in section 554D. See Iowa Code 4.1
• state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Street: means a public street, highway, boulevard, avenue, alley, parkway, public place, plaza, mall or publicly owned right-of-way or easement within the limits of the city. See Iowa Code 384.37
• summary: shall mean a narrative description of the terms and conditions of an ordinance setting forth the main points of the ordinance in a manner calculated to inform the public in a clear and understandable manner the meaning of the ordinance and which shall provide the public with sufficient notice to conform to the desired conduct required by the ordinance. See Iowa Code 331.302
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• undertaking: means a promise or security in any form. See Iowa Code 4.1
• United States: includes all the states. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Water resource restoration project: means the acquisition of real property or improvements or other activity or undertaking that will assist in improving the quality of the water in the watershed where a city water or wastewater utility is located. See Iowa Code 384.80
• week: means seven consecutive days. See Iowa Code 4.1
• year: means twelve consecutive months. See Iowa Code 4.1