Secrecy, weak investigations plague Iowa’s licensing boards, ombudsman says

Several Iowa boards regulating licensed professionals have hidden poor investigations under a veil of secrecy, according to a report released Monday by the Iowa Office of Ombudsman.

The 17-page report reviewed procedures of four of Iowa's 36 licensing boards that govern professions ranging from medicine and cosmetology to interior design and real estate.

The report doesn't name which boards were investigated because state law considers the boards' investigative files and closed-session meetings confidential. But all the boards singled out for review had been the subject of complaints to the Ombudsman's office, the agency said.

'It has been easy for these boards to do less than their best because, for years, no one has been in a position to evaluate their work,” the report states. 'We believe it is imperative that the state's licensing boards be more accountable to the public they serve.”

Among the findings were instances of:

l Incomplete investigations:

In three cases, boards didn't conduct thorough investigations. In one case, the board did not interview the licensee being investigated for possible sanctions.

l Delegating decisions:

Two boards delegate investigations to subcommittees that constitute less than a quorum.

l Poor documentation:

The four boards created no written record that explained the basis of their decisions.

l Conflicts of interest: It's common for licensing boards to include professionals licensed by the same board. In one case, a board member recently had worked for the licensee, but did not recuse himself or herself.

l Unprofessional behavior:

In one instance, board members made 'derogatory, inappropriate and ... appalling comments” during a closed-session meeting that 'suggest that at least some of the board members may have been biased against the complainants and certain licensees.”

l Uninformative closing letters:

Some of the letters to complainants gave no information about how the decision was reached, leaving complainants to wonder if the concerns were taken seriously.

Kristie Hirschman, acting ombudsman, said Monday she doesn't think the issues identified in the probe are limited to the four boards.

'I believe this is a systemic problem that needed to be brought to the public's attention,” she said.

The ombudsman's office made 20 recommendations, some of which the boards chose to adopt. The ombudsman has no enforcement authority.

It's unclear whether concerns raised in the report would be moot if the Iowa Legislature adopts a bill removing licensing requirements for 10 professions, including audiologists, social workers, marital and family counselors and mental health counselors.

House Study Bill 138, introduced last week, would instead require professionals only to pay a fee and register.

Some Iowans last week expressed dismay about the proposal, which they say would open the door to unqualified professionals and make it so the public has no recourse.

l Comments: (319) 339-3157; erin.jordan@thegazette.com