Recruit women now for local boards

A new law requiring gender balance on local boards and commissions could go a long way toward making those boards more representative of the communities they serve.

But some Corridor cities have a longer road to travel than others in order to get there.

It will be worth it: the state Commission on the Status of Women predicts that gender balance on local panels could triple the number of women leaders in Iowa communities, broadening those communities' leadership pools and equipping hundreds of women to serve Iowa in other capacities.

Local governments in The Corridor and throughout the state shouldn't wait until the deadline to take up this challenge. They should start now in encouraging qualified women to serve on local boards and commissions.

Gender balance has been required for state boards and commissions since 1987. Local gender balance legislation goes into effect in January, 2012. It does not include elected offices, and can be waived if no qualified candidates are available to balance out a panel.

Only a handful of local governments already have gender balance requirements, according to the Commission on the Status of Women.

Last week, a Gazette reporter found that in Coralville, women fill about one-third of the seats on city boards and commissions, and in Marion they hold only one seat in five.

In Cedar Rapids, 31 percent of those positions are now held by women. In Iowa City, that number is 41 percent.

The gender imbalance is especially pronounced on certain types of panels.

When the Commission on the Status of Women studied the composition of four key local decision-making boards across the state, they found women only held 18 percent of seats on local boards of compensation, planning and zoning, condemnation and adjustment.

Men throughout the state are underrepresented on other types of boards and commissions, such as libraries and human services.

Gender balance will help bring new perspectives to every type of local panel.

The local balance requirement can be waived if the local governmental body can't find a qualified candidate to fill the position after three months of searching.

But there are certainly qualified female candidates out there: women outnumber men in 90 of Iowa's 99 counties, they volunteer at a higher rate than men and are more likely to have associates and bachelors degrees, according to the Commission on the Status of Women. Women own, are partners in or operate 47 percent of the state's agricultural land.

People agree that part of the problem is in getting women to step up to the plate. Studies have shown most women wait to be asked before entering public service.

Women of Iowa, consider yourselves asked.