The Crawford County Board of Supervisors is the latest group of Iowa elected officials to run afoul of the state open records law by restricting how members of the public can ask for records. According to the Iowa Capital Dispatch, the board erroneously told a citizen she had to submit an information request in writing.

Iowa’s open records law allows people to ask for information in person, or “in writing, by telephone, or by electronic means.” In recent years, some Iowa local governments and state agencies have illegally told citizens, including reporters, that they had to submit requests in writing. Sometimes, they even demanded people use an online portal.

Crawford County Democratic Party Chairwoman Beth Ann Vogt had requested a copy of the county’s public records policy after a local controversy over the ownership of a communications tower. She noticed that the county required information requests to be in writing, in conflict with state law.

Vogt filed a formal complaint with the Iowa Public Information Board. The board’s staff lawyers on Thursday recommended the panel find that the the complaint had “merit.” That would mean the parties would have to negotiate an informal resolution. But the supervisors moved to change the policy after an assistant county attorney pointed out the conflict with state law. Vogt withdrew her complaint Thursday.

The board soon will vote on a new policy the county attorney’s office is drafting, to comply with state law.