§ 573.15A — Early release of retained funds

Iowa § 573.15A

• Jurisdiction: Iowa
• Title XIV: PROPERTY
• Ch. 573: LABOR AND MATERIAL ON PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS

Text

Notwithstanding section 573.14, a public corporation may release retained funds upon
completion of ninety-five percent of the contract in accordance with the following:
1. Any person, firm, or corporation who has, under contract with the principal contractor
or with subcontractors, performed labor, or furnished materials, service, or transportation, in
the construction of the public improvement, may file with the public corporation an itemized,
sworn, written statement of the claim for the labor, or materials, service, or transportation.
The claim shall be filed with the public corporation either before the expiration of the thirty
days after completion of ninety-five percent of the contract or at any time after the thirty-day
period if the public corporation has not paid the full contract price and no action is pending
to adjudicate rights in and to the unpaid portion of the contract price.
2. The fund, as provided in section 573.13, shall be retained by the public corporation for
a period of thirty days after ninety-five percent of the contract has been completed. If at the
end of the thirty-day period, a claim has been filed, in accordance with this section, the public
corporation shall continue to retain from the unpaid funds, a sum equal to double the total
amount of all claims on file. The remaining balance of the unpaid fund, or if there are no
claims on file, the entire unpaid fund, may be released and paid to the contractor.
3. The public corporation, the principal contractor, or any claimant for labor or materials,
service, or transportation, who has filed a claim or the surety on any bond given for
performance of the contract, at any time after the expiration of thirty days, and not later than
sixty days after the completion of ninety-five percent of the contract, may bring an action in
equity in the county where the public improvement is located to determine rights to moneys
contained in the fund or to enforce liability on the bond. The action shall be brought in
accordance with sections 573.16 through 573.18, with the completion of ninety-five percent
of the contract taking the place of the date of final acceptance.
4. A public corporation that releases funds at the completion of ninety-five percent of the
contract, in accordance with this section, shall not be required to retain additional funds.