Regulatory Assistance

The Regulatory & Compliance Assistance Team provides leadership and direction to citizens, business and communities in the increasingly complex area of regulatory compliance. Assisting clients with regulatory understanding and assistance, working through regulatory issues impacting economic development and striving to improve access to resources and best practices, the Team works directly with individuals, small, medium and large business, local units of government and community organizations. The Regulatory and Business Assistance Team provides confidential, non regulatory point of contact with information, outreach and direct technical assistance. FY '10 was a busy year with the following highlights:

• Continued to streamline access to state government regulatory agencies and services by leading the Iowa Business and Regulatory Assistance Network, ensuring Business Coordinators established in regulatory agencies work with the IDED Regulatory Assistance Coordinator to promptly service small business and entrepreneurial start ups in addition to industrial expansions and new site locations.
• The Regulatory Assistance Coordinator helped bridged the economic, community health and regulatory concerns of citizens, business and elected officials concerned over fine particulate matter pollution by working with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). The Coordinator ensures outreach to communities most immediately impacted by potential nonattainment with federal EPA ambient air quality regulations was initiated.
• The Small Business Environmental Liaison facilitated several efforts to assist small business and new business sectors affected by new federal hazardous air quality regulations by sponsoring outreach workshops across the state with the Iowa Waste Reduction Center’ Air Assistance Emissions Program. The Liason also worked with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
• The Brownfield Site Redevelopment program program provided technical and financial assistance for revitalizing abandoned or underutilized commercial or industrial sites where real or perceived contamination prevents the productive redevelopment of existing infrastructure.
• Offered a number of online resources and compliance guides on topics such as business licensing and registration, environmental regulation, employer compliance obligations, construction and building code regulations.