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Burlington Commission on Human Rights, 1964-1965

Iowa Law Review, "State Civil Rights Statute: Some Proposals" Page 1128

1128     IOWA LAW REVIEW     [Vol. 49

employment and public accommodations, no issue of state pre-emption properly exists with respect to such discrimination in housing.
   This leads us to a consideration of the remaining issue. Does legislation barring discrimination in housing or public accommodations deal with the "strictly local and internal affairs" of our cities and towns?203 The answer to this would seem to be that at least the regulation of housing has traditionally and unmistakably been considered a matter of local rather than statewide affairs.204 This is because the incident and immediate impact of its use or misuse is almost exclusively local. Zoning ordinances, sanitary regulations, building standards, and various other kinds of exclusively local legislation amply reflect this conviction. And as previously noted, over sixty cities in this country have already enacted fair-housing ordinances205 thus lending further credence to the notion that such legislation is deemed to deal with the "strictly local and internal affairs" of cities and towns, This being so, local governments in Iowa should be able to enact the kinds of fair-housing legislation proposed here.
   As far as public accommodations are concerned, a closer question is presented. While the control of such places has been traditionally local, recent years have found a shift towards state domination in several aspects of their regulation. The hours and location of such enterprises as well as many other aspects of their conduct of business are still almost exclusively regulated by local communities; but the state now licenses and otherwise regulates hotels, motels, restaurants, barber shops and various other facilities open to the public generally.206 This may reflect a growing feeling that the conduct of such establishments is not "as strictly local and internal affair" of our cities and towns.
   It should also be noted that while the activities of public accommodations have a predominantly local incident and impact, it is also true that, unlike housing, such establishments regularly cater to substantial numbers of people from outside their particular locality. This is true not only of hotels and motels, but also of restaurants, stores, and the like. The activities of public accommodations therefore have an im-
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203 See Note, 49 IOWA L. REV. 826 (1964).
204 See generally METZENBAUM, LAW OF ZONING (2d ed. 1955); RHYNE, MUNICIPAL LAW (1957); Siegel, Real Property Law and Mass Housing Needs, 12 LAW & CONTEMP. PROB. 30 (1947). However, see the state statute in Iowa imposing minimum standards in this area, but expressly reserving to cities the power to go further. See IOWA CODE 413.9 (1962). See generally IOWA CODE ch. 413 (1962).
205 See note 127 supra.
206 See IOWA CODE 158.6 (1962) (sanitary conditions in barber shops); IOWA CODE 170.1-.51 (1962) (licensing, sanitary construction sanitation in general, inspection of hotels, restaurants and food establishments).

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1128 IOWA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 49 employment and public accommodations, no issue of state pre-emption properly exists with respect to such discrimination in housing. This leads us to a consideration of the remaining issue. Does legislation barring discrimination in housing or public accommodations deal with the "strictly local and internal affairs" of our cities and towns?203 The answer to this would seem to be that at least the regulation of housing has traditionally and unmistakably been considered a matter of local rather than statewide affairs.204 This is because the incident and immediate impact of its use or misuse is almost exclusively local. Zoning ordinances, sanitary regulations, building standards, and various other kinds of exclusively local legislation amply reflect this conviction. And as previously noted, over sixty cities in this country have already enacted fair-housing ordinances205 thus lending further credence to the notion that such legislation is deemed to deal with the "strictly local and internal affairs" of cities and towns, This being so, local governments in Iowa should be able to enact the kinds of fair-housing legislation proposed here. As far as public accommodations are concerned, a closer question is presented. While the control of such places has been traditionally local, recent years have found a shift towards state domination in several aspects of their regulation. The hours and location of such enterprises as well as many other aspects of their conduct of business are still almost exclusively regulated by local communities; but the state now licenses and otherwise regulates hotels, motels, restaurants, barber shops and various other facilities open to the public generally.206 This may reflect a growing feeling that the conduct of such establishments is not "as strictly local and internal affair" of our cities and towns. It should also be noted that while the activities of public accommodations have a predominantly local incident and impact, it is also true that, unlike housing, such establishments regularly cater to substantial numbers of people from outside their particular locality. This is true not only of hotels and motels, but also of restaurants, stores, and the like. The activities of public accommodations therefore have an im- ________________________ 203 See Note, 49 IOWA L. REV. 826 (1964). 204 See generally METZENBAUM, LAW OF ZONING (2d ed. 1955); RHYNE, MUNICIPAL LAW (1957); Siegel, Real Property Law and Mass Housing Needs, 12 LAW & CONTEMP. PROB. 30 (1947). However, see the state statute in Iowa imposing minimum standards in this area, but expressly reserving to cities the power to go further. See IOWA CODE 413.9 (1962). See generally IOWA CODE ch. 413 (1962). 205 See note 127 supra. 206 See IOWA CODE 158.6 (1962) (sanitary conditions in barber shops); IOWA CODE 170.1-.51 (1962) (licensing, sanitary construction sanitation in general, inspection of hotels, restaurants and food establishments).