DIA Director Larry Johnson

Iowa Capital Dispatch
October 10, 2022

For the past eight years, a state regulatory agency has violated a law requiring the routine inspection of Iowa’s hotels and motels.

The Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals is required to inspect all hotels within its jurisdiction at least once every two years. Inspections are the sole process by which Iowa enforces regulations intended to protect hotel guests’ health, safety and rights as consumers.

In May, the Iowa Capital Dispatch asked the department why few hotel inspection reports were being posted to the agency’s website given the legal requirement for routine, biennial inspections at all hotels.