Review of the literature on reference pricing

This paper reviews the literature on reference pricing (RP) in pharmaceutical markets. The RP strategy for cost containment of expenditure on drugs is analyzed as part of the procurement mechanism. We review the existing literature and the state-of-the-art regarding RP by focusing on its economic effects. In particular, we consider: (1) the institutional context and problem-related factors which appear to underline the need to implement an RP strategy; i.e., its nature, characteristics and the sort of health care problems commonly addressed; (2) how RP operates in practice; that is, how third party-payers (the insurers/buyers) have established the RP systems existing on the international scene (i.e., information methods, monitoring procedures and legislative provisions); (3)the range of effects resulting from particular RP strategies (including effects on choice of appropriate pharmaceuticals, insurer savings, total drug expenditures, prices of referenced and non-referenced products and dynamic efficiency; (4) the market failures which an RP policy is supposed to address and the main advantages and drawbacks which emerge from an analysis of its effects. Results suggest that RP systems achieve better their postulated goals (1) if cost inflation in pharmaceuticals is due to high prices rather than to the excess of prescription rates, (2) when the larger is the existing difference in prices among equivalent drugs, and (3) more important is the actual market for generics.

A Tributação de Prestação de Serviços em Cabo Verde

O presente trabalho investiga a tributação dos serviços em Cabo Verde, trata-se de uma questão importante do ponto de vista financeiro, uma vez que a economia aberta e insular de Cabo Verde é uma grande consumidora de serviços prestados por operadores económicos não residentes. Por outro lado trata de uma questão interessante do ponto de vista jurídico, porque parece actualmente faltar norma de incidência que permite a sujeição destes rendimentos ao Imposto Único sobre os Rendimentos Cabo-verdiano. Em face disto poder-se-ia porventura afirmar que as normas de incidência que servem para fundamentar a tributação dos rendimentos derivados de prestação de serviços a não residentes se encontram nas disposições orçamentais que fixam a própria taxa liberatória de 20% aplicável ao rendimento auferido por não residentes, mesmo que não tenham estabelecimentos estáveis. De resto, não é com base no regulamento do IUR mas com base nas leis do Orçamentos do Estado que a administração fiscal Cabo-verdiana tem vindo a proceder á liquidação deste imposto. As taxas liberatórias previstas nas leis orçamentais não podem nunca aplicar-se a rendimentos que se encontrem fora do âmbito de incidência objectiva, subjectiva ou territorial do IUR. Depois de estudado o tratamento que o direito interno cabo-verdiano faz dos rendimentos derivados de prestação de serviços vale a pena olhar brevemente também ao tratamento que eles merecem no contexto do direito internacional e, muito em particular, da convenção para evitar a Dupla Tributação (CDT) em matéria de imposto sobre o rendimento e prevenir a evasão fiscal, celebrada entre Cabo Verde e Portugal no ano de 1999 e actualmente em vigor.

Retirement incentives, individual heterogeneity and labour transitions of employed and unemployed workers

In this paper we analyze the sensitivity of the labour market decisions of workers close toretirement with respect to the incentives created by public regulations. We improve upon the extensiveprior literature on the effect of pension incentives on retirement in two ways. First, bymodeling the transitions between employment, unemployment and retirement in a simultaneousmanner, paying special attention to the transition from unemployment to retirement (which is particularlyimportant in Spain). Second, by considering the influence of unobserved heterogeneity inthe estimation of the effect of our (carefully constructed) incentive variables.Using administrative data, we find that, when properly defined, economic incentives have astrong impact on labour market decisions in Spain. Unemployment regulations are shown to be particularlyinfluential for retirement behaviour, along with the more traditional determinants linked tothe pension system. Pension variables also have a major bearing on both workers reemploymentdecisions and on the strategic actions of employers. The quantitative impact of the incentives, however,is greatly affected by the existence of unobserved heterogeneity among workers. Its omissionleads to sizable biases in the assessment of the sensitivity to economic incentives, a finding thathas clear consequences for the credibility of any model-based policy analysis. We confirm theimportance of this potential problem in one especially interesting instance: the reform of earlyretirement provisions undertaken in Spain in 2002. We use a difference-in-difference approach tomeasure the behavioural reaction to this change, finding a large overestimation when unobservedheterogeneity is not taken into account.

Sós ou amparados?:a percepção de suporte social numa amostra de imigrantes em Portugal

A presente investigação tem como principal objectivo averiguar o impacto da imigração sobre a percepção de suporte social. A amostra de imigrantes é constituída por 48 participantes, oriundos de países como a Ucrânia, Geórgia, Moldávia, Rússia, Brasil, China e Cabo-Verde. A média das idades é 34,67 anos e a média do tempo de permanência em Portugal é 50,38 meses. Dos participantes, 21 são do sexo feminino e 27 do sexo masculino. A percepção de suporte social foi avaliada através da EPS (Escala de Provisões Sociais, Cutrona e Russel, 1990). Avaliou-se a percepção de suporte social antes da imigração, retrospectivamente, através de uma adaptação da EPS, assim como depois da imigração. Os resultados indicam que a percepção de suporte social difere significativamente antes e depois da imigração, sendo maior na última situação. Os resultados indicam ainda, que a percepção de suporte social é independente dos anos de permanência em Portugal. Quando analisada isoladamente, a amostra de Leste não apresenta uma diferença significativa na percepção de suporte social global, antes e depois da imigração.

Balance Between Investment Protection and Sustainable Development in BITs: the Example of Switzerland

The objective of this article is to examine how substantive and procedural rights granted to foreign investors by Swiss bits are gradually being balanced with social and environmental provisions. Switzerland has enjoyed a long bit practice, as it signed its first treaty with Tunisia fifty years ago. Swiss bits rely on the post-establishment model and include usual standards of treatment. From 1981, they also systematically provide for a dispute settlement mechanism for disputes arising between an investor and a host State. Since the Switzerland - El Salvador bit in 1994, sustainable development concerns have been expressly inserted in some Swiss bits, as well as in several recent free trade agreements. Provisions on this theme are however far from being systematic in Switzerland's bit practice and essentially remain declaratory in nature. The trend towards wider inclusion of sustainable development provisions in bits still faces several practical and political challenges.

Iowa Tax Expenditures Report 2005

Exemptions, exclusions, credits against tax and reductions in tax base that are tied to specific provisions in tax law; estimation of the annual dollar effect for each of those provisions.

State of Iowa Employee Handbook, Revised October 2003

I hope you will find a great deal of challenge and personal satisfaction in your employment with the State. You have an important role in accomplishing the goals of your department and of state government. The State has a proud tradition built on the excellence of its employees and their work. We challenge you to help maintain and improve upon this tradition. You soon will discover that our pride is contagious! As a state employee, it is very important that you always present the best possible image to the public. Remember to act promptly, be courteous, and treat people, our customers, respectfully. Your actions will make a lasting impression .... be sure it is a positive one. This is your employee handbook. This information is based on Iowa Department of Administrative Services – Human Resources Enterprise (DAS-HRE) rules and policies. Much of the information in this handbook is also covered in the State’s collective bargaining agreements. Where there are differences between a collective bargaining agreement and this handbook, the collective bargaining agreement prevails for employees covered by the agreement. Where there are differences between this handbook and DAS-HRE rules and policies, DAS-HRE rules and policies prevail. Some of the employee benefit plans described in this handbook are subject to legal requirements concerning reporting and disclosure. This handbook contains highlights of those plans. For complete details about benefit plans, consult the benefit handbooks and the official plan documents. In case of any discrepancy, the official plan documents prevail. Of course, changes in laws may affect the benefit programs described in this handbook. The State of Iowa reserves the right to amend the contents of this handbook at any time without prior notice. The provisions of this handbook and other policies do not establish contractual rights or conditions of employment between the State and its employees.

Of housing and politics : mapping political opportunities for mobilising in Bangalore, India

Quelles sont les conditions pour l'émergence d'une mobilisation sociale en faveur du logement convenable dans la métropole de Bangalore (Inde)? Cette question, qui est au coeur de cette thèse, est particulièrement pertinente dans le contexte d'une ville où 1,7 million de personnes, soit un cinquième de la population, vit dans des bidonvilles. L'absence d'un mouvement mettant en cause l'échec des politiques publiques du logement est intéressante dans la mesure où l'Inde a hérité un système de gouvernance colonial et d'une tradition de mouvements sociaux. Pour répondre à ce questionnement, un cadre théorique issu de la littérature sur les mouvements sociaux est développé. Il s'articule autour des liens entre les opportunités politiques au niveau macro et les répertoires d'action des organisations de mouvement social (OMS) au niveau méso, de la tension entre la formalité de la loi et des politiques publiques et l'informalité des circuits d'échange, de la corruption et du clientélisme, et enfin, se focalise sur les systèmes de discours de caste et de la citoyenneté et de leur concrétisation dans des systèmes d'organisations et de réseaux sociaux. Ce cadre théorique permet d'étudier empiriquement la question à travers quatre OMS dans la ville de Bangalore. Les résultats mettent en avant l'existence de mécanismes complexes. Les opportunités politiques formelles n'étant ouvertes que sur le plan rhétorique, elles ne peuvent être véritablement utilisées que par des moyens légaux ou contentieux, ce qui nécessite des compétences sociales dont la plupart des habitants des bidonvilles sont dépourvus. L'inadéquation entre les ressources à disposition pour les logements sociaux et les besoins très importants des pauvres, donne un poids politique considérable aux acteurs en charge de l'attribution de ces ressources rares. Cet état de fait a des répercussions sur la politique électorale. Les habitants des bidonvilles représentant un poids électoral important, ils sont mobilisés à travers de pratiques clientélistes. La corruption et le clientélisme se nourrissent mutuellement pour maintenir une certaine dépendance des habitants. Les OMS qui développent un répertoire discursif remettant en cause le système de caste et qui encouragent une conscience citoyenne, se sont avérées les plus durables pour résister à la cooptation des forces politiques. Cette recherche empirique met en lumière l'inadéquation entre les prescriptions formelles dans le domaine de la gouvernance des besoins humains, tels que le logement, et les pratiques réelles sur le terrain. Cette recherche appelle à réfléchir au-delà de la diffusion du discours sur la « bonne gouvernance » vers des formes de « gouvernance vernaculaire » qui prendrait au sérieux l'informalité en développant une compréhension des avantages à court terme pour les personnes marginalisées dans la ville et les effets à long terme sur la pratique démocratique. - What are the conditions for the emergence of a social movement on the issue of adequate housing in the metropolitan city of Bangalore (India)? This question is at the heart of this dissertation and is particularly pertinent against the background that an estimated 1.7 million or about 20% of the city's population lives in slums. The absence of a movement addressing the failure of public housing policy despite India having inherited colonial systems of governance and traditions of movement is noteworthy. Answers are sought within a theoretical framework stemming from social movement theories that incorporates three linkages articulating around: Macro-level political opportunities and meso-level action repertoires of social movement organisations (SMOs), tensions between the formality of law, policy and the informality of exchange circuits of corruption and clientelism and finally around systems of discourses of caste and citizenship and their instantiation in concrete systems of social organisations and networks. This thesis is empirically investigated through a qualitative case study research design involving four sampled social movement organisations. The results bring complex mechanisms to the fore. Formal political opportunities are only rhetorically open and have to be cracked through legal weaponry or contentious escalation, which requires considerable social skills that slum-dwellers often lack. The inadequacy between the few housing resources and the vast number of slum-dwellers transform housing benefits and urban service provisions into political currency. Such a state of affairs has serious repercussions on conditions for mobilisation. They become imbricated with electoral logic, in which slum-dwellers represent large vote-banks and where corruption and clientelism feed each other to maintain a certain dependency of the poor. SMOs deploying a discursive repertoire that questioned the caste system and encouraged a pursuit of citizenship proved to be the most sustainable to resist co-option from political forces. This empirical investigation brings to light the mismatch between the formal prescriptions in the domain of the governance of basic human needs such as housing and the real practices on the ground. This research calls to reflect beyond the inadequacy of the diffused « good governance » discourse towards forms of « vernacular governance » that take informality seriously in understanding the short-term benefits for the marginalised in the city and the long-term effects on democratic practice.

AFSCME Contract, July 1, 2009

This Agreement made and entered into this 1st day of July 2009, at Des Moines, Iowa, pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 20 of the Code of Iowa, by and between the State of Iowa (hereinafter referred to as the Employer) and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Iowa Public Employees Council 61, AFL-CIO (hereinafter referred to as the Union), and its appropriate affiliated locals, as representatives of employees employed by the State of Iowa

2009-2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement Between State of Iowa and Local 893; Science Unit, July 1, 2009

This Agreement made and entered i into this 1 1st day of July 2009, at Des Moines, Iowa, pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 20 of the Iowa Code, by and between the State of Iowa (hereinafter referred to as the Employer) and UE Local 893/Iowa United Professionals, and its appropriate affiliated locals, as representatives of employees employed by the State of Iowa, as set forth specifically in Appendix A (hereinafter referred to as the Union).

2009-2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement Between State of Iowa and Local 893; Social Services, July 1, 2009

This Agreement made and entered i into this 1 1st day of July 2009, at Des Moines, Iowa, pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 20 of the Iowa Code, by and between the State of Iowa (hereinafter referred to as the Employer) and UE Local 893/Iowa United Professionals, and its appropriate affiliated locals, as representatives of employees employed by the State of Iowa.

2009-2011 Agreement Between State of Iowa and State Police Officers Council, July 1, 2009

This Agreement made and entered into this 1st day of July 2009 at Des Moines, Iowa, pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 20 of the Iowa Code, by and between the State of Iowa (hereinafter referred to as the Employer) and the State Police Officers Council, and its appropriate affiliated sub-organizations (hereinafter referred to as the Council), as representatives of employees employed by the State of Iowa.

Constitution of the State of Iowa - Codified.

This version of the Iowa Constitution incorporates into the original document all amendments adopted through the 1998 general election and omits certain provisions apparently superseded or obsolete. The footnote following an amended section is the latest action only. See the original Constitution for the original text and amendments in chronological order. This codified version generally adopts the rules for capitalization and punctuation used in drafting legislation. NOTICE & DISCLAIMER -- Unofficial Posting. The files making up this Internet Version of the 2009 Merged Iowa Code and Supplement do not constitute the official text of the law. The text in these files may not always be formatted exactly like the text in the Printed Version. The Printed Version of the Acts should be consulted for all legal matters requiring reliance on the text of the law.

Placement of Students Ages 3-21 with Disabilities Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): A Policy Discussion, May 2010

The provision of free appropriate public education (FAPE), an Individualized Education Program (IEP), and the least restrictive environment (LRE) have been important cornerstones of educating students with disabilities since the enactment of the Education of All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA), Public Law 94-142, in 1975, and its subsequent reauthorizations, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1990, 1997, and 2004. It is impossible to consider any one of these cornerstones without the others, when determining an appropriate educational placement for a student with a disability. The Iowa Department of Education has identified several practice issues regarding the interplay between FAPE, LRE, and the IEP in placement decisions for students with disabilities. To that end, this document will provide guidance for administrators of local education agencies (LEAs) and area education agencies (AEAs), as well as IEP teams (or other placement teams) within Iowa LEAs and AEAs when making placement decisions for eligible children with disabilities. This guidance will specifically discuss ten LRE and FAPE placement/program policy questions that have been identified by the Iowa Department of Education as needing attention. The policy discussions are consistent with the legal provisions of the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA (IDEA 2004) and its 2006 final federal implementing regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). This document is also consistent with the Iowa Administrative Rules of Special Education (2007) [hereinafter “Iowa Rules”]. In addition, the term local education agency (LEA) is used interchangeably for school district throughout this document. Prior to the discussion of specific policy questions, a federal and state legal framework for providing FAPE for students with disabilities within the LRE is briefly outlined. Pertinent FAPE and LRE court decisions that impact Iowa LEAs and AEAs are also included within Section II.

Study Regarding Implementation of a Uniform Statewide System to Allow for Electronic Transactions for the Registration and Titling of Motor Vehicles

LEGISLATIVE STUDY – The 83rd General Assembly of the Iowa Legislature, in Senate File 2273, directed the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) to conduct a study of how to implement a uniform statewide system to allow for electronic transactions for the registration and titling of motor vehicles. PARTICIPANTS IN STUDY – As directed by Senate File 2273, the DOT formed a working group to conduct the study that included representatives from the Consumer Protection Division of the Office of the Attorney General, the Department of Public Safety, the Department of Revenue, the Iowa State County Treasurer’s Association, the Iowa Automobile Dealers Association, and the Iowa Independent Automobile Dealers Association. CONDUCT OF THE STUDY – The working group met eight times between June 17, 2010, and October 1, 2010. The group discussed the costs and benefits of electronic titling from the perspectives of new and used motor vehicle dealers, county treasurers, the DOT, lending institutions, consumers and consumer protection, and law enforcement. Security concerns, legislative implications, and implementation timelines were also considered. In the course of the meetings the group: 1. Reviewed the specific goals of S.F. 2273, and viewed a demonstration of Iowa’s current vehicle registration and titling system so participants that were not users of the system could gain an understanding of its current functionality and capabilities. 2. Reviewed the results of a survey of county treasurers conducted by the DOT to determine the extent to which county treasurers had processing backlogs and the extent to which county treasurers limited the number of dealer registration and titling transactions that they would process in a single day and while the dealer waited. Only eight reported placing a limit on the number of dealer transactions that would be processed while the dealer waited (with the number ranging from one to four), and only 11 reported a backlog in processing registration and titling transactions as of June 11, 2010, with most backlogs being reported in the range of one to three days. 3. Conducted conference calls with representatives of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) and representatives of three states -- Kansas, which has an electronic lien and titling (ELT) program, and Wisconsin and Florida, each of which have both an ELT program and an electronic registration and titling (ERT) program – to assess current and best practices for electronic transactions. In addition, the DOT (through AAMVA) submitted a survey to all U.S. jurisdictions to determine how, if at all, other states implemented electronic transactions for the registration and titling of motor vehicles. Twenty-eight states responded to the survey; of the 28 states that responded, only 13 allowed liens to be added or released electronically, and only five indicated allowing applications for registration and titling to be submitted electronically. DOT staff also heard a presentation from South Dakota on its ERT system at an AAMVA regional meeting. ELT information that emerged suggests a multi-vendor approach, in which vendors that meet state specifications for participation are authorized to interface with the state’s system to serve as a portal between lenders and the state system, will facilitate electronic lien releases and additions by offering lenders more choices and the opportunity to use the same vendor in multiple states. The ERT information that emerged indicates a multi-interface approach that offers an interface with existing dealer management software (DMS) systems and through a separate internet site will facilitate ERT by offering access that meets a variety of business needs and models. In both instances, information that emerged indicates that, in the long-term, adoption rates are positively affected by making participation above a certain minimum threshold mandatory. 4. To assess and compare functions or services that might be offered by or through a vendor, the group heard presentations from vendors that offer products or services that facilitate some aspect of ELT or ERT. 5. To assess the concerns, needs and interest of Iowa motor vehicle dealers, the group surveyed dealers to assess registration and titling difficulties experienced by dealers, the types of DMS systems (if any) used by dealers, and the dealers’ interest and preference in using an electronic interface to submit applications for registration and titling. Overall, 40% of the dealers that responded indicated interest and 57% indicated no interest, but interest was pronounced among new car dealers (75% were interested) and dealers with a high number of monthly transactions (85% of dealers averaging more than 50 sales per month were interested). The majority of dealers responding to the dealer survey ranked delays in processing and problems with daily limits on transaction as ―minor difficulty or ―no difficulty. RECOMMENDATIONS -- At the conclusion of the meetings, the working group discussed possible approaches for implementation of electronic transactions in Iowa and reached a consensus that a phased implementation of electronic titling that addressed first electronic lien and title transactions (ELT) and electronic fund transfers (EFT), and then electronic applications for registration and titling (ERT) is recommended. The recommendation of a phased implementation is based upon recognition that aspects of ELT and EFT are foundational to ERT, and that ELT and EFT solutions are more readily and easily attained than the ERT solution, which will take longer and be somewhat more difficult to develop and will require federal approval of an electronic odometer statement to fully implement. ELT – A multi-vendor approach is proposed for ELT. No direct costs to the state, counties, consumers, or dealers are anticipated under this approach. The vendor charges participating lenders user or transaction fees for the service, and it appears the lenders typically absorb those costs due to the savings offered by ELT. Existing staff can complete the programming necessary to interface the state system with vendors’ systems. The estimated time to implement ELT is six to nine months. Mandatory participation is not recommended initially, but should be considered after ELT has been implemented and a suitable number of vendors have enrolled to provide a fair assessment of participation rates and opportunities. EFT – A previous attempt to implement ELT and EFT was terminated due to concern that it would negatively impact county revenues by reducing interest income earned on state funds collected by the county and held until the monthly transfer to the state. To avoid that problem in this implementation, the EFT solution should remain revenue neutral to the counties, by allowing fees submitted by EFT to be immediately directed to the proper county account. Because ARTS was designed and has the capacity to accommodate EFT, a vendor is not needed to implement EFT. The estimated time to implement EFT is six to nine months. It is expected that EFT development will overlap ELT development. ERT – ERT itself must be developed in phases. It will not be possible to quickly implement a fully functioning, paperless ERT system, because federal law requires that transfer of title be accompanied by a written odometer statement unless approval for an alternate electronic statement is granted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It is expected that it will take as much as a year or more to obtain NHTSA approval, and that NHTSA approval will require design of a system that requires the seller to electronically confirm the seller’s identity, make the required disclosure to the buyer, and then transfer the disclosure to the buyer, who must also electronically confirm the buyer’s identity and electronically review and accept the disclosure to complete and submit the transaction. Given the time that it will take to develop and gain approval for this solution, initial ERT implementation will focus on completing and submitting applications and issuing registration applied for cards electronically, with the understanding that this process will still require submission of paper documents until an electronic odometer solution is developed. Because continued submission of paper documents undermines the efficiencies sought, ―full‖ ERT – that is, all documents necessary for registration and titling should be capable of approval and/or acceptance by all parties, and should be capable of submission without transmittal or delivery of duplicate paper documents .– should remain the ultimate goal. ERT is not recommended as a means to eliminate review and approval of registration and titling transactions by the county treasurers, or to place registration and titling approval in the hands of the dealers, as county treasurers perform an important role in deterring fraud and promoting accuracy by determining the genuineness and regularity of each application. Authorizing dealers to act as registration agents that approve registration and title applications, issue registration receipts, and maintain and deliver permanent metal license plates is not recommended. Although distribution of permanent plates by dealers is not recommended, it is recommended that dealers participating in ERT generate and print registration applied for cards electronically. Unlike the manually-issued cards currently in use, cards issued in this fashion may be queried by law enforcement and are less susceptible to misuse by customers and dealers. The estimated time to implement the electronic application and registration applied for cards is 12 to 18 months, to begin after ELT and EFT have been implemented. It is recommended that focus during this time be on facilitating transfers through motor vehicle dealers, with initial deployment focused on higher-volume dealers that use DMS systems. In the long term an internet option for access to ERT must also be developed and maintained to allow participation for lower-volume dealers that do not use a DMS system. This option will also lay the ground work for an ERT option for sales between private individuals. Mandatory participation in Iowa is not recommended initially. As with ELT, it is recommended that mandatory participation be considered after at least an initial phase of ERT has been implemented and a suitable number of dealers have enrolled to provide a fair assessment of participation rates and opportunities. The use of vendors to facilitate ERT is not initially proposed because 1) DOT IT support staff is capable of developing a system that will interact with DMS systems and will still have to develop a dealer and public interface regardless of whether a vendor acts as intermediary between the DMS systems, and 2) there is concern that the cost of the vendor-based system, which is funded by transaction-based payments from the dealer to the vendor, will be passed to the consumer in the form of additional documentation or conveyance fees. However, the DOT recommends flexibility on this point, as development and pilot of the system may indicate that a multi-vendor approach similar to that recommended for ELT may increase the adoption rate by larger dealers and may ultimately decrease the user management to be exercised by DOT staff. If vendors are used in the process, additional legislation or administrative rules may be needed to control the fees that may be passed to the consumer. No direct cost to the DOT or county treasurers is expected, as the DOT expects that it may complete necessary programming with existing staff. Use of vendors to facilitate ERT transactions by dealers using DMS systems would result in transaction fees that may ultimately be passed to consumers. LEGISLATION – As a result of the changes implemented in 2004 under Senate File 2070, the only changes to Iowa statutes proposed are to section 321.69 of the Iowa Code, ―Damage disclosure statement,and section 321.71, ―Odometer requirements.‖ In each instance, authority to execute these statements by electronic means would be clarified by authorizing language similar to that used in section 321.20, subsections ―2‖ and ―3,‖ which allows for electronic applications and directs the department to ―adopt rules on the method for providing signatures for applications made by electronic means.‖ In these sections, the authorizing language might read as follows: Notwithstanding contrary provisions of this section, the department may develop and implement a program to allow for any statement required by this section to be made electronically. The department shall adopt rules on the method for providing signatures for statements made by electronic means. Some changes to DOT administrative rules will be useful but only to enable changes to work processes that would be desirable in the long term. Examples of long term work processes that would be enabled by rule changes include allowing for signatures created through electronic means and electronic odometer certifications. The DOT rules, as currently written, do not hinder the ability to proceed with ELT, EFT, and ERT.