Opinion ID: 2002356
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Department's Motion for Partial Dismissal.

Text: During pendency of this appeal, the 69th General Assembly amended Iowa Code section 533.16(4), which prescribes guidelines under which credit unions may make loans secured by real property. 1982 Iowa Acts ch. 1253, § 5. The Act directed the department to issue, pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 17A, new administrative rules governing issuance of such loans. Id. The department rescinded 295 Iowa Administrative Code chapter 10 (1980), one chapter of the rules at issue here, and adopted new real estate loan rules pursuant to the Act. 5 Iowa Admin.Bull. 517-18 (October 13, 1982); see 295 Iowa Admin.Code ch. 10 (1982). The department moved for dismissal of the appeal as to the rescinded rules, on grounds any challenge to their validity is moot. We ordered the issue submitted with the appeal. A case is moot if it no longer presents a justiciable controversy because the issues involved are academic or nonexistent. Women Aware, 331 N.W.2d at 92; Hamilton v. City of Urbandale, 291 N.W.2d 15, 17 (Iowa 1980). Our test is whether an opinion would be of force or effect in the underlying controversy. Wederath v. Brant, 287 N.W.2d 591, 595 (Iowa 1980). The department's rescission of the 1979 real estate loan rules renders academic any decision by this court as to their validity. Although the issues raised by the association regarding the adoption process employed by the department arguably meet the criteria of our public interest exception to the mootness doctrine, see State ex rel. Turner v. Buechele, 236 N.W.2d 322, 324 (Iowa 1975), our resolution of identical issues with respect to other rules challenged by the association will provide appropriate guidance for the public and agency officials. We dismiss so much of this appeal as pertains to 295 Iowa Administrative Code chapter 10 (1980).