Iowa Code § 71.1: Employments prohibited.

It shall hereafter be unlawful for any person elected or appointed to any public office or position under the laws of the state or by virtue of the ordinance of any city in the state, to appoint as deputy, clerk, or helper in said office or position to be paid from the public funds, any person related by consanguinity or affinity, within the third degree, to the person elected, appointed, or making said appointment, unless such appointment shall first be approved by the officer, board, council, or commission whose duty it is to approve the bond of the principal; provided this provision shall not apply in cases where such person appointed receives compensation at the rate of six hundred dollars per year or less, nor shall it apply to persons teaching in public schools, nor shall it apply to the employment of clerks of members of the general assembly.