This session will provide an overview of the federal tax exemption laws that govern a hospital’s activities as well as which hospital records are open to the public. Participants will also discuss additional public records and public meetings laws that impact governmental hospitals. Participants will receive an introduction to the civil rights obligations of hospitals to provide access to hospital services for patients who have hearing or visual impairment or for whom English is a second language. Enforcement against hospitals that have not provided meaningful access to services for these populations will be covered. Finally, the speaker will summarize Iowa’s Certificate of Need (CON) requirements that apply to hospitals and recent CON decisions of importance to hospitals.