An appeal of a lawsuit challenging the Dakota Access Pipeline won’t be heard until after August.

The Iowa Utilities Board heard an update on the ongoing case during its monthly meeting Thursday.

Those challenging the issuance of the permit for the pipeline, and use of eminent domain in its construction, must file their briefs with the court by July 5, said Assistant General Counsel Ben Flickinger. Once those are filed, the IUB has 30 days to file reply briefs.

“Once briefs are finalized the Supreme Court will decide whether to keep the case or send it to the Court of Appeals,” Flickinger said.

Sierra Club and landowners along the route who challenged the pipeline lost their case in district court Feb. 15, when a judge ruled the IUB had acted correctly in granting the permit to Texas-based Dakota Access LLC, a subsidiary of Energy Transfer Partners.

The Sierra Club on June 15 filed a motion to revoke Dakota Access’s permit in Iowa, in light of a federal judge’s ruling that the Army Corps of Engineers didn’t adequately consider some matters important to the Standing Rock Sioux when issuing the national permit.

“Staff are currently waiting for Dakota Access’s response to that before moving forward,” said Flickinger, adding that the response is due by next Thursday.

Board Chair Jeri Huser also said the public should know that complaints are public, and that the public can obtain them. There are two current outstanding complaints involving landowners, Flickinger said, both regarding claimsof damage to tile lines or other construction-related events.

The complaints in the “c-file” are public, but are not uploaded to the online filing system unless one of the parties is unhappy with the resolution and makes a more formal complaint, said Cecil Wright, assistant general counsel and chief operations officer.

Those could be uploaded if the board desires, Wright said.

“The bigger issue to me, is that the c files related to this particular docket are available to the public, and the public knows how to obtain the same,” Huser said.

“They contact our customer service section and ask them,” Wright said.

The board is also waiting for a review of the company’s insurance policy.

The board issued an order June 9 regarding insurance requirements. The permit issued in 2016 required Dakota Access to file and maintain at least $25 million in general liability insurance. The policy was filed, and then extended until May 1. As of June 7, no filing had been made to show another extension, the board wrote.

Dakota Access on June 13 filed insurance documents, and said there had been no lapse in coverage. Its response said it takes time for the company to get full copies of the policies from its broker so they can be filed with the board.

“I would like to see a report on that insurance policy by the end of July,” Huser said.

Cleanup and restoration of the Dakota Access Pipeline route is 91 percent complete in Iowa, with some of the incomplete parcels located in Calhoun and Sac Counties.

Dakota Access filed a regular construction progress report on Wednesday with the IUB.

Only four counties remain with land that hasn’t been cleaned up and restored after the project, the company reported.

There are two ‘spreads’ in Calhoun County. The southern portion is 100 percent complete, while the northern portion in Calhoun County is 91 percent complete, it said. Restoration work in Sac County is listed as zero percent complete. The pipeline is only in Sac County for 2,112 feet.

Cleanup and restoration is 31 percent complete in Buena Vista County and 71 percent in Cherokee County, according to the report.

The board discussed board member Richard Lozier’s recusal from the Dakota Access matter. Lozier will only receive information that is available to the public, said Huser.

For more information or to see a completion map visit http://is.gd/DApipelineDocket.