At 10:00 a.m. Thursday, September 16, the Legislative Services Agency (LSA) delivered its first Proposed Redistricting Plan Report, including the first set of maps, to the legislature....more
Special Iowa Legislative Session -
Governor Reynolds signed a proclamation today, September 14, 2021, declaring a special legislative session to convene on Tuesday, October 5, 2021. The purpose of this special session...more
Two and a half weeks beyond the 110th calendar day of the session, the 2021 session of the 89th General Assembly of Iowa adjourned sine die just before midnight on Wednesday, May 19. Originally slated to end April 30,...more
5/24/2021
/ Abortion ,
Affordable Housing ,
Broadband ,
Child Tax Credit ,
Concealed Weapons ,
Diversity ,
Employee's Childcare ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Renewable Fuel ,
Social Media ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Education Departments ,
State Elections ,
State Legislatures ,
Tax Reform ,
Vaccine Passports
Officially into overtime, week 17 ended with many negotiations left to be had. Rank and file legislators were not called into the Capitol on Monday (5/3) or Tuesday (5/4) as there was no floor work or committee blocks...more
Budgets and floor debate dominated week 13. Most of the work was packed into Tuesday, April 6, and Wednesday, April 7, with short sessions at the beginning and end of the week....more
4/12/2021
/ Appropriation ,
Broadband ,
Constitutional Amendment ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Diversity ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Property Tax ,
Redistricting ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Constitutions ,
State Legislatures ,
Tax Reform
The eleventh week brought a steady bustle around the Capitol as we head into the next important legislative deadline, the second and final funnel ends on Friday, April 2. In order for bills to continue to be considered by the...more
The highlight of this week in Iowa and around the country remains Mother Nature and the unprecedented weather cycle causing major disruptions in the power grid. Here in Iowa, temperatures spent much of the week below zero,...more
2/22/2021
/ Census ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Election Laws ,
Governor Reynolds ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Legislative Committees ,
Pending Legislation ,
Redistricting ,
Severe Weather ,
State Legislatures ,
Vaccinations
The 2021 session of the 89th General Assembly began today, Monday, January 11.
The Makeup of the 89th General Assembly -
Republicans maintain their majority in both chambers. House Republicans picked up six seats in...more
Governor’s Desk-Bill Status Report -
After an 11-week recess and a number of long days and late nights, the “second” session of the 88th General Assembly of Iowa adjourned sine die Sunday, June 14, 2020, almost two months...more
After an 11-week recess due to COVID-19 and a number of long days and late nights, the “second” session of the 88th General Assembly of Iowa adjourned sine die at 1:40 p.m. Sunday, June 14, 2020, almost two months after it...more
With the Senate failing to reach agreement on additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), they have adjourned for the week planning to continue negotiations throughout the weekend. Majority Leader McConnell...more
Candidate Filing Deadline -
Next Friday, March 13, is the filing deadline for the June primary. This is a critical deadline to watch because we will know the field of candidates (other than write-in) for all the...more
Following the first funnel, this week we predictably saw an uptick in floor action in both chambers and a couple of debates that lasted into the evening. The late nights had as much to do with the volume of the work as it did...more
In 1979, after a legislative session that didn’t end until July, the Iowa General Assembly decided it needed a way to better organize the work it was doing. What resulted was a legislative process now referred to as “The...more
While week four of the Iowa General Assembly was extremely active with legislation being both introduced and acted upon, it will most likely not be remembered for that. Rather, it will be remembered as the week of the 2020...more
The second week of the legislative session was a short week as the legislature observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, January 20. Nonetheless, the legislature made up for lost time by doubling down on subcommittee...more
The second year of the 88th General Assembly convened on Monday. Republicans maintain their majority in both chambers, 53-47 majority in the House and a 32-18 majority in the Senate....more
1/20/2020
/ Broadband ,
Constitutional Amendment ,
Excise Tax ,
Flooding ,
General Assembly ,
Governor Reynolds ,
Income Taxes ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mental Health ,
Political Parties ,
Rural Areas ,
Sales Tax ,
State Budgets ,
State Constitutions ,
State Funding ,
Tax Credits ,
Telehealth
The 2020 session of the 88th General Assembly (GA) began Monday, January 13th.
Legislative Branch Developments -
Makeup of the 88th General Assembly -
Republicans maintain their majority in both chambers, though...more
After a number of long days and late nights, the First Session of the 88th General Assembly of Iowa adjourned sine die on Saturday, April 27, 2019—the 105th day of session, five days ahead of the scheduled adjournment date...more
5/1/2019
/ Constitutional Amendment ,
General Assembly ,
Hemp ,
Judges ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mental Health ,
Property Tax ,
Public Policy ,
Sports Betting ,
State Budgets ,
State Constitutions
At the close of Week 14, with 2 weeks left until the scheduled adjournment date of May 3rd, both House and Senate Majority Leadership teams are signaling that the session is nearly complete. There is a sense that the leaders...more
At the close of the thirteenth week, there are only three scheduled weeks left in the legislative session. Functionally—because Easter weekend is next weekend - that amounts to fourteen work days until the 110th day, the...more
Week 11 brought a balanced amount of floor and committee work, with a pause on Wednesday for two special recognitions. The legislature celebrated Pioneer Lawmakers, those lawmakers and honorary individuals who have served the...more
This week was the first of four weeks between the funnels. Most effort right now is dedicated to getting bills passed by one chamber so the other chamber can begin committee work....more
Unlike most of the rest of the state, weather did not have much of an impact on the business of the legislature with the exception of the cancellation of a few events. This week, many bills moved through subcommittees and a...more
The second week of the legislative session started out relatively slow due to the observance of Martin Luther King Day on Monday and cancellations of committee work for weather-related reasons on Tuesday.
Floor action was...more