Last week, Iowa Republicans fast-tracked legislation related to civil rights and gender identity in Iowa, and hundreds of protesters convened at the Capitol each day. New bills continued to be introduced ahead of the first...more
Iowa mourned the passing of Representative Martin Graber this week, who experienced a sudden heart attack on Friday, January 31. The House of Representatives canceled the majority of business on Monday for the visitation and...more
The 91st General Assembly reconvened at the Capitol for a full week of legislating. Last week, there were 144 new bill introductions between both chambers, and 90 bills passed out of subcommittee. Currently, 33 bills have...more
The Iowa legislature met its first major milestone of the 2022 legislative session. Today brings the close of the first legislative funnel. This means that for bills to remain “alive” and eligible for further action, the...more
With two weeks until the second funnel, week 10 was dominated by extended floor debates on big-ticket Republican priorities.
..Rental Vouchers (SF252) prohibits local ordinances that require landlords to accept federal...more
3/22/2021
/ Background Checks ,
Censorship ,
Governor Reynolds ,
Gun Laws ,
Housing Choice Vouchers ,
Inheritance Tax ,
Pending Legislation ,
Public Schools ,
Rental Property ,
Social Media ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures
Week four brought extensive committee work in both chambers Monday-Wednesday, with a slower day on Thursday due to the snow in Des Moines and across the state, though virtual meetings allowed the Senate to continue to conduct...more
Update: On Monday, January 25, the Governor introduced another bill, SSB1065, which establishes a student first scholarship program for certain pupils attending nonpublic schools.
The legislature did not meet on Monday in...more
1/26/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Education ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Reynolds ,
Private Schools ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Public Schools ,
Relief Measures ,
Scholarships ,
State Constitutions ,
State Legislatures ,
Tax Deductions ,
Teachers
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
With two weeks left to go before the first legislative funnel (information on the funnel process in last week’s blog post), progress was made on both the policy and appropriations fronts. Floor work is heating up in both...more