This week, the House Ways and Means Committee unanimously passed House File 227. This bill doubles the income limitation for the Iowa child and dependent care tax credit. This is a credit that supports working Iowa families who spend large portions of their paychecks on childcare...

Last week, Governor Reynolds and the Department of Human Services announced that negotiations with United Healthcare have ceased. Governor Reynolds cited UnitedHealthcare's demand for more money for less accountability as the reason for the breakdown...

Governor's bill on contraceptives creates a statewide standing order with the medical director of the Iowa Department of Public Health and allows pharmacists to dispense initially three months of an oral contraceptive, hormonal vaginal ring or hormonal contraceptive patch, and then subsequent year supplies. This bill only applies to patients 18 years and older...

The House Labor Committee passed HF 666 requiring the State Government Efficiency Committee to review every occupational license in the state over a six year period of time and send a report to the General Assembly on which it must vote. This bill also requires licensing boards to inform individuals with a criminal record whether or not they would be eligible for an a license...

Last week was "funnel week." This is where the legislature's focus is narrowed to bills that have passed out of at least one committee in one chamber and are eligible to be debated on the floor and signed into law. If a bill fails to advance through a committee, it is considered "dead" for the session and is tabled. Oftentimes, a bill is not moved forward because it lacks support or needs improvement over the interim. The funnel does not apply to Appropriations or Ways & Means bills...

When I travel across house district 1, I’m often asked what the most pressing issue is facing the state. That is such a difficult question because, as you might have guessed, everyone has a different opinion. However, the one thing I hear from voters, legislators and community leaders is the issue of rural development in our state...

In 2008, the Legislature created the SAVE Fund to help schools make much-needed investments in crumbling school infrastructure. SAVE serves as an important tool for schools to make important improvements that ensure modern facilities, safe classrooms, and state of the art technology that enhance students' educational experience...

When I travel across house district 1, I’m often asked what the most pressing issue is facing the state. That is such a difficult question because, as you might have guessed, everyone has a different opinion. However, the one thing I hear from voters, legislators and community leaders is the issue of rural development in our state...

The House Government Oversight Committee met recently to follow-up on the Medicaid Managed Care Oversight legislation that was passed last year. The Committee heard from Director Jerry Foxhoven of the Department of Human Services, Alissa Weber, CEO at UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Iowa, and Jeffrey Jones, President at Amerigroup Iowa. ...

After a mild beginning to the winter season, January hit the state hard with successive snow storms that blanketed the state in snow and cold. And with it came schools closings statewide. The Department of Education doesn't keep track of days called off school for weather, so hard numbers don't exist. But anecdotally you'll hear anywhere from two days to over a dozen days called off so far this season. And that many days will present a challenge to just about every school calendar out there...

Development of the state budget took a major step forward on Tuesday when House Republicans unveiled our framework for a responsible, conservative budget in Fiscal Year 2020. The House proposal provides $7.668 billion from the General Fund to state programs beginning July 1...

This newsletter will be a bit different than the others. I have often been asked: "What it is like to be a state legislator?" So I thought it would be a good idea to give you a brief summary of what an average day is like for me. With that said, each day is different in the state capitol. There is a general flow to each day, and that is what I hope to convey with this letter...

We made significant progress on a couple of important issues this week at the Statehouse. Once again, weather was a detractor from our work on the Hill as it was across the state. All the while, we were working hard at doing the peoples work and making Iowa a better place. The two significant issues that were brought to light this week were school funding and judicial selection reform. ...

The Internal Revenue Service is officially accepting and processing federal tax returns for tax year 2018. The IRS expects more than 150 million individual tax returns to be filed this season and has already received several million in the opening hours...

On Monday, the House of Representatives held an election contest to settle a disputed election in House District 55. House District 55 was decided by nine votes. However, there were 29 ballots set aside because they were received by the auditor's office after election day...

The first week of the Iowa Legislature started on Monday, Jan. 14, 2019.  We heard from Governor Kim Reynolds, Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady and the Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard Timothy Orr. Some regard these speeches as pomp and circumstance, but they are really a time for each leader to lay out their vision to better the State of Iowa...