Session Ends!
The 2025 Iowa Legislative Session ended this morning (May 15) at 5 a.m. Collectively the House and Senate passed all nine budget bills, the federal block grant bill, opioid settlement spending, a ban on the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines, Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) reform, sports wagering revenue spending, the Governor’s rural health…
Legislative Overtime: Budget Tracking
UPDATED (5/8/25, 5:13 pm). We are one week into legislative overtime with no clear indication that we are near adjournment. Legislators blew past their targeted May 2 adjournment and are now working without expense reimbursement and personal staff. It’s a weird showdown between Republicans – Senate & Governor versus House. Right now the Senate and…
Late Resolution on Gay Marriage
Sen. Sandy Salmon (R-Bremer) introduced a concurrent resolution yesterday (May 7) that conveys the Iowa Legislature’s deep displeasure with the courts over gay marriage. Senate Concurrent Resolution 12 states that the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision that legalized same sex marriage throughout the country was antithetical to the US Constitution. The resolution states that “Obergefell…
We Have Budget Targets!
Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Senate have agreed to a budget target for next year. The House followed suit this afternoon and released its own target, which was slightly higher ($36 million more). In the famous words of former US Senator Tom Harkin, this less than 1% difference is “pencil dust.” While that difference…
The Week Ahead
Week 14 looks like it will be a quiet one. The Iowa Senate plans to debate on Tuesday (April 15) and possibly Wednesday. (April 16). The House has no plans to debate and has not scheduled any committee meetings. Most likely the work will be behind the scenes to negotiate budget targets and decide the…
The Final Stretch
Legislators have just three weeks left before they lose their per diems, and they have a lot of work still ahead. This legislative session has been one for the books. With over 1,000 bills introduced in the House alone (a record), it has been harder than ever to keep up. This post serves as a…