BW INSIGHTS

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week 13 Summary

By BrownWinick | 04.12.2021

Governor Kim Reynolds’ broadband expansion proposal is gaining ground in both chambers. Last Tuesday the Senate unanimously passed HF 848, which would establish a grant framework to rapidly extend broadband access to underserved rural areas. Two days later, House Republicans moved to fund the program, earmarking $100 million in their... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week 12 Summary

By BrownWinick | 04.05.2021

Last Friday marked the end of the second legislative funnel, clearing the way for lawmakers to focus primarily on budget issues for the remainder of the session. Most bills that didn’t pass either the House or Senate plus committee in the opposite chamber are now “dead” through the end of the session. The main exceptions are bills dealing with... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week 11 Summary

By BrownWinick | 03.26.2021

Lawmakers are once again stepping up committee work to beat the second legislative funnel deadline. Most bills that haven’t passed one chamber plus committee in the other by Friday, April 2 will be dead for the rest of the session. The main exceptions are tax, spending, and government oversight legislation. After that, the legislature will focus... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week 10 Summary

By BrownWinick | 03.19.2021

Following a surprise move by Democrats, the Senate unanimously passed a bill that would gradually eliminate Iowa’s inheritance tax and remove the required revenue benchmarks the state must reach before 2018 tax cuts take effect. Although Democrats initially opposed SF 576 in committee, they supported the measure on the floor, which passed 46-0... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session – Week Nine Summary

By BrownWinick | 03.13.2021

Lawmakers are shifting their focus toward floor debate following last Friday's procedural deadline for most committee work. That includes the House overwhelmingly passing two bills aimed at increasing child care access across the state. HF 712 would offer developers tax credits for building child care facilities. Sixty percent of the funds would... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week Eight Summary

By BrownWinick | 03.08.2021

Lawmakers raced to advance dozens of bills in an effort to beat last Friday’s “first funnel” procedural deadline. Most bills that didn’t pass both subcommittee and full committee in either the House or Senate by March 5 are now “dead” for the remainder of this legislative session. The main exceptions are bills dealing with taxes, spending, and... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week Seven Summary

By BrownWinick | 02.26.2021

Schools will receive a 2.4% funding increase under a bill Governor Kim Reynolds signed into law Tuesday. House and Senate Republicans reached a compromise on the spending measure earlier this month. Reynolds and the House had supported a 2.5% increase, while the Senate GOP favored a 2.2% hike. Although the funding levels in SF 269 are... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week Five Summary

By BrownWinick | 02.12.2021

House and Senate Republicans have reached an agreement on school funding, which the House passed Thursday. Under SF 269 K-12 funding would increase by 2.4% for the 2021-22 school year. That’s higher than the Senate’s proposed 2.2% and slightly lower than the 2.5% favored by Governor Kim Reynolds and House Republicans. It’s also a greater... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week Four Summary

By BrownWinick | 02.05.2021

This week the Senate began considering two far-reaching bills proposed by Governor Kim Reynolds that would address the affordable housing shortage and policing issues. SSB 1142 is aimed at increasing affordable housing stock largely through tax credits. The bill would establish a new $15 million low-income housing credit designed to match a... Read More

2021 Iowa Legislative Session - Week Three Summary

By BrownWinick | 01.29.2021

This week Republican lawmakers moved rapidly on two of Governor Kim Reynolds’ highest priorities, with Reynolds signing one of the bills this morning. SF 160 requires all schools to offer 100% in-person learning. Schools can continue offering additional online or hybrid options, and the waiver process for coronavirus outbreaks remains the same.... Read More