And that’s a wrap! The ultimate week of session has concluded and there have been just a few nice surprises. Whereas the second session of the 89th Normal Meeting was shorter than the primary, we didn’t disappoint when it got here to delivering nice laws for all Iowans. I labored tirelessly to get HF 2298 throughout the end line and it was handed by the Senate on the final day!
As we glance in direction of this election cycle and into subsequent 12 months, there are such a lot of issues to already deal with subsequent session. Together with your help and vote, I, together with my colleagues, promise to proceed to ship significant laws to our district and for all Iowans! Regardless that there was so many extra payments handed, these are the highlights of some payments that I’ve been requested about:
HF 2298: Ban on COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement for Kids (Despatched to Governor)
- Iowa Home Republicans handed a invoice that claims licensed little one care facilities, elementary, secondary, or postsecondary faculties will not be allowed to require the COVID-19 vaccine for enrollment.
- Iowans have reached out to their elected officers expressing their considerations relating to COVID-19 vaccine necessities. The difficulty is much more heightened with regards to youngsters.
- This laws will guarantee Iowa dad and mom could make their very own choices based mostly on what’s finest for his or her little one and that each little one can get the entry to schooling and little one care that they deserve.
HF 2317: A Tax Minimize for All Iowans (Signed By Governor)
- Republicans within the Capitol delivered a historic tax plan that lowers taxes for each Iowan and is sustainable into the foreseeable future.
- Our tax lower lowers the tax price for all Iowans to a good and flat price of three.9%. That places Iowa on the fourth lowest earnings tax price within the nation.
- Earlier than our tax lower laws, the bottom earnings earners would have paid a price of 4.4% earnings tax for Fiscal 12 months 2023. So, this variation to three.9% represents a tax lower for each Iowan.
- Regardless of what you might hear from the Left, wealthier Iowans will nonetheless contribute extra to funding the federal government. 3.9% of $1 million is greater than 3.9% of $62,000.
HF 2317: Making Retirement Earnings Tax Free (Signed By Governor)
- This session, we additionally made retirement earnings in Iowa tax free.
- How retirement earnings is taxed in every state can have a big effect on the place of us select to retire and make their major state of residence.
- We see many Iowans transfer or change their major residence to states like Florida, Texas and even Illinois that don’t tax retirement earnings.
- If we will maintain these of us in Iowa as soon as they retire, meaning they proceed to contribute to the financial system right here in Iowa, to not-for-profits and to their area people.
- I’ve seen some criticism that our invoice doesn’t embrace social safety earnings. Nevertheless, that’s as a result of Iowa already doesn’t tax social safety advantages.
SF 2367: Tax Exemption for Female Merchandise and Diapers (Despatched to Governor)
- With inflation at an all-time excessive and prices rising on nearly every little thing, Iowa Home Republicans are persevering with to search for methods to ease the tax burden on Iowans.
- This week, we handed a brand new tax exemption that may assist maintain extra money within the pockets of on a regular basis Iowans.
- This modification eliminates the 7% gross sales tax on female merchandise and diapers. It’s estimated to save lots of Iowa taxpayers $11 million a 12 months.
HF 2589: Eliminating the Deadline for Open Enrollment (Despatched to Governor)
- This invoice eliminates the March 1st deadline for public college college students to open enroll into one other public college. With this variation, college students might apply to go away their college and attend a special public college at any time throughout the 12 months.
- This invoice will assist present extra college alternative for folks and college students who don’t really feel like they’re having their voices heard by their college board and directors.
- Underneath present regulation, a pupil should apply to open enroll earlier than March 1st except they’re granted a selected exception. Because of this if a college board adopts a coverage towards your needs on March 2nd, your pupil could be trapped in that faculty for the next 12 months.
- This permits dad and mom to make one of the best choice for his or her little one on the place to ship their child to high school.
- The receiving district would nonetheless have to have the capability to just accept the scholar. And all present legal guidelines relating to athletic eligibility stay in place.
HF 2564: Aiding Companies with Increasing Baby Care Choices for Staff (Despatched to the Governor)
- The Financial Growth Appropriations invoice accommodates a tax credit score for companies to broaden little one care choices for his or her workers.
- Home Republicans have made little one care a precedence over the past 3 years, and final 12 months the governor signed laws to handle the cliff impact in little one care help, double the earnings eligibility for the kid care tax credit score for households, enhance little one care help charges by $13.4 million, and broaden choices for households via non-registered properties.
- This invoice tackles the problem from one other angle Home Republicans have been excited about working towards over the previous few years – incentivizing companies to assist their workers discover and pay for little one care providers.
HF 2127: Further cash for little one care suppliers (Despatched to Governor)
- This invoice permits little one care suppliers to just accept addition cash from households taking part within the state little one care help program.
- Present regulation doesn’t permit these households to pay the distinction between the CCA reimbursement price and the speed the supplier sometimes expenses, even when the household agrees to pay the extra charge.
- This invoice would assist suppliers make extra cash by permitting them to gather extra money from the households who can afford it.
HF 2549: Psychological Well being Mortgage Forgiveness Program (Despatched to Governor)
- This invoice establishes a psychological well being practitioner mortgage compensation program for Iowans that comply with observe in Iowa for a minimum of 5 years.
- This can draw extra of the much-needed psychological well being care professionals to our state to get educated, educated and stick round to work after they graduate.
HF 2546: Growing funds for these caring for high-need sufferers (Despatched to Governor)
- This invoice requires Iowa Medicaid to ascertain a price for psychiatric intensive care in Iowa.
- This can make sure that the well being care professionals offering take care of essentially the most troublesome psychological well being sufferers are being compensated appropriately.
HF 2384: Growing Transparency with Pharmacy Profit Managers (Despatched to Governor)
- The Iowa Home and Senate handed laws to create a framework for pharmacy prescription drug reimbursements from Pharmacy Profit Managers (PBMs).
- PBMs function the center man of the pharmaceutical trade and plenty of states throughout the nation are methods to reform the trade and supply extra transparency.
- This laws will defend our rural pharmacies to allow them to proceed to supply important care for his or her communities and goals to decrease the price of prescribed drugs for the patron.
HF 2578: MOMs maternal help laws (Despatched to Governor)
- This part of the HHS finances requires DHS to create the extra choices for maternal help program, a statewide program to advertise wholesome pregnancies and childbirth via nonprofit organizations that present being pregnant help providers.
- DHS will problem RFPs to pick out a program administrator that could be a nonprofit that has been in existence for a minimum of 3 years and may handle subcontractors to supply being pregnant help providers.
- The subcontractors should even have a minimum of one 12 months of operational expertise in offering being pregnant help providers.
- This program will:
- Present personalised help to pregnant girls to supply stabilization to households
- Promote improved being pregnant outcomes via wholesome behaviors and prenatal vitamin.
- Enhance little one well being and improvement
- Enhance household financial self-sufficiency by linking dad and mom with providers
- Permits contractors to supply:
- Dietary providers
- Housing, schooling and employment help for as much as one 12 months following a start
- Adoption providers
- Baby care help
- Baby care gadgets together with cribs, automobile seats, clothes, diapers, system
- Parenting schooling
- A name middle
- Medical data and referrals for medical care