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The Senate held debate Monday to Wednesday moving several bills on to the Governor’s office and to the House. I floor managed SF 397, which passed unanimously and now goes to the House. This bill … more
Obscene Materials to Minors With funnel week behind us, we have been focused this week on debate. A lot of legislation has been discussed and passed out of the House. HF 306 is a bill I ran this … more
It was an extremely busy week in the Senate. Kudos to my clerk, Mary, for lining up several subcommittees this week in preparation to advance bills to committee in a timely fashion. We still have … more
Most parents believe a back-to-basics approach is needed in Iowa schools. Last session, Governor Reynolds and House Republicans took that attitude to improve literacy amongst Iowa’s students with … more
This week, the Senate passed a bill to increase SSA Funding for the next fiscal year by 2%. This is in alignment with what the Governor proposed in her budget. Iowa House Republicans are interested … more
This week the Senate passed SF 167 for K-12 funding. The proposal increases funding for K-12 education by $235 million for this year. When combined with last year’s budgeted amount for education, … more
  The week started off on a somber note as we mourned the loss of Iowa Representative Martin Graber. He was a dedicated soldier, leader, community servant and a friend. Our thoughts and … more
The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results released by the U.S. Department of Education show encouraging gains with Iowa in the top 10 of all states for eighth grade reading … more
HSB 47: School Safety Enhancement House Study Bill 47 is one of the bills I served on the subcommittee for this week. After passing the subcommittee, the Education committee passed HSB 47 to … more
The third week brought the capital city a reprieve of the cold weather and we were lucky to have several days of 40 plus degrees and sunshine. Inside we continued to hold subcommittee and … more
Week 2 began with the celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  I had plenty of committee meetings and some subcommittee meetings as well. On Wednesday, I was able to meet with FFA students from … more
The second week of this legislative session was shortened due to the observance of Martin Luther King Day. Monday, we also celebrated the peaceful transfer of power from one president to the next. It … more
“We’ll always have Paris,” Rick tells Ilsa in the classic film Casablanca in which Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman set for the ages Paris as a backdrop for romance. Some even consider the … more
    Marcie R. Rendon reprises her fascinating character Cash Blackbear in Sinister Graves, third in a trilogy about a young Native woman whose special powers make her an invaluable … more
With baseball season now in full swing, what could be a better read than the biography of a small-town boy who made it big in the major leagues. That’s the theme of Joe Hatten: Bancroft Major … more
The Iowa Senate passed resolution SCR 101 (Sine Die) and recessed at 3:30AM Saturday morning on April 20, 2024. After a full week of debate the Senate concluded the 2024 session of Iowa’s 90th … more
While America was embroiled in the midst of a great civil war, yet another war was taking place in Minnesota. Aberdeen, S.D., native S.K. Sandvig writes of the 1862 US-Dakota War in The Girl in … more
You can save a life in just a few seconds, by being ready to respond if a stroke occurs. Nearly 800,000 Americans experience stroke each year. Strokes cause 140,000 deaths each year, and are a … more
The final days of this year’s session, as well as the 90th General Assembly, are upon us. We are ramping up debate on the budget pieces that signal the end of each session. Many of the budget … more
Technically this was the last full week while next week the 100 days of this 2024 session concludes on Tuesday the 16th. In reality we still have budgets to work on through the Appropriations … more
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On Wednesday, Governor Reynolds signed HF 2612 into law. This bill includes Area Education Agency (AEA) reforms, Supplemental State Aid (SSA), and teacher salary increases. House Republicans … more
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