Highlights in this edition:

• Gambling Tax Collections Rise as the New Year Begins
  • January was the first to show monthly gaming tax revenue growth exceeding $1 million in over a year
• Department Seeks Social Studies Educators and Stakeholders for Standards Review
  • Starting in April, the committee will meet regularly over three months to review and recommend proposed changes to the existing social studies standards
• Higher Education Committee Approves Civics Graduation Requirement
  • No requirement currently exists at Iowa’s three regents institutions or community colleges which requires students to be competent in American history, civics or government.  Yet Iowa, ISU, UNI each require students to take a course on diversity or DEI. 
• House HHS Advances Bills on Mental Health, Child Care, Parental Consent
  • House File 312 allows for individuals to be committed based on psychiatric deterioration

Highlights in this edition:

• Iowa’s Bond Debt Situation
  • Due to former Gov. Culver’s I-Jobs program, the state still owes $421 million in principal and interest on these bonds paying $45 million this year from state gaming tax collections to the holders of these bonds.  The payments on all the I-Jobs bonds do not end until Fiscal Year 2034.
• House Introduces Legislation to Curb Pharmacy Benefit Managers Harmful Practices
  • In 2022, the legislature brought PBM oversight under the Iowa Insurance Division which will release an investigation into PBM’s this spring
• “Nation’s Report Card” Shows Encouraging Progress in Literacy, Underscores Iowa’s Need for Evidence-Based Mathematics Support
  • The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress results released by the U.S. Department of Education show Iowa in the top 10 of all states for eighth grade reading scores
• Iowa Leads the Way on Enforcing Immigration Laws
  • In Iowa, any local entity which does not enforce federal immigration law risks the loss of state funding
• State Government Committee Advances Parental Leave Bills
  • House File 26 directs employers to treat adoptive parents of children up to age six the same as birth parents according to their employee leave policies

Highlights in this edition:

• Higher Costs Continue to Impact DOT Budget in FY 2026
  • Vehicle replacements costs are way up - the cost of replacing a truck purchased in 2013 for $132,000 had risen to $226,000 last year which is a 71 percent increase over 12 years
• House Ag Panel Approves Measure to Facilitate Farm to Table Meat Sales
  • The bill creates a new type of licensed and inspected food processing entity that can store processed packaged meat or poultry raised by the licensee and offered for sale at a premise or farm on a wholesale or retail basis
• The Cost of Higher Education
  • Jay P. Greene, a senior research fellow at The Heritage Foundation’s center for Educational Policy said: “A university is not an all-service commune with full-service, soup-to-nuts care for every need, as if students were children. The core mission of a school is teaching and research, so those should be the priorities, as well as limiting the cost to families and taxpayers. But that’s not their priority. Their priority is to expand empires.”
• Local Government Moves Bill to Provide Flexibility for County Attorneys
  • Many rural counties in Iowa have struggled to find higher qualified county attorneys with the current salary cap
• Casino Moratorium Making its Way Through Process
  • The bill prohibits the commission from issuing new licenses between January 1, 2025, and June 30, 2030

Highlights in this edition:

• Federal and Other Funds Budget Subcommittee Begins Work
  • The state has several non-general fund programs that had nearly $1 billion at the end of Fiscal Year 2024
• Commerce Committee Receives Presentation from Iowa Insurance Division
  • Insurance plays a vital role in Iowa with Iowa having the highest share of its private workforce employed in the insurance industry in the nation
• School Aid Refresher
  • From FY 2012 to FY 2025, spending per pupil has grown from $5883 to $7826
• Stopping Illegal Immigration with Help from the Federal Government
  • The failed policies of the Biden-Harris administration forced states to defend themselves from the influx of illegal immigrants
• Gov. Reynolds Announces New Grant to Advance Healthcare Careers in Iowa
  • The Iowa Healthcare Credentialing Grant will provide $3 million in total funding to create new pipelines of workers to help fill high-demand occupations in the healthcare sector

Highlights in this edition:

• Governor Reynolds Releases FY 2026 Budget Proposal
  • The bulk of the increases goes to two items with K-12 receiving a $102 million increase ($3.9 billion total) and Medicaid receiving a $223 million increase (nursing homes getting a $25 million increase)
• Affordable and Reliable Energy for Iowa
  • Governor Reynolds is proposing a Nuclear Energy Tax Force to examine and support the potential of nuclear energy in Iowa as a means of expanding Iowa’s energy generation portfolio
• University of Iowa Renames the Gender Studies Program
  • The university is simply moving the department to a new school with a new name
• Iowa Child Care Slots Expand by 25,000
  • Led by the efforts of House Republicans over the last several legislative sessions, Iowa has expanded the number of childcare slots by over 25,000
• BlackRock Decision Signals Retreat on ESG
  • ESG policies aimed to force industries to adhere to radical and unproven climate change policies that the Biden Administration was unable to push through Congress
• Iowa—Sixth Lowest Income Tax in America!
  • As of January 1, Iowa has a 3.8% flat income tax rate

Highlights in this edition: 

• Revenue Estimating Conference Finds Iowa in "Strong Financial Position" 
  • The state continues to see wage growth and increased consumer spending in the economy 
• Gov. Reynolds, Iowa Department of Education invest $3.5 million to bolster classroom instruction while reading at home 
  • The book packs are being provided to all public and accredited nonpublic elementary schools to send home with nearly 38,000 first-grade students
• Iowa Advances Maternal Health Care
  • Over the last two years the legislature has annually appropriated $560,000 to reimburse teaching hospitals for a resident in obstetrics practice, and these fellows are required to serve in a rural or underserved area of the state for five years after obstetric fellowship training
• School Security/Safety Task Force
  • Members are recommending multiple safety upgrades to new and existing school buildings

Highlights in this edition: 

• Smaller Growth Projected by Surrounding States as FY 2026 Revenue Forecasts Set
  • Iowa's Revenue Estimating Conference meets December 12
• Iowa Insurance Division Publishes Health Insurance Report
  • After 2024 open enrollment, nearly 40% of Iowa policies receiving advance premium tax credits (APTC) paid premiums less than $10 a month, with an average Iowa premium after the APTC of $93
• What Does It Take to be a Substitute Teacher? 
  • Individuals have two pathways toward becoming a substitute teacher in Iowa: substitute license and substitute authorization
• 2024 DNR Volunteer Fire Assistance Grants Awarded to Rural Fire Department
  • $416,000 in 50 percent cost-share grants were recently awarded to 138 Iowa rural fire departments to help their efforts to protect Iowan's and their property from wildfires
• $33.4 million provided to EMS in Iowa
  • Based on legislation by the Iowa House, emergency medical services recently received an additional $33.4 million to 66 EMS locations in Iowa 

Highlights in this edition: 

• Iowa's Taxpayer Relief Fund
  
  • It is an account in the State Treasury that holds unanticipated state revenue to be returned to the taxpayers
• Iowa Department of Education Releases New State School Performance Ratings and Federal Designations
  • Over 93%, or 351 schools, were identified in need of targeted support and improvement because students with disabilities at their school performed below the level of the lowest 5 percent of all schools
• Iowa Supreme Court Reverses Large Medical Malpractice Verdict
  • The jury decision that was reversed was for $97.4 million, with over $40 million being noneconomic damages
• House Republicans-Protecting Communities 
  • Organized retail theft goes beyond simply shoplifting and is a coordinated effort by an individual or group to steal merchandise from a retail establishment
• Teacher and Paraeducator Registered Apprenticeship (TPRA) Grant Program
  • TPRA is a unique grant opportunity that provides additional ways for current high school students and adult paraeducators to earn credentials while learning and working in the classroom