This content was published prior to the combination of Dentons Davis Brown. Learn more about Dentons Davis Brown.
At the close of the thirteenth week, there are only three scheduled weeks left in the legislative session. Functionally—because Easter weekend is next weekend—that amounts to fourteen work days until the 110th day, the scheduled close of session. In those fourteen days, there will have to be a tremendous amount of progress and decisions made on both policy and budget matters in order to finish on time.
Budgets and Confirmations
This week was all about the budget and confirmations. Both chambers took committee and floor action on multiple budget bills. The most notable budget activity was the House passing the Health and Human Services budget off the floor on a party-line vote (54-44). Even though there has been a flurry of activity on budget bills in both chambers, there remain areas of wide disagreement between the Senate and the House on a number of those budget bills. The chambers will need to resolve those differences before they can send the final bills to the Governor. See the chart below for an update on status of budget bills.
On a parallel track, the Senate made major progress authorizing the Governor to assemble her executive team by confirming many of her key appointments. These confirmation votes are traditionally bipartisan votes and this year is no different. Listed below are several appointments that received individual confirmation votes this week due to their importance. There are hundreds of other appointments that get confirmed “En Bloc,” which means as a group, and these are typically to fill boards and commissions.
- Kraig Paulsen, Director of the Department of Revenue, 49-0
- Mark DeJong, Board of Corrections, 49-0
- Beth Townsend, Director of Workforce Development, 50-0
- Gerd Clabaugh, Director of the Department Public Health, 49-0
- Justin Kirchhoff, IPERS Investment Board, 49-0
- Wayne Walter, IPERS Investment Board, 48-1
- Jeffery Wright, State Public Defender, 49-0
- Stephanie Groen, Director of State-Federal Relations, 49-0
- Chris Kramer, Director of the Department of Cultural Affairs, 48-0
- Debi Durham, Director of the Economic Development Authority, 48-0
- Rod Roberts, Labor Commissioner, 48-0
Budget Bills
| Budget | House | Senate | Status |
| Admin & Reg | HF759 | Passed House (54-46) 4/9; to Senate. | |
| Ag & Natural Resources | SF609 | Passed Senate (32-18) 4/8; passed House Full Approps 4/11. | |
| EcoDevo | SF608 | Passed Senate Full Approps; to Senate floor. | |
| Education | HF758 | Passed House (58-38) 4/4; to Senate. | |
| HHS | HSB253 | Passed House (54-44) 4/11; to Senate. | |
| Infrastructure | HSB251 | Passed House (100-0) 4/9; to Senate. | |
| Judicial Branch | SSB1254 | Passed Senate Full Approps; to Senate floor. | |
| Justice System | SSB1255 | Passed Senate Full Approps; to Senate floor. | |
| Transportation | SF600 | Passed Senate (46-0) 4/2. Passed House (100-0). To Governor. |
Bills to Governor
As the end of session draws near, we are also tracking which bills have passed both Chambers and have been sent to Governor Reynolds to sign.
| Bills to Governor | Signed | Effective |
| HF260 Interest Charges | ||
| HF264 Domestic Stock Insurers | 4/9/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| HF266 Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators | 4/8/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| HF288 Military + Veteran Benefits | 3/22/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| HF306 State School Aid (SSA) | 2/19/2019 | 2/19/2019 |
| HF307 Transportation/Per Pupil Equity | 2/19/2019 | 2/19/2019 |
| HF327 Franchisor-Franchisee Relationship | 4/9/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| HF390 Aircraft Registration Requirements | ||
| HF391 Travel Trailer Dealer Bonds | ||
| HF392 Public Bids | ||
| HF418 CDL Federal Training | ||
| HF482 DOT Officer Powers | 3/21/2019 | 3/21/2019 |
| HF487 Single Point-of-Contact Towers | 3/25/2019 | 3/25/2019 |
| HF623 Prior Authorizations | ||
| HF650 Negligent Hiring | ||
| HF668 Wine/Beer/Liquor License | 3/21/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| HF698 Management of Pioneer Cemeteries | ||
| SF112 Certificate of Trust | 4/9/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF113 OWI Habitual Offenders | 3/21/2019 | 3/21/2019 |
| SF140 Special Minor’s Driver’s Licenses | ||
| SF159 Assessment Scores for Initial Teacher Licensure | ||
| SF208 Allowable Length for Stinger-Steered Automobiles | ||
| SF210 Designation of Lay Caregiver | 4/9/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF220 Section 179 Expensing | 3/15/2019 | 3/15/2019 |
| SF245 Skilled Workforce Shortage Tuition Grant Program | ||
| SF246 All Iowa Opportunity Scholarship Program | ||
| SF274 Free Speech on Campus | 3/27/2019 | 3/27/2019 |
| SF304 License Sanctions for Deliquent Student Loan Debt | 4/8/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF341 Service Animals | ||
| SF367 Eliminating Councils | 3/21/2019 | 3/21/2019 |
| SF402 Good Faith Credit Union Submissions | ||
| SF403 Credit Union Subpoena Power | ||
| SF412 Post-Loss Assignments | ||
| SF 506 Credit Union Mergers | ||
| SF507 Injuries From Falls | ||
| SF519 Ag Facility Trespass | 3/14/2019 | 3/14/2019 |
| SF528 Storage Space | ||
| SF534 Use of Gasification and Pyrolysis for Conversion of Waste Materials | 4/8/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF555 Weight Limits for Husbandry | 4/8/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF556 Life + Health Insurance Guaranty Association | 3/29/2019 | 3/29/2019 |
| SF558 Requirement for Domestic Surplus Lines Insurers | 4/9/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF559 E-Insurance Notices for Portable Electronics | 4/8/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| SF600 Transportation Appropriation | ||
| SJR17 Sale of Merchandise at ABATE | 4/8/2019 | 7/1/2019 |
| Bills to Secretary of State | ||
| SJR18 2nd Amendment Const Amendment + Strict Scrutiny Review | NA | NA |
