The Thompson Times

Mark Thompson, (R) Iowa House Rep

The Iowa House debate schedule has picked up and each day the House votes on multiple pieces of legislation.  The difficulty is picking out a few to discuss.  Almost every bill so far has been bipartisan.  The bill relating to open meetings training and enforcement was a unanimous vote.  It requires all elected and appointed members of governmental bodies to complete an education course for Open Meeting and Public Information law compliance. It increases fines for violations of Open Meeting laws and removal from office for a repeat offense. The fines increase from $500 to $2,500 and members who knowingly participated in a violation the maximum increases from $2,500 to $12,500. 

This week, bills were introduced and advanced regarding two policies to spur economic development in rural Iowa.

The House bill was amended in committee onto Senate File 574. It appropriates $300,000 to the Iowa Economic Development Authority for certification costs of certified sites in rural Iowa. This money must be spent in counties with a population of less than 50,000. That makes all three of District 56 counties eligible. This money can be used on two certified sites per congressional district each year, up to $30,000 each. 

Making economic development a priority everywhere in this state and not just near the big cities is essential to keeping our entire state growing.

House Study Bill 722 creates a new rural development tax credit.

This bill will encourage investment into new or expanding businesses in Iowa's 88 smallest counties.  By incentivizing investors to put their money into projects in rural Iowa, we can create more jobs, lift up local economies, and build back vibrant communities.

Last Wednesday (2-21) several legislators and I had a morning "coffee" discussion with Governor Reynolds. The Governor discussed speaking with school superintendents from some of the larger districts to talk about Area Education Associations review. From all the input I have requested from District 56 educators, we know there is a big difference between rural and urban schools. I extended an invitation to come to our "neck of the woods" and she accepted. The Governor's staff are planning a venue and will reach out to some of the superintendents in the area, likely before this article goes to print.

Education Funding

This week, the Iowa House passed House File 2613 to increase SSA funding by 3%. The Senate prefers 2.5% Supplemental State Aid often called SSA.  This is the amount of new funding committed by the state to local school districts usually used for teacher salary increases. In FY 2024 the state will provide $7864 per student.

      This number must be agreed upon with the Senate and the Governor. This increase will cover the teacher’s yearly salary increase. We need to add the money set aside to increase the salaries of the new teachers in a separate bill. This bill will provide funds that will JUST raise wages for teachers which is as much as another 96.6 million dollars. So, the schools will get an equivalent of up to 5.5 percent this year when all is said and done.

There is a bill on the calendar awaiting discussion and a vote that allows open enrollment bus routes.  It strikes the requirement that districts must both agree before the receiving district school bus can enter into the resident district to pick up students. 

The House Health and Human Services Committee advanced 26 bills, with the vast majority receiving bipartisan support. Below are some of the bills that expand access to health care, including mental health. Some of these bills have come to a vote and others are awaiting a full House vote.  The first three below have strong bipartisan support dealing with mental health issues.

HF 2402 – PMICs (Psychiatric Medical Institutions for Children) - This bill provides for an enhanced rate for psychiatric medical institutions that care for children with specialized needs and makes regulatory changes to PMICs based on feedback from providers.

HF 2397 – Access Center Transportation - This bill requires DHHS (Dept of Health and Human Services) to authorize payments to ambulances transporting mental health patients in crisis to an access center at a similar amount to when transporting to an ER.

  HF 2509 – Behavioral Health System - This bill comes from the Governor to transition the current county run mental health and disability services regional system to a state behavioral health service system with state contracted administrative service organizations governed by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.

   HF 2512 – Social Work Compact - This bill establishes an interstate license for social workers after 7 states have joined the compact. Two states currently have enacted this compact (Missouri and South Dakota). 24 states have pending legislation. The compact is effective upon 7 states joining. This was a unanimous vote.

HF 2585 – Nursing Facility Regulation - This bill requires DIAL to conduct training with inspectors and nursing facilities twice a year, updates when an on-site inspection is needed of a nursing home, and requires a process for citations that involves feedback from the nursing home.

  HF 2391 – Temp Staffing Cap - This bill establishes a statewide allowable charge schedule for nursing services and prohibits temp staffing agencies from charging over 150% of the charge schedule. This bill also brings technology platforms involved in temp staffing into state regulation. DHHS will establish the charge schedule through cost reports, and DIAL will establish an annual report and issue penalties.

HF 2271 – Parent Access to Minor Health Care Records - This bill requires parents to have access to electronic health care records of their minor children unless the minor has the legal ability to consent to the health care service or prohibited by state or federal law. Allows for health care providers to provide parents with a printed copy of the minor’s health records, with the exceptions redacted, at no charge to the parent, if they cannot comply with the electronic health records requirements of this bill. (93-1 vote)

HF 2583 – Postpartum Coverage - This bill comes from the Governor to extend Medicaid postpartum coverage eligibility to one year after birth.

Access to bills (by number or keyword), debate calendars, daily bills voted on, and much more can be found on the legislature website.  www.legis.iowa.gov  We have several weeks of debate and voting still ahead.