WEEKLY BILL TRACKING
| Thurs. March 21 – Wed. March 27, 2019 |
HOUSE DEMOCRATIC RESEARCH STAFF
Agriculture
HF 733 Hemp Regulation. Regulates the cultivation of industrial Hemp (passed House Ways and Means Committee 25-0) to House Ways and Means Calendar.
SF 265 Sale of Mushrooms at Farmers Markets. Allows for the sale of certain times of mushrooms at farmers markets (passed committee 23-0) to House Calendar
SF 555 Implements of Husbandry Weight Limit. Raises weight limitations for some implements of husbandry (passed House 73-25) to Governor
Appropriations
HF 673 Radon Testing and Mitigation in Schools. Requires a test for radon by July 1, 2024 and one every 5 years after that. If first test is positive, a second test must be performed within 60 days. If radon found after second test, mitigation would be performed within two years, unless they plan to abandon the building. The bill allows the use of the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) and the Secure and Advanced Vision for Education (SAVE) fund to pay for testing and mitigation. (passed Committee 22-1) to House Calendar
HSB 246 Federal Block Grant. Allocates Federal block grant appropriations to various State Agencies. (Passed Appropriations Committee 22-0) to House Appropriations Calendar.
Commerce
SF 341 Service and Assistance Animals. Updates code relating to service animals and rental liabilities. (passed Commerce 20-0) to House Floor.
SF 556 Life Insurance Guarantees. Updates Code to model the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ life and health insurance act. (passed House 97-0) to Governor.
SF 559 Portable Electronic Device Insurance. Allows insurance carriers to electronically send notification to portable electronic device holders. (passed House 98-0) to Governor.
Education
SF 316 Special Education Interim Study. Establishes an interim study committee on special education. They would be required to review state and federal laws, and evidence based practices and strategies to make recommendations relating to special education requirements and outcomes for students with Individual Education Plans. They are to identify a graduated process for the transfer of a child requiring special education from a self-contained classroom to a general education classroom. (passed Committee 22-1) to House Calendar
Human Resources
HF 291 Spouse Protected Income. Amount that the spouse may retain when their partner is institutionalized is raised from $24,000 to $25,284 to match federal law. This is protected income for the spouse that cannot be used to pay for the institutionalization or other costs. (passed Senate Human Resources Committee 13-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 304 Personal Degradation by a Caretaker. The bill would classify personal degradation as “confirmed not registered,” or that this action is minor, isolated, and unlikely to occur again. If it does occur again, the caretaker can be put on the registry. (passed Senate Human Resources Committee
13-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 422 Telehealth at the CCUSO Unit. Allows the University of Iowa to provide health services for patients at the Civil Commitment Unit for Sexual Offenders (CCUSO) via telehealth whenever it is deemed medically appropriate. (passed Senate Human Resources Committee 13-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 570 Brain Injury Home and Community-Based Waiver Cap. Removes the monthly Medicaid cap for those on the brain injury home and community-based services waiver. (passed Senate Human Resources Committee 13-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 642 Human Trafficking Confidential Information. Allows partners (members of a DHS approved multidisciplinary team) to share information related to human trafficking with each other. Currently, these partners can only share this information when it is part of a child abuse assessment, but not for those cases when children are at risk of becoming victims of human trafficking. (passed Senate Human Resources Committee 13-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 690 Governor’s Children’s Mental Health Bill. Policy bill that creates the structure for the children’s mental health system. (passed House 83-14) to Senate Human Resources Committee
HF 691 Funding of Mental Health Regions. Changes the amount the MHDS regions are allowed to encumber to 40% of gross expenditures. Currently, this amount is 20% or 25% based on population. Spend down has to occur by 2023, as opposed to 2021. (passed House 96-0) to Senate Human Resources Committee
Judiciary Committee
HF 266 Commitment Procedure for Sexually Violent Predators. Changes the civil commitment procedure for Sexually Violent Predators (SVP). (passed Senate 49-0) to Governor
HF 529 Public Defender Fee Costs. Assessment of fees when the public defender requests copies of certain documents. (passed Ways & Means Committee 24-0) to House Calendar
HF 591 Minor Guardianship Updates. Amends Iowa Code related to establishing a guardianship of a minor. (passed Committee 19-0) to House Calendar
HF 610 Adult Guardianship and Conservatorship Updates. Amends Iowa Code related to the opening and administration of guardianships of adults and conservatorships of adults and minors. (passed Committee 97-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 679 Substantive Code Corrections. Makes substantive code corrections. (passed House 97-0) to Senate Calendar
HF 734 Postconviction DNA Process. Makes changes to the postconviction relief procedure regarding DNA analysis. (passed House 98-0) to Senate Calendar
SF 113 OWI Habitual Offender. Allows a person convicted of a third or subsequent Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) offense to be sentenced as a habitual offender. (Signed; effective 7-1-19)
SF 274 Public Speech at Universities. Makes changes to public speech and public forums at community colleges and Regents universities. (Signed; effective 3-27-19)
Labor
HF 531 Unemployment Changes. Removes provisions giving individuals additional unemployment benefits if they were laid off because their place of employment went out of business (passed House 53-44) to Senate Labor and Business Relations.
HF 666 Licensing Review. The bill sets up a rolling review of licensing by the state government efficiency review committee (passed House Ways and Means Committee 14-11) to House Calendar
Natural Resources
HF 599 Nonresident Hunting. The bill allows non-residents under the age of 16 to hunt in Iowa without a license. (passed House 86-11) to Senate Natural Resources and Environment
HF 603 Snowmobile Registrations. The bill eliminates the requirement that snowmobile owners obtain two $15 user permits and instead raises the annual registration fee to $30. (passed House Ways and Means Committee 24-0) to House Calendar
HF 640 Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. The bill changes the name of the Weather Bureau to the Climatology Bureau. The bill also makes fees for feed and fertilizers two year licenses expiring in either odd or even years. It moves the demonstration grants, for people who purchase vehicles which operate on alternative fuels, from the DNR to IDALS. Finally the bill expands water quality projects and repeals the watershed demonstration pilot projects. (passed House Ways and Means Committee 24-0) to House Calendar
SF 86 Logan’s Law. The bill requires the DNR to add organ donations to their fishing and hunting licenses for people over the age of 14. (passed Committee 19-0) to House Calendar
Public Safety
HF 516 911 Service Boards. Allows County Sheriffs and PSAP Police Chiefs Voting Membership on 911 Service Boards. (passed House 96-0) to Senate State Government Committee.
HF 566 Criminal Trespass while Hunting, Fishing, or Trapping. Amends penalties for criminal trespass while hunting, fishing, or trapping. (passed House 74-25) to Senate Judiciary Committee.
HF 634 Justice Advisory Board. Establishes a Justice Advisory Board under Department of Human Rights (passed House 97-0) to Senate Judiciary Committee.
HF 685 Cost of Medical Aid to Prisoners of County Jails. Creates a working group to recommend policy relating to the medical costs for prisoners in county jails. (passed House 95-0) to Senate Local Government.
HF 694 EMS Licensure Compact. Establishes Emergency Medical Services Personnel Licensure Interstate Compact. (passed House 96-0) to Senate State Government Committee.
HF 732 Medical Cannibidiol. Expands the state’s current Medical Cannabidiol Act (passed House 96-3) to Senate.
State Government
HF 590 Tax Return Preparer’s. A bill requiring tax preparers to use a federally issued tax preparer identification number on tax returns, the bill also establishes 15 continuing education hours per year for tax preparers (Passed the House 97-0) to Senate.
HF 656 Auditor Examination Fees. Increases the cap on the examination fee pool for small towns. (Passed House Ways and Means 25-0) to House Ways and Means Calendar
HF 743 Uniform Electronic Legal Documents. Sets up a process for the electronic storage of official documents. (Passed the House 98-0) to Senate.
SF 304 Occupation License Revocations. Prohibits someone from losing their professional occupational license for delinquent student loan payments. (Passed the House 96-0) to Governor.
SF 347 Education Telecommunications Council. Eliminates the education telecommunications council, at the request of the council. (Signed; effective 7-1-19)
Veterans Affairs
HF 288 Injured Veterans Grants Program. Expands the Injured Veterans Grants Program to include those who were injured in zones not considered “combat zones.” The bill also allows active duty military spouses the opportunity to get a temporary license or get their license expedited for their particular profession. (Signed by Govenor)
SF 280 Rock Island Hunting and Fishing Licenses. Allows people stationed at Rock Island who live in Iowa to hunt and fish in Iowa. (passed House Veterans Affairs Committee 17-0) to House Calendar
Ways & Means Committee
HF 529 Public Defender Fee Costs. Assessment of fees when the public defender requests copies of certain documents. (passed Committee 24-0) to House Calendar
HF 656 Auditor of State. Lifts the cap on the examination fee pool for small towns. (passed Committee 25-0) to House Calendar.
HF 666 Licensing Review. The bill sets up a rolling review of licensing by the state government efficiency review committee (passed Committee 14-11) to House Calendar
HF 733 Hemp Regulation. Regulates the cultivation of industrial Hemp (passed Committee 25-0) to House Calendar
HF 749 Snowmobile Registrations. The bill eliminates the requirement that snowmobile owners obtain two $15 user permits and instead raises the annual registration fee to $30. (passed Committee 24-0) to House Calendar
HF 750 Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. The bill changes the name of the Weather Bureau to the Climatology Bureau. The bill also makes fees for feed and fertilizers two year licenses expiring in either odd or even years. It moves the demonstration grants, for people who purchase vehicles which operate on alternative fuels, from the DNR to IDALS. Finally the bill expands water quality projects and repeals the watershed demonstration pilot projects. (passed Committee 24-0) to House Calendar
Administration and Regulation.
HSB 249 Administration and Regulation Budget. The House Republicans proposal for the Administration and Regulation budget spends a total of $52,420,985 in FY 20, $3.95 million more than FY 19. There is also a supplemental appropriation in FY 19 to the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) of $456,979 for the payment of utility costs. The proposal also spends a total of $55.38 million in FY 20 of non-general fund spending, an increase of $75,000 from FY 19. (Passed Budget Sub Committee 5-4) to Appropriations Committee.
House Education Budget Subcommittee
HSB 248 Education Budget. Funds two new student loan programs under Future Ready Iowa. The non-profit Schools portion of the Iowa Tuition Grant would increase $1.072 million for a total of $48.8 million. For-profit schools (only Waldorf and the Barber Colleges) would see an increase of $10,000 for a total of $385,000. The Rural Primary loan program is increased by $300,000. Aid to Community Colleges would increase by $7 million to $209.691 million. Early Childhood Iowa and IJAG are both increased by $1 million. A new appropriation of $3 million for children’s mental health is provided to train teacher and educators to detect potential mental health issues in students and determine appropriate follow-up. Iowa Learning On-line receives $500,000 which was funded by fees in the past. IPTV would receive a supplemental appropriation of $100,000 to keep their station active 24/7 and a $150,000 increase for FY 2020. The Regents institutions would receive a one line item increase of $15.9 million which is $2.1 million below their requested amount. The Board would determine the allocations to the institutions from that amount. If there was a full appropriation amount provided to the institutions, the Regents indicated that they would likely raise tuition between 3% and 5% for ISU and U of I. UNI would likely be less. If it was not met, the increase would be more. The Governor’s STEM council would receive $1 million increase. For the specialty schools, the bill matches their requested amount with a $567,000 increase. (passed Subcommittee 5-4) to House Appropriations Committee