The Iowa Department of Natural Resources would be prohibited from purchasing land at an auction, and nonprofit organizations would be prohibited from doing the same with the intention of donating the land to the state for public use under legislation approved by the Iowa Senate largely along party lines.
Sen. Tom Shipley, R-Nodaway, said the legislation does not prohibit landowners from selling their land directly to the state or nonprofits, and argued that the state already owns too much land that could be otherwise used for agricultural purposes.
Just 3 percent of Iowa’s land is publicly owned, according to studies by Texas A&M University’s Natural Resources Institute and the hiking and climbing website Summit Post. That puts Iowa near the bottom of states’ shares of publicly-owned land: only Kansas, Nebraska and Rhode Island had lower shares of publicly-owned land than Iowa in the two reports.
Iowa acquired 2,462 acres of land in 2022, according to state figures.
Iowa Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-Waukee, said the proposal would undermine landowners’ ability to get the best price in a land sale at auction by prohibiting potential bidders — the DNR and nonprofits — from the process.
The bill, Senate File 2324, passed the Iowa Senate with only Republican support, and Republican Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, joining Democrats in voting against. It is now eligible for consideration in the Iowa House.
Iowa Senate Republicans once again passed legislation that would require all Iowa businesses to use the E-Verify program to help determine the legal U.S. residency status of all employees.
Currently, it is optional for Iowa businesses to use the E-Verify program, and more than 5,000 do, according to Iowa Sen. Julian Garrett, R-Indianola.
Business groups have historically been opposed to the proposed mandate — organizations registered in opposition to the latest bill include the Agribusiness Association of Iowa, Iowa Grocery Industry Association, Iowa Business Council, Iowa Retail Federation, Iowa Motor Truck Association, and Casey’s, according to state lobbying records.
Senate Republicans have moved similar provisions in the past — it also passed out of the full Senate in 2019 — but the bill has never been passed by majority Republicans in the Iowa House.
That is where Senate File 108 is headed after it passed the Senate on a largely party-line vote, with only Republicans supporting and Republican Sen. Dan Zumbach, R-Ryan, joining all Democrats in opposition.
Legislation that would place in state law the current practice of the state workforce department requiring four work searches each week for recipients of unemployment benefits passed the Iowa Senate with only Republican support.
Republican Sen. Charlie McClintock, R-Alburnett, joined all Democrats in voting against the proposal. Proponents say the bill simply codifies how the Iowa Workforce Development agency operates the state’s unemployment insurance program.
With its passage out of the Senate, Senate File 2106 is now eligible for consideration in the Iowa House.
Students in grades 7-12 would be required to be shown “a computer-generated rendering or animation” that shows every stage of an embryo and fetus’ development, using an anti-abortion rights video as a model.
House File 2617 passed largely along party lines, 59-35, with majority Republicans in favor and minority Democrats opposed. The bill now moves to the Iowa Senate for consideration.
Republicans and anti-abortion rights activists say the video provides a medically accurate animated representation of fetal development, which Planned Parenthood and others dispute.
Rep. Molly Buck, D-Ankeny, noted the information and views contained in the “Meet Baby Olivia” video referenced in the bill runs contrary to those accepted by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
“The video … which introduces us to baby Olivia deliberately misinterprets the timeline of fertilization, the timeline of fetal heartbeat, and other medical facts about fetal development,” Buck said.
House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst, D-Windsor Heights, argued the bill is not about providing information but rather about indoctrinating students with a political agenda.
Live Action, which produces the video referenced in the bill, says on its website it “exists today to shift public opinion” on abortion and is dedicated to supporting a “culture of life.”
Rep. Anne Osmundson, R-Volga, the bill’s floor manager, said the video is offered “unbranded” and it is not required.
“It is simply a suggestion,” Osmundson said, asserting is has been “reviewed and endorsed by several medical experts” and endorsed by science educators across the nation.
“The bill ensures the teaching to our children of basic facts about human development in a very approachable way,” Osmundson said. “This is scientific information. This is teaching basic biology to our children. And it helps to answer one of life's biggest questions. Where did I come from?”
The legislation mirrors a North Dakota law passed last year, and similar bills are being considered in the Kentucky, Missouri and West Virginia legislatures.
www.thegazette.com
Sen. Tom Shipley, R-Nodaway, said the legislation does not prohibit landowners from selling their land directly to the state or nonprofits, and argued that the state already owns too much land that could be otherwise used for agricultural purposes.
Just 3 percent of Iowa’s land is publicly owned, according to studies by Texas A&M University’s Natural Resources Institute and the hiking and climbing website Summit Post. That puts Iowa near the bottom of states’ shares of publicly-owned land: only Kansas, Nebraska and Rhode Island had lower shares of publicly-owned land than Iowa in the two reports.
Iowa acquired 2,462 acres of land in 2022, according to state figures.
Iowa Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-Waukee, said the proposal would undermine landowners’ ability to get the best price in a land sale at auction by prohibiting potential bidders — the DNR and nonprofits — from the process.
The bill, Senate File 2324, passed the Iowa Senate with only Republican support, and Republican Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, joining Democrats in voting against. It is now eligible for consideration in the Iowa House.
E-Verify requirement passes Senate
Iowa Senate Republicans once again passed legislation that would require all Iowa businesses to use the E-Verify program to help determine the legal U.S. residency status of all employees.
Currently, it is optional for Iowa businesses to use the E-Verify program, and more than 5,000 do, according to Iowa Sen. Julian Garrett, R-Indianola.
Business groups have historically been opposed to the proposed mandate — organizations registered in opposition to the latest bill include the Agribusiness Association of Iowa, Iowa Grocery Industry Association, Iowa Business Council, Iowa Retail Federation, Iowa Motor Truck Association, and Casey’s, according to state lobbying records.
Senate Republicans have moved similar provisions in the past — it also passed out of the full Senate in 2019 — but the bill has never been passed by majority Republicans in the Iowa House.
That is where Senate File 108 is headed after it passed the Senate on a largely party-line vote, with only Republicans supporting and Republican Sen. Dan Zumbach, R-Ryan, joining all Democrats in opposition.
Work search requirements for unemployment benefits
Legislation that would place in state law the current practice of the state workforce department requiring four work searches each week for recipients of unemployment benefits passed the Iowa Senate with only Republican support.
Republican Sen. Charlie McClintock, R-Alburnett, joined all Democrats in voting against the proposal. Proponents say the bill simply codifies how the Iowa Workforce Development agency operates the state’s unemployment insurance program.
With its passage out of the Senate, Senate File 2106 is now eligible for consideration in the Iowa House.
‘Baby Olivia’ could appear in Iowa classrooms
Students in grades 7-12 would be required to be shown “a computer-generated rendering or animation” that shows every stage of an embryo and fetus’ development, using an anti-abortion rights video as a model.
House File 2617 passed largely along party lines, 59-35, with majority Republicans in favor and minority Democrats opposed. The bill now moves to the Iowa Senate for consideration.
Republicans and anti-abortion rights activists say the video provides a medically accurate animated representation of fetal development, which Planned Parenthood and others dispute.
Rep. Molly Buck, D-Ankeny, noted the information and views contained in the “Meet Baby Olivia” video referenced in the bill runs contrary to those accepted by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
“The video … which introduces us to baby Olivia deliberately misinterprets the timeline of fertilization, the timeline of fetal heartbeat, and other medical facts about fetal development,” Buck said.
House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst, D-Windsor Heights, argued the bill is not about providing information but rather about indoctrinating students with a political agenda.
Live Action, which produces the video referenced in the bill, says on its website it “exists today to shift public opinion” on abortion and is dedicated to supporting a “culture of life.”
Rep. Anne Osmundson, R-Volga, the bill’s floor manager, said the video is offered “unbranded” and it is not required.
“It is simply a suggestion,” Osmundson said, asserting is has been “reviewed and endorsed by several medical experts” and endorsed by science educators across the nation.
“The bill ensures the teaching to our children of basic facts about human development in a very approachable way,” Osmundson said. “This is scientific information. This is teaching basic biology to our children. And it helps to answer one of life's biggest questions. Where did I come from?”
The legislation mirrors a North Dakota law passed last year, and similar bills are being considered in the Kentucky, Missouri and West Virginia legislatures.
Capitol Notebook: State would be barred from buying land at auction under Senate bill
Also, Iowa Senate Republicans once again advanced a proposal to require all businesses use the E-Verify program for verifying employees’ U.S. residency status
www.thegazette.com
