Government : Hello, Iowa House District 84 from the State Capitol!

Farm Bureau members Al Schafbuch, Robert Ritscher, and Lynn Rinderknecht visit the Capitol Feb. 21 to discuss farm policies.

This last week we passed about 58 bills, with over 80% of these being overwhelming bipartisan to unanimous, and only about 8 bills being basically split along party lines. This is a good example where both parties can agree on many areas.

On February 22nd, the Iowa House passed House File 2613, which is the Supplemental School Aid (SSA) bill. The funding was increased 3% to each school district, which amounts to $146.7 million more than for Fiscal Year 2024, an increase of $229 per pupil, bringing the total state aid up to $7864 per student. The bill now goes to the Senate for their consideration.

House legislators on the Education Committee have recommended House Study Bill 713 to pass out of its committee, and is now renumbered as HF 2612. This bill has the goals of: no disruption to special education services, no termination of any employees of the AEAs, and will not prohibit the AEAs ability to perform any of the services they do now. It also intends to tie the salaries of each of the AEAs 9 chief executives to the average of the superintendents of the districts they cover. Currently, the 9 AEA chiefs each make around $300,000 annually. There is also a separate bill that addresses raising teacher salaries. Both bills will be discussed in great detail in the next few weeks.

On February 19th, I was the floor manager for House File 2237, which intends to allow ATVs and UTVs to be able to travel on the roads inside Iowa's state parks at a maximum of 35 mph and only on roads - no off-roading! It passed with unanimous republican support and majority democrat support. It now goes to the Senate for their consideration.

On February 21st, I was the floor manager for HF 2187, which intends to help the Iowa Dept. of Transportation become more efficient by eliminating outdated Road Use Tax Fund (RUTF) reports that are duplicative and no longer necessary. This bill passed unanimously and will be debated by the Senate with their companion bill.

February 21st was also Farm Bureau Day on the Hill. Visiting the Capitol were Lynn Rinderknecht of Van Horne, Robert Ritscher of Keystone, and Al Schafbuch of Dysart. They talked about policies several policies that will benefit Iowa farmers. It's great to have them keep legislators informed about ag issues.

Have a safe week, be careful out there, and hope you are able to enjoy the relatively balmy temperatures!