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

Kylannah (seated) and Katie Errickson (right) of Van Horne visit with Rep. Gerhold on Feb. 26th.

On Thursday, February 27th, both chambers in the Iowa Legislature debated and passed Senate File 418, which makes changes to the Iowa Code for the Civil Rights Act. Governor Kim Reynolds signed the bill into law on Friday.

The rights of Iowans need to be protected. Having Gender Identity as a protected class had problems protecting women. In 2022, the legislature passed, and Gov. Reynolds signed into law HF 2415, which protects girls' sports. School administrators asked for guidance on the issue of transgender girls playing in girls' sports, so this bill was made into law. In 2023, House File 622 was signed into law that intended to protect females' privacy by prohibiting biological males in school female bathrooms and lockers.

These laws that we passed were in danger and it was only a matter of time before they would be struck down as long as gender identity remained in Iowa Code as a protected class. For example, the city of Pella would not take further action after a biological female, who identified as a male, went topless in the public and family friendly Pella Aquatic Center. A culinary student at Des Moines Community College had her privacy violated after a biological male shared the women's showers with her. The student was told nothing could be done because gender identity is a protected class. The YMCA in Forest City had to resort to closing all of its men's, women's, boys, and girl's locker rooms and made all locker rooms and restrooms single use. Another example: a lawsuit was filed in Johnson County against the 2023 school bathroom law we passed just this last month.

SF 418 still protects basic rights of transgender individuals and will provide more protection for all women. They have the same rights as all of us do. You can read the bill here https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislation/BillBook?ga=91&ba=sf418 to see exactly what's in it. Most Iowans do not want Medicaid to pay for gender affirming care and surgeries, and this bill prevents that. There are 28 other states that do not have gender identity in their civil rights, including three states with the highest populations of transgender individuals: Florida, Texas, and North Carolina.

Other bills that are moving through the House intend to improve our foster care system. HF 376 allows DHHS and foster parents to consent to routine medical care for a child in their care. House Study Bill 146 appropriates $275,000 for additional DHHS employees to focus on finding relatives of children in foster care and provides additional emphasis on foster parents that have cared for the child at least 9 months.

On Feb. 26th, Van Horne residents 10-year-old Kylannah and her mother Katie Errickson visited the Capitol to talk about remote testing for her school classes and how much Kylannah likes and appreciates it.

I hope you have a safe and healthy week and support our local businesses. Spring is just around the corner and Daylight Savings Time begins this Sunday, March 9th! So, don't forget to set your clocks ahead one hour before you go to bed on Saturday night.