Week 6 was marked by considerable debate time with debate into the late evening Tuesday and Wednesday nights on House File 291, Collective Bargaining Reform. On Thursday, with roughly four amendments completed and eighty more amendments still to go the speaker called for a "time certain" ...

In the Senate:We are already in week five and busy with committee work. We are coming up on our first funnel week. This means all bills need to be through committee in order to be considered for the rest of the legislative session. The only exceptions to the funnel are oversight, appropriations ...

Editor's Note; This is a new legislative column submitterd by State Senator Jeff Edler (R-State?Center) who was elected in November, 2106, to Iowa Senate Seat 36 representing Tama, Marshall and a portion of southeastern Black Hawk counties.In the Legislature:We passed three bills out of the ...

The energy level in the Capitol continues to increase as more bills make their way through subcommittees and committees. I expect this session to be marked by more spirited debate than in past years because of the opportunities that arise with both chambers and the governor's office being ...

Filing of bills and committee work is increasing as we finish the third week. The Fiscal Year 2017 (FY17) de-appropriation of $117 million was passed out of committee on Tuesday, setting it up for debate by the House next week. The de-appropriation did not impact K-12 education per the ...

We are now finishing up our second week in session. Bills are being filed and committee work is underway. Here is a sampling of the bills beginning to work their way through the process.My BillsHouse Joint Resolution TBD - Right To Hunt, Fish, and Trap: This bill seeks to amend the Iowa ...

The 2017 legislative session opened this week and there is a sense of uncertainty here in Des Moines and DC.My hope this year is the divisiveness and bitterness that ruled the campaign can be put aside at the State Capitol this year.As the minority party in the House this year, we know there is ...

Newsletter forThursday, January 12The 2017 legislative session is underway. Monday morning, January 9, we began with the swearing in ceremony. House Leadership remains unchanged from last session, Rep. Upmeyer continues as Speaker and Rep. Hagenow continues as House Majority Leader. Tuesday, ...

State Rep. Dean Fisher (R-Garwin) is seen here taking the oath of office in the Iowa House chamber as the 87th General Assembly kicked off Monday at the Capitol.The swearing in ceremony of all 100 state representatives begins a week full of ceremonies, including the Condition of the State ...

Des Moines House Speaker Linda Upmeyer (R-Clear Lake) recently announced that Rep. Dean Fisher (R-Garwin) will serve as the Vice Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee."Rep. Fisher is a respected and proven leader who will work across party lines to bring about consensus to move ...