Week 7 at the Capitol was funnel week where bills are voted out of committee or left for dead in legislators’ desk drawers. There was no debate this week due to committee meetings from 10 am to sometimes midnight, getting bills amended and voted on. Committees like Commerce, Labor, Education, Human Resources and others would last hours at a time due to the opposition party stalling as long as possible. This coming week (week 8) will be full of debate on the House floor of all the bills that were voted out of the committee.

One of the most fought over bills in the Commerce Committee was the voter ID bill. HSB93 does the following:

-Requires all voters to present government-issued identification at their polling location. Acceptable forms of ID include:

• An Iowa Driver’s License
• An Iowa Non-operator ID
• A United States Passport
• A Veteran or Military ID
• A voter identification issued by the Secretary of State (provides eligible voters a free Voter Identification card if they cannot afford another form of ID)

-Implements the use of E-Poll books to modernize and streamline the voting process at polling locations

-Eliminates straight-ticket voting from Iowa Ballots  

HSB 93 passed committee and will be debated on the House floor as early as next week.

During funnel week, school flexibility was a top priority for House Republicans. In Ralph Watts’ weekly newsletter he says, “My Republican colleagues and I are committed to providing more flexibility to our local school districts by loosening funding restrictions placed on them by the State. Many school districts have a significant amount of money sitting in accounts that go unused due to the restrictions telling them how they can use it. School districts elect a school board to make decisions to better the school and its students. Each district is different and faces unique challenges and opportunities. We should allow these schools to spend some of this money to better the education and needs of the students who attend.”

The Second Amendment was also a top debate this week. TheGOP-controlled House and Senate would like to see fewer restrictions when it comes to guns, but the Democrats see it a different way. This issue will be another heated debate this coming week on both the floors of the House and Senate.