2023
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Senate Moves Iowa’s ‘Don’t Say Trans’ Bill Forward
Opponents of SF83, which has been nicknamed Iowa’s “Don’t Say Trans” bill, spoke passionately about the proposed legislation during an Iowa Senate subcommittee hearing on Tuesday, but the measure still moved forward in a 2-1 vote. The bill would bar the teaching of gender identity from K-8 school curriculum and would allow parents/guardians to take…
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Safety Concerns Ignored As GOP Advances Bill To Out Students
Despite 20 minutes of parents, counselors, teachers, and one student explaining the ways House File 9 would hurt students, Republican Reps. Skyler Wheeler (R-Hull) and Brooke Boden (R-Indianola) passed it through the subcommittee. HF 9 could forcibly out many LGBTQ students by requiring schools to tell parents or guardians if a student asks to go by…
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Subcommittee Hearing An Hour Of Scaremongering About SEL Curriculum
A new bill from the Senate would forbid the Iowa Department of Education from promoting Social-Emotional Learning in schools and put restrictions on the ability of schools to survey students about a variety of issues including their home life, their social lives and their recreation. It passed out of a subcommittee by Sens. Sandy Salmon…
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Bill Expands Iowa Child Labor, Limits Teens’ Protection If Hurt
A new bill in the Iowa Legislature would allow young teenagers to work in more hazardous conditions, while exempting businesses from liability for work-based learning programs if those teenagers get hurt. 14-year-olds could be assigned a wider array of potentially risky work, and both 14- and 15-year-olds could be scheduled for work shifts that last…
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Scheetz: Republicans Target Hungry Iowans With SNAP Food Help Restrictions
Guest post from state Rep. Sami Scheetz For decades, legislators have protected access to programs that help low-income Iowans. But not this year: Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley, along with 38 other House Republicans, have signed onto House File 3, legislation that would severely restrict the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food…
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House Republicans Move To Ban Abortion Pills In Iowa
Iowa House Republicans would make it a felony to “manufacture, distribute, prescribe, dispense, sell or transfer” abortion drugs in Iowa. According to House File 146, filed Monday, the bill will not include penalties for the women who take or obtain the pills, and it doesn’t include birth control. Despite abortion being legal in Iowa until…
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GOP Bill Wants Iowans To Report Teachers’ Violation Of ‘Divisive Concepts,’ Levy Fines
Two years ago, Iowa Republicans passed a divisive concepts law—which outlawed the non-existent threat of critical race theory and other topics being taught in public schools—and now they’re looking to add expensive civil penalties to the measure. They also want Iowans’ help in reporting public school educators for any perceived violation. House Education Committee Chair…
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Which Iowa College Mascots Could You Beat In A Street Fight?
As a former high school and G League “athlete,” I still have moments while watching sports in person or on television where I look at the competition and say to myself, “I can take them.” While other former athletes who are in my position also have this feeling, I differ in one way. They think…
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Study Shows ‘Welfare Fraud’ Nearly Nonexistent In Iowa As GOP Aims To Restrict SNAP
The president of the Iowa Senate commented on an Iowa House bill that would restrict Iowans on public assistance, saying she believed it was necessary because “fraud and abuse exists in our system”—though Iowa’s SNAP fraud amounts to just 0.001%. Sen. Amy Sinclair (R-Allerton) made her comments during the taping of Iowa Press on Friday.…
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New Legislators: Dr. Megan Srinivas Wants To Make Things Better For Her Patients
Dr. Megan Srinivas, an infectious disease expert who made a mark nationally in 2020, was a busy woman even before she became the representative for Iowa House District 30, which covers southwest Des Moines. She contracts with various medical facilities and medical research organizations including the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health…
