You Need to Know |
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After a slow start to the week due to Monday's holiday, House and Senate members began moving bills through the subcommittee process in earnest. Numerous bills were discussed this week, with many more hearings scheduled for next week. Among the high-profile proposals introduced were a bill from the Governor offering four weeks of paid maternity leave and one week of paid paternity leave for state employees, as well as a five-year casino moratorium bill.
The League Government Affairs team relies on your feedback to determine which bills are of most importance to you and your city!
How to read Legislative Link Bill Alerts:
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Includes all bills that have been identified by the Government Affairs team as potentially impacting cities due to any number of factors from city budgets, to local ordinance preemption, or community organization/placemaking impacts. Not all tracked bills will contain major impacts and, if a bill does not impact your community, we appreciate feedback that allows us to monitor a bill without making a formal League declaration.
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For a full list of bills being monitored by the League please review this document.
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Legislation with Scheduled Subcommittees |
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SF 28 | Cancellation of Tax Sale for Abandoned Properties
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Allows cancellation of tax sales for properties with abandoned buildings.
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Requires cities or counties to file a verified statement and petition.
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Mandates refund of purchase money plus interest to tax sale certificate holders.
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Aims to facilitate the reclamation of abandoned properties by local governments.
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League Position: Monitoring |
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Subcommittee scheduled for Jan. 27 at 12 p.m. |
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SSB 1022 | Modification of School District Supplementary Weighting for Shared Operational Functions
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Modifies supplementary weighting provisions for school districts sharing operational functions.
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Exempts college and career transition counselors from counting towards maximum weighting starting July 1, 2024.
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Exempts mental health professionals and school resource officers from counting towards maximum weighting starting July 1, 2025.
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Maintains the maximum additional weighting limit at 21 pupils for school districts.
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Aims to increase funding and resources for educational programming.
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League Position: Monitoring |
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Subcommittee scheduled for Jan. 27 at 2:30 p.m.
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HF 19 | Emergency Medical Services Funding Enhancement Act |
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Expands eligible expenditures for emergency medical services funds.
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Includes salaries or wages of emergency medical care providers.
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Defines 'emergency medical care provider' and 'emergency medical services'.
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Takes effect immediately upon enactment.
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League Position: Monitoring |
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Subcommittee scheduled for Jan. 27 at 4 p.m. |
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HSB 47 | Iowa School Safety Enhancement Act
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Establishment of multidisciplinary threat assessment teams in schools.
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Facilitation of information sharing among covered entities.
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Immunity from civil liability for good faith reporting of threats.
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Focus on students at risk of emotional disturbances or mental illness.
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Collaboration among schools, law enforcement, and mental health professionals.
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League Position: Monitoring |
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Subcommittee scheduled for Jan. 28 at 12 p.m.
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SSB 1027 | Teacher Recruitment and Retention Incentives Act |
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Authorizes use of district management levy for teacher recruitment and retention incentives.
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Incentives cannot exceed 10% of an initial teacher's salary.
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Incentives can be paid for a maximum of five school budget years.
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School boards must choose between early retirement benefits and teacher incentives.
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Public discussion is required before program adoption.
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League Position: Monitoring |
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Subcommittee scheduled for Jan. 29 at 11 a.m. |
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SSB 1010 and HSB 82 | Civil Service Reform |
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Prohibit cities with a civil service commission from establishing citizen review boards for police conduct and modifies the procedures and standards for the removal, discharge, demotion, or suspension of civil service employees, including appeal processes and the awarding of attorney fees for prevailing employees. The bill also requires cities with populations over 50,000 to have between five and seven civil service commissioners. |
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HF 92 | Modification of Iowa's Urban Renewal Law |
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Modifies Iowa's urban renewal law by excluding property taxes for emergency medical services from the division of revenue under tax increment financing. The changes will apply to property taxes due and payable in fiscal years beginning on or after July 1, 2026.
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SF 33 | Sick Leave Credit for Retired Law Enforcement Officers |
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Provides that eligible law enforcement officers who retire or die in active employment can receive a cash payment for their accrued sick leave, up to $2,000, and allows the remaining value of sick leave to be used for their group health insurance premiums until exhausted, eligibility for Medicare, or death. The bill excludes officers covered by collective bargaining agreements and stipulates that returning to employment forfeits any remaining sick leave benefits.
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HF 3 and HF 50 | Automatic Traffic Enforcement (ATE) Regulation |
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HF 3 prohibits local authorities from contracting with third parties to collect fines for excessive speed violations detected by automated traffic enforcement systems and excludes such unpaid fines from qualifying debt for setoff procedures against public payments. The bill applies to contracts entered into or renewed after its effective date and to unpaid fines from that date forward.
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HF 50 requires local authorities to transfer excess revenues from automated traffic enforcement citations to the road use tax fund, while allowing them to retain only the necessary funds for operating and maintaining the enforcement systems. Additionally, it requires these authorities to report monthly to the Department of Transportation the money received and expenses related to the system.
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HF 101 | Limitations on Bond Issuance for Public Projects |
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Limits the amount of bonds that can be issued for projects approved by voters in elections held after July 1, 2025, to a maximum of 80% of the total project cost, requiring the remaining funding to come from non-bond sources. This measure aims to ensure that a significant portion of project costs is covered by alternative funding methods.
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HF 44 | Fireworks Regulation |
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Amends Iowa law to allow the year-round sale of consumer fireworks from permanent structures and permits their use on the date of the general election in even-numbered years, while maintaining existing restrictions on usage times and locations. |
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You can view all editions of Legislative Link at iowaleague.org/resource/legislative-link.
Like our membership, the Iowa League of Cities is a non-partisan, service-oriented organization that does not participate in elections, make campaign contributions, or have a political action committee (PAC). |
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