Iowa Senate Democrats

Fighting for a Better Deal for Iowans.

  • Legislators to hear from mobile home residents, discuss reforms

    Listen to this news release

    Bipartisan State Legislators to Seek Public Comment from Residents of Iowa Manufactured Housing Communities and Discuss Comprehensive Reforms

    “Iowa law should treat residents of manufactured housing with dignity and respect. Earlier this year, Democrats and Republicans came together to take the first steps in the right direction, and now it’s time to finish that bipartisan work.”

    DES MOINES—In light of widespread reports earlier this year of double-digit increases in rent by out-of-state landlords for residents of Iowa manufactured housing communities, a bipartisan group of Iowa lawmakers is seeking public input on proposed changes to Iowa law overseeing manufactured housing communities, also known as “mobile home parks.”

    A meeting to gather public input on proposed reforms will be held on Saturday, December 14, at the Iowa Statehouse. The meeting will take place in Room 103 of the Statehouse, the original chambers of the Iowa Supreme Court. The session will begin at 1 PM and end at 3:45 PM. Iowa legislators from both political parties and both the Iowa House and Senate, as well as representatives from the office of Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Finance Authority, will attend the Saturday meeting.

    Residents, landlords, and experts have been invited, and lawmakers have been informed that residents of manufactured housing from across Iowa plan to attend.

    Compared to residents of other states, Iowans living in manufactured homes on rented plots of land lack the basic protections that traditional renters have. In recent years, out-of-state companies looking for quick profits have bought up Iowa manufactured home parks and sharply increased the rent. Earlier this year, double-digit rent increases as high as 69% were widely reported by the press. In response, legislation to improve the rights of manufactured housing residents was approved unanimously by the Iowa Senate.

    “Iowa law should treat residents of manufactured housing (i.e. ‘mobile homes’) with dignity and respect. Earlier this year, Democrats and Republicans came together to take the first steps in the right direction, and now it’s time to finish that bipartisan work,” said Senator Zach Wahls of Coralville. “Iowa law should protect those who have worked hard for their piece of the American Dream from predatory out-of-state landlords taking advantage of Iowa’s unequal protection for manufactured housing residents.”

    To reserve a time to speak at the Saturday, December 14th meeting, Iowans are encouraged (but not required) to contact legislative staffer Rusty Martin at 515-418-8709 or via  email at rusty.martin@legis.iowa.gov.

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  • Private management of UI utility system raises concerns

    Statement by Senator Joe Bolkcom on proposed privatized management of University utility system

    This elaborate, 50-year creative borrowing scheme is the result of the failure over the last decade by the Iowa Legislature and Governor Reynolds to adequately fund our public universities.

    The University of Iowa and Iowa Board of Regents are moving at breakneck speed toward approving a proposed University of Iowa’s plan to privatize management of the institution’s electricity and water systems in exchange for a $1 billion-dollar (my guesstimate because it’s still a secret) payment.

    Like a hedge fund, the University of Iowa will invest this borrowed money in the markets, in hopes of realizing large capital gains to both payback the borrowed money to the investors and realize a financial gain to fund the University. Like a home mortgage, every dollar that the University receives in an upfront payment will have to be paid back with interest over the next 50-years.

    Exotic and possibly risky financing with international investors’ money is the latest plan by Governor Reynolds, the Board of Regents and university leaders to support educating our Iowa college students. The plan relies on the performance of the markets to succeed. If for some reason the University can’t pay back the money, Iowa taxpayers will.

    This elaborate, 50-year creative borrowing scheme is the result of the failure over the last decade by the Iowa Legislature and Governor Reynolds to adequately fund our public universities.

    Except for handful of legislative leaders and the Governor’s office, Iowans have been left in the dark about the financial details of this deal. The assets of the University of Iowa belong to Iowa taxpayers not any board or unelected administrator. We have not privatized the University of Iowa yet! Iowans deserve a far more transparent process and a timely sharing of the financial details of such a complicated long-term deal.

    Iowans will have no opportunity to express their views on the final details of borrowing plan. At the Board of Regents meeting next week, they will reveal the successful bidder and the amount of the deal moments before they vote to approve the contract. Their agenda does not allow for any public input.

    Taxpayers deserve some straight answers to basic questions before the Board of Regents rubber-stamps the deal. Some of the questions include:

    • Who is the company and what is their expertise and experience operating both a power plant and drinking water system?
    • Where is the money coming from?
    • How much money will need to be paid back?
    • Who is financially responsible if the plan fails?
    • Why does the University of Iowa continue to pay all the costs of staff, fuel and capital improvements to operate the utility systems?
    • Why have Iowan’s been left in the dark?

    This is no way to run a public university. This is not a long-term solution to fund higher education. Iowa taxpayers and University of Iowa faculty, staff and students deserve better.

  • Who owns Iowa’s manufactured homes parks?

    Who is buying up Iowa’s manufactured home parks?

    Here’s a complete list compiled by Iowa’s nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency with additional information from Iowa State Association of Counties.

    Contact: Robin Madison, robin.madison@legis.iowa.gov

    LSA info on Iowa manufactured home park ownersDownload PDF

  • 2020 Session Must Fix Iowa’s Medical Cannabis Program

    (Des Moines)  Improved health care for tens of thousands of Iowans depends on passing major reforms of Iowa’s medical cannabis program during the 2020 session according to two legislative leaders on this issue.

    At a statehouse news conference today, Senator Joe Bolkcom of Iowa City and Representative John Forbes of Urbandale listed reasons why the 2020 session will determine whether Iowa’s struggling medical cannabis program is able to improve.

    “Time is running out.  Recreational cannabis sales in Illinois will soon be undercutting Iowa’s legal, regulated medical cannabis businesses,” said Senator Bolkcom.  “As that program expands, it threatens the goal of making affordable, regulated medicines available to Iowans regardless of where they live.”

    For the last six years, legislators have debated various efforts to establish a working medical cannabis program. 

    “Iowa’s state government has so far failed to meet the needs of Iowans,” said Representative Forbes, an Urbandale pharmacist.  “Today, less than 4,000 Iowans have managed to become approved to legally purchase medicines made from cannabis.  That’s far less than the number that could be helped and not nearly enough to create a viable system.  The vast majority of all Americans live in states that have successfully created regulated, affordable, sustainable medical cannabis programs.  Why not Iowa?”

    In 2019, the Iowa House and Senate overwhelmingly approved major reforms to Iowa’s medical cannabis program.  The reforms would have expanded the number of conditions and made other changes that would have made Iowa’s program more similar to successful programs in other states.  After the session ended, Governor Reynolds unexpectedly vetoed that legislation.  Republicans, who control both chambers, unanimously refused to override Reynold’s veto.

    “Eliminating Iowa’s current 3% cap on the level of THC is very important for some patients with severe medical conditions,” said Representative Forbes.  “Adopting the standard of a 25 grams/90 days purchase cap would provide effective, affordable medication and put Iowa in line with what other states have done.””

    “When faced with serious, life threatening medical conditions, Iowans want better choices than opiods and other potentially dangerous drugs,” said Bolkcom.  “In just the first half of 2019, Iowa doctors wrote 850,000 prescriptions for narcotics.  Why are we preventing Iowans from having access to less dangerous alternatives?”

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    Representative John Forbes and Senator Joe Bolkcom argue for reforms to Iowa’s “worst in the nation” medical cannabis program in a news conference at the Iowa Statehouse on Friday, November 15, 2019.

    Key reforms for Iowa’s “Worst in the Nation” Medical Cannabis Program

    • Eliminate the 3% THC cap and adopt a 25 grams/90 days purchase cap to provide effective, affordable medicine.
    • Add additional chronic conditions, including PTSD. (See the list from SF 506, the legislation overwhelmingly approved last year by the Iowa House and Senate.)
    • Allow twelve more dispensaries, particularly in small towns and rural Iowa.
    • Allow other practitioners, such as PAs, ARNPs and podiatrists, to certify medical conditions.
    • Revise the membership of the Advisory Board to include at least three medical cannabis patients.
    • Eliminate the Iowa Department of Transportation from the cannabis card process and allow IDPH to issue cards directly. Lower the cost to apply for a card to $25.
    • Eliminate the Iowa Board of Medicine from the process of getting approval for new conditions and cannabis products.
    • Add additional chronic conditions, including PTSD. (See the list from SF 506, the legislation overwhelmingly approved last year by the Iowa House and Senate.)

    Additional Conditions for Iowa’s Medical Cannabis Program

    Stop forcing sick Iowans to come to the Capitol and beg legislators for treatment options that could help them.

    Instead, Iowa should simply adopt the conditions covered by most other states.  That would mean adding the conditions listed below.

    • Glaucoma
    • Hepatitis C
    • Ehlers-Danlos syndrome
    • Post-traumatic stress disorder
    • Tourette’s syndrome
    • Muscular dystrophy
    • Huntington’s disease
    • Alzheimer’s disease
    • Complex regional pain syndrome, type I and II
    • Rheumatoid arthritis
    • Polyarteritis nodosa

  • Speak up about negative impact of EPA proposal on Iowa

    IOWA SENATE NEWS
    For immediate release: Oct. 30, 2019

    Trump proposal ‘sides with the oil industry, not family farmers’

    MOUNT PLEASANT – State Sen. Rich Taylor (D-Mount Pleasant), a member of the Iowa Senate Agriculture Committee, today called on Iowans to raise their voices in support of Iowa farmers and against a proposed policy from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that could cripple rural America by weakening the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).  

    “The proposed rule by the EPA is contrary to an ethanol plan announced in early October by the Trump Administration. Another broken promise is bad news for Iowa,” Taylor said. “Like many living in rural Iowa, I believed the Administration was moving toward keeping its commitment to the biofuels industry and American corn growers. Unfortunately, the EPA’s proposed rule sides with the oil industry, not family farmers.”

    Taylor says he’s talked to many Southeast Iowa farmers who are worried about the mixed messages they’re getting from Washington, D.C., especially after ongoing tariff wars and bad weather that has created extra challenges for planting, growing and harvesting crops.

    One of those farmers is Dennis W. “Denny” Anderson of rural Mt. Union, who farms corn and soybeans in Henry County.

    “I’m a lifelong Iowan and farmer, and I can’t figure out what Trump and the EPA think they’re doing,” Anderson said. “Flip-flops and short-sighted decisions that line the pockets of big oil will hurt the ag economy and all the biofuels advancements we’ve made for generations to come. President Trump and our folks in Congress need to be straight with us. We’ve got to have some leadership now, or rural Iowa will tank completely.”

    The Iowa Corn Growers and other commodity groups have objected to the EPA’s plans for the federal Renewable Fuel Standard, including during an EPA-sponsored forum today in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The RFS was established to promote the use of renewable fuels and to replace fossil-based fuels.

    Visit the Iowa Corn Growers website and send messages in support of Iowa farmers and the biofuels industry to President Trump, Senator Ernst and others.

    Taylor encourages Iowans – farmers and non-farmers – to join the Iowa Corn Growers’ quick and easy public comment initiative on the EPA’s proposal.

    Before the November 29 deadline, Iowans can visit the Iowa Corn Growers’ user-friendly website —  https://ncga.com/public-policy/stand-up-for-corn/take-action — and send messages in support of Iowa farmers and the biofuels industry to President Trump, U.S. Senator Ernst and other federal officials.

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  • Add PTSD to Medical Cannabis Program

    Unlike most American veterans, Iowa vets cannot legally use medicines made from cannabis (marijuana) to treat PTSD.  That restriction also applies to other Iowans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  Any Iowan with PTSD should not be denied access to effective treatments, especially those that are safe alternatives to risky opioids.

    11/2019 meeting med cannabis call to action

    It is important to note that the Veterans Administration policy on medical cannabis has changed:  “Veteran participation in state marijuana programs does not affect eligibility for VA care and services. VA providers can and do discuss marijuana use with Veterans as part of comprehensive care planning, and adjust treatment plans as necessary.” 

    The Iowa Medical Cannabidiol Advisory Board decides which conditions can be treated with medicines made from cannabis. The current list of qualifying conditions can be found here: Medical Cannabidiol Information for Patients and Caregivers.

    Key meeting on Friday, November 1, 2019:
    Link to Agenda

    On Friday, November 1, the Iowa Medical Cannabidiol Advisory Board will decide whether to add PTSD as a qualifying condition under the Iowa medical cannabis program. The meeting will take place at the Iowa Laboratory Facility, 2240 DMACC Blvd in Ankeny.

    8:30 AM – A subcommittee on medical cannabis takes public comments (3 minutes per person) and then decides on a recommendation to the full committee. 

    10:00 AM – Public comments will also be heard at the start of the full Board meeting at 10:00 a.m.

    Before the meeting, you can email your comments to the Board at medical.cannabidiol@idph.iowa.gov or call the office at 515-725-2076.

    Tell them why you think Iowa veterans and other Iowans should have legal access to safe, professionally prepared medicines made from cannabis, just like most other Americans .

    More about how the Veterans Administration views medical cannabis

    Facts from the VA’s policy on medical cannabis :

    1. “Veterans must not be denied VHA services solely because they are participating in State-approved marijuana programs.”
    2. VA doctors cannot sign medical marijuana certifications, and the VA doesn’t pay for marijuana or provide it. 
    3. Veterans/others can’t possess marijuana on federal property.
    4. VA employees can’t use medical marijuana 

     Additional links regarding VA policy:

    Iowa Senate Democratic Research Staff research papers and blog posts on Medical Cannabis

  • Statement on new Human Services chief

    Iowa Senate News Release
    For Immediate Release:  9/5/19

    Statement from Senate Democratic Leader Janet Petersen on appointment of Kelly Kennedy Garcia to Iowa DHS Director

    Iowans need a leader at the Department of Human Services who will stand up for people instead of for-profit companies.

    Apparently Governor Reynolds shared her ‘ambitious goals’ for serving Iowa’s most vulnerable populations with newly appointed director Kelly Kennedy Garcia.

    It is time for Governor Reynolds to also share those goals with Iowans.  The Reynolds Administration has been working behind closed doors on a ‘new direction’ for the department for nearly a year.  Yet Governor Reynolds has continued to keep Iowans in the dark about what to expect.

    Like most Iowans, Senate Democrats are hopeful the new Iowa DHS director will have the courage to help Governor Reynolds fundamentally change course. Her to-do list should start with:

    1)    Fixing Iowa’s privatized Medicaid system, a failure that is unsustainable, unaffordable and unaccountable.

    2)    Reversing the policies that destroyed Iowa’s once successful family planning network.  The result has been more unintended pregnancies, more risky births, and more teenage mothers.

    3)     Addressing Iowa’s maternal health crisis which has more than doubled maternal mortality in less than three years.  Reynolds Administration policies have contributed to making Iowa a more dangerous place to have a baby.

    4)    Establishing a comprehensive, adequate source of funding for child and adult mental health services.

    5)    Ending dangerous practices and procedures in use at Glenwood, Eldora and other state-operated facilities.

    6)    Rebuilding Iowa’s child protective safety net by mending the holes that have resulted in abuse and death.

    The Reynolds Administration does not have a good record on helping Iowa families. Senate Democrats hope the Garcia appointment signals real change rather than more failure.  Iowans deserve better.

    end

  • Mathis named Legislative Friend of Housing

    Iowa Senate News Release
    For Immediate Release:  September 4, 2019

    Senator Liz Mathis receives “2019 Legislative Friend of Housing” Award

    CEDAR RAPIDS: Today State Senator Liz Mathis of Hiawatha received the 2019 “Legislative Friend of Housing” award at the statewide 2019 Housing Iowa Conference currently being held in Cedar Rapids. 

    The award recognizes “a legislator who has actively participated in committees involving affordable housing legislation, has developed strong grass roots initiatives and makes improving the lives of Iowans through affordable housing an integral part of his/her legislative work.”*

    “There are few things more important in life than a home that is safe and affordable,” Mathis said. “Iowa communities both large and small struggle to provide families with high quality, affordable places to live.  In the State Senate, I’ve focused on housing because solving this problem will help our children succeed, help businesses grow, and improve the lives of Iowa seniors.

    The specific work that led to Mathis’ nomination included:

    • Helping lead the restoration of flooded Cedar Rapids homes.
    • Expanding affordable housing for workers after the floods.
    • Working to restore single-family housing in a core neighborhood that was under stress.
    • Organizing a state-wide tour of affordable housing in the cities of Dubuque, Des Moines and Carroll.

    Housing legislation Senator Mathis helped pass or fund include: the State Housing Trust Fund, the Workforce Housing Tax Credit, the creation of a new state income tax exemption for deposits in a First-time Homebuyer Savings Account, Workforce Housing Set-Asides for Iowa’s smaller communities, the Home Ownership Assistance Program for military service members and veterans, and Redevelopment Tax Credits.

    Senator Mathis is the ranking member of the Human Resources Committee and Ag & Natural Resources Budget. She also serves on the Agriculture, Appropriations, Commerce and Ethics committees.  Additional information and photos of Senator Mathis can be found at http://www.senate.iowa.gov/senator/mathis/

    -end-

    * https://www.housingiowaconference.com/awards/legislative-friend-of-housing-award

  • Labor Day: Iowa workers are our best asset

    Labor Day is about recognizing the contributions workers make to their communities and our state. It really can’t be overstated: Workers are the backbone of our way of life.

    A thriving workforce is a sign of a strong economy and a successful society. When workers aren’t valued, we’re headed in the wrong direction—and that’s exactly what many Iowans are facing.

    In recent years, decades of advances toward fair wages, working conditions and benefits have been lost to policies that are upending the principles that made our country strong, along with opportunities for Iowans to achieve the American dream.

    In spite of record low unemployment, our economy has slowed to a crawl. Working families have been pushed aside in favor of corporations and profits.

    Most GOP legislators and the Governor gutted the state’s collective bargaining law that ensured employees and public employers collaborated on mutually agreeable solutions in the workplace; slashed protections for Iowans injured on the job; put pensions in danger; and weakened wage and “Buy American” requirements.

    The nonpartisan Iowa Policy Project sums it up this way: “Unfortunately, policy choices have put us on a road that prioritizes corporate profits over worker wages and corporate tax cuts over the public investments that allow for a strong, sustainable economy.”

    The result is a growing inequality, with the rich getting richer. Meanwhile, many Iowans work multiple jobs and still struggle to make ends meet. That’s not right.

    As we celebrate Labor Day, Senate Democrats remain committed to fighting for working Iowans, restoring and protecting workplace rights, and ensuring Iowa employees and employers have a fair shot at getting ahead.

  • Continuing the fight for equality

    On August 26, we celebrated Women’s Equality Day, which commemorates the ratification of the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.

    “It is a time to celebrate women leaders who have gone before us, paving the way toward increased opportunity for women,” writes Wendy Musgrave, a member of the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women. “However, true equality is not achieved until it is made real for women in all sectors and industries, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, age, ability or socioeconomic status.”

    One way we can continue the push for equality is through equal pay.

    In 2009, the Iowa Legislature approved a Pay Equity Act, outlawing wage discrimination. It is illegal for an employer to pay some workers less than others for jobs requiring equal skill, effort and responsibility.

    Nonetheless, wage inequality persists. In fact, the gap for Iowa is even higher than it is for the nation as a whole when it comes to equal pay between men and women. On average, a woman working full time in Iowa earns 79 cents for every dollar a man makes.

    It’s even worse for women of color: African-American women in Iowa earn 59 cents for every dollar a white man makes; and Iowa’s Latina women make 58 cents for every dollar a white man makes.

    These wage disparities are enormous over the course of a 40-year career. Women overall lose more than $400,000 as a result of the wage gap, and women of color lose about $870,000.

    Why should one person be awarded more purchasing power and a better standard of living for the same work? We all deserve to know our work is valued, to support our families and to get ahead.

    Equal pay for equal work is simply the right thing to do. We must close loopholes that allow wage discrimination to continue. That includes allowing employees to discuss what they make with coworkers, without fear of retaliation from their employers; and narrowing the reasons an employer may pay workers different amounts.

    2019 Equal Pay Days

    Equal Pay Day is the date American women earn as much as men did the previous year. Here’s how much women earn per every dollar a man makes and how much longer it takes them to earn what a man does in one year: