News from the Hill…
This week we had a lot of floor action to get the House Files over to the Senate so they can pass through their respective committees before the next funnel date. One of the bills that sparked a lot of debate was dealing with election law. Presently the absentee ballots need to be post marked by election day or they can’t be counted. Unfortunately not all mail gets post marked by the US Postal service anymore, especially at the regional centers. This was confusing and the law was not clear on how to handle these ballots. So the County Auditors came forward with a proposal that absentee ballots had to be received no later than when the polls closed on election day. This seemed to make a lot of sense and the concept was adopted into a bill by the House Government Committee. While the bill sparked a lot of debate, which was sometimes far reaching from the what the bill actually does, it clarifies present law and makes a clear cutoff for when absentee ballots can be received. I voted for this bill and it passed the Iowa House with 56 ayes, 41 nays and 3 absent or not voting.
Ways and Means Committee…
I used committee time this week to assign some of the House Files that have been sent to our committee. We have around seventy plus bills in committee presently and more on the way. One of the bills I assigned this week, HF 514 came from the Commerce Committee that deals with uninsured motorist. Presently in Iowa it is mandatory to have at least liability insurance on your auto. Presently, the only enforcement mechanism for mandatory auto insurance is you have to get pulled over by law enforcement and then you need to show proof of insurance. The bill sets up a statewide database that is constantly being updated and is accessible only by the Iowa Department of Transportation and Law enforcement. I voted for this bill in the Commerce Committee and will plan to vote for it in the Ways and Means Committee. I know what we have is not working and something needs to be done to increase the enforcement of our present mandatory auto insurance laws and get uninsured motorist insured. Where this verification system has been put in place, it has reduced the number of uninsured drivers dramatically.
Iowa House GOP Income Tax Plan…
One of the other bills I assigned this week was HSB 215 which is a discounted optional flat tax. Presently Iowans file their income tax in a complicated and convoluted system. There are nine different income tax brackets and many deductions and credits available. So the rates are set but the effective rates everyone pays is different, depending on each person’s income and qualifications for the deductions and credits. The new plan would allow filers to choose the present system or the new optional flat tax system. If the filers choose the optional flat tax, they will get an increase in the standard deduction, a flat rate of 5% and all pensions and social security income will be exempt from Iowa Income Tax. However, I am excited about a flatter and simpler tax code. Then on top of that to remove the Iowa income tax from retirement income is a great addition to the bill. At a time when people have worked hard their entire life, saved and planned for their retirement are treated more fairly than what they are presently. There will be more on this bill in the weeks to come and I look forward working with legislators figuring out a way to permit hard working Iowans to keep more of their own money to invest back out into the economy.
“Government’s first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.” – Ronald Reagan
For more information on these and other bills: www.legis.iowa.gov
Until next time,
Tom Sands