Iowa 1st state to enact all Defense Department priorities

Iowa has become the first state to enact into law legislation addressing all 10 of the Defense Department's priorities or supporting military service members and their families.

Gov. Chet Culver signed seven bills April 27, the final pieces of the Legislature's veteran's agenda, four at a ceremony in Sioux City and three earlier Tuesday.

“By enacting these measures, we are keeping our promise to all who are serving and have served,” Culver said. “To our veterans, I say heartfelt thanks for your legacy of service. To the brave men and women serving today, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan, you embody Iowa's spirit of service. These bills are a symbol of the gratitude we all have for our brave service members and their families.”

From unemployment to housing, to family services, and legal protections for service members, “these common-sense proposals are becoming law because Iowans will always support those who defend our freedom, Culver said.

In Sioux City, he signed:

Senate File 2226 - relates to parents' rights for child custody when the parent is deployed, to ensure due process rights are protected while parents are deployed, and also allows service members to designate a relative of the child to exercise visitation rights in place of the service member.

SF 2274 - addresses two of the Defense recommendations by providing education-related benefits to military spouses, including a new protection for spouses who must withdraw from school because of a family deployment, the development of a study relating to the educational needs of veterans and their dependent children, and the creation of a work group to enhance foreign language proficiency.

SF 2297 - opens up state and local government facilities for military events, provides for additional administrative protection in the event of the death of a service member, addresses “non-professional” firearms permits by allowing the permit to be valid up to 90 days after a deployment, and prohibits utilities from disconnecting service to families while a family member is deployed.

SF 2318 - addresses three of the Department of Defense recommendations by establishing programs to inform state employees who are military members of their rights and benefits while deployed. Among other benefits, it provides for a study to determine how military training can substitute for professional licensing requirements, and it states that payday lenders must obey strict limits on interest rates when lending to military personnel.

Earlier April 27, Culver signed:

House File 2414 - adds the Coast Guard Auxiliary to the list of military organizations or veterans groups that are allowed to perform honor guard service on public property.

HF 2197 - directs employers to allow holiday time off for veterans on Veterans Day.

HF 2454 - directs the Department of Administrative Services to develop programs to inform, train, and hire qualified disabled veterans for job opportunities in state government, including a noncompetitive hiring program for disabled veterans who successfully completed a federal non-pay work experience program.