Capitol Notebook: Iowa lawmakers tweak, advance bill to arm school staff

DES MOINES — Iowa House Republicans advanced a bill, after making minor changes, that would create a new permitting process for Iowa school districts to arm trained staff.

House Study Bill 675 passed out of committee Wednesday on a party-line vote, with Democrats opposed, ahead of a legislative funnel deadline. The bill is now eligible for debate and a vote by the full House.

The bill would create a new permit process that allows employees at Iowa’s public and private schools and colleges to carry a firearm.

In order to receive a professional permit to carry weapons, employees would have to pass an annual background check and complete a firearms safety course, in addition to one-time legal training on issues like qualified immunity, as well as annual communication and emergency medical trainings approved by the Iowa Department of Public Safety, plus quarterly live firearms training.

The bill also would require school districts with at least 8,000 students — among them Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Council Bluffs, Iowa City and Sioux City — to have at least one armed private security guard or school resource officer in each district high school.

Schools with fewer than 8,000 students would be encouraged, but not required, to employ school resource officers or security officers at high schools. The state would establish a school security personnel grant program fund that would match up to $50,000 for employing security personnel.

The House Public Safety Committee amended the bill so school districts could opt out of the requirement for having an armed security officer at a high school by a vote of the school board.

Also under the amended bill, identities of school staff issued a weapons permit would be confidential and not subject to disclosure under Iowa’s open records law.

It also expands to school districts the qualified immunity insulating armed school staff from criminal or civil liability for all “damages incurred pursuant to the application of reasonable force.”

Hands-free driving, traffic camera ban advances

  Buy Photo

Legislation that combines a ban on automated traffic enforcement cameras with a requirement for only hands-free use of mobile devices while driving narrowly advanced out of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. The Senate Judiciary Committee passed its version of the bill Tuesday.

With a 11-10 vote, House Study Bill 707 becomes eligible for debate by the full House.

The bill was proposed by Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, who for years has been proposing legislation that would ban traffic cameras, believing them to be unconstitutional.

This year, in an attempt to secure enough votes to pass the bill, Zaun combined his traffic camera ban with legislation requiring drivers to only use hands-free technology when operating a mobile device, a provision that is highly sought by law enforcement officials.

That combination has upset some, including advocates for the hands-free requirement, who want to see it passed into law and fear that being tagged to the traffic camera ban will doom both.

Iowa law enforcement officials packed a committee room during a morning subcommittee hearing on the bill before the committee’s vote.

  Buy Photo

Law enforcement officials spoke in support of the hands-free provision, but asked lawmakers to remove the traffic camera provisions, saying the technology helps reduce accidents and uphold traffic laws.

They urged lawmakers to separate the two issue and pass a stand-alone bill banning hand-held use of mobile devices while driving in Iowa. Senate File 547 passed overwhelmingly in the Iowa Senate last year, but the House hit the brakes.

They also questioned the House bill allowing drivers to hold an electronic device directly near their ear or with the speaker phone function activated when making and taking a call or for navigation purposes.

Law enforcement and traffic safety advocates said the exceptions essentially make the hands-free driving requirement unenforceable, and negate the purpose of the bill to crackdown on distracted riving.

Officers say the state’s prohibition on texting while driving, enacted in 2017, is difficult to enforce because drivers can say they instead were making a call or using the device’s GPS, which still is allowed under Iowa law.

Rep. Brian Best, R-Glidden, the committee’s chair, said House Republicans recognize the bill needs work and will discuss concerns and changes recommended by law enforcement before moving it to the House floor.

He said members voted to advance the bill to clear a legislative deadline to pass out of committee to make sure the bill stays alive for the remainder of the session.

Postpartum Medicaid expansion, access to birth control advance

  Buy Photo

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ proposals to extend postpartum Medicaid coverage for new mothers to 12 months advanced out of committee Wednesday, clearing a legislative deadline.

The House Health and Human Services Committee passed House Study Bill 643 by a 17-3 vote. The bill is now eligible for debate and a vote by the full House.

The bill would increase the coverage of postpartum care for new moms under Medicaid from two months to 12 months.

Iowa is one of only three states that has not implemented the extension, which was made available to states in the American Rescue Plan Act.

Democrats said they support of the expansion, but raised concerns with the proposal to change the eligibility for Medicaid coverage of birth and postpartum care to 215 percent of the federal poverty line, from 375 percent under current law, in order to keep Medicaid costs for pregnancy and postpartum care budget neutral.

Doing so would reduce the number of women and babies eligible for Medicaid coverage during and after a pregnancy.

A single pregnant woman making less than $42,000 a year would have her pregnancy and 12 months of postpartum care covered under Medicaid. For a family of four, that equates to more than $64,000 a year.

That would bring the state in line with other states and make Iowa the 13th-highest in the nation for income requirements for pregnant women and infants.

The bill also would provide coverage for newborns through the Healthy and Well Kids in Iowa program (Hawk-i) for those at 302 percent of the federal poverty level.

“We have billions of dollars in surplus,” Rep. Heather Matson, D-Ankeny, said. “To me it is heartbreaking that we have a bill in front of us intended to be revenue neutral when there is absolutely no reason that it has to be.”

The House committee also advanced legislation to the House floor allowing access to birth control without a prescription.

House Study Bill 642 would allow pharmacists to distribute self-administered hormonal contraceptives without a prescription to those age 18 and older. The order would cover oral birth control, vaginal rings and patches, but would not include drugs intended to induce abortion.

Pharmacists would only be allowed to dispense an initial three-month supply at a time. They would undergo training and have the patient take a self-screening risk assessment and perform a blood pressure screening before giving out birth control. Following that initial visit, Iowans could receive up to a year’s worth of birth control, but after 27 months, they would need to see a doctor.

Supporters say the measure would provide better access to contraception for women, thus leading to fewer unplanned pregnancies and reliance on government assistance programs.

Opponents cited concerns for women’s health, stating a physician should be involved sooner in the process to protect women’s health and ensure they are using the right contraception.

Reynolds requests federal disaster declaration

  Buy Photo

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds this week requested a Presidential Disaster Declaration for 18 Iowa counties due to significant snowfall during winter storms last month.

The governor requested funding under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance Program for Adair, Black Hawk, Cedar, Clinton, Davis, Delaware, Dubuque, Jefferson, Johnson, Jones, Linn, Lucas, Montgomery, Polk, Scott, Story, Wapello and Washington counties.

A joint federal, state and local damage assessment estimated the heavy snowfall caused more than $8 million worth of eligible damage under the Public Assistance program.

Funding from the program would be used to recoup costs related to snow removal, de-icing, salting, sanding of roads and other emergency protective measures.

Iowa’s congressional delegation sent a letter to the White House urging President Joe Biden to approve Reynolds’ request.

The January winter storms produced record snowfall, wind gusts of up to 50 mph and minus 40-degree wind chill in counties across Iowa, which caused multiple road closures, water main breaks, frozen building pipes and broken snow removal equipment.

Over the course of the storms, local emergency response teams rescued more than 1,200 Iowans from vehicles trapped in snow. Many essential services were severely delayed by the extreme weather.