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Capitol Notebook: Iowa lawmakers advance bill redesigning local health boards
Also in the notebook, a proposal to expand Iowa’s bottle bill is moving forward in Des Moines
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DES MOINES — Iowa local boards of health would be consolidated into county or district boards of health under legislation advanced Monday by state Senate lawmakers.
Representatives from multiple health boards across Iowa expressed concern about the proposal, Senate Study Bill 3135, saying it would weaken the ability of local governments to respond to public health crises.
Mary Rose Corrigan, who directs the city of Dubuque Public Health Department, said the county and local health departments work cooperatively on several issues that one could not do without the other.
Deborah Thompson, who sits on the board of directors for the Iowa Public Health Association, said local response to health crises looks different between every county, which was especially apparent during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Republican state Sen. Mike Bousselot, of Ankeny, said the bill, which was introduced by Republican state Sen. Scott Webster, of Bettendorf, intends to streamline the delivery of public health services on a local level.
The bill also would require cities to perform all public health functions through a county board or a district board.
Subcommittee members Bousselot and Sen. Dawn Driscoll, R-Williamsburg, signed on to advance the bill. Sen. Renee Hardman, D-West Des Moines, declined to do so.
Legislation expanding Iowa bottle deposit law to non-carbonated drinks advances
Iowa lawmakers advanced a bill allowing non-carbonated drink containers to be accepted under Iowa's bottle bill deposit law.
Iowa’s bottle bill deposit law requires consumers to pay a 5-cent deposit when purchasing a beverage container and receive a 5-cent refund when returning the container to a store or redemption center. The law currently covers all carbonated and non-alcoholic beverage containers.
State Rep. Devon Wood, R-New Market, said she often drops off her drink containers at a collection site and can get a refund for her carbonated Celsius energy drinks but not the non-carbonated ones.
Mick Barry, representing Cleaner Iowa Inc., said 26 counties do not have any points of container redemption and expanding site access would make the program more efficient.
The bill, House Study Bill 661, advanced unanimously out of the subcommittee with Wood and state Reps. Elinor Levin, D-Iowa City, and Brett Barker, R-Nevada, voting to push it forward.
Mike Naig urges Congress to make year-round E15 available
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig on Monday urged federal lawmakers to reach an agreement on making 15 percent corn ethanol blend gasoline, or E15, available year-round after attempts to do so were omitted from a funding bill advanced by the U.S. House in January.
Instead, lawmakers created the Rural Domestic Energy Council, a task force to study the year-round sale of E15. The commission will be co-chaired by Republican Iowa U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra.
The task force has a Feb. 25 deadline to assemble a package to put before the House.
This move has been criticized by many Iowa corn growers who say year-round sales are necessary to help their bottom lines as they grapple with losses in the farm economy.
Naig said Iowa E15 sales have continued to grow year over year and argued that year-round sales would create new jobs in the state and allow more families to access affordable fuel.
“In addition to its affordability, E15 creates a valuable market for Iowa farmers, significantly driving demand for corn growers, creating jobs and generating economic activity in rural communities,” Naig said in a press release Monday. “It’s time for Congress to make year-round E15 available nationwide so families and communities across the country can enjoy the same benefits.
E15 sales grew 44 percent from 2023 to 2024, according to the Iowa Department of Revenue’s 2024 Annual Retailers Fuel Gallons Report.
Iowa senators pass resolution supporting dismantling U.S. Department of Education
Republican Iowa senators expressed their support Monday for the Trump administration's dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education by advancing a joint resolution.
Senate Joint Resolution 2008 argues that the department’s creation has led to "significant federal overreach" and that states are better equipped to oversee education.
The two Republican members of the three-member subcommittee, state Sens. Lynn Evans, of Aurelia, and Mike Pike, of Des Moines, signed on to advance the resolution.
Democratic Sen. Cindy Winckler, of Davenport, did not sign off to advance it. She said the DOE provides consistency in education funding standards nationwide, especially for special education and school meal programs.
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