Senate approves propane protections

DES MOINES – The Iowa Senate approved legislation Tuesday that would prohibit a fuel vendor from withholding or refusing sale of propane for home heating use to pre-paid customers under certain circumstances between Nov. 1 and April 1.

Senate File 2235, which passed 34-16, is designed to minimize situations where rural customers are denied heating fuel during the winter months due to bad credit, said Sen. Steve Sodders, D-State Center.

State law currently protects natural gas and electric customers from service shut-offs between Nov. 1 and April 1, but propane customers currently have no such protection.

“This addresses a very dangerous problem that we have here in Iowa,” Sodders said.

The legislation, which backers want to have take effect upon enactment, would guarantee service to customers who could document that they were able to pre-pay in cash for a minimum of 250 gallons of deliverable fuel or that they qualified for the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

The bill provides that a vendor can require a customer who misses three payments during a one-year period to paid the owed money before more propane would be delivered.

Republican Sens. David Hartsuch of Davenport and Larry Noble of Ankeny joined 32 Democrats in supporting the bill.

In other action, senators voted 22-28 to reject an effort to prohibit Iowa schools from starting the school year before the fourth Monday in August. Sen. David Johnson, R-Ocheyedan, argued the change would bolster the tourism industry but Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, urged his colleagues to oppose the change because the House would not approve the measure.

Senators approved compromise language to resolve a dispute over what purposes would be allowed for local school districts under the home-school assistance program before giving final approval to a multi-pronged education measure 37-13.

Senators also voted 42-8 to allow health insurance policies for state employees to provide treatment services of up to $36,000 a year for minors with autism spectrum disorders.

Sen. Tom Rielly, D-Oskaloosa, called Senate File 2349 “a baby step” in providing help to families with autistic children, but he and other backers pledged to try next year to expand the coverage to more Iowa families.

“It is important to recognize that this bill does not contain an insurance mandate,” Hartsuch said. “It will, however, permit us to gain important experience regarding the cost and benefit that will result from this policy change, and will allow us to make more informed decisions in the future.”

Finally, senators voted 50-0 to allow unlicensed individuals to conduct bingo games providing there was no charge for participation, the prizes were donated and the activity was not for fundraising purposes.