Capitol Notebook: Lawmakers advance bill loosening child labor laws

More jobs would be open to Iowa teenagers under a bill House lawmakers advanced on Tuesday.

The bill would allow 14-year-olds to work in freezers and meat coolers, load non-power tools to and from vehicles, and work in laundry and detasseling. Fifteen-year-olds would be able to do work like loading and unloading groceries from trucks, stocking shelves with items up to 30 pounds, and working as a lifeguard. People aged 16 and 17 would also be allowed to serve drinks at bars and restaurants.

Teens could also receive a waiver from the department of workforce development or education to work in industries like construction, manufacturing and mining if the job is part of a work-based learning program and meets certain safety conditions.

Business groups supported the legislation during a public hearing, saying the bill would help address Iowa’s workforce shortages and provide students with a hands-on way to study vocational skills before leaving high school.

The bill advanced with Republican support. Rep. John Wills, R-Spirit Lake, said the changes would allow teens to learn important lessons at earlier ages.

“We need to give our kids a chance, we need to give our kids the ability to learn life lessons,” he said.

But several organizations raised concerns about the bill, particularly the provisions allowing minors to work on construction sites and manufacturing with a waiver. Opponents said the loosening of the law could put children in dangerous situations.

“We’re not that far away from dozens of children working in a factory assembling parts,” said Peter Hird, a lobbyist for the Iowa chapter of the American Federation of Labor.

ESG investing

The state would be barred from investing money with firms that have “environmental, social and governance," or ESG, investment strategies at the expense of maximizing returns under a bill proposed by Gov. Kim Reynolds that lawmakers advanced Tuesday.

State money could also not go to investment firms that boycott fossil fuel, production agriculture and firearm companies.

Republican lawmakers advanced the bill, Senate Study Bill 1094, out of a subcommittee on Tuesday.

The bill is in reaction to some large investment firms promoting investment strategies that consider the social and environmental impact of investments. Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has proposed similar legislation this year.

Reynolds’ legislative liaison Molly Severn said the strategy promotes a “woke ideology” in a public hearing on the bill Tuesday.

“ESG practices are not only legally suspect, they are financially reckless,” Severn said. “We must ensure that ESG has no place in our state’s finances.”

Representatives for state pensions said their investment strategy is already aimed solely at maximizing returns during a public hearing Tuesday and do not invest with ESG in mind.

Gun control grant

Iowa will receive $2.48 million in a grant funded by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, a gun control law President Joe Biden signed last year.

The grant will fund intervention programs like extreme risk protection orders, in which a court can remove a person’s access to a firearm if they pose a threat to themselves or others. It can also support drug, mental health and veterans’ treatment courts.

Iowa’s grant will go to the governor’s Office of Drug Control Policy, and the office will create a grant application for distributing the funds, according to a White House spokesperson.

Reynolds funds fitness centers

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced plans to create three elementary and middle school fitness centers as part of a campaign aimed at addressing rising mental illness and childhood obesity.

Reynolds' office announced the plan Tuesday, a partnership with the National Foundation for Governors' Fitness Councils.

Schools can apply to receive a fitness center through the program between now and March 26, according to Reynolds' office.