Capitol Notebook: Winter utility shut-off moratorium ending

UTILITY SHUT-OFF MORATORIUM: The Iowa Utilities Board is reminding residents the state’s annual winter home heating moratorium ends April 1. The agency encourages energy assistance customers currently protected from service disconnection to contact their utility company to discuss payment options and avoid disconnection that could begin as soon as April 2.

The federally funded Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program is designed to help low-income homeowners and renters pay a portion of their primary home heating costs through a one-time payment made directly to the utility or heating fuel vendor. It protects them from the shut-off of natural gas or electric service from Nov. 1 to April 1.

All utility customers may be eligible to enter into a payment agreement with their utility company that allows them to pay accumulated debt over time while maintaining utility service. Customers who were affected by COVID-19 may qualify for the Iowa Rent and Utility Assistance Program administered by the Iowa Finance Authority or by calling (855)-300-5885.

Utilities Board customer service staff is available to assist customers with questions about utility service disconnection or other issues that are not resolved directly with their utility company. Call (877) 565-4450 or email customer@iub.iowa.gov.

BRADY-GIGLIO: The House voted 91-0 to approve HF 2496, providing protections to law enforcement officers who have been or may be placed on the Brady-Giglio list. Prosecutors are required by law to release information to the defense regarding law enforcement officers whose testimony in criminal prosecutions could be called into question for untruthfulness and other reasons.

There is no formal process for putting officers on the Brady-Giglio list or for officers to challenge being listed, Rep. Steve Holt, R-Denison, said. In some cases, a prosecutor keeps the list in his or her head, and officers are not aware of being on the list until the information is released to the defense.

HF 2496 sets out the criteria for being placed on the list and establishes a process and time frame for an officer to appeal being listed, as well as gives officers already on the list an opportunity to ask for reconsideration.

Although he expects legislators will have to refine the law, Rep. Rick Olson, D-Des Moines, called it “a very good step forward.”

The law ends July 1, 2023, “so we (can) revisit it to see how it’s working,” Holt said.

SOLAR TAX CREDIT: A bill to allow taxpayers with residential solar energy system installations that were completed in 2021 or are on the wait list to receive the Iowa Solar Energy System Tax Credit could cost the state about $5.6 million, according to an analysis by the Legislative Services Agency.

The tax credit has been available since 2012. For installations completed since January 2016, it is equal to 50 percent of the federal solar tax credit. However, the Iowa credit was capped at $5 million a year. After the full allocation for 2021 was awarded, homeowners were put on a wait list.

SF 2326, which is the same as HF 2395, would cover the credits for homeowners on the wait list. The bills are in their respective Ways and Means committees.

FREE COUNSELING: The Iowa Department of Human Services announced free, confidential counseling and support to Iowans affected by recent severe weather through the Project Recovery Iowa program.

Project Recovery Iowa offers virtual and in-person counseling sessions to Iowans experiencing emotional distress such as anxiety, or feelings of being overwhelmed. Services are offered in person, or through phone, text and social media tools.

Iowans can access services through the following options: call (800) 447-1985 to connect with a counselor specializing in rural issues and agriculture 24 hours a day, seven days a week; call the Iowa Warm Line, (844) 775-9276, to connect with a peer counselor or request to get in touch with a Project Recovery Iowa counselor, 24 hours a day, seven days a week; or visit projectrecoveryiowa.org and complete a contact form and a counselor will get back to you.

EMERGENCY BEER SALES: A bill that would allow a bar that runs out of Busch Lite before a Cyclone or Hawkeye football game is over to buy more from a local convenience store was approved by the Iowa House 87-5.

Under HF 237, a bar would be limited to buying no more than five cases in a 24-hour period, Rep. Carter Nordman, R-Adel, said. Similar purchases are allowed for wines and spirits.

SEXUAL ABUSE: People arrested on sexual abuse charges would have to appear in court before being released on bail under HF 2079, which was approved 91-0 by the House.

“It’s important these offenders see a magistrate to set the appropriate conditions … so the victim is protected and the public is protected,” said Rep. Cherielynn Westrich, R-Ottumwa.

In most cases, a person is likely to spend a night in jail even if they can post bail, said Rep. Mary Wolfe, D-Clinton. However, she understood the goal of the bill is to make sure people charged with sexual abuse are served with a no-contact order before being released.

GUN VIOLENCE: Iowa lawmakers will join gun regulation advocates to discuss a recent shooting at East High School in Des Moines and the need for “sensible gun laws” at a news conference at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the East Side Library in Des Moines.

“Responsible and mature citizens who own guns have that right and I am not trying to infringe on that right. However, we must have gun laws that promote sensible ownership usage and safety,” according to the Rev. Dr. Franz Whitfield of Waterloo, a graduate of East High.

Among those scheduled to join the news conference are Democratic Reps. Marti Anderson and Ruth Ann Gaines, a former East High teacher, and Sen. Claire Celsi.

Volunteers from Moms Demand Action Iowa, a gun safety advocacy organization, also will participate.

OFF-ROAD VEHICLES: HF 2130, a bill reducing local control over the use of all-terrain vehicles and off-road utility vehicles, was approved by the House 63-29. Current law allows county boards of supervisors to allow them to be operated on county highways where they will not unduly interfere with conventional traffic.

This bill would allow registered ATVs and UTVs to operate on non-interstate primary highways over the most direct and accessible route between an ATV park or trail, a secondary road, and a city street designated for their use.

It also would allow them to be operated on all secondary roads under county jurisdiction. The bill strikes the authority of a county to regulate the operation of registered ATVs and UTVs.

The bill was amended to require drivers to be at least 18, have proof of financial liability coverage and lights and turn signals, and to allow cities to regulate the vehicles’ use on their streets.