House Republican Caucus

Newsletter

February 28, 2018

Minnesota released its updated revenue

forecast on Wednesday, showing a sig-

nificant change from a rather dire projec-

tion last November. The economic news

in the Land of the 10,000 Lakes may be

a signal of what could come on March 9

when Iowa’s Revenue Estimating Con-

ference meets.

Back in November, Minnesota’s state

budget agency projected a revenue

shortfall for the FY 2018-2019 biennium

(Minnesota operates with a 2-year budg-

et). The last forecast said Minnesota tax

revenues would fall $188 million short of

budgeted expenditures. But things have

changed since November.

The passage of the federal Tax Cuts and

Jobs Act has increased Minnesota’s

collections from personal income tax and

corporate income tax, which is similar to

what has been predicted by the Iowa

Department of Revenue. And like Iowa,

Minnesota is experiencing strong labor

demand. They expect wage and salary

income to grow by 4.8 percent in fiscal

year 2018 and 5.5 percent in fiscal year

2019.

Minnesota budget officials also say the

Minnesota’s outside economic analysts

are now predicting that national gross

domestic product for fiscal year 2018 will

grow by 2.7 percent, two tenths higher

than their November forecast. For fiscal

year 2019, the GDP projection has risen

from 2.2 percent in November to 2.9 in

Wednesday’s forecast.

(Continued on next page)

Appropriations (contact: Brad Trow at 1-3471)

Inside this issue:

Appropriations 1

Agriculture 2

Commerce 3

Economic Growth 3

Education 3

Environmental Protection 4

Human Resources 5

Judiciary 5

Labor 6

State Government 7

Transportation 7

Veterans Affairs 8

Ways & Means 9

A Sign of What is to Come in Iowa? Minnesota’s State

Revenue Picture Brightens

“federal tax cut bill has

a stimulating effect on

the state’s economy.”

Agriculture (Contact Lew Olson at 1-3096)

(Continued from page 1)

The stronger economy and higher tax collections means Novem-

ber’s shortfall for Minnesota revenue of $188 million has now

swung to a $329 million surplus. What does this mean for Iowa?

It is possible that stronger economic numbers go beyond Minneso-

ta’s borders. Through February 27, Iowa’s sales tax collections –

which barely moved for most of FY 2017 – are up almost seven

percent for the year. Iowans will know for sure when the REC

meets next Friday.

House Republican Newsletter Page 2

Iowa Ag Secretary Northey Finally Confirmed By U.S. Senate for Under-Secretary Position

On Tuesday, February 27, 2018, the Iowa Department of Agricul-ture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) issued a press release from Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey concerning his statement following the U.S. Senate confirming him to serve as the Under Secretary of Agriculture. The timing for Northey’s resignation and swearing-in is still being finalized and will be announced at a later date.

On Tuesday, February 27, 2018, following an earlier meeting in the White House with Iowa’s U.S. Senators Grassley and Ernst, and the Texas Senator responsible for holding up the Northey nomina-

tion, the U.S. Senate confirmed the nomination of Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey to the position of USDA Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation. Northey was nominated to fill the position in September 2017. His nomination was approved unanimously by the Senate Agriculture Committee. After a 4-month hold by U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, Iowa’s agriculture secretary has finally been confirmed to fill the USDA position. Cruz released his hold earlier today.

House Clears Two Water Quality Measures

On Monday, February 26, 2018, the Iowa House passed two measures designed to further Iowa water quality efforts and strengthen the safety of drinking water supply systems that use natural lakes as water sources. The first measure, House File 2440 proposed to add additional features to Iowa Water Quality effort that further expand efforts already enacted this session in Senate File 512 and this legislation passed by a bipartisan 67-aye to 31-nay vote. HF 2440 adds ‘specified industry’ as an eligible party to participating and receive financial assistance from the wa-ter quality financing program if that entity is subject to making nutri-ent reductions specified in the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy. It amends SF 512’s water quality agriculture infrastructure to provide that surface waters include but not limited to those described in the state’s impaired water list that are used as a drinking water supply, and it adds as a priority to be given concerning wastewater and drinking water treatment financial assistance to communities whose drinking water facilities and systems whose completion will improve surface waters on the state impaired waters list that will allow (typically rural water systems) to address total suspended solids, turbidity and bacteria issues that usually feedback into nutri-ent enrichment matters. The bill adds Rural Improvement Zones (Code Chapter 357H) to the definition of political subdivision that are able to form and be a voting member of a watershed manage-ment authority.

HF 2440 further made a number of technical and substantive cor-rections to Senate File 512 that was enacted earlier this session. The measure extends for an additional two years funds that were appropriated in 2015 legislation for purposes of supporting the collection and use of data associated with in-field practices and allow the use of such funds to administer education and outreach programs concerning in-field agricultural practices. It removes

qualifying language concerning the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strat-egy that referred to the most recent /or latest version because that phrase is explicitly defined in section 18 of SF 512, eliminates a provision in SF 512 that appears to be a drafting error that speci-fied certain conditions for water quality financing program eligible entities which includes a sentence requiring drainage and levee district to utilize edge-of-field infrastructure; and it changes a num-ber of start dates in SF 512 to a year later to reflect that enactment of the bill occurred in 2018, not 2017.

The second piece of water related legislation that passed on Mon-day was House File 2407 that was approved by the House by a unanimous 98-aye vote. HF 2407 proposes to prohibit application of pesticides to a natural lake, or artificial lake that is connected to a natural lake that is used as a drinking water source for either a public or private water supply system. As water quality is im-proved in some lakes, natural aquatic vegetation is returning to shallow waters and some adjoining property owners are respond-ing to this growth of underwater vegetation by applying off-label herbicides to areas around their docks, boat slips or beach areas they use. The use of pesticides in water bodies that are also used as water supply system source water is problematic and can be a risk to drinking water derived from pesticide treated waters. The measure still allows a certified aquatic applicator the ability to treat lakes as long as they adhere to aquatic pesticide label restriction that ensure source water safety, but it they don’t apply to label specification under current law and continuing whether this law is ultimately enacted or not, they can lose their certification/license to apply restricted pesticides. Under the bill’s provisions, a person violating the application of pesticide to a natural lake or artificial lake is subject to a $1,000 civil penalty.

House Republican Newsletter Page 3

Both chambers passed a bill this week to not only provide a new option for quality education for home school families, but also to provide opportunities for those students to interact with other stu-dents and Iowa-licensed teachers. The bill passed the Senate unanimously, 48-0, but met resistance in the House and passed on a near party-line vote of 60-39. The bill is simple in premise. The Department of Education runs a program called Iowa Learning Online (ILO) which provides an ala carte style menu of course to public and private schools. If a dis-trict in rural Iowa wants to provide a course on Mandarin Chinese but can’t hire a teacher for the course, they can access this con-tent through ILO. Current law does not allow home school stu-dents to access this same course catalog, so the bill provides that access. Homeschool families have a few options for accessing online learning programs. This would be another option for them that creates a relationship between the student and the Department, which provides the course content. The family would pay the fee of $260 per course and the fees are then used to support ILO. The bill was brought forward because other solutions don’t always work for families that are homeschooling and many families asked for this access. The option to dual enroll in the local school district to access courses exists, but frequently families are denied be-

cause of capacity. Obviously the public students in that district would have first option to that course. Capacity is, however, not an issue for ILO because of the digital nature of the program. The Department simply uses the fees collected from participating fami-lies to expand the opportunities to accommodate all requests. The debate on the floor of the House turned partisan quickly. The House Democrats turned the debate, not into one about the topic of the bill, expanded high-quality education options for Iowa stu-dents, but into a discussion about the merits of homeschooling. The conversation was filled with concern that this would put kids further off the map from state oversight. What was missed, how-ever, is that the bill would actually put these students in contact with that same state system that the Democrats so strongly feel every child needs to be a part of, while at the same time providing that option of accessing quality instruction. While the Senate fully understood the value of the legislation, that same message was unfortunately lost amongst House Democrats. It created a contentious debate that tried to bury the positives in the bill. Only one Democrat in the House supported the bill. Iowa students, regardless of their educational setting, should have access to all available options for their academic growth. Denying them access to an existing, state-run, and quality program, simply because the family chose the best education-al setting for them makes no sense.

Iowa to Designate Federal Opportunity Zones

Economic Growth (Contact Kristi Kious 2-5290)

Education Contact Jason Chapman at 1-3015)

Iowa Economic Development Authority recently invited cities, counties, and communities in eligible areas to apply to be consid-ered for designation as Opportunity Zones. The federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 contained new tax incentives for areas with such a designation.

The opportunity zone program was recently established to encour-age long-term investments in low-income areas. The program is administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and includes tax incentives for investors in low-income communities. The zones will be designated in tracts that meet the Treasury Department’s qualifications for New Market Tax Credits. The program requires

the poverty rate be 20 percent or greater and/or family income be less than 80 percent of the area’s median income. Each state is allowed to designate 25 percent of its “low income census tracts” as Opportunity Zones. Iowa has 239 eligible communities—so 60 could be named Opportunity Zones. Once designated, the tracts will be in place for 10 years.

Cities, counties and communities can apply by completing the ap-plication form available at iowaeconomicdevelopment.com/opportunityzones. All applications must be submitted to opportuni-tyzones@iowaeda.com by March 19, 2018.

Bill to Provide Option for State-Provided Online Classes to Homeschool Students Advances

Commerce (Contact Ben Gentz at 1-3452)

Iowa House Passes Telehealth Coverage

Many parts of Iowa have limited access to a doctor. With few gen-eral practitioners and even fewer specialists in the state, long trav-el times and expensive transportation costs for Iowa families is often the result. Faced with these barriers Iowans may end up going without the care they need. One possible solution is tele-health. Telehealth allows long distance patient/clinician contact and care.

It is a practice that would allow an Iowan to speak with, visually

see and be treated by a doctor by utilizing audio visual technology.

HF 2305

, just like health insurance covers a face to face visit between a patient and their healthcare professional It passed out of commit-tee unanimously and passed by a vote of 98-0 on the house floor. HF 2305 has been sent to the senate for consideration.

“requires telehealth care to be

covered by healthcare insurance,”

House Republican Newsletter Page 4

DNR Touts Iowa Companies for Pollution Prevention

The Department of Education is looking for nominations for 2019’s Iowa Teacher of the Year award. The award provides an oppor-tunity to recognize an Iowa teacher who motivates, challenges, and inspires excellence; who is respected by students and peers; who is a dedicated professional that helps nurture hidden talents and abilities; who is a creative, caring individual; who takes teach-ing beyond textbooks and blackboards; and who is an exceptional teacher helping to redefine American education. Established in 1958, the annual program is sponsored by the Iowa Department of Education through an appropriation from the Iowa Legislature. The Teacher of the Year serves as an ambassador to education and as a liaison to primary and secondary schools, high-er education and organizations across the state. The legislative appropriation is $85,000 in the Education Appropri-ations bill, part of the Student Achievement and Teacher Quality Program, for the Ambassador to Education position. Nominations can come from anyone, including students, parents, school administrators, colleagues, college faculty members and associations. Nomination forms can be found on the Iowa Depart-ment of Education’s website: https://www.educateiowa.gov/pk-12/award-exchange-programs/iowa-teacher-year-toy. They are due April 27.

The 2019 Teacher of the Year will be announced this fall. The 2019 Teacher of the Year will be announced this fall.

Previous winners are: 2018 – Aileen Sullivan – Chemistry – Ames High School, Ames 2017 – Shelly Vroegh – 5

th Grade – Lakewood Elementary School,

Norwalk 2016 - Scott Slechta - English-language arts - Fairfield High

School, Fairfield 2015 - Clemencia Spizzirri - Spanish - Merrill Middle School, Des

Moines 2014 - Jane Schmidt - 8th Grade Literacy and Language Arts -

Maquoketa Middle School, Maquoketa 2013 - Tania Johnson - Kindergarten - Jackson Elementary

School, Cedar Rapids 2012 - Charity Campbell - Physical Education - Norwalk Middle

School, Norwalk 2011 - Molly Boyle - 3rd Grade - Brookview Elementary School,

West Des Moines (Waukee CSD) 2010 - Sarah Brown Wessling - High School English - Johnston

High School, Johnston A full list of winners dating back to 1958, and other details about the award, can be found on the Department’s site: https://www.educateiowa.gov/pk-12/award-exchange-programs/iowa-teacher-year-toy.

Iowa Teacher of the Year Nominations due April 27

On Thursday, February 22, 2018, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued its electronic newsletter ‘EcoNewsWire’ which contained an article touting that eleven businesses will par-ticipate in DNR’s 2018 Pollution Prevention (P2) Intern Program. Upper-level college and university students work on-site at Iowa companies for 12 or 24 week paid internships to research solutions and implement pollution prevention strategies that will increase efficiency, reduce costs and help meet companies’ environmental goals. Since 2001, more than 180 Iowa companies, hospitals, universities and government agencies have participated in the unique program, accumulating more than $87.9 million in savings as a result of using resources more efficiently and improving envi-ronmental performance. Environmental benefits achieved include the reduction of:

4.87 billion gallons of water;

238,800 tons of solid waste;

8,646 tons of hazardous waste;

392.4 million kilowatt hours of electricity;

11.5 million therms of energy.

Companies participating in the 2018 program (listed alphabetically by town):

Ames: Hach

Charles City: Cambrex

Charles City: Zoetis

Decorah: Stanley Engineered Fastening

Harlan: Monogram Processed Meats

Marshalltown: JBS USA, LLC

Mason City: Smithfield Mason City

Ottumwa: JBS Swift Pork

Sioux City: Smithfield Packaged Meats Corp.

Wever: Iowa Fertilizer Company

Woodward: Woodward Resource Center

Funding for the P2 Intern Program includes federal grants, portions of solid waste tonnage fees and cost share contributed by the host companies. Pollution Prevention Services also provides confiden-tial, non-regulatory, environmental technical assistance in the form of assessments, Environmental Management Systems develop-ment assistance, workshops, and access to the P2 Resource Li-brary. These services are offered at no-cost to help companies reduce expenses through source-reduction strategies to improve process efficiency and reduce or eliminate waste. For more infor-mation on the Pollution Prevention Intern Program and a list of 2018 projects, visit: www.iowap2interns.com. Case summaries of the 2018 projects will be posted to this site in the fall.

Environmental Protection (Contact Lew Olson at 1-3096)

House Republican Newsletter Page 5

Human Resources (Contact Natalie Ginty 5-2063)

House Republicans Advance Bipartisan Comprehensive Mental Health Bill

On Tuesday, led by Republicans, the Iowa House passed House

File 2456, a bill that addresses gaps in the mental health system in

the state.

This is an issue that is personal to many Iowans. Few people are

immune from the loss of a family member or friend who suffered

from a lifelong battle with depression. Too often there is another

tragic story in the news of a family feeling hopeless as they seek

treatment far from home for their loved one’s chronic mental ill-

ness; but sadly, even more frequently, the stigma associated with

mental illness drives the family to silence.

Legislators are regularly contacted about the costs for law enforce-

ment to drive across the state and find inpatient psychiatric beds;

the costs to the hospitals that are not reimbursed for a patient no

longer in need of acute level placement; and the costs to our jails

and prisons for unintentionally becoming the default locations to

treat individuals with mental illness.

House Republicans carefully modeled HF 2456 based on recom-

mendations from mental health experts in the state. This bill takes

a significant step forward to address these complex issues.

This bill

and creates new services for urban and rural communities in Iowa.

By removing the statewide sub-acute bed cap and adding new

services to the core list required by Iowa’s 14 Mental Health and

Disability Service Regions, this bill will deescalate mental health

patients before crisis and wrap services around them when they

are prepared to return home. The non-partisan Legislative Ser-

vices Agencies estimates that Medicaid members will make up

80% of the clientele using these preventative services, and this bill

ensures long-term sustainable funding for these mental health and

substance abuse services as Medicaid covered services.

Importantly, this bill returns mental health care determinations to

medical professionals, instead of judges and law enforcement of-

ficers. Mental illness is a health condition, and it should be treated

as compassionately as any other illness.

House Republicans also passed House File 2305 this week to

expand telehealth services in Iowa. Many rural parts of the state

have limited access to psychiatrists and other mental health pro-

fessionals. This bill expands the options for a mental health provid-

er to see a patient using modern technology.

Both of these bills take a significant step forward in improving the

mental health system in Iowa, and a detailed analysis of each bill

can be found below.

Mental Health Services Analysis

Telehealth Analysis

“increases access to

mental health services,”

In June, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled on the case of Plowman v

Fort Madison Community Hospital. This ruling created a new

cause of action, previously been unrecognized in Iowa, known as

the right to sue for a wrongful-birth. Wrongful-birth is a lawsuit

brought by parents claiming they would have aborted the child if

they had known the child had certain disabilities. After carefully

reviewing the case, House Republicans decided that this new

cause of action had never been recognized by the legislature and

Representatives did not want this to be used in other lawsuits or

codified. HF 2405 was drafted to ensure that a cause of action for

wrongful birth and wrongful-life would not be permitted in the state.

Parents Pamela and Jeremy Plowman brought a suit against Fort

Madison Community Hospital and doctors for wrongful-birth after

their son was born with severe birth defects and doctors failed to

identify the potential birth defects and failed to inform the parents

that the ultrasound showed the child may have significant health

problems. They did not claim the doctors caused the birth defects

but did claim "doctors negligently failed to accurately interpret,

diagnose, monitor, respond to and communicate the fetal abnor-

malities evident in the…ultrasound." (Plowman p. 5-6). The Plow-

man's made a claim for wrongful-birth and asked for damages to

cover the cost raising a child with severe medical problems.

In their ruling, six of the seven justices argued for the creation of a

cause of action for wrongful-birth. The Court used a three-tier test

to determine if a wrongful-birth claim should be recognized.

Through their analysis the Court found common law supported this

claim, found that there were no prevailing policy reasons against

recognizing this cause of action, and determined Iowa statue was

in favor of informed consent. According to the decision, 23 states

now recognize a claim for wrongful-birth by judicial decision and

Maine recognizes this claim in code. Three state supreme courts

have rejected wrongful-birth claims and 12 states have passed

legislation barring claims for wrongful-birth.

Justice Mansfield was the only dissenting justice and he explained

three reasons for his opinion. First, he argued, the cause of action

did not exist in common law and is contrary to traditional common

law concepts. Second, Iowa statutes prevent this action. Third,

there are public policy reasons to not recognize this claim. Justice

Mansfield expressed his concern that this ruling would lead to a

slippery slope and open up the possibility to other claims never

covered in Iowa law.

(Continued on next page)

Iowa House Ends Claims for Wrongful Birth and Wrongful Life

Judiciary (Contact Amanda Wille at 1-5230)

House Republican Newsletter Page 6

More than 150 people gathered at the IowaWORKS Center in Des Moines for a ribbon cutting and open house today. “As we celebrate this new office in Des Moines, the state’s largest IowaWORKS Center, I encourage all Iowans - whether you’re a job seeker or an employer - to explore the services that are available in this Center and other Centers across the state,” said Gov. Kim Reynolds. “By working together and encouraging Iowans to ex-plore their dreams, I have no doubt that Iowa will become the most Future Ready workforce in the nation.” The IowaWORKS Center in Des Moines moved to its new southside location at 200 Army Post Road in mid-November and serves an average of 80 to 120 new customers daily. “Every day, through these Centers, our IowaWORKS staff power possibilities for Iowans by connecting workers with opportunities and employers to workforce solutions,” said Iowa Workforce Direc-tor Beth Townsend. “I could not be more proud of or more inspired by the work this team provides.”

Jennifer Reha, Central District Manager, said the Iowa-WORKS staff and partners are settled in and accustomed to their new workspace. “We are committed to providing excellent customer service, no matter where our clients fall on the spectrum.” said Reha. “Whether you’ve dropped out of school and are new to the work-force, or if your company downsized and you’re unemployed for the first time in your life, you will find a smiling face, a warm hand-shake and professionals who are here to help you get back on your feet.” IowaWORKS, a proud partner of the American Job Center net-work, provides job seeker services such as employment searches, resume and cover letter assistance, mock interviews and work-force training. Businesses can receive worker recruitment services. For more information on IowaWORKS visit iowaworks.gov.

Governor Reynolds Attends Des Moines IowaWORKS Center Ribbon Cutting Open House

Labor (Contact Logan Murray at 1-3626)

(Continued from page 5)

In their decision, the majority specifically mentioned that "If the

legislature disagrees with our decision, it is free to enact a statute

precluding wrongful-birth claims" (page 26). House File 2405 is a

direct response to that ruling. The bill specifically bans a person

from bringing a wrongful-birth or wrongful-life lawsuit. Wrongful life

is a lawsuit brought by the disabled child alleging that if it were not

for the wrongful conduct of the defendant (normally the doctor), the

child would never have been born. The bill does not stop a lawsuit

for intentional or gross negligence, or omission. A doctor cannot

willingly hide information from a mother to prevent her from making

her own medical decisions. During debate a bi-partisan vote add-

ed an amendment clarifying a person can sue under a civil action

for damages for the intentional failure of a physician to comply with

the duty imposed by their license to provide a patient with all infor-

mation reasonably necessary to make decisions about a pregnan-

cy.

While the debate was short, the bill passed on party lines by a vote

of 59-40. The bill is now in the Senate and available for a subcom-

mittee in the near future.

House Republican Newsletter Page 7

Three bills that passed the State Government Committee have

been voted out of the full Iowa House of Representatives.

HF 2200 (Formerly HF 2020) authorizes the Terrace Hill Com-

mission to establish and maintain an endowment for the fund-

ing and conducting of piano competitions and to provide

scholarship to participants. This bill passed with a vote of 93-

5.

HF2417 (Formerly HSB 658) allows for a participant in amuse-

ment concession at a fair to make a payment by credit card.

Previously an individual wishing to participate in an amuse-

ment concession would have to pay with cash, personal

check, money order, bank check, cashier’s check, electronic

check, or debit card. This bill passed with a vote of 98-0.

HF 2351 (Formerly HF 2049) requires a city, county, or the state to continue to provide group health insurance benefits to the surviv-ing spouse and children of a peace officer killed in the line of duty. This bill passed with a vote of 95-0. There are fifteen other bills from the State Government Committee

that eligible for floor debate. Here is a list of a few of the notable

bills:

HF 2424 (Formerly HSB 590) establishes professional re-

quirements for an uncredentialed tax preparer.

HF 2349 (Formerly HSB 610) transfers the Statewide Volun-

tary Self-Exclusion Program from being maintained by the

casinos and boats to being maintained by the Iowa Racing

and Gaming Commission.

HF 2277 (Formerly HSB 550) allows for public records to be

examined if it is over one hundred years old.

HF 2282 (Formerly HSB 560) increases the actual retail value

for an amusement concession prize from $100 to $950.

HF 2344 (Formerly HSB 612) allows cash to be dispensed on

the gaming floor.

HF 2378 (Formerly HSB 644) allows for federally recognized Indi-an tribes to be considered a public agency in certain circumstanc-es.

State Government (Contact Logan Murray 1-3626)

State Government Committee Update

Transportation (Contact Ben Gentz at 1-3452)

A Winter Driving Tire Safety Check-Up

Did you know that there are 11,000 tire-related crashes each year? We here at the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) want to make sure you have the tools to avoid a crash. Your safety is our top priority. Whether you’re getting ready for a winter weekend road trip or just performing routine maintenance on your vehicle, don’t forget that your tires are important for safety and savings. Tire Facts

Only 19% of consumers properly check and inflate their

tires.

1 in 4 cars have at least one tire that is significantly un-derinflated.

Tires lose about 1 psi (pound per square inch) of pres-sure each month. So be sure to check your tires monthly.

NHTSA offers everything you’ll need to know about tires and safe-ty at www.nhtsa.gov/equipment/tires. It covers: buying tires, main-taining them, how age can affect their safety, and the important information contained on their labels. Want to be Tire Wise? Check out these helpful tips and look to the site for even more information.

House Republican Newsletter Page 8

This past week the house passed HF 2355 which creates a recov-ery pilot program for veterans. This bill establishes a veterans re-covery pilot program and a fund for the reimbursement of expens-es related to providing hyperbaric oxygen treatment to eligible vet-erans. The Department of Veterans Affairs will administer this pro-gram.

This bill defines hyperbaric oxygen treatment and allows it as diag-nostic testing and other related medical treatments, for traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder prescribed by a health care practitioner that utilizes a United States Food and drug ad-ministration-approved hyperbaric chamber or hyperbaric oxygen device. It also creates a veterans recovery fund in the state treas-ury under the control of the department of veterans affairs, this trust will completely fund the veterans who do this program.

The purpose of this bill is to give veterans the opportunity to take part in this pilot program if they suffer from traumatic brain injury or PTSD. Other programs such as this exist throughout the country and there are several facilities here in Iowa that will be able to ad-

minister this treatment. The veterans will not be required to pay for this out of pocket as the trust that is set up will have the funds to pay for this program and all expenses tied to it on behalf of the veterans. If there is not enough in the funds, the veteran will not receive this treatment until it can be fully funded. This fund is made up of donations, grants, gifts, etc. No appropriations are needed to fund this program.

A health care practitioner can prescribe this treatment for any qual-ified veteran. The next step will be a proposed treatment plan that includes: a prescription order for hyperbaric oxygen treatment issued by a health care practitioner, information verifying the eligi-bility of the veteran to receive this treatment, an estimate of the total cost for providing the treatment from the treatment facility, and an estimate of cost for reimbursement of any necessary travel and living expenses for the veteran doing the treatment.

Once this treatment proposal is approved by the Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs and the Veterans Commission, the treatment plan will begin for the veteran.

Veterans Affairs (Contact Ashley Beall 1-3440 ) House Passes Veterans Affairs Bill

Ways & Means (Contact Kristi Kious at 2-5290)

This week’s newsletter will continue the discussion of the Gover-nor’s tax reform bill (House Study Bill 671). The focus of this article will be changes that the bill makes to tax year 2019. That is the return that will be filed in April of 2020 and based on decisions and behaviors you make next year.

The bill makes several additional changes in tax year 2019 (as well as continues the 2018 provisions discussed last week). By way of reminder—those 2018 changes were mostly what people would think of as traditional coupling provisions (teacher education ex-penses, IRA distributions, etc) as well as provisions in response to federal tax reform. Probably the biggest coupling provision in tax year 2018 is the Section 179 coupling. The Governor’s bill would raise the Section 179 limit to $100,000/$400,000, a number up from current law’s $25,000/$200,000.

It is important to note at the outset that the changes for tax year 2019 are not tied to triggers of any kind. House Study Bill 671 does contain triggers—but not for tax year 2019. Absent subsequent legislation—these are the changes would happen under the bill for tax year 2019:

Begin phase-out of individual federal deductibility—allowing

only 25 percent of net federal payments to be deducted.

Raise the standard deduction to $4,000 single/$8,000 married

(indexed) up from $2,070/$5,090.

Create an additional $1,500 deduction for elderly/blind taxpay-

ers (indexed).

Eliminate the individual Iowa Alternative Minimum Tax (allow

for a transition year and eliminate the corresponding tax credit

later).

Allow 25 percent of the federal qualified business income de-

duction from Iowa taxable income (an effective 5 percent deduc-

tion).

Reduce tax rates. Starting in tax year 2019—reduce all individ-ual income tax rates 11 to 23 percent, reducing the top rate to 6.9 percent (down from 8.98 percent) and applies to income above $150,000 (up from $73,260)

Individual Income Tax Rates Current Brackets v. Governor Reynolds’ Tax Reform Plan

(Continued on next page)

Governor’s Tax Reform — Tax Year 2019 Changes

House Republican Newsletter Page 9

Note: All rate changes after TY 2019 only occur if revenue targets are met (known in November before the tax year starts), triggering the following year’s cut.

The cost of the tax year 2019 changes outlined above is estimated at $88 million in fiscal year 2019. It is important to note that num-ber takes into account some sales tax changes that will be dis-

cussed in a future article and that tax years and fiscal years do not line up so the fiscal impact is best understood by looking at the entire thing—not just one fiscal year. Next week, we will cover the provisions in the Governor’s bill that relate to tax year 2020 and beyond as well as discuss how the triggers will work. Those changes include further rate reductions.