Helena Hayes – Capitol Update April 8, 2024
by Rep. Helena Hayes
Week 13
Every Tuesday, legislators are blessed as pastors from all across the state make the drive to Des Moines to meet and pray for us. In the last couple of weeks, they have caught me off guard when they ask me what my prayer requests are…but not this time; I was prepared with a specific request to which they eagerly and joyfully petitioned the Lord for on my behalf. Thanks to all pastors out there who constantly seek the Lord on behalf of His people.
With only around two more scheduled weeks of session left, the focus has turned to tax bills and the state budget bills.
I really do appreciate that my readers open this newsletter and take the time to read it. I know that sometimes it is long and contains a lot of material…that is what I am being told. But I encourage you all to at least scan down through it and read what interests you. My desire is to keep you informed and engaged in the political process occurring at the state level. Thanks again!
Unpacking the Pesticide Bill
While Iowa farmers prepare for the planting season, the state legislature is considering a bill that would limit civil liability for chemical companies that manufacture pesticides. The bill recently passed the Senate while a similar version in the Iowa House has been unable to move out of several committees.
This pesticide bill is a tort bill; tort is an action or omission that causes harm to persons or property and are civil court claims, as opposed to criminal claims. The bill would add a new section to Code Chapter 668; Liability in Tort and specifically the section .12; Liability for products – defenses.
One way to read a legislative bill is to first review the layman’s explanation at the end. This is helpful before reading the bill’s statutory language which is usually more difficult to understand. In this pesticide bill, HSB737/SF2412, the explanation begins with its purpose, “The bill provides for a defense from civil liability associated with the use of pesticides that are registered with the EPA acting under the federal Act.” The next natural question is, how will the bill provide for this defense? It follows, “The bill provides that a label provides sufficient warning if it complies with any one of three criteria: (1) it was approved by the EPA, (2) it is consistent with the most recent human health assessment performed under the federal Act, or (3) it is consistent with the EPA’s carcinogenicity classification for the pesticide. In each case, the label is sufficient to satisfy any requirements for a warning regarding health or safety under the state Act, and any other provision of state law or any other common law duty to warn.”
Simply put, if a label on a pesticide product satisfies any one of these three criteria, the manufacture will not have any additional obligation under state law to provide further health or safety warnings, including the duty to warn of other foreseeable dangers. The duty to warn is one of the several causes of action frequently used in product liability cases where manufacturers are held liable for failing to warn users about the foreseeable dangers of their products. Other similar causes of action in product liability cases include design defects, breach of implied warranty, and negligence.
Last session, the Iowa legislature passed medical malpractice tort reform and the trucker tort bill. Both bills placed a cap on company liability for non-economic damages. Respecting the spirit of transparency, I would like to share that I did not support, or vote for, either bill nor do I currently support the pesticide bill.
Similar to these previous tort bills, supporters of the pesticide bill in the Senate have recently stated that this tort bill is necessary because it will protect the agricultural industry in Iowa and prevent frivolous lawsuits. Bayer, the chemical company that produces Roundup, argues that pesticide makers should not be held liable for failing to alert people of foreseeable health risks as long as their products have a federally approved label. Lobbyists for Bayer, the company that owns Monsanto in Muscatine, Iowa, testified in a House subcommittee that because the EPA found Roundup’s active ingredient, glyphosate, “not likely to be carcinogenic,” it would be illegal for them to include a cancer warning on the Roundup label. Others have noted that juries and judges across the US have ordered Bayer to pay billions to consumers diagnosed with non-Hodgen’s lymphoma and other cancers on the basis that Bayer failed to warn them of the dangers of Roundup.
Those that do not support this bill argue that, at the very least, it disincentivizes pesticide manufacturing companies from publicly disclosing additional dangers from use of their products because the EPA label would be sufficient to meet all warning criteria. Stronger arguments state that it would provide chemical companies immunity from liability for the harm their products cause. This leads one to question, what is the responsibility of the manufacturer to disclose dangers they are aware of even if the government, the EPA in this case, says the government label is sufficient to warn.
The final status of this bill has yet to be determined pending its upcoming movement in the Iowa House. Please send your comments and questions to your Senator and House Representative. Contact them at www.legis.iowa.gov.
Read the pesticide bill here.
Meat Integrity Act
Senate File 2391
Senate File 2391 is a bill to establish fair labeling standards on the sale of protein products. It’s really quite simple – if it’s not meat, it should not say that it is meat. If it’s not an egg, it shouldn’t be labeled as an egg.
As new products such as “lab-grown meat” come on the market, accurate labeling has become extremely important to make sure Iowa consumers know what they are buying and eating.
These new labeling requirements are applied in the processing stage, not in the grocery store. Iowa is a top state for meat and egg production and all products processed in Iowa will need to be labeled correctly.
It will also protect Iowa egg and livestock producers from bad actors who are mislabeling their foods, taking advantage of the longtime popularity of real meat and egg products and the hard work of generations of livestock farmers and egg producers.
Regarding schools…
Schools are prohibited from buying lab-grown meat.
Schools are prohibited from buying mislabeled egg or meat products.
Schools are not prohibited from buying properly labeled meat or egg substitute products.
Regarding WIC and SNAP…
According to the current USDA SNAP guidelines, egg alternatives are not outlined as being covered by SNAP or WIC.
This bill states that if USDA ever becomes more prescriptive and allows egg substitute products to be covered by SNAP, the state of Iowa would ask for a waiver to make it so that these products do not qualify for SNAP in Iowa.
Student Visits
This week brought students into the capitol from the Oskaloosa Homeschool Assistance Program (HSAP). Students enrolled in the Oskaloosa Homeschool Assistance Program all went to the very top of the dome with me this week as part of their tour of the Capitol. Seven licensed teachers withing the program serve almost 100 homeschooling families from 9 different school districts by offering field trips, activities, a curriculum and resource library, and various enrichment classes such as Spanish, music, writing, math, science labs, and nature studies. All of this is at no cost to families.
To find out more about the Oskaloosa HSAP, visit their website here:
Students in grades 7th and 8th from Pella Christian filled the well this week during their capitol visit.
A full and vibrant 5th grade class from Sigourney Elementary School received a tour of the capitol and were also able see sit during floor debate this week.
Early Literacy Bill
House File 2618
Reading is the foundation of learning. Students in Iowa are holding steady in reading scores, but we can do better. Currently, 35% of Iowa’s third graders aren’t reading proficiently.
Children who can’t read by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school, which dramatically increases their chances of being arrested, using illegal drugs, and having poor health.
We’re the only state in the country that doesn’t require competency in early literacy instruction for teacher licensure.
This bill would require students in teacher prep programs to have to take the Foundation of Reading assessment.
It also states that the schools must report to parents if their student is not reading proficiently in grades 1-6. Parents will then have the option to retain their student in the current grade level if they choose.
It also states that schools must provide students in K-6 with a reading plan until the student is reading proficiently.
Association of Iowa Fairs
Susan Barnes, the Executive Secretary/Treasurer of the Association of Iowa Fairs, was on hand with many other committee members this week to showcase Iowa’s county fairs. The Association of Iowa Fairs has been serving Iowa Fairs since 1907. Their mission is “to preserve and strengthen the fair industry through our members and preserve the integrity of the fairs in Iowa.”
To learn more about the Association of Iowa Fairs, go to their website here: https://iowafairs.com/
Maternal Health
This week, the Iowa House passed two bills to improve access to maternal health care.
Senate File 2251 extends Medicaid postpartum coverage eligibility to one year after birth. Iowa currently provides free health insurance to pregnant women up to 375% of the federal poverty level ($117,000/year for a family of 4) through pregnancy and 2 months postpartum. This bill lowers the eligibility for pregnant women to 215% ($67,080/year for a family of 4) and provides health insurance for an entire year after birth. This coverage level places Iowa at the 13th highest in the nation for eligibility for pregnant women, and targets state support to those with the most need.
The House also passed Senate File 2252. This bill makes updates to the More Options for Maternal Support (MOMS) program. This bill allows DHHS to administer the program directly through pregnancy resource centers or through a 3rd party, strikes the requirement that the 3rd party have 3 years of experience managing pregnancy support service subcontractors, and allows for additional pregnancy support services be provided to pregnant women beyond counseling. This bill helps get funding directly to entities that are helping pregnant women who want to keep their children. Helping with prenatal nutrition, improving family economic self-sufficiency, housing, child care, purchasing cribs, car seats, formula, and many more. These entities provide necessary safety nets to women in need who want to bring their child into this world.
These bills build on the work done by the Legislature the last few sessions to expand maternal regional centers of excellence, fund family medicine obstetric fellowships, and increase loan forgiveness to attract and retain OB/GYNs.
Both bills have already passed the Senate and are ready to be signed by the Govenor.
Governor Signs Iowa’s
Religious Freedom Restoration Act
On Tuesday, Governor Reynolds signed Senate File 2095, Iowa’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The bill prohibits the government from substantially burdening a person’s religious liberty unless there is a compelling government interest. Any limits that are placed must be done in the least restrictive manner possible. This ensures that Iowans can practice their religion without unnecessary governmental interference.
The original Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) was passed in 1993 and signed into federal law by then-President Bill Clinton. In 1996, the United States Supreme Court determined that federal RFRA did not apply to states and if states want to implement RFRA they must pass their own bill. The language in SF 2095 is similar to RFRA laws in 25 other states. Additionally, 10 states have RFRA-like protections enshrined in their constitutions.
Even though the bill has now been signed by the Governor, you may want to go the Iowa Legislature website and watch the floor debate. What should have been a celebration of the First Amendment and the right to religious freedom, turned into a divisive debate where opponents of the bill accused Republicans of weaponizing religious beliefs, accusing many Christians of being racist, sexist, and homophobic. The debate ended up not being about the merits of the bill but instead one of made-up stories and fictitious fear-mongering. Opponents tried, but failed, to cite court cases claiming RFRA allows discrimination, but Representative Holt quickly pointed out that the cases cited were not RFRA-based cases. RFRA is over 30 years old and none of the claims made by the bills opponent have happened in any state.
Prohibiting the state, counties, and cities from unnecessarily infringing on religious beliefs should be a nonpartisan issue. Thanks to the work of Iowa Republicans, Iowans will be able to continue practicing their religion without undue burdens from state government.
Rural Development Tax Credit Program
House File 2674
This week, we passed HF 2674 to create a new program called the Iowa Rural Development Tax Credit.
It creates tax credits awarded by the IEDA for specific capital contributions made to certified rural businesses growth funds for investment in qualified businesses.
Through these tax credits, this bill will incentivize investment into new or expanding businesses in Iowa’s 88 smallest counties.
It allows up to $27 million in tax credits for investors in projects that will reap at least $45 million in economic activity.
By incentivizing investors to put their money into projects in rural Iowa, we can create more jobs, lift up local economies, and build back vibrant communities.
