Rep Helena Hayes Capitol Update March 20, 2025

Week 10

Week 10 marks the point where we settle into the “new normal” for the rest of the session. Our afternoons and evenings are filled with caucus discussions and debates as we work to get everything across the finish line. While things get busy, visits are always welcome. This week, we’ve had many large groups and school students visiting the Capitol, taking tours, and snapping photos in the Speaker’s chair. It’s been a rewarding experience to see the different paths of my life intersect, especially reconnecting with poultry exhibitors who come to the Capitol for their own interests as well. The young lady above hails from Davis County and is one of many young adults I first new as a poultry exhibitor.

Bullying in Schools

Tuesday brought with it some excitement as I ran my first bill during debate as the “floor manager.” After walking this bill through the subcommittee and education committee process, it received much support debate. HF 865 clears up the definition of student harassment and bullying by defining harassment and bullying as behavior that is repeated and targeted and creates an objectively hostile school environment. This change in definition eliminates any references to “traits or characteristics of the student.” Bullying can take place in school for all kinds of reasons. It is not specific to characteristics like race, sexual orientation, or religion. This change emphasizes that the behavior is repeated and targeted, providing a clear definition to ensure bullying is addressed consistently in schools. 

Newsletter Series: School Performances in District 88

Week 5 – Tri County Community School

For the upcoming weeks, I will continue to highlight the performance of one school in my district per week and culminate with a side-by-side comparison in the end. This week, Tri-County Community School is featured. Each chart presents only a very small portion of all the data that is available to you regarding how this public school is performing as compared to other schools in Iowa. (This graphic will be too small if you open this on a mobile device so, please be sure to review them on a larger screen.)

Things to keep in mind as you read the charts:

What exactly does “Proficiency” mean?

On the above chart, the “percent proficient” refers to the different levels of student achievement on assessments, such as standardized tests. These levels are used to indicate how well a student has mastered the content being tested.

Proficiency is divided into three categories:

Basic level: The student may show limited understanding or may struggle to apply the concepts.
Proficient level: The student demonstrates solid understanding and is able to apply the concepts accurately.
Advanced level: The student shows a deeper understanding and is capable of applying the concepts in more complex ways.

The process of determining these levels involves setting benchmarks for the assessments that align with the state’s academic standards. Each performance level helps educators understand the specific areas in which students are excelling or need more support, allowing for more targeted instruction.

The interpretative guide published by Iowa Testing Programs includes a high level overview of the results. There are also detailed performance level descriptors for English Language and Mathematics available for educators to provide specific detail by grade level and content area.

What does “Overall Performance Rating” Mean?

An important update to the accountability framework is how overall scores are calculated. Recently, a new point system was created with the hopes of making scores more transparent and easily understood. Elementary schools can receive up to 700 points. In order to accommodate graduation rate and the postsecondary readiness indicators, high schools can receive up to 900 points. To account for these point differences, a measure of the percentage of points earned was implemented to be able to have a common scale for all schools.

At a high level, each indicator is measured on a 100-point scale. As an example, if a school had an overall proficiency rate of 80, the school receives 80 points for that measure. The technical guide has more information about the scoring system.

School district spending formulas are quite complicated because there are many sources of funding flowing into schools. Let’s begin with introducing you to a site where you can compare how much your school spends compared to all other Iowa schools. Click HERE.

Iowa’s Economy is Resilient and Strong

On Thursday, the three-member Revenue Estimating Conference (REC) met for its spring meeting to go over Iowa’s economic activity and to forecast state revenue. The panel is required to adjust its forecasts for Fiscal Year 2025 (the current budget year) and Fiscal Year 2026 (the next budget, which will be developed in the upcoming weeks). The panel is also required to put forward an initial forecast for Fiscal Year 2027. The panel also revises the gaming tax and interest forecasts for FY 2025 & FY 2026.

As is its custom, the REC began the meeting with a discussion of current economic conditions. The national economy was judged to be stronger than expected, and Iowa’s economy was described as resilient and strong by Conference members. Iowa’s employment figures (unemployment rate of 3.2% and a work participation rate of 66.4%) continue to outperform the national figures even with the declines in the ag manufacturing sector. There are headwinds slowing down the state’s economic growth with continued inflationary pressures, a slow decline in interest rates, and potential and actual tariffs being implemented. Overall, the panel concluded that Iowa is in a relatively good position.

After its review of the economic conditions, the REC moved to the current year revenue forecast. Unlike some past meetings, there was little daylight between the forecasts of the Legislative Services Agency (LSA) and the Department of Management (DOM). There was agreement that General Fund revenue for Fiscal Year 2025 is expected to be $9.1346 billion. This is a slight reduction of $19 million from the panel’s December forecast.

The panel then turned to Fiscal Year 2026. Again, the difference between LSA and DOM was very small. They settled on a revised forecast of $8.5079 billion for the next budget year. This is a reduction of $217.8 million from the December projection. Overall, revenue would be down 6.9 percent from Fiscal Year 2025. This is expected with the full implementation of income tax cuts passed recently.

As required by Iowa Code, the Revenue Estimating Conference also puts out an initial forecast for Fiscal Year 2027. Here there was a little larger difference between LSA and DOM, but that is to be expected since they are projecting revenue 28 months out. In the end, the panel agreed on a number that is in the middle of these two forecasts with FY 2027 revenue projected to be $8.9624 billion. This would be revenue growth of 5.2% over their forecast for Fiscal Year 2026.

The final portion of the meeting was a look at gaming tax revenue and the interest earned on the state’s reserve funds. The panel maintained their FY 25 and FY 26 projections for gaming tax while slightly lowering the FY 25 interest forecast. In the end, revenue available in the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund to be budgeted will be $4.5 million lower than was projected in December. This reduction is offset by the first two payments for license on the new casino in Cedar Rapids.



Legislative Decorum: Why Does It Matter?

In order to ensure order and efficiency, the state legislative bodies follow certain rules of decorum. Some are slightly different between the two chambers (House and Senate), but the concept remains the same throughout. Several factors contribute to the decorum of the legislative bodies:

Dress and Conduct

Professional dress is a requirement for all legislators and legislative staff while the Legislature is in session. The Senate requires all men entering the chamber, while the Senate is in session, to wear a coat and tie. In addition, access to the House and Senate chambers is restricted while each body is in session. Chamber access rules are established by the House or Senate Rules Committee, and there are doorkeepers posted to monitor who is entering the chambers. It is also expected that legislative members and staff act with dignity and respect toward all those in the chambers.

Mason’s Manual of Legislative Procedure

A set of rules outlined in Mason’s Manual of Legislative Procedure governs the general proceedings of the legislature. The Manual prescribes a method of order that ensures all those wishing to speak in a meeting of the legislature have an opportunity to do so, uninterrupted. It also ensures majority consent on all motions and records of votes in certain instances. The general term for this is legislative or parliamentary procedure. Legislative Procedure requires that members be recognized by the Presiding Officer in order to speak while the body is in session. When members speak, they must speak only on the legislation at hand and refrain from personal insults. If they wish to address the body on a different topic, they may request a Point of Personal Privilege and will be allowed to speak at the Presiding Officer’s discretion.

Respect for Presiding Officer

The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House are the presiding officers and call their respective chambers to order. They decide all questions of order and rule on all questions relating to procedure. While the chamber is in session, the Presiding Officer must be addressed as Mister/Madam Speaker or Mister/Madam President. Any member whom the Presiding Officer appoints may act as the Presiding Officer for any session.

Why does it matter?

Legislative procedure is a longstanding tradition in state and national legislatures across the globe. While some methods differ, the idea behind it all is to make sure order remains and all sides of an issue can be heard. Organizing a meeting in this way shows respect to all members involved and maintains a level of decorum appropriate for the elected leaders of our state.

Photos from the Week

Saint Patrick’s Day this week had everyone pulling out their green attire in celebration. Since green has always been my favorite color, it was a great day for me!

At the beginning of each session, we settle into our new chamber desks that we will continue to use throughout the entire two years of the General Assembly. This is our 91st General Assembly which includes both this 2025 session and next years 2026 session. My new desk sits right next to what we all call, “The Press Box.” This is where the press sits throughout the day and during debate where they, too, have an assigned seat. I have learned so much about the life of these young men and some of the stress they experience serving as reporters. You hear and see these individuals across the state on radio and T.V.

These four include from left to right: JD Snover of WHO, Zachary Oren Smith of Iowa Starting Line, Conner Hendricks of Gray Media, and Connor O’Neal of WOI – Local 5.

Historic moments for various legislators are randomly caught in the moment. I snapped this photo of my chamber next-door neighbor, Representative Tom Dettermann of Clinton County, as he documented the voting record of those who supported his favorite priority – turning Highway 30 into a 4-lane road as opposed to its two-lane status. The bill put in place that the DOT prioritize the expansion of this increasingly busy highway. It didn’t pass unanimously but certainly passed with a large majority vote.

Joining the busy crowd at the Capitol this week were Mahaska County residents Jerry and Jill DeBruin. They took the time to send me a note, expressing their interest in discussing the 2025 Farm Bureau priorities.