Update From the House for District 80 – April 15, 2021
by Holly Brink
Week 14 Update
Hello Friends,
We are two weeks away from the scheduled end of the session, although no official announcement has been made about when we will officially end. This does mean that the legislature is focusing on fewer legislation that will be passed in the next month. If bills do not pass this year, they still keep all their progress and can be passed next year.
Because we are close to those big decisions, I will focus this newsletter and the next couple of newsletters about the specifics of the legislation that is likely to go into effect this summer.
SF 342 – Back the Blue Legislation
Over the past year we have seen our police officers stretched to meet increasing challenges. We have asked our public safety officers to keep us safe during not only a pandemic, but also during riots and looting. It was time to examine current state law and operating procedure to find what we could to do have the backs of our public safety officers.
The bill offers privacy protections for officers, and ensures that they receive sick leave they are entitled to. It also provides additional peer support, makes changes to disability benefits, and requires reasonable medical care and services for officers.
SF 342 also creates new penalties or increases existing penalties for shining a laser pointer in officer’s eyes, violent rioting, blocking a roadway, destroying public property and harassing people in a place of public accommodation.
Our men and women in law enforcement have had our backs and this bill has their backs. I was proud to support it Wednesday evening and I am hopefully for a quick delivery to the Governor’s desk.
Butcher Assistance
Another area that was tested during the pandemic was our food supply. Large meatpackers struggled to supply the meat desired by consumers and more Iowans looked to buy local. Many small and medium meat lockers are booked for the next year. There is consumer demand to buy local, and the Iowa House voted in favor of HF 857 that would help butchers expand to meet this demand.
The bill creates a $750,000 grant program available to eligible businesses for projects that expand or refurbish, or that establish a new, state or federally-inspected, small-scale meat processing business, licensed custom lockers, or mobile slaughter unit.
This would introduce more flexibility and resilience into the food market, meet consumer demand, and help the creation of good jobs in rural Iowa.
How to Respond to School Activism
Similar to what I mentioned in this space last week, I have heard from so many concerned parents about what is being taught in their children’s schools, so I decided to make a video to let you know the actions you can take if you have concerns.
The video can be found here: https://fb.watch/4Uh4ORULJi/
The Department of Education has also created a new website for parents to view options that they have. https://educateiowa.gov/pk-12/parent-guardian-and-community-concerns?fbclid=IwAR0BKiJJnnvwe4TReNLvvobCEpZ4H338Yc8KBF8SBCR8Jh21so7qS1KOHtY
Please continue to pray for wisdom for our leaders, at all levels and within both parties. My contact information is below and please reach out if you have any questions.
Holly Brink
State Representative, Iowa District 80
(641)295-7111
Holly.brink@legis.iowa.gov
