Week 2 of the session is done, and the committee work of moving bills through the system is well underway. The first bill that I’ve begun to advance is a resolution, House Joint Resolution 1, that seeks to add the right to hunt, fish, and trap to the state constitution. Our rights to these ...
I am back in Des Moines to represent you, and I am honored to get back to work to keep making District 76 and Iowa the best they can be. This week I want to give you a look into what we plan on doing this legislative session and the work I will be doing. Committee work This year I am serving ...
Effective advocacy requires understanding the legislative process and employing strategic communication. Iowans can impact legislation by providing their perspective on a bill and explaining the reasoning for their position. As a former Iowa State Senator from Maquoketa, I served in the Iowa ...
Greetings from the Iowa Capitol! As your newly elected state senator, I am deeply honored and humbled by the trust you have placed in me to represent our community. Walking the historic halls of the Capitol fills me with pride and a profound sense of duty. Each day brings unique challenges and ...
The 2025 legislative session is well underway. As I write this, the opening addresses from the Governor, the Chief Justice, and the head of the Iowa National Guard are all done, many bills are getting filed, and our committee work is underway. The major theme for this session will be the ...
Republicans have expanded their majority in both the House and the Senate. With a 67-33 majority in the House and a 34-15 majority in the Senate, the party is positioned for continued influence in Iowa’s state government. However, there was a slight reduction in this majority when Senator ...
Currently, only two Amtrak passenger trains serve Iowans. The Southwestern Chief that goes from Chicago to Los Angeles just clips Iowa with one station in Fort Madison. The other train is the California Zephyr that passes through southern Iowa with stations in Mount Pleasant and a few other ...
Monday, Jan. 20 is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Besides being a day off for schools and federal and state employees, the most significant part of this day is to volunteer. Use this day as a chance to serve the community. Serving one’s community by volunteering is essential to creating a ...
Reading about the recent round of layoffs at John Deere’s Ottumwa plant got me thinking about the future of farming and the critical role of farm policy. Nearly 2,000 Iowa workers laid off in the past year is a lot of job loss, but sadly not terribly surprising. Last year was difficult for ...
Rural communities are seeing a boom in renewable energy development. Whether it’s wind energy or solar energy, communities reap the benefits from increased tax revenues, new job creation, and local lease payments. Better yet, communities can unlock additional benefits through Community ...