We have officially reached the half-way point of the 2025 legislative session. Last Friday (March 7) marked both the end of Week 8 and the end of the first Funnel Week.

Funnel Week is a self-imposed deadline designed to winnow the pool of legislation up for consideration during a given year. At the end of the first funnel week, policy bills introduced in the Senate need to have advanced through a Senate committee in order to still be eligible for consideration the rest of session (the same goes for House bills in House committees).

There are exceptions to the Funnel Week deadlines – tax and budget bills, for example – but this is the process for most legislation.

Unfortunately, many of the bills proposed by Senate Democrats failed to advance beyond the funnel deadline. The majority party didn’t even give the bills a hearing. However, there are still a few good, bipartisan bills in the mix. And even though there are a few bad bills out there still running, a bunch of harmful legislation failed to advance. Here’s a brief rundown (this list is not comprehensive):

Bipartisan Bills Moving Ahead

-Ban cell phone usage in schools (SF 370/HF 782)

-Helping individuals with disabilities to work and keep their healthcare (HSB 241)

-Expanding parental leave for adoptive parents & state employees (HSB 78)

-Child sexual abuse prevention (Erin’s Law) (SF 172)

-Expanded cancer and health care coverage for firefighters (HSB 266)

-Hands free driving (HF 827)

-Prohibiting use of bots for ticket purchases (SF 146)

-Lead service lines disclosed at selling (SF 425/HF 442)

-Ability to combat bird flu outbreaks/animal disease faster (SF 522)

-Radon protections and free radon tests (HF 82, HF 700, HF 707)

-Increased privacy protections for victims of domestic assault (HF 397/SF 457)

-Expand services available in Veterans Trust Fund (SF 252/HF 534)

-Whistleblower protections for private sector employees (SF 308)

-Stopping corporations from silencing whistleblowers (HF 472)

Bad Bills Still Alive

-Low public school funding that reduces opportunities (SF 167)

-Stripped Civil Rights from Iowans (SF 418)

-Immunity for pesticide companies giving people cancer (SF 394)

-Requires public schools to provide false information to kids on pregnancy (SF 175/HF 391)

-Allow school and public librarians to be put in jail (HF 521)

-Restricting STI vaccines from Iowa’s youth (SF 304/HF 384)

-More red tape for public union recertification elections (SF 472)

-Taking away unemployment benefits for short-term workers (SF 466)

-$1 billion in new tax breaks for corporations at the expense of workers (SF 504)

Good News: These Bills Are Dead

-Prohibition of mRNA vaccines (SF 360)

-Prohibition on state use of contact tracing, ordering isolation, quarantine, or treatment for infected persons, and expanding exemptions to school vaccinations (SF 406)

-Make it harder to access vaccines (HF 712)

-Disqualification from unemployment upon receiving severance (SSB 1110)

-Expands the sexual orientation instruction and survey ban to K-12 (HSB 84)

-Expands the ability to carry a gun into a school (HF 621)

-Repeals the voter approved Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund (SJR 6)

-Criminalizing homelessness (SSB 1195/ HSB 286)

Where is school funding?

In Iowa, the Legislature is required by law to set and pass a basic public school funding rate (SSA) within 30 days of the governor’s budget release. This year, that date was February 13. As of March 14, the Legislature had still not done its job for Iowa’s public schools, which creates budget uncertainty for local school districts.

SF 167 set a 2% SSA rate and was passed by the Senate last month. The House set a slightly higher 2.25% SSA rate and also included several other investments. Republican majorities in the House and Senate should prioritize finding a compromise between their two positions and give our local schools the time they need to submit their budgets in March and finalize their budgets by April 15. Delays create uncertainty and can force schools to make conservative estimates or last-minute adjustments.

Districts must issue teacher contracts by April 30. Without a set SSA, schools may be unsure about hiring, salary adjustments, or potential layoffs. Without timely SSA, districts may need to make cuts, increase property taxes, or use reserves to cover costs, impacting the quality of education.

Iowa’s Revenues Drop Again

The three-person Revenue Estimating Conference (REC) panel met recently to estimate Iowa’s current fiscal year and next fiscal year’s revenues. The new revenue estimate for our current fiscal year (FY2025) shows a decline of $621 from the previous fiscal year (FY2024). The new revenue estimate for the next fiscal year (FY2026) is $626 million less than our current fiscal year. Soon, the Legislature’s work will be focusing on the budget. We will need to take into account that we have seen a $1.2 billion drop in revenues in two years. REC’s projections confirm that, for the foreseeable future, Iowa will spend more money than it takes in and dip into the state’s reserves to cover the difference.

National School Breakfast Week

In Iowa, an estimated 19.6 million school breakfast meals were served during the 2023-24 school year. Access to a healthy breakfast is necessary for Iowa students to start their school day, ready to learn. National School Breakfast Week highlighted the importance of these first-of-the-day school meals and how they fuel students for success each day. Senate Democrats introduced a bill this session, SF 58, that would have required schools to provide free breakfast and lunch for students.

The Iowa Senate Democrats include 16 senators led by Senate Majority Leader Janice Weiner (D-Iowa City) and Senate Minority Whip Bill Dotzler (D-Waterloo).