House Happenings with Heather Hora

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, April 28th, 2025 at 9:42 am CDT
Highlights From This Past Week’s Legislative Session:

  • End of Session
    • Monday, April 28th, is the beginning of the last scheduled week of session, as Friday will be the 110th day. However, if we don’t pass our budget bills, to fund the state government, by Friday, May 2nd, then we cannot officially close out session, so we will continue to work until we do. I will keep you updated on the progress that we are making!
  • Debate
    • One of our priorities we entered session with was to ensure Iowa laws are protecting our youth and setting them up for success in life, particularly those that are born into tough situations
    • This week we passed a number of bills off the House floor in that effort. Here they are:
      • House File 1003 prioritizes providing stability for a child in the foster care system.
        • It requires the Department of Health and Human Services to have staff that is focused entirely on finding relatives for children placed in foster care. This staff would be dedicated to identifying those relatives and providing notice that the child has been removed from parental custody.
        • It also allows the court to determine if placement with a foster parent that has had the child in their care for longer than 9 months may be in the best interest of the child over a relative or fictive kin.
      • Senate File 474 makes significant changes to the services provided to Iowa youth, particularly those with serious emotional disturbances and substance use disorders. It is a bill from the Department of Health and Human Services to help kids who are struggling get the mental health care and support they need.
      • Senate File 150 changes how a person can be charged for knowingly purchasing and possessing child pornography. Under this bill, multiple images of the same child can result in multiple charges. This bill aims to protect children and ensure justice is appropriately served.
  • House Approves Measure to Legalize/Facilitate Farm to Table Meat Sales
    • On Monday, April 21, 2025, the House passed House File 1006 by a 90-aye to 1-nay vote.  HF 1006 creates a new type of food processing entity that is licensed and inspected by the Department of Inspection, Appeals and Licensing (DIAL) agents that can store officially processed packaged meat or poultry raised by the licensee and offered for sale at a premise or farm on a wholesale or retail basis.  The bill legalizes the on-farm storage of processed inspected packages and allows the sale on wholesale or retail basis for such packages by the producers.  The annual license/inspection fee level to be assessed upon the businesses/farms with on-farm storage of processed inspected packages who provide wither wholesale or retail sales for such meat packages by the producers is $75.  The measure further strikes and replicates existing provisions applying to ‘small food processing premises’ that specify annual license/inspection fees of:
      • $150 if gross sales of processed and marketed meat is less than $200,000;
      • $300 is gross sales for is at least $200,000 but less than $2-million; and
      • $500 for operations with gross annual sales exceeding $2-million.
    •  This legislation has been referred to the Senate Ways & Means Committee for its consideration.  This bill would builds on prior legislation that provided for tiered license/inspection fees for small food processors custom inspected poultry slaughter at state inspected lockers that have been enacted in recent sessions.
  • Grain Indemnity Fund Assessment to Cease on September 1
    • On Thursday, April 17, 2025, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) issued a press release that announced that the Grain Indemnity Fund Board voted to cease the assessment on grain sold to Iowa-licensed grain dealers as well as the participation fees for Iowa licensed grain dealers and warehouse operators as part of the Iowa Grain Depositors and Sellers Indemnity Fund (Grain Indemnity Fund) effective September 1, 2025.  The assessment was reinstated on September 1, 2023, after the Fund fell below the statutory threshold of $3 million due to grain facility failures in 2021 and 2022.  Under existing law, the assessment must remain in effect for at least a full year and must also remain active until the Board votes to suspend the collection of fees or the Fund reaches a balance of $8 million.
    • That second-year of collections started on September 1, 2024, and will continue through August 31, 2025.  The balance of the Grain Indemnity Fund, as of April 16, is $10,173,347.80.  This total exceeds the $8 million dollar threshold and does not include the final two quarters of collections, which will cover cash sales of grain made in March, April, and May, and June, July, and August.  Created by the Iowa Legislature in 1986 during the Farm Crisis to provide financial protection to farmers, the Grain Indemnity Fund covers farmers with grain on deposit in Iowa-licensed warehouses and grain sold on a cash basis to state-licensed grain dealers.  In the case of a failure of a state-licensed grain warehouse or grain dealer, the Fund will pay farmers 90 percent of a loss on  grain up to a maximum of $300,000 per claimant.
    • The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship’s Grain Warehouse Bureau regulates and examines the financial solvency of grain dealers and grain warehouse operators to protect Iowa farmers. The Grain Warehouse Bureau is responsible for administering the Iowa Grain Depositors and Sellers Indemnity Fund. Members of the Iowa Grain Depositors and Sellers Indemnity Fund are appointed by the Governor and are subject to confirmation by the Iowa Senate. More information can be found on the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship’s website.
  • Health Care Workforce Bill Sent to the Governor
    • This week the House sent House File 516 to the Governor with bipartisan support. This bill concentrates on the medical training at our state public hospital and medical school. This bill aims to focus our taxpayer funded institution on intentional efforts to grow the health care workforce of all of Iowa. The data shows that if you do your medical school training and your residency training in one state, you are far more likely to stay and practice in this state. Unfortunately, the University of Iowa’s retention of physician workforce in Iowa is not providing results for the entire state, and this bill aims to make improvements while continuing the exceptional medical training received at UIHC.
    • Prioritizing Iowans, Rural Rotation – codifies requirements that were placed into session law in 2019 in House File 532. Additionally, it adds fellowships to the requirement that UIHC prioritize Iowans.
      • Requires medical residencies at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinic to give priority to applicants that have an Iowa connection (resident of Iowa, went to undergrad in Iowa, or medical school in Iowa).
      • Requires primary care residencies (family medicine, OB, psych, and internal medicine) at UIHC to provide the opportunity to participate in a rural rotation to expose those medical residents to rural areas of Iowa.
    • UIHC Medical Residencies – requires the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics to offer an interview for the medical residencies of some of the most-needed specialties in Iowa to those with an Iowa connection. Additionally, this bill requires UIHC to offer DMU and UI medical students the option to participate in an audition clinical in the specialty of the residency for which they are applying.
    • In-State Training – requires the University of Iowa medical school and dental school to have at least 80% of their students be residents of Iowa. This bill also requires an annual report by UI regarding the same schools and UIHC medical residencies demographic information.
  • Governor Signs Several House Judiciary Bills
    • The 2025 legislative session is getting closer to the end. A majority of the committee work is done, and bills are advancing through the House and Senate. The House Judiciary Committee has sent a significant number of bills to the Governor for her approval. Below is a short summary of some bills signed by Governor Reynolds:
      • House File 314- Adoption Waiver
        House File 314 allows a juvenile court to waive the requirement for a preplacement investigation and report in certain adoption cases. This waiver can occur if the adoption petitioner has been the legal guardian of the child for at least 36 consecutive months and has fulfilled their responsibilities as a guardian during that time. Currently, waivers are only permitted if the petitioner is a relative of the child within the fourth degree of consanguinity
      • House File 363- Disposition of Remains
        This bill is about who can make decisions regarding the final arrangements for a person’s remains after they pass away. It states that if someone is not allowed to be a decision-maker according to a person’s wishes, they cannot take control of those arrangements. Essentially, it ensures that only the right people can make decisions about how a person is laid to rest.
      • House File 367 CINA Family Interaction
        House File 367 modifies the rules regarding family interactions during ongoing child in need of assistance (CINA) proceedings. Currently, family interactions must continue unless a court, or the Department of Health and Human Services determines they are detrimental to the child. The bill changes this requirement, stating that interactions should continue unless a court finds substantial evidence that they pose an imminent risk to the child’s life or health.
      • House File 647- Place of Trial
        House File 647 outlines the venue for trials in criminal cases when the county of the offense is unclear. It specifies that trials should be held in the county of the victim’s residence if they can be identified. If there is no victim or the victim’s residence cannot be determined, the trial will take place in the county where the accused resides. For non-natural person victims, the trial can occur in any county where the victim has a physical presence. In cases with multiple victims, the trial may be held in any county where a victim resides, prioritizing natural persons
      • House File 924- Possession of Firearms
        House File 924 lowers the minimum age for acquiring and carrying firearms from 21 to 18 years old. The bill includes changes to related laws.
  • House Ways and Means Committee Supports Tax Credit for Gun Safety Devices
    • This week the House Ways and Means Committee passed House File 132. The bill creates an individual income tax credit for the purchase of firearm safety devices. “Firearm safety device” is defined as a device designed to prevent a firearm from being operated without first deactivating the device or a qualified gun safe.
    • Under House File 132, the credit is equal to the sales price of the firearm safety device, not to exceed $500. Any credit in excess of the taxpayer’s liability is not refundable but may be credited to the tax liability for the following year.
    • House Republicans support our second amendment rights—but also support safe and responsible storage of those firearms. House File 132 will make taking those proper precautions more affordable and is now ready for full consideration by the House.
On Monday, I shared birthday treats with my colleagues to celebrate my Easter Sunday birthday, as we wrap up another successful session focused on putting Iowans first. A special thanks to the Riverside Casino for making them all!
Contact Me

  • I am so thankful to be your District 92 Representative and I am always looking to hear from you all! Please reach out to me at heather.hora@legis.iowa.gov

Have a great week!

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