News

Budget Agreement Reached!

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 19:18:45 GMT

Budget Agreement Reached, Session End Nears

The Senate and House have agreed to spend $9.659 billion for the next budget year, which begins July 1, 2026. This is just $3 million below what the House had suggested. The HHS Budget numbers actually increased in these negotiations!

Administration & Regulation: $73,301,113 ($30,000 below original House target)
Agriculture & Natural Resources: $47,505,670 ($244,000 above original House target)
Economic Development: $39,948,145 ($400,00 below original House target)
Education: $1,042,048,417 ($4.6 million below original House target)
Health & Human Services: $2,560,094,417 ($344,000 above original House target)
Justice Systems: $938,006,002 ($1.5 million above House target)

You can track the real-time budget status here . The HHS Budget also requires some "cost saving" changes be adopted. These are in the House Amendment to Senate File 2422, the so-called "SNAP/Public Assistance Bill." You can see the differences between what the House originally proposed, what the Senate wanted, and the new House proposal here .

Budget Targets Announced!

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 16:17:49 GMT

House & Senate Budget Targets Are Out!

The one thing the Iowa Legislature must do each year is pass a budget. The Governor made her recommendations in January. The Iowa Senate set its budget target (their overall spending cap) on March 30. The Iowa House of Representatives came out with their spending target on April 10. Now the negotiations begin.

The good news is that the House-Senate targets are only about $39 million apart and are not far off the Governor’s budget. The bad news is that they are using more than $1 billion in one-time funds to balance the budget. The money the state collects from taxes is far below the spending levels. All three budgets spend more than the state will collect in revenues.

$9.67 billion - Governor’s Recommendation

$9.66 billion - House Target

$9.62 billion - Senate Target

$8.47 billion - March Revenue Estimate

You can see our real-time budget tracker here . It includes the most current bill numbers, information on where the bills are in the process, and links to staff detailed budget reviews.

Medicaid Talking Points

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 16:38:52 GMT

Did you miss Disability Action Day at the Capitol?

You can still get your message to legislators before decisions are made on Medicaid. Legislators will be working at the State Capitol until at least April 21, so let them know now how you feel about Medicaid.

Click here for tips on getting your message ready.
Click here for talking points.
Click here to go to our Take Action Center to send your message.
Click here for tips on writing a letter to the editor.

New Tool! How to Write a Letter to the Editor

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 23:18:11 GMT

NEW ADVOCACY TOOL: Writing Letters to the Editor

Newspapers and magazines let their readers write "letters to the editor." Sometimes they are online only, sometimes they are printed. They are ways editors let their readers comment on a story that they published, or about a topic that is important. It might be about an event, a bill, or encourage people to take action. It might just be expressing their view on something.

Many advocates forget that letters to the editor are a great way to get your message out to others in their community. Elected officials read their local news, including letters to the editor. If you are new to writing these, we have a great new tool to help you. Click here to check it out!

Legislators Announce Retirements, Others Have Primaries

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 20:11:13 GMT

Twenty-Six Legislators Announce Retirements, Half are Unopposed (So Far)

Iowans who wanted to run for a statewide office, US Senate, Congress, or the State Legislature had to file their campaign paperwork by Friday, March 13th. There were a couple of surprises, including one Democratic candidate for Governor finding out that there were problems with some of the signatures on her nomination petition. Those problems mean she (Julie Stauch) will not appear on the ballot. Another surprise, Republican Secretary of State Paul Pate does not have an opponent.

We now know that 26 legislators will not seek re-election, although some are running for a different office. They include:

State Senators Retiring (9)

Sen. Tom Shipley (R-Senate District 9)
Sen. Julian Garrett (R-Senate District 11)
Sen. Cherielynn Westrich (R-Senate District 13)
Sen. Izaah Knox (D-Senate District 17)
Sen. Ken Rozenboom (D-Senate District 19)
Sen. Mike Bousselot (R-Senate District 21) — running for Senate District 23
Sen. Jack Whitver (R-Senate District 23)
Sen. Bill Dotzler (D-Senate District 31)
Sen. Zach Wahls (D-Senate District 43) — running for US Senate

State Representatives Retiring (17)

Rep. JD Scholten (D-House District 1)
Rep. Tom Jeneary (R-House District 3)
Rep. Zach Dieken (R-House District 5)
Rep. Matt Windschitl (R-House District 15)
Rep. Josh Turek (D-House District 20) — running for US Senate
Rep. Jennifer Konfrst (D-House District 32)
Rep. Ruth Ann Gaines (D-House District 33)
Rep. Barb Kniff McCulla (R-House District 37) — running for State Senate
Rep. Jon Dunwell (R-House District 38)
Rep. Rick Olson (D-House District 39)
Rep. Heather Matson (D-House District 42)— running for State Senate
Rep. Eddie Andrews (R-House District 43) — running for Governor
Rep. Shannon Latham (R-House District 55)
Rep. Timi Brown-Powers (D-House District 61)— running for State Senate
Rep. Lindsay James (D-House District 71)— running for US Congress
Rep. Bob Kressig (D-House District 75)
Rep. Monica Kurth (D-House District 98)

About half of the legislators up for re-election have no opponent in the November election (12 Senate seats, 43 House seats). Only three Senators have an opponent in the June primary: Senators Lynn Evans, David Rowley, and Annette Sweeney. There are ten Republican Representatives that will have a primary opponent: Representatives Brett Barker, Mike Bergan, Jane Bloomingdale, Mark Cisneros, Helena Hayes, Christian Hermanson, Chad Ingels, Brian Lohse, Carter Nordman, and Devon Wood. Only one Democrat faces a primary opponent: Rep. Ken Croken.

Those that do not have an opponent in the November general election are not out of the woods yet. The opposing political party still has time to nominate a candidate (deadline is August 19, 2026). You can see the full candidate list (with contact information) here .

Update: Public Assistance Reform Bills Debated

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 15:32:15 GMT

Senate Locks State Into Managed Care, House Readies Their Public Assistance Bill

Since this was originally posted on February 15, there have been several updates to the Iowa House and Senate's public assistance reform bills. The Iowa Senate passed their bill ( SF 2422 ) on a party-line vote . The bill now goes the House Health and Human Services Committee for consideration. This bill makes a number of changes, but the most concerning are:

Stopping any future Governor from ending Medicaid managed care without legislative approval. It is important to note that legislative approval was not required to start managed care. Governor Terry Branstad did it through Executive Order.

Removing flexibility in the Medicaid program to do new waivers and plan amendments that might improve access to care or save money in the long run . Legislators would be required to approve any changes that cannot show a cost savings or cost neutrality.

During Senate floor debate, Sen. Matt Blake said the following:

“MCOs have not been a net benefit to our state at all. They have created problems for providers. They have made it more expensive to provide services…and if you ask any one of your LTSS [long term services and supports] providers in your districts how we could help with their bottom line, the first they would say is get rid of the MCOs. The duplication of the bureaucracy that comes with them only adds cost and not benefit to the people that need it most…Why are we taking steps to codify a system that isn’t working for Iowans? Why after ten years of having this process in place we are we doing this now? We’ve had ten years to put this in place, but it seems there is a particular reason, and a particular election potentially, that this becomes an issue now. You are tying the hands of the Governor that comes after us. The MCOS were put in place by Executive Order. They were created by a Governor. And now we’re telling future Governors that they can’t make that decision anymore.”

The Iowa House of Representatives is getting ready to debate is own version of public assistance reform ( HF 2716 ). It is a much broader bill and adds in some "sugar" to sweeten the sour parts of the bill. The House plans to debate the bill sometime during the week of March 2. Thing to note in this bill :

Expands the income cap for the Medicaid for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MEPD) Program to 300% of the federal poverty level. That's up from 250%. Pensions are added to the list of other retirement plans that are exempt from asset limits, and Iowa HHS would be required to allow online payment of MEPD premiums.

Home and community based services (HCBS) providers are given a bump in reimbursement for serving people with disabilities in rural areas. It should be noted that the amount of this increase is not determined and the funding is not appropriated in this bill.

Severe public assistance barriers are put in place, including kicking off undocumented and some other immigrant pregnant women and infants from the program that provides them with nutrition assistance and baby formula (WIC) . Teens who work while living at home will have their income exempted from eligibility for food assistance (SNAP).
Removing flexibility in the Medicaid program to do new waivers that might improve access to care or save money in the long run . Legislators would be required to approve any changes that cannot show a cost savings or cost neutrality.

Both bills require citizenship checks for most public assistance programs. The House includes child care assistance in this list; the Senate does not. During a House subcommittee, the HHS Committee Chair (Rep. Austin Harris) said, “Iowa is not going to be a sanctuary state for waste, fraud, and, for your security, this bill will move forward today.”

You can read the SF 2422 bill of the week here .
You can read the HF 2716 bill of the week here .
You can read the updated comparison (2/28/2026) between the bills here .

Condition of Iowa HHS & Medicaid Presentation

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 18:01:58 GMT

Iowa HHS Status Update: Lawmakers Question Cost Containment

The Iowa Department of Health & Human Services (Iowa HHS) presented to the House Health & Human Services Budget Subcommittee on January 29, 2026. You can view the 48-page slide deck from that presentation here . Here are a few takeaways:

Legislators questioned the nearly $52 million in cost containment that was included in the Governor's budget and requested more details. In particularly they wanted to know how the state plans to save $28 million by moving all pharmacy claims in-house, save $6.5 million by passing provider taxes through the MCOs, and $20 million through unidentified cost containment. You can see the major drivers of Medicaid costs on page 31 and the cost containment spreadsheet on page 32.

Iowa HHS was asked about the cost of the HOME project, which is apparently built into the Medicaid ask for the next fiscal year. The slides do not include costs, but do show the implementation timeline. Reminder - you can comment on the HOME project until 11:59 p.m. on Friday, February 13. Click here for more information and to submit comments .

The REACH project timeline is included in the slides, but there is no detail on legislative asks required by the REACH agreement . The state was sued by

Legislative Guide Updated for 2026

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 18:24:41 GMT

Who Represents You? Guide Updated for 2026 Session

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Government Shutdown, Food Assistance Shut Off

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 18:21:41 GMT

Government Shutdown Shuts Off Food Assistance (SNAP)

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Trump Administration Stops Plan to End Subminimum Wage

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 19:39:57 GMT

Trump Administration Will Continue to Allow Businesses to Pay People with Disabilities Less Than Minimum Wage

By now you’ve heard many elected officials talk about the value of work. Congress and the Iowa Legislature have now passed work requirements for some people getting their health insurance from Medicaid. Iowans with disabilities have been getting louder each year about the need to allow them to “work without worry.” It is clear - Iowans with disabilities who can work, want to work , without risking the very services and supports that make it possible for them to work.

That is why it is unfortunate that the Trump Administration has halted a plan that would end the ability of businesses to pay workers with disabilities less than minimum wage (which is currently at $7.25/hour). The plan would have phased out “14(c) certificates” that allowed the payment of subminimum wage. Advocates say this practice allows businesses to exploit workers with disabilities and make it more difficult to develop real employment opportunities in the community. Some of the 40,000+ workers that are paid less than minimum wage nationally earn as little as $1/hour.

So far 16 states have passed laws to phase out subminimum wage and early research suggests positive outcomes from those changes. A similar bill was introduced in the Iowa Legislature this year by Rep. Josh Turek (D-Council Bluffs), but it failed to make it out of subcommittee after opposition from a nonprofit organization.

What Can You Do?

Ask those who represent you in Congress to sponsor a bill phasing out 14(c) certificates that allow businesses to pay people with disabilities less than minimum wage . Equal work deserves equal pay. Setting a lower wage threshold demeans and devalues the work people with disabilities do.
Ask your State Senator and State Representative to sponsor a bill to support competitive integrated employment and end the practice of paying workers with disabilities less than minimum wage. You can ask them to reintroduce House File 538 in the 2026 legislative session.

Consider taking part in the Iowa DD Council’s “Do My Job” campaign, where a legislator visits you at work to learn more about what you do and why its important to you. It’s a great time for legislators to hear from your employer and you about the value of competitive integrated employment. If October doesn’t work, you can do it any month! Learn more here .

Sioux City Special Election Update

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 21:37:04 GMT

Special Election Set, Candidates Picked for Senate District #1

State Senator Rocky DeWitt (R-Woodbury) passed away last month after a long battle with cancer. A special election has been set to fill the remainder of this term (which goes through 2026). Senate District 1 is entirely in Woodbury County. If you live in this district, here are some things you will need to know: 

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Session Ends, Bill Tracker Updated

Fri, 16 May 2025 14:15:51 GMT

Iowa's Legislative Session Has Ended

The Iowa Legislature ended its 2025 session at 6:31 a.m. on May 15, just two weeks past its 110-day goal. Collectively, the House and Senate passed all nine budget bills, the federal block grant bill, opioid settlement spending, a ban on the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines, Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) reform, sports betting revenue spending, the Governor’s rural health initiative, the Governor’s unemployment tax reduction, state government employee paid leave, Iowa Health & Wellness Plan work requirements, the Governor’s tax credit bill, local government DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) ban, crypto-currency ATM regulation, an expanded state adoption tax credit, and 32 other bills in the final three days of session. They did not end up making changes to the state’s property tax system (look for that next year).

We have updated the bill descriptions and status in the bill tracker . Most laws passed this year will go into effect on July 1, but we have noted this in the bill tracker descriptions. Remember:

The default "active" list shows bills that were sent to the Governor.
You can see bills that didn't make it this year by switching to the "inactive" list.
Bills that didn't make it this year will be eligible for debate again in the 2026 legislative session.
If you see something you like that didn't make it to the Governor this year, now is the time to advocate for its passage in 2026! You can use our Take Action Center to do that.

If you want to read more detail on the budget bills, you can read the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau's "Notes on Bills and Amendments" (also called NOBAs).

* Waiting for final version to come out - but the information in the linked document is accurate.

We Have Budget Targets!

Tue, 29 Apr 2025 15:43:08 GMT

We Have Budget Targets!

Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Senate have agreed to a budget target for next year. The House has also released its budget target. They are only $36 million apart. That is less than 1% difference. While that difference is not much, it may mean the difference between a Medicaid rate increase, making scholarships for comprehensive transition programs available to young adults with disabilities, or cutting property taxes for homeowners.

The Senate has already released some of its budgets and will move all budget bills out of subcommittee and committee this week. That gets them into position for fast action once the House, Senate and Governor agree to their final spending plan.

Current Budget (FY 2025)

$8.948 billion

Governor’s Original Recommendation (FY 2026)

$9.434 billion

Senate/Governor Budget Target (FY 2026)

$9.417 billion

House Budget Target (FY 2026)

$9.453 billion

The Transportation budget is not included since it does not spend state general fund dollars. It uses funds earmarked for transportation (gas taxes, vehicle registrations, etc). The Federal Block Grant Bill is 100% federal funds, so it is not included in the state targets. Both of these bills are well on their way to being finalized.

“A budget agreement with Governor Reynolds moves this legislative session one step closer to adjourning for the year,” Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver said. “As we continue to work on important issues in the legislature and find agreement among legislators, this agreement marks an important step forward. We look forward to more conversations with the House of Representatives on how we can pass a sustainable budget for the upcoming fiscal year.”

Speaker Pat Grassley (R-New Hartford) expressed support for his caucus’ approach. "Our caucus is committed to delivering a budget that follows responsible budget practices, while funding the priorities Iowans care most about," Grassley said. "Iowans expect to see their tax dollars used wisely to fund important services like nursing homes, paraprofessional pay, support for human trafficking victims, and more of that sort, and that's what this House Republican caucus is fighting to deliver."

Budget subcommittees will continue their work to finalize their individual budgets. We already have a few budgets to list:

Administration/Regulation : SSB 1235
Agriculture/Natural Resources : SSB 1230
Education Budget: SSB 1231
Judicial Branch Budget : SSB 1233
Justice Systems Budget : SSB 1232
Federal Block Grants : HSB 327 | SF 626
Transportation Budget : SF 628
Opioid Settlement: HSB 331 | SF 624

The Senate Education Budget ( SSB 1231 ) does not include funding for comprehensive transition program scholarships as proposed in HF 271 / SF 283 . Advocates can ask their legislators to add these bills into the Education Budget (including funding for them).

Another issue many advocates have worked on this year is adding autism treatment (behavioral health analysis) to the children's health insurance program (Hawki). Advocates who want to see this happen can ask their legislators to put HF 509 into the HHS Budget.

Watch for alerts on Facebook and our website as decisions are made this week.

No Surprises in Revenue Estimates

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 20:44:32 GMT

No Surprises in March Revenue Estimates

The state's Revenue Estimating Conference (REC) met on Thursday to estimate how much money legislators have to spend in the next budget year (called Fiscal Year 26, or FY26). They found that the State is starting to see the drop in money being collected after several years

of income tax cuts. Fortunately the State has a lot of money in its savings accounts so we do not have to cut spending this year. Here’s a quick rundown:

The Governor wants to spend $9.43 billion for FY26.
Iowa will only collect $8.51 billion in FY26 (that’s a 6.4% drop, but they predicted this).

You probably notice that the Governor is spending more than incoming revenues. She is able to do that because the Iowa Legislature has been spending much less than 99% of the revenues. So we have a lot of money in our savings accounts and the Governor plans to use some of that to avoid budget cuts. Since education, human services and Medicaid make up 75% of the state’s budget, it’s important to avoid cuts!

Director of the Department of Management Kraig Paulsen said it best : “There are no surprises today...The spending discipline by our elected leaders…continues to put the state in a position where the needs of Iowans can be met and we can weather through this tighter time. The reserve funds are full at $961 million, the Taxpayer Relief Fund has a balance of over $3.75 billion, and the carry-forward from the previous fiscal year was $1.9 billion.”

The next step in the budget process is for legislative leaders to set their own targets, which they will divide up among budget subcommittees. We should see those targets in the next two weeks.

New Legislator, Updated Guide

Wed, 12 Mar 2025 20:24:17 GMT

New Legislator, Legislative Guide Updated

Iowa has a new State Representative from House District 100 - Rep. Blaine Watkins. Rep. Watkins won the special election on Tuesday, March 11. He won this tight election after Martin Graber died suddenly of a heart attack last month. He will be sworn in next week and assigned committees soon after. We have updated our legislative guide - Who Represents You - with his information but are waiting on those committee changes before sending out our printed version.

Sen. Zimmer Sworn In, Assigned Committees

Tue, 11 Feb 2025 01:16:37 GMT

Sen. Zimmer Sworn In & Assigned Committees

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Medicaid: What's At Stake & How to Advocate

Fri, 07 Feb 2025 19:25:17 GMT

Medicaid: What's At Stake & How to Advocate

Today nearly 200 Iowans attended a DD Council sponsored webinar called "Medicaid: What's at Stake and How to Advocate." There was a lot of information presented - and information on how advocates can take action. Here are the slides to today's presentation and an action alert below that Iowans with disabilities can do right now. A link to the recording of the webinar can be found here .

Final Primary Election Results

Wed, 12 Jun 2024 01:32:45 GMT

Find Who Won the Republican & Democratic Primaries

Iowa voters went to the polls on June 4 to vote in the Primary Election. Voters registered as Democrats voted for the people they want to represent their party and voters registered as Republicans picked their candidates. The winners of the Primary Election will face off in the November 5 General Election.

You can also see our file in Excel format here or review results on the Iowa Secretary of State website here .

Stay Current: Attend Medicaid Town Halls

Wed, 05 Jun 2024 16:45:02 GMT

Iowa Medicaid Hosts Monthly Town Halls for Members & Providers

Iowa Medicaid has been hosting monthly online town halls to keep members, providers, and other stakeholders updated on improvements to Medicaid. It's also a time for Iowa Medicaid staff to listen to member and provider concerns. Make sure you sign up. Even if you cannot attend, you'll be on the list to receive follow-up information and links to recordings so you can catchup on your own schedule.

You can let Medicaid know if you'd like an update or want to discuss a certain topic here .
You can sign up for member, provider, and/or CCO (community choice option) town halls and see the schedules here .

Iowa Legislative Session Ends

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 22:45:26 GMT

2024 Session Ends on Day 104

That’s a wrap on the 90th General Assembly! The Iowa Legislature, which convened on January 8, 2024 amidst a record-breaking snowstorm, lasted 104 days, finally adjourning in the early morning hours (3:26 a.m.) of Saturday, April 20. Legislators introduced 1,617 new bills during the 15-week session, with just 169 of these making their way to the Governor’s desk. That’s a pretty consistent percentage – one in ten bills introduced by legislators historically have become law.

The Governor has signed about half of the bills sent to her; she has until May 20 to take action on the bills. It is important to note that the Governor can line-item veto sections of budget bills. That means she can veto sentences, paragraphs, or funding for certain projects while signing the rest of the bill into law. You can see how the bills you were watching ended up in our Bill Tracker .

Check Out our Bills of the Week

Fri, 26 Jan 2024 18:32:42 GMT

Each week during the Iowa legislative session, we will be focusing on one bill that could impact the lives of Iowans with disabilities. You can check them out here. We've already done them on the Governor's AEA proposal (House Study Bill 511 and Senate Study Bill 3011), Rep. Chad Ingel's comprehensive post-secondary transition scholarships bill (House File 252), and Sen. Brad Zaun's bill to make prescriptions accessible to people who are visually impaired or blind (Senate file 2022). There are more to come each week, so watch for them on Mondays here .