End of the General Assembly
Adjournment sine die
The Iowa Legislature concluded its 2024 session in the early hours of Saturday, fulfilling most of the Republican trifecta's priorities for the year. The Senate, wrapping up at 3:26 a.m., and the House, following suit at 4:23 a.m., worked in the final stretch to pass significant spending and policy bills.
This year's legislative session, ending on its 104th day, was characterized by Republicans pushing through impactful bills on education, taxes, and other topics. The marathon session culminated with both chambers passing a resolution to adjourn sine die, marking the completion of a series of bills that set the state's $8.9 billion budget and addressed key policy priorities from the Republican party.
Notably, judges and magistrates in Iowa are set to receive a 5 percent pay increase as part of the proposed judicial system budget outlined in Senate File 2436. This increase, totaling $2.4 million from the $220.2 million judicial system budget, aims to improve compensation for those in the state courts. The judicial retirement system will return to a Fixed Contribution Rate from its current variable contribution rate, as before 2022.
Furthermore, lawmakers allocated an additional $2.3 million to the State Public Defender's Office, which includes funds for raising the pay of private attorneys representing indigent defendants. This marks the third consecutive year of pay increases, with an additional $3 per hour. Additionally, the budget reallocates $2 million from the state's indigent defense fund to hire 12 new salaried attorneys in underserved areas, such as Scott County, where there's a shortage of contract attorneys for defendants needing legal representation.
The 2024 Iowa legislative session witnessed a comprehensive array of bills covering various aspects. However, many new laws will be put into effect soon. Here is a list compiled from various sources:
1. Education :
- House File 2612 restructured Area Education Agencies' funding, increased teacher pay, and set a 2.5% state supplemental aid rate for public schools.
- House File 2586 provided legal protections for school staff carrying firearms.
- Senate File 2095 safeguarded the expression of religious beliefs in schools.
2. Criminal Justice :
- Senate File 2431 extended the civil statute of limitations for Boy Scouts settlements.
- Senate File 2240 and Senate File 2243 addressed AI-generated pornography with criminal charges for creating such content.
3. Healthcare :
- House File 2673 established a new Behavioral Health Services System.
- Senate File 2251 expanded postpartum Medicaid coverage.
4. Government and Regulations :
- Senate File 2385 reduced state boards and commissions.
- Senate File 2096 repealed gender balance requirements for government boards.
- Senate File 2252 revamped the More Options for Maternal Support (MOMS) program.
- Senate File 2204 enhanced oversight on foreign agricultural land ownership.
5. Taxation and Finance :
- Senate File 2442 reduced state income tax rates for 2025 to 3.8%.
- House File 2319 prohibited guaranteed basic income programs.
- Senate Joint Resolution 2004 proposed a flat state income tax rate in the constitution.
- Senate File 574 offered tax incentives for significant investments.
6. Miscellaneous :
- House File 2687 relaxed E15 requirements for gas stations.
- House File 2681 regulated automated traffic enforcement cameras.
- House File 2618 focused on early literacy proficiency.
- House File 2545 revised social studies curriculum standards.
This legislative session showcased a wide-ranging effort to address education, criminal justice, healthcare, government operations, taxation, and more issues.
For more in-depth coverage of the final days of the legislature, please see the following:
