The View From Here

This week in the Iowa Senate has been truly overwhelming.  It is amazing to see the volume of bills we deal with during funnel week in order to keep them alive for the session.  Those bills range from the fairly trivial to life changing.  I’ll talk about a few of those bills in this this newsletter, the most important one being Life at Conception.
Most everyone has a strong opinion about when a human life is established.  When we look at the science, there is a time when we have two individual living cells with genetic information from each parent. Then, genetic information is exchanged resulting in one living cell with genetic information from both parents.  This is what we call conception. This new living cell is different from either parent.  From this point forward the cell is not mom or dad; it is a uniquely new living individual.
This week the Senate had a bill (SF 253 which I co-sponsored) that recognized all life is valued and protected from the moment of conception and is accorded the same rights and protections guaranteed to all persons by the Constitution.  Monday, the bill passed out of subcommittee with lots of public input on both sides.  Thursday it failed to pass out of full committee.   As I see it, ALL of the legislation we pass this year does not begin to compare to the value of protecting the lives of innocent babies in the womb. I will continue to work to protect life in the womb; I am seeking a path for this to move forward.
Some other legislation moving forward this week includes:
SSB 1138 which allows wireless companies to have access to public facilities and utility poles in order to mount a small device which would increase their capacity to transmit data by 50 to 100 times.  You are probably familiar with 3G and 4G service for cell phones.  This would allow Iowa to become one of the first states with 5G service.
SSB 1145 is a bill I chaired in subcommittee.  It states that a government entity cannot require a contractor to reveal proprietary information prior to bidding and cannot force a contractor to have a project labor agreement as a condition for preforming work on public projects.  Neither can they deny the contractor the ability to engage in a project labor agreement.  If this becomes law, it will save taxpayer dollars by increasing the number of contractors bidding on a project.
SSB 1170 deals with Workers Compensation Reform.  Workers comp was established in 1913 to ensure that workers injured on the job were treated fairly and compensated appropriately for their injuries.  In recent years the cost of workers comp has skyrocketed, in part due to waste, fraud and abuse.  This reform will keep Iowa in line with surrounding states and encourages job providers to invest in Iowa.
A Unique Opportunity in STEM for All Iowa High Schools
On April 24, the World Food Prize Foundation will hold The Iowa Youth Institute on the campus of Iowa State University. This one day event engages high school students from all across our state in global issues related to agriculture, business, and hunger alleviation, while also promoting STEM subjects.
To participate in the Iowa Youth Institute, students will write a paper identifying an issue related to food insecurity and propose a recommendation on how to solve this issue within a specified country. All students who submit their paper by March 27th to their school will have the chance to be selected as a Borlaug Scholar and represent their school and present their ideas on April 24th at Iowa State.  All participants will receive an impressive certificate designating them as a “Borlaug Scholar” and are awarded a $500 scholarship to Iowa State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
Interested school administrators, teachers and students can obtain more information at www.worldfoodprize.org/iowayouth or by contacting Kelsey Tyrrell, the World Food Prize Director of Global Education at ktyrrell@worldfoodprize.org or by phone at 515-245-3702.
My upcoming forums will be:
Friday, March 10, at: Eagle Grove Library at 8 a.m.; Clarion Train Depot at 10 a.m.; and, Belmond City Hall at 1 p.m.
Friday March 17 at: Garner Library at 9 a.m.; Kanawha Fire Station at 11 a.m.; Britt City Hall at 1:15 p.m.; and, Crystal Lake Library at 2:45 p.m.
I will be in Winnebago County on Friday March 24th.  Times and locations will be announced.