Greetings to you all, On Tuesday, I met with Exceptional Persons, Inc. Exceptional Persons, is a private non-profit charitable organization. At EPI, they foster active community participation of the individuals and families we serve while respecting and encouraging their preferences and choices. They came to speak to me in order to close the gap between...Read More

Greetings to you all, It was Research Day in the Capitol on Monday. There were a variety of projects that were presented to those at the Capitol, including myself. I was able to meet some incredible young people from Iowa State and UNI! They were able to speak to me about their various projects and...Read More

Greetings to you all, It was a busy start to the week as the Government Oversight Committee met to discuss book banning in Iowa schools proposed by the majority party. Parents and students from all over Iowa came together in opposition to these book bans. Many students discussed the potential negative impacts these bans would...Read More

Greetings to you all, It was an extremely busy day on Monday, with a variety of important issues being discussed. The biggest one of the night was that of the Government Oversight Committee. The issue at hand was book banning in our Iowa Public Schools. Many came to express their concerns with certain books being...Read More

Greetings to you all, Monday was an extremely eventful day, as we debated the school voucher bill for over 5 ½ hours. I voted “no” and spoke of the impact of this bill on Iowa students and it’s limit to all students within the state and their ability to receive a quality education. Only 42...Read More

Greetings to you all, Hopefully everyone is doing well and getting ready for Christmas, looking forward to spending time with family and friends. I know that the weather has been rainy and cold lately, but hopefully we’re on our way to a nice spring. Merry Christmas to you and your family and best wishes for...Read More

Greetings to you all, Hopefully, everyone is doing okay! Thanksgiving is coming soon and is a great opportunity to spend time with family and friends. The upcoming Legislative session will begin on January 9th. There will be several issues to address during the session, including lowering costs for Iowans, protecting reproductive freedoms, investing in our...Read More

Greetings to you all, The 2022 elections in Iowa will be starting Wednesday, October 19 and there are multiple ways to cast a ballot. Anyone wishing to vote absentee by mail will need to request an absentee ballot by October 24th. For information on how to do that, click here or here. Early voting at...Read More

Greetings to you all, I recently attended the Cedar Valley Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) meeting at Viking Pump in Cedar Falls. Great discussions with students from the Cedar Valley regarding how we can give students the skills to find professions for their future in the workforce. The students are very excited with the...Read More

Greetings to you all, Hopefully, everyone is getting out in the community to enjoy the summer weather and visiting with friends and family. The Cedar Valley has had several events including the recent My Waterloo Days and the upcoming Sturgis Falls event in Cedar Falls will be happening. It should be fun! The annual Sturgis...Read More

Greetings to you all, The legislature adjourned for the year on May 25th, at 12:16 am. The attached newsletter gives details on what did or didn’t occur during the session. I’ve heard from many people that they were glad to see that Governor Reynolds’s vouchers bill did not have the votes to pass in the...Read More

Greetings to you all, The legislature is still waiting on the majority party to get the session ready to adjourn for the year. The ability to bring the session to a close is something that should be moving forward but it isn’t. The barrier is still the governors private school voucher proposal. The majority party...Read More

Greetings to you all, I hope everyone is doing great. The legislative session was scheduled to adjourn on Tuesday, April 19th. We are now in our second week of waiting to see what the agreements will be between the House and Senate Republicans, before we adjourn. The big sticking point is the governor’s private school...Read More

Greetings to you all, I hope everyone is doing great. Fingers are crossed that spring has finally arrived and hopefully warmer weather will be here soon! On Monday, the House debated and passed eight bills. Here are some of the highlights, and you can find the full list of bills here: SF 2260: An act which...Read More

Greetings to you all, Hope everyone is getting excited for the start of April. The legislative session is a few weeks away from its official end date, but we still have plenty of bills to debate and pass. On Monday, I attended a meeting of the Transportation and Infrastructure budget subcommittee, where we reviewed the...Read More

Greetings to you all, I hope everyone is enjoying the warmer weather. Hopefully spring is here to stay! On Monday, the House debated and passed 15 bills. You can find the full list of bills here, and review the highlights below: HF 2471: An act which allows for the use of inventory checklists at the start...Read More

Greetings to you all, I hope everyone is staying warm through the ups and downs of this week’s weather! On Monday, we celebrated UNI’s Day at the Capitol, a daylong event featuring students, faculty, and staff from UNI to meet with legislators and showcase the achievements of the UNI community. The financial benefits that UNI...Read More

Greetings to you all, On Monday, the House began its week of debate on a long list of bills. Here are the highlights of the first 9 bills the House passed this week. You can find the complete list of bills passed on Monday here. HF 2123: An act which authorizes a criminal or juvenile justice...Read More

Greetings to you all, On Monday, I was part of the subcommittee for HF 2191, a bill which would make changes to the sentence commutation process for Class A felons. We had very passionate comments made during the subcommittee from people with loved ones who have served a substantial amount of time in prison and are...Read More

Greetings to you all, On Monday, I attended a meeting of the Commerce committee, where we reviewed the following bills: HSB 547, a bill which institutes changes to the Insurance Division in order to meet membership requirements for the National Association of Insurance Commissioners HSB 587, a bill which amends investment law to make it...Read More

Greetings to you all, On Monday, I attended a meeting of the Commerce committee. We discussed SF 586, a bill which modernizes elements of the Iowa Banking Act, addressing issues such as online banking, financial technology, and innovation. Tuesday marked Iowa Solar Day at the Capitol, and I met with the Iowa Solar Energy Trade...Read More

Greetings to you all, The House of Representatives began its 2022 session this Monday, and I am eager to get started working on behalf of all Iowans. This week, we heard speeches from both the minority and majority party, as well as the governor, outlining the legislative priorities for the upcoming session. In Governor Reynolds’s...Read More

Greetings to you all, Happy New Year! The Iowa legislature will be starting on Monday, January 10th.  I’m looking forward to getting started and working on issues impacting Iowans. Covid-19 has impacted our state and we need to come together and work to solve the problems we are facing. Some of the issues are mental...Read More

  Greetings to you all, Hopefully, everyone is doing great. For individuals that live in Cedar Falls, the November 30, 2021 Cedar Falls Mayor and Ward 3 Council member Runoff Elections will be taking place. Polls will be open from 7am-8pm. Questions may be directed to the Election Office: telephone number 319-833-3007, email address elections@co.black-hawk.ia.us. Here is...Read More

  Greetings to you all, Hopefully, everyone is doing great. The legislature met on October 28th, to decide the 2nd redistricting map for Iowa. The first map was not supported by the majority party and so the Legislative Service Agency had to redraw a 2nd map. I supported the non-partisan approach to the 1st and...Read More

  Greetings to you all, Hopefully, everyone is enjoying the days of October and enjoying the weather.  In addition to Halloween, there are many ways to celebrate in October. It is officially autumn, which means cozy apparel, your favorite chilly weather recipes, and beautiful foliage. In the Statehouse Newsletter, you will find information about what happened with...Read More

  Greetings to you all! Hopefully, everyone is able to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather. September is recognized as Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. The month is used to help spread hope and vital information to people impacted by suicide. The goal is to make sure the resources and help are available to those...Read More