Every Child Counts Newsletter
Children at a Crossroads February 14, 2010
Greetings!
 
Week Five is in the books!  It seems like this should be week 15 - things were completely crazy last week since it was the first funnel week -final date for Senate bills to be reported out of Senate committees (and House bills out of House committees).  On Friday the House debated SF 2088 - the govt. reorganization bill (the House temporarily deferred on SF 2088 after debating for a few hours since they wanted to go home for the weekend and will pick up debate again on Monday).  There is some good news to report.  Before they deferred on the bill, the House passed Rep. Tyler Olson's amendment - H-8076 to SF 2088. This is the amendment that keeps Empowerment in the Dept. of Management and follows the other recommendations of the LEAN team.  It was definitely a spirited debate with Democrats divided on the amendment and the Republicans supporting it.  The amendment was adopted by voice vote so we won't know how individual legislators voted (or would have voted) since no division or record was called for.  Congratulations on all your hard work - the calls, emails, visits to the Capitol and attendance at community forums paid off!  Also, please take time to thank Representative T. Olson for all his hard work on this amendment! 
 
Now our attention turns to the Senate. Call or email your Senator and ask him/her to accept the amended changes to Empowerment that the House made. (Look for a legislative alert from Every Child Counts soon).
 
I will try to get you an update on what bills survived the first funnel and what bills did not.  Remember that Ways and Means, Appropriations, and Government Oversight bills get special treatment and are exempt from the funnel deadline.  Also, just because it didn't survive doesn't mean it won't be resurrected as bill language in another bill somewhere sometime!
 
Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day!
 
Best ~
 
Sheila
BILLS 
 
bill in lineQuality Early Care and Education
 
HF 2056 - An Act relating to the requirements for national criminal history record checks for child care providers.
 
HF 2069 - An Act authorizing persons who are relatives, friends, or neighbors to provide child care as unregistered child care home providers under certain circumstances.  By Hagenow.  Subcommittee, Mascher, Hunter, and Koester Companion bill SF 2084  
 
SF 414 - An Act providing for a pilot project supporting high=quality
child care for low=income children   This bill passed the Senate in 2009. 
 
 
Child Well-Being and Development 
 
HSB 223 - (a bill from last year) A study bill for requiring certain health insurance contracts, policies, or plans to provide coverage for audiological services and hearing aids for children. UPDATE - passed Human Resourced Committe on 2/8.  Eligible for debate in House.
 
SF 2082 - An Act relating to the income tax checkoff for the child
abuse prevention program fund and including retroactive
applicability provisions. UPDATE -  Passed out of Subcommittee on 2/2.
 
HSB 673 -  An Act providing for vision screenings for certain students, and including applicability provisions.  UPDATE - passed out of Human Resources Committee on 2/8.  Eligible for debate.

SF 2092 - An Act relating to health reform in Iowa by creating an Iowa Care plus program and an Iowa Choice Exchange.
 
Family Economic Success
 
HSB 568 - An Act relating to the provision of deliverable fuels to
customers eligible for the federal low=income home energy
assistance program.  Human Resources: Wendt, Chair, Abdul-Samad, and Soderberg
 
HF 2127 - An Act modifying provisions relating to the regulation of delayed deposit services businesses, making penalties applicable, and including effective date provisions.  Commerce:  Wenthe, Helland, Kressig, Reasoner, and Sands.  
 
SF 2235 - (formerly SF 2125) - An Act requiring provision of deliverable fuels to customers under specified circumstances, and including effective date provisions.  UPDATE - passed State Gov't Committee - eligible for debate.
 
NEW:
 
SSB 3176 - An Act providing minimum paid sick and safe time for employees nd including applicability provisions.  UPDATE  - eligible for debate in Senate.
 
 
Other Important Bills:
 
SF 2088 - (formerly SSB 3030) - A study bill for an act concerning state government reorganization and efficiency, making appropriations, establishing fees, establishing criminal penalties, and providing effective and applicability provisions. UPDATE - see above section
 
SSB 3139 - An Act creating the early childhood Iowa initiative.  Education.  Subcommittee, Schmitz, Appel and Boettger.  This is the Governor's bill on reorganizing Empowerment.  Same language as in the Senate Reorg bill - SF 2088.
 
SSB 3179 - An Act limiting the amount of research activities tax credit that is refundable and including retroactive applicability
provisions.
 
SF 2151 - (formerly SSB 3171) - An Act relating to public funding and regulatory matters by making and revising appropriations made for purposes of health and human services and providing effective dates.  Passed out of appropriations on 1/28. Passed Senate on 2/4 sent to House Appropriations.  Subcommittee, Heddens, Heaton, and Oldson.
 
SF 2118 - An Act repealing the film, television, and video project promotion program and including effective date and retroactive and other applicability provisions.  Referred to Economic Growth.
 
NEW:
 
SF 2270 - An Act relating to workplace accommodations for employees who express breast milk.  UPDATE - Eligible for debate in Senate.
 
 
 
In This Issue
Bills
Legislative Term and Quote of the Week
Household Spending on Child Care
CFPC discusses Tax Credits on Iowa Journal
Join Our Mailing List
SHansen
Legislative Term of the Week:

CLIP SHEETS -

The daily printed compilations of all amendments and fiscal notes filed in a chamber the previous day. The amendments are designed to be cut out and placed with the appropriate bills within a paper billbook. House clip sheets are printed on yellow paper; Senate clip sheets are printed on blue paper.
 
Quote of the Week:
 
"We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today."  ~Stacia Tauscher

Household Spending on Child Care

Families at 200 percent and above the federal poverty level spend 6 percent of monthly household income on child care. This share of income more than doubles for families at 100-200 percent of the poverty level and quadruples for families below the poverty level. Learn more about how proposed expansionsin child care subsidies and the Child Care Tax Credit will help families across income levels. (From our friends at CLASP).

 
 
child care graph 
       
 
 
CFPC Senior Policy Associate  discusses Tax Credits on IPTV's The Iowa Journal
 
CFPC Senior Policy Associate Victor Elias advocated for tax reform on the February 4th episode of The Iowa Journal, which looked at how a call for reforms in tax credits may affect Iowa's business climate as well as affect the state budget for services Iowans depend upon.

Host Paul Yeager discussed the economics of tax credit policy in the studio with Elias, Senator Joe Bolkcom and Ed Wallace, president of the Iowa Taxpayers Association.    

Click here to view the program.