Representative Dan Huseman

 The Legislature is continuing work on the state budget and tax reform. Most of the major policy bills have been dealt with, although a couple controversial pieces of legislation are still alive, and they could somehow appear on a budget bill. I hope that does not happen. I have always believed that policy bills which…

I see the weather service has issued a winter storm watch for our area this weekend, but the several days of warmer temperatures this week have prompted a few more calls for adjournment. Farmers are eager to get home to their fields and machinery, and just because of the lingering winter, everyone wants to finish…

 As the session winds down, there are only a few more major policy bills left to debate, and it is questionable whether all of them will make it to the floor. It is time to start throwing some of this stuff overboard so we can concentrate on the state budget and maybe tax reform. We…

There was very little floor debate this week as most of the policy bills for this year have already been dealt with. There are several major pieces of legislation that are awaiting debate, but it is still unclear if they have enough “yes” votes to secure passage. Both Republicans and Democrats spent many hours in…

March Madness is well underway in the world of basketball, and the atmosphere here at the State Capitol has become a little maddening at times as well. This is normal, however. It is the time of the year when major pieces of legislation get debated, and the state budget begins to take form. Add to…

When the Legislature gavels in on Monday, March 19, there will only be about 30 days remaining in this session. This past week was the last funnel, so when the dust settles, we will know what bills remain in play and which ones will not be debated this year. There are a few major pieces…

Over the last several years, I have had numerous contacts from people regarding mental health issues, and this year has been no different from others. My good friend and colleague, Rep. David Heaton from Mt. Pleasant, chairs the Human Services budget, and is very knowledgeable in the area of mental health and mental illness. He…

At this writing, it would appear that March is coming in like a lamb. That is great news for people and animals. I have talked to some cow/calf producers who are into the calving season, and the little “critters” could use some help from Mother Nature. Calving season is always a sign that spring is…

The biggest news this week and across most of Iowa was the ice and snow storm that hit on Sunday and Monday. I have to confess that when one is Medicare eligible, it is not as much fun sliding sideways down a Des Moines street at 6:30 in the morning as it was when you…

The sixth week of the session has been busy. This has been a funnel week, which means that bills must be passed out of a committee in order to move on. This is the time when most bills will “die” for the year. It is too early to know what survives and what falls by…