~by Senator Jerry Behn March 14, 2019 Week nine in the Iowa Senate included some of the first major debate of this year. Just this week, we passed over 30 bills out of the Senate chamber. One of the bills the Senate passed this week was Senate File 274, protecting the freedom of speech on college campuses in Iowa. This…
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Capitol update
Rural Iowa big winner under House GOP budget plan ~by Rep Phil Thompson March 15, 2019 Growing and supporting rural Iowa is a primary focus of the 2019 session. House Republicans have been working on several fronts to give our communities the opportunity to grow and thrive in the 21st century. The FY20 budget reflects that in two key areas…
Read MoreWhat is it with the Irish anyway?
~a column by Colleen O’Brien This coming weekend, on Sunday, March 17, a good portion of the world will celebrate the wearin’ o’ the green. And the drinking of the green beer. And the singing of the lullabies of the green isle.
Read MoreCapitol update
March 11, 2019 FIRST FUNNEL This past week was the first “funnel” of the legislative session. The funnel is an important step in the legislative process because it’s the last opportunity for committees to consider house bills. If a bill didn’t pass through a committee by last Thursday, it can’t be discussed again until next year. More than 200 bills…
Read MoreThe Behn Report
March 8, 2019 Week Eight in the legislature was the first funnel week of the year. This deadline requires policy bills to be out of their originating chamber’s committee in order to be considered for the rest of this year. Imposing this deadline forces legislators to focus on priority bills and bills with enough support to pass the chamber. The…
Read MoreState funds for private schools, CAFOs, and public lands topics at legislative forum
The discussion was lively when Sen Jerry Behn and Rep Phil Thompson met with constituents Saturday at a “Meet Your Legislators” event hosted by the Thomas Jefferson Gardens board. About 30 persons attended, with a near even split of known political affiliations. Behn and Thompson are both Republicans.
Read MoreWilliamson suggests a national transformation is needed
Marianne Williamson has made leading people through personal transformation her career. As author of 13 books on transformational wisdom, she uses spirituality and psychology to help people tap into what it takes to change their lives for the better. Now, 35 years into her career, Williamson wants to transform the country in the same way. She’s running for the Democratic…
Read MoreSpeak up from a social conscience
~a column by Colleen O’Brien Who is it I know who lacks a sense of moral responsibility and social conscience? Not anyone I know personally, but I fear I read about a person like this more often than my health can tolerate. But there is something compelling about watching self-serving people and how they get away with it. Reading about…
Read MoreThe Behn Report
March 1, 2019 This was the seventh week of the 2019 legislative session, and a week busy with subcommittee meetings. Next week is the first funnel week of the year, meaning Senate bills need to be out of Senate committees in order to be considered for the rest of the year. This does not apply to bills that are in…
Read MoreA late reminisce for a 20th-century Twain
~a column by Colleen O’Brien New York Times columnist Russell Baker died five weeks ago. For me to get his autobiography, Growing Up, from an interlibrary loan took a month, but I was happy to have it in hand, however belated. I’d read it when it came out in 1982 because he, along with columnist Ellen Goodman of the Boston…
Read MoreCandidate Marianne Williamson in Jefferson March 2
Greene County Democrats will host presidential hopeful Marianne Williamson on Saturday, March 2, at 2 pm at the Welcome Center at Thomas Jefferson Gardens, 201 E Lincolnway, Jefferson. The event is free and open to the public. Presidential candidate Marianne Williamson has sold more than 3 million books world-wide, with millions of people attending her lectures over a 35-year career…
Read MoreThe Behn Report
~by State Senator Jerry Behn February 21, 2019 The legislature continues to work on subcommittees and debate a number of topics. The topics for the sixth week ranged from organ donation and the sale of mushrooms in farmers markets, to financial literacy, and yes, even traffic cameras. The months we are not in session are productive for a number of…
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