HF 988 establishes catastrophic savings accounts for Iowa residents who own homes, effective January 1, 2026. This bill allows account holders to deduct contributions to these accounts from their state income tax, with lifetime limits tied to their homeowner's insurance premiums or the home's assessed value for self-insured individuals. Interest earned on these accounts is also tax-deductible. Funds can be withdrawn tax-free to pay deductibles for homeowner's insurance related to defined catastrophic events like floods or windstorms. However, withdrawals for non-qualified expenses are subject to state income tax and a 2.5% penalty.
HF 1021 proposes to exempt the sale of dietary supplements from sales tax in Iowa. This bill amends existing law to include dietary supplements, such as vitamins and minerals, within the category of "food and food ingredients" that are not subject to sales tax. As a result, consumers purchasing these products would no longer pay sales tax. The exemption would also apply to the state's use tax.
House File 977 expands the ground emergency medical transportation (GEMT) program. It requires the Department of Health and Human Services to employ dedicated staff to increase enrollment of eligible GEMT providers. These staff will offer technical assistance, actuary support, and help with Medicaid enrollment to providers seeking to participate. The department is also directed to develop the program to ensure access to emergency medical services statewide. Additionally, an annual report on the program's status, including enrollment numbers and barriers, must be submitted to the general assembly.
House File 1027 addresses radon by establishing new requirements for residential construction and offering tax incentives for mitigation systems. It mandates that new single-family and two-family homes built after the requirement's adoption must include passive methods for radon mitigation. The bill also creates a non-refundable income tax credit, up to $1,000, for individuals and corporations to help cover the cost of purchasing and installing a radon mitigation system. This tax credit applies retroactively to systems installed for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025.
House File 15 creates a rural attorney recruitment assistance program to help counties and municipalities with populations under 26,000 recruit legal professionals. Eligible local governments must apply, demonstrate a need for an attorney, and agree to provide 35% of an incentive payment. Attorneys who commit to practicing full-time in these rural areas for at least five years will receive an annual incentive payment over five years, equal to 90% of the University of Iowa College of Law resident tuition and fees. These attorneys must also serve as contract public defenders and participate in volunteer legal aid projects. The program is funded through state appropriations and contributions from the participating local governments.
This bill makes technical corrections to various sections of the Iowa Code. It aims to update statutory language to reflect current practices, correct omissions, remove redundancies and inaccuracies, resolve inconsistencies, and clarify ambiguities in existing laws.
This bill repeals an existing section of the Iowa Code (12C.6A) that governs the eligibility of financial institutions to accept public funds. Currently, this section requires institutions to demonstrate a commitment to serving their local community to qualify and mandates the Treasurer of State to maintain a list of eligible institutions. The repeal eliminates these specific eligibility requirements for financial institutions, including the need for public comment and challenge processes related to their eligibility. It also removes the Treasurer of State's responsibility to create and manage such an eligibility list. This change directly affects financial institutions by altering their requirements for holding public deposits and public entities responsible for depositing funds.
This bill enacts the Respiratory Care Interstate Compact, allowing licensed respiratory therapists to practice in multiple states that join the compact. This directly affects respiratory therapists seeking to work across state lines and patients needing respiratory care in member states. Under the compact, a respiratory therapist holding an unencumbered license in their primary state of domicile can obtain a "compact privilege" to practice in other member states without needing a separate full license in each. The compact aims to increase public access to respiratory therapy services, ease administrative burdens for licensees, and address workforce shortages. It also establishes a commission to administer the compact and maintain a data system for licensee information, while preserving each state's authority to regulate the practice of respiratory therapy within its borders.
This bill updates Iowa's alcoholic beverage laws, primarily impacting businesses that hold or apply for various retail alcohol licenses. It introduces a definition for "canned cocktail" and clarifies the term "mixed drink or cocktail."
A key provision allows holders of special class "C" retail alcohol licenses and special class "C" retail native wine licenses to sell mixed drinks or cocktails that do not contain alcoholic liquor for off-premises consumption. Additionally, the bill clarifies that requirements for "good moral character" and state citizenship for license applicants do not apply to the state of Iowa or its agencies. It also specifies conditions under which mixed drinks sold in sealed containers for off-premises consumption are not considered open containers.
This bill expands the power of county and city boards of adjustment to grant exceptions, called variances, from local property regulations. It directly affects property owners seeking to make beneficial use of their land or buildings. The bill allows boards to grant variances for "practical difficulties" related to area, dimensional, or other numerical limitations, such as minimum lot size, setbacks, building height, or parking requirements. To qualify, a property owner must prove their difficulties are unique to the property, not self-created, and that the variance will not significantly change the surrounding neighborhood.
This bill modifies provisions related to charter schools in Iowa, affecting both their governing boards and student participation in educational programs. It changes the requirements for charter school governing board members, mandating U.S. citizenship for all members and allowing up to one member to reside in another state, while still requiring a majority to live in the school's service area. Additionally, the bill allows students from charter schools and innovation zone schools to access the district-to-community college concurrent enrollment program. These students can access the program through the school district where their charter or innovation zone school is located, or through their district of residence if they attend an online charter or innovation zone school.
This bill modifies the rules for the retention of funds in Iowa's public improvement contracts, directly affecting general contractors, public corporations, and claimants. It allows general contractors to secure the early release of withheld payments from public corporations through several mechanisms. Contractors can post a surety bond to cover specific claims filed against them, or they can demand that claimants initiate a lawsuit within 30 days to enforce a claim, otherwise the claim is barred and funds are released. Additionally, contractors can provide a retention bond to replace all withheld project funds at any time. If public corporations delay making these payments after a bond or claim resolution, interest will accrue on the unpaid amount.
