The 2019 Iowa Legislative Session begins today, and the representatives are gearing up for what should prove to be another busy year.

Chris Hagenow, the new representative for District 19 in the Iowa House, says the tone of this year’s session will likely be set during Governor Kim Reynolds’ Condition of the State speech tomorrow. After that, Hagenow believes a lot of what the legislature will focus on will likely revolve around the state’s overall economic health. “I know in talking to the Republican Caucus, they’re very interested in continuing to see Iowa’s economy grow. But not just for specific parts of the state but as rural Iowa a part of that, and making sure that they’re not left behind. And workforce challenges and making sure that Iowa businesses have well-trained employees, and that Iowans have career opportunities. So that’s part of the governor’s Future Ready Iowa plan that we worked on last year and moving forward. We’ll be looking for ways to continue to improve K-12 education, mental health system. There’s a lot of specific bills, and we’re just getting started.”

Hagenow adds, the legislature will likely be looking at property tax reform in both the House and Senate this year, so he says that is something people would be wise to keep an eye out for. Finally, he’s hopeful that with the strides they made last year on balancing the budget, they won’t need to do any deappropriations this year, while still covering the funding for the people’s priority needs.

To hear more from Hagenow, listen to today’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program on air and at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.