The Iowa Legislature took a 30-day recess in mid-March after the community spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, and once it returns the public could see a greatly pared down agenda.

State Representative Chris Hagenow, (R) District 19, says there’s still a lot of discussion being had while the session is on hiatus, but it likely won’t be enough to pass some of the more controversial legislation. “You know, the one interesting one that drew the most attention was the Governor’s ‘IWILL’ (Iowa’s Water and Land Legacy) proposal with funding the water quality initiative. She has said that the consideration of that is on hold for the time being, but I don’t know if we’ll come back around to that. It just depends on really what kind of circumstances we’re facing. But by and large when we return, I think you’ll see a fairly limited agenda that’s focused on the state budget and the things that we can all agree on.”

Some bills that could fall by the wayside in the Legislature’s return include the proposed constitutional amendments on gun ownership, abortion rights, and felon voting. Hagenow points out, that means those proposals won’t come before a public vote for another two years at least, as they must pass through two consecutive general assemblies. To learn more about the latest from the legislative session, listen to today’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program on air and at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.