While Gov. Terry Branstad is working to secure the votes he needs from Democrats to confirm his nominees to the Board of Regents, he hasn’t secured the vote of all 24 Senate Republicans. Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, has warned he might vote against the governor’s nominees to the board that oversees the three state universities [...]

Gov. Terry Branstad said Monday his three appointees to the Board of Regents “deserve the opportunity to be confirmed.” Branstad called on the Democratic-controlled Senate to bring up his trio of nominees for a confirmation vote based on their qualifications, not a political litmus test. Two of the Republican governor’s appointees – Craig Lang of [...]

A harsh critic of Democratic gun control proposals, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is leading a group of Republicans in writing their own proposal. A spokeswoman declined to release any details because the measure is still being written. “Senator Grassley, along with other concerned members, is putting together an alternative bill that addresses gun violence in [...]

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Wednesday a bill to ban so-called assault weapons won’t get through the Senate Judiciary Committee, where he’s the top Republican. He didn’t commit, however, on the question of expanded background checks. On a conference call Wednesday, Grassley, the top Republican on the committee, said the ban is a non-starter. [...]

Are Sen. Chuck Grassley’s actions in 2013 an indicator of his plans for 2016? Iowa’s senior congressional Republican since 1985, Grassley has voted against reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, relief for the Northeast for Hurricane Sandy, and now is threatening to vote to send the U.S. government into sequestration, which is an across-the-board [...]

By Brad Wilson —-   The Aug. 26 article, “Farm Bill inaction could turn clock back to 1949,” offers spin and little else. The Senate and House proposals are described as “modern,” “market-based,” “21st century,” the trend for “more than 60 years,” but are not described or supported. The argument is that we didn’t have [...]

The Iowa Senate unanimously voted Thursday to increase penalties for people who disobey traffic laws governing how motorists and school buses share the road. The legislation is unofficially called Kadyn’s Law for 7-year-old Kadyn Halverson who was killed last May when she was struck by a pickup while she went to board a school bus. [...]

Three Republicans joined eight Democrats on the Senate Transportation Committee Wednesday in approving a state gas tax increase. Senate Study Bill 3151 would raise the state’s excise tax on motor vehicle fuels by five cents a gallon on Jan. 1, 2013, and another five cents a gallon on Jan. 1, 2014, and deposit the proceeds [...]

The finish line remains unknown, but House Republicans and Senate Democrats may have reached an agreement on a starting point for reforming Iowa’s commercial property taxes. Senate Democrats are willing to commit $250 million toward property tax relief over a period of years, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, said over the weekend. Meanwhile [...]

UPDATE: Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett says he believes prospects are better this session for a cost-sharing approach toward flood protection and rebuilding efforts in Iowa communities to clear the Legislature and get signed into law. “I think we have a really good chance this year,” said Corbett, a former House speaker, after a Senate [...]