This Week at the Statehouse - Week 10

March 20th marks the end of the second funnel which is the deadline by which bills need to pass the opposite chamber's committees in order to stay viable for the remainder of session. Caveats to this are bills that have companions that have already passed through committee, budget bills in Appropriations Committee, and taxing bills in Ways and Means Committee. And language from "dead" bills can also still show up as an amendment in other bills as the process continues.

Here is a list of notable survivors and casualties of the second funnel:

Notable Survivors:

• HF 2230 / SF 2222 – Teacher Education and Licensing
• HF 2240 – Endowment Tax
• HF 2245 / SF 2359 – Presidential Selection Committee
• HF 2361 / SF 2232 – Civics and History General Education Requirement
• HF 2362 / SF 2227 – Tuition Guarantee
• HF 2487 / SF 2303 – DEI Course Content Review
• HF 2513 – Foreign Adversary Hiring Ban
• SF 2453 – Endowment Innovation Funds Investment 

Notable Casualties: 

• HF 2226 – University of Iowa Nursing School Admissions
• HF 2241 – Student Loan Default Liability
• HF 2242 – Tuition Freeze
• HF 2243 – Performance Based Funding
• HF 2489 – Higher Education Compact
• HF 2510 – Civics Exam Requirement
• HF 2649 – Community College Bachelor’s Degrees
• SF 2302 – Career Development Meetings
• SF 2405 – DEI Training 

With policy committee work done for the session, the focus now turns to combing through the remaining bills to determine which will proceed to floor debate. The legislature will also now move into the budget portion of the session. We should see budget "targets" in the next week or two, which the budget committees will use to craft their funding priorities. We're at about a month out from the 100th day of session, which is the scheduled last day of session for 2026. The legislature, however, rarely finishes by their target adjournment date.

Each week the spreadsheet below will be updated to show the latest action on the many bills that the Board of Regents staff is tracking throughout this session. Some of the below bills may not apply specifically to UNI, but we closely monitoring legislation all session that may affect our students, faculty, and campuses at all three institutions. We have been collaborating with lawmakers to ensure UNI’s voice is heard and will continue to advocate for initiatives that support our mission.

Full List of Second Funnel Survivors:

Bills in Appropriations and Ways and Means committees are "funnel proof," meaning they also survive the funnel. They will require passage by their respective committees to be eligible for floor debate. Here is a list of those bills: