Week 11 in the Iowa Senate

     Last week in the Senate, we voted on a couple of good bills that had bipartisan support. We passed Senate File 234, which would restrict texting and driving by making it a primary offense. This means that law enforcement will now be able to pull people over and ticket a driver if they are seen texting while driving.

     This bill will go to the House where additional amendments may be attached to the bill, which could result in removing or adding language. I agree with the Governor’s idea that we should restrict cell phone use to hands-free only. Under Senate File 234 an individual is still able to use a cell phone to make phone calls while driving.

     With this bill, Iowa joins 46 other states that have enacted similar laws that ban texting while driving. I believe that this is great step forward for limiting distracted driving. This law will help to reduce accidents in Iowa and save lives.

     The National Safety Council reports that cell phone use while driving leads to 1.6 million crashes each year. Nearly 330,000 injuries occur annually from accidents caused by texting while driving, and one in four car accidents in America is caused by texting and driving.

     I am working on two bills (House File 564 and House File 565), which would provide local school districts more flexibility by authorizing the transfer and expenditure of unspent funds. For example, if there are leftover dollars designated for professional development, they could be transferred to a flexibility fund. Some areas that could see more flexibility include at-risk dropout prevention, preschool, PPEL, student activity fees and safety equipment. The bill also allows more flexibility within these individual accounts, which will aid the school’s general account fund.

     Senate File 51, which passed with bipartisan support, makes the Department of Health responsible for educating pregnant women and young mothers about Cytomegalovirus (CMV). This bill also requires that newborn babies be tested for hearing deficiencies, which is a possible sign of CMV. If a hearing deficiency is detected, the baby must be tested for CMV (unless a parent does not consent). This is a big step forward to help educate young mothers about the disease and ensure babies get the treatment they need. I am thankful to Jade Kilburg and her family for their advocacy on this important issue.