(Des Moines, Iowa; Iowa Capital Dispatch) – Bills that survived the first major deadline of Iowa’s 2025 legislative session show that Republicans have moved forward with a number of their priorities through bills focused on issues ranging from higher education to carbon capture pipelines to child care access.

The Legislature’s self-imposed  “funnel” deadline culls most legislation from further consideration if the measure has not received committee approval. In the first funnel, bills must receive committee approval in one chamber to remain eligible; there will be a second funnel deadline April 4, when bills must have passed one full chamber and a committee in the opposite chamber to remain eligible.

Bills that do not meet these set deadlines are considered “dead” for the session – but there are several caveats. Language from bills that do not meet the “funnel” deadline can still be added as amendments to other surviving bills, or can be brought forward as leadership-sponsored legislation. Additionally, bills that involve taxes, spending and government oversight components are exempt from the funnel.

The Iowa Capitol in the evening on Feb. 6, 2025. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

There’s one notable bill with a spending component that has not been passed this year – the state’s funding for the public school system. The House sent its public school funding proposal to the Senate in February, a package that included a 2.25% per-pupil funding increase, a one-time allocation of $22.6 million for per-pupil costs and an increase to transportation equity payments. The Senate had approved a 2% SSA rate that did not include the other funding components, matching Gov. Kim Reynolds’ initial proposal. The Senate has not taken up the House’s education spending package since.

House Speaker Pat Grassley said House Republicans are “still having conversations” with Senate Republicans and the governor on SSA, but did not say any agreement has been reached. Lawmakers have a self-imposed deadline of passing the State Supplemental Aid (SSA) rate for public K-12 schools within 30 days of the governor’s budget being released. This time limit passed by in February. While there is no penalty for not passing SSA within this timeframe, a delay in passing this measure can cause issues for schools that must submit their budgets in early March.

Grassley said during his discussions with local school districts, many are budgeting with the expectation that the Senate and governor’s SSA rate will be approved. “I think a lot of schools are making decisions at (2%),” Grassley said. “But we’re holding tight at this point because we feel strongly about some of those other items as well as the SSA, and the package that we have.”

The only piece of legislation that has made it to Reynolds’ desk: The repeal of “gender identity” from the Iowa Civil Right Act. The law was passed quickly through the legislative process, having its first subcommittee hearing Feb. 24 and being signed into law Feb. 28. Republicans control both chambers in the Iowa Legislature, in addition to holding all but one statewide elected office. House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst said Democrats are frustrated by what bills Republicans have chosen to move forward this session, which she said are “focused on anything but lowering costs for Iowa families.”

Grassley said moving past the first “funnel” of the session, Republicans plan to consider more legislation that address cost of living concerns for Iowans, like lowering the sales tax for some daily use items or providing tax credits for families with young children. The Republican chairs of the Senate and House Ways and Means Committees, Sen. Dan Dawson and Rep. Bobby Kaufman, introduced their proposal Thursday to limit property taxes in Iowa.

Read more about the bills that survived the Iowa Legislature’s Funnel Deadline HERE. You can also read about the bills that failed to make it through the deadline for consideration.