Workforce Development bills head to Gov. Branstad
April 6, 2017
Bills continue to move at the Capitol as we enter what is expected to be the home stretch of the legislative session. Several of the bills that passed the senate are pro-jobs bills and encourage attachment to the workforce. The bills have already passed the House and now head to the Governor’s desk for his review.
HF 533 - Brought forward by Iowa Workforce Development, this bill clarifies the code after the Irving Iowa Supreme Court case in which the court determined a claimant who was disqualified from misconduct from supplemental/concurrent employment may still draw wage credit from other base employers and allowed incarcerated individuals to recover unemployment benefits.
The legislation that passed the Senate on Tuesday, 42-8, does include an exception for those incarcerated individuals who are cleared of all charges or were found innocent to receive unemployment benefits. The bill had already passed the House with bipartisan support and heads to Gov. Terry Branstad for his review.
ABI position: For
HF 542 - The legislation increases the amount needed to re-qualify for a second benefit year of unemployment benefits from $250 to eight times the individual’s weekly amount. Iowa had the lowest qualifying amount for benefits in the country. With this update, benefits offered in Iowa are better aligned with those offered by other states. The bill passed the Senate on Tuesday 29-21. It already passed the House and will be sent to Gov. Branstad. This legislation was introduced by Iowa Workforce Development.
ABI position: For
HF 529 - The bill increases OSHA penalties and includes automatic indexing. The legislation is required to conform Iowa Code with federal rules updating the OSHA program. According to Iowa Workforce Development, if Iowa does not adopt the legislation, the state will be out of compliance and the federal government could take over the program. The bill passed the Senate 49-0 on Monday and has already passed the House.
ABI position: Undecided
HF 572 - The legislation brings Iowa’s Workforce Development (IWD) board into compliance with Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) requirements. The bill also allows IWD to use the previously allocated monies for unemployment insurance system modernization for a different system than the one previously approved by the Legislature. The bill passed the Senate 49-0 on Monday and has already passed the House.
ABI position: Undecided