Iowa lawmakers must pass a state budget before the 2025 legislative session can end. The House and Senate are about $36 million apart in their proposals and are publicly disagreeing over the main points of contention in negotiations.
House Speaker Pat Grassley has said that the House is committed to including $14 million in the state budget for paraeducator pay and that finalizing that line item has been a holdup in negotiations. Gov. Kim Reynolds, who is working with the Senate, refuted that Friday, saying conversations about the budget are focused on the total amount the state is spending.
Both proposals would require the state to use about $900 million in reserves to cover a budget gap caused by tax cuts.
But even if lawmakers agree on a final amount, there are other hurdles in the way of passing a state budget this year. A group of 12 Republican senators have said they won't vote for any budget bills until Senate leaders let them vote on a separate bill that would restrict carbon capture pipelines and add protections for landowners facing the use of eminent domain.
The budget process is the last step needed to end the session. But many policy issues still hang in the balance, including a proposal to cut unemployment taxes, a bill to overhaul energy policies, a proposal to create new preschool grants and a measure put forward by Bayer, the manufacturer of Roundup, that would limit certain health-related lawsuits against pesticide companies.
