IOWA CHRISTIAN ALLIANCE LEGISLATIVE REPORT
Norm Pawlewski – Lobbyist
March 6 – March 16, 2006
I visited with the last four Democrat Senators on my list regarding the Iowa Marriage Amendment. As was generally the case with the majority of Democrat Senators, these four were polite, attentive and agreeable to reading the New Hampshire Study, Executive Summary.
Sen. Brian Schoenjohn – District 12, Clayton, Delaware, Fayette
He believes marriage is between one man and one woman. Has not made a decision about which way he will vote. Said he would look at the New Hampshire Study and think about which way he would go on a floor vote.
Sen. Roger Stewart – District 13, Clinton, Dubuque, Jackson
He, like most of the Democrat Senators, says Iowa’s DOMA will be upheld by the Iowa Judiciary and, therefore, an amendment to the Constitution is unnecessary. Took a copy of the New Hampshire Study. Personal assessment: He won’t read it. His mind is made up.
Sen. Steve Wornstadt – District 1, Woodbury
Said he was undecided about which way he would vote if it came to the floor. Was concerned about gay partners being allowed to visit one another in the hospital, how child custody cases would play out for gay couples who adopted children or had custody from a previous heterosexual marriage. His concern was focused on the gay couples as opposed to what would happen to traditional marriage, our culture, and our social fabric if gays are allowed to marry. He has misplaced concerns.
Sen. Frank Wood – District 42, Clinton, Scott
Would not commit either way. Took a copy of the New Hampshire Study and said he would read it. If the amendment comes to a vote on the Senate floor, my money is on his no vote.
“TouchPlay”
The past ten days have been busy. We not only worked on the Marriage Amendment but on the “TouchPlay” machines ban. It was obvious early on that the Legislature was feeling the pressure from the public and from some of the casino lobbyists. Senators and Representatives, liberals and conservatives were telling me the same thing. These machines must be removed regardless of the financial implications for the owners, operators, manufacturers and the state. Some legislators were trying to find a way to make at least the small business owners “whole.” In other words they wanted to give the businesses time to get back their investment in the machines. Some machine operators either remodeled or put an addition onto their store to create a secure place for the machines.
If you are interested in finding out how your Representative or Senator voted, go to the Legislative Bureau web site through our web site, www.iowachristian.com , and bring up the Senate Journal dated, Monday, March 13, 2006, page 497. The bill’s number is S.F. 2330.
On the House side, it is the House Journal dated, Tuesday, March 14, 2006, page 664. The bill number is the same, S.F. 2330.
In the Senate, the vote was 40 to 10 to pass the ban. This was followed by an 80 to 18 vote in the House.
Very few bills we have been following have made it through the first funnel date, which was on March 3. Three new bills on which we have registered have been introduced.
S.F. 2365 – Another anti-harassment or anti-bullying policies bill for Iowa schools. It is identical to about eight or nine bills we have rejected last year and earlier this year. Always for the same reason: The bill establishes homosexuality as a protected class.
S.F. 2671 – This bill prohibits allocating of housing trust fund moneys for mortgages to illegal aliens and prohibits employers from employing unauthorized aliens.
H.F. 2674 – An act relating to indecent exposure and providing penalties. This bill is a successor to H.F. 2473.
Copies of these bills may be viewed on the Legislative Services web site.