(Des Moines) Tom Moore, District #18 representative reported this week on the 2nd Session of the 91st General Assembly that convened on Monday January 12th, 2026.
Moore says the first week often remains very ceremonial but also sees the meeting of Legislative Committees for the 1st time. “My committee assignments have not changed this year as I am on Education, Health and Human Services, Economic Growth and Information Technology, and Labor and Workforce along with Vice Chair of the Health and Human Services Budget Committee.”
Moore says law makers heard Opening Day Speeches from new leaders in the House including Minority Leader Meyer, Majority Leader Kaufmann and Speaker Grassley. The Speaker again emphasized the issue of property tax reduction.
On Tuesday January 13th at 6:00 PM, Governor Kim Reynolds gave her ninth annual Condition of the State speech before the House and Senate. Her speech began with recognizing the loss of Staff Sergeant William Nathaniel Howard of Marshalltown and Staff Sergeant Edgar Torres-Tovar of Des Moines, both who were killed on December 13th in Syria. Currently 1,800 Iowa National Guard soldiers and airmen are deployed overseas in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.
Iowa is home to nearly 178,000 veterans. Governor Reynolds announced her first goal this session is to modernize Iowa’s VA compensation system. Only 1/3 of veterans are receiving their benefits, placing Iowa 44th in the nation for VA compensation. She proposed repurposing existing state funds to create a new, performance-based county grant program.
The Governor highlighted her success in eliminating inheritance taxes and taxes on retirement income throughout her service, along with reforming the corporate tax structure and flat income tax. She reiterated that this wasn’t enough though and her next legislative priority is reforming property taxes in Iowa. Her new property tax bill will cap overall revenue growth for local governments, move property tax assessments to every three years, and freeze property tax bills for Iowans age 65 and up whose homes are valued at $350,000 or less. Along with these proposals, she suggested a tax-deductible savings account for first-time homebuyers. Continuing with the theme of reforming taxes, the Governor wants to modernize the beginning-farmer tax credit.
Moore says In order to continue the trend in modernizing state systems and driving efficiency, she announced the State is partnering with Amazon Web Services to consolidate more than 50 state call centers. Iowa will also be partnering with Google Public Sector to build a comprehensive child welfare system.
Governor Reynolds turned to a topic of concern for many Iowans: our devastating cancer rate. More than 20,000 Iowans each year are diagnosed. In a few weeks, the University of Iowa College of Public Health will release findings of a cancer study she organized last year. Two weeks ago, Iowa’s Healthy Hometowns program was awarded $209 million from federal grants. More than $50 million will be invested in cancer prevention, screening, and treatment. It is expected to grow to $183 million over four years. Through the Healthy Hometown initiative, they are developing cancer care hubs to help fund the oncologists, equipment, and medical technology necessary to provide treatment. After this is completed, they will open satellite clinics in outlying communities so patients can receive routine cancer care closer to home.
Her final legislative goal is to remove artificial food dyes from school lunch programs, following her students first focus.
Moore noted Chief Justice Susan Christensen gave her 6th Condition of the Judiciary speech on Wednesday January 14th at 10 AM. Her previous themes have touched on hope, peace, listening, building connections, and commitment. Her theme for 2026 was leadership as action and the willingness to make difficult decisions. The Chief Justice’s speech focused on funding needs for the Judicial Branch. After 40 years the Judicial Branch reevaluated how jobs are classified and positions are paid. This resulted in better pay for new employees but also to compaction where long-term and short-term employees are being paid similar amounts, leading to issues retaining longer serving employees.
Last year, the Judicial Branch requested a bill to make significant changes to the way magistrates are distributed through the state. Magistrates have jurisdiction over many areas and can issue search warrants along with conducting preliminary hearings. The Chief Justice is requesting the legislature reevaluate the current formula of one magistrate per county. Balancing this workload could save a lot of money.
Chief Justice Christensen ended her speech discussing mental health and addiction in the legal community, a topic she has touched on each year.
Major General Stephen Osborn presented his 3rd Condition of the Guard in Joint Session on Thursday January 15th at 10 AM. He began in prayer for the Iowa National Guardsmen we lost and for the ones who remain stationed in the Middle East. To answer why the Guard is in Syria, he explained that the National Guard provides 40% of the Army and 30% of the Air Force operational force. The National Guard is an essential part of our nation’s military.
In 2025, the 1/85 Air Refueling Wing deployed nearly 200 airmen to 24 locations across the World, with nearly 120 airmen operating in the Middle East. This summer, they will deploy more than 80 soldiers to Poland in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve to support NATO.
The Iowa National Guard ended fiscal year 25 at a 99.8% strength and an 82% retention rate, and is currently at 100% strength with 8,931 soldiers and airmen.
The Major General also highlighted our longstanding partnership with the Republic of Kosovo for over 15 years. In 2025 they conducted 26 bilateral exchanges involving more than 500 soldiers and airmen. This year they enlisted their first Kosovo citizen into the Iowa National Guard, who seeks to become a U.S. citizen.
The Condition of the Guard ended with recognizing that the National Guard, along with the U.S. military will undergo a significant period of transformation and modernization in the next 10 years. In the pat year, a new readiness center was opened in West Des Moines, along with a $14 million federally funded Army National Guard equipment maintenance facility in Sioux City, and a similar facility will open later this year in Waterloo.
