(Greenfield) The second funnel week has come and gone. A self-imposed deadline between the chambers to have bills out of committee to remain eligible for further consideration this session.
Iowa House District #23 Representative Ray Sorensen says House Republicans have passed roughly 175 bills and sent them to the Senate for consideration. In comparison, the Senate has passed around 60 bills for consideration in the House.
“That’s a large disparity,” said Sorensen. “The simplest explanation is that House Republicans have a 64-member majority, and each one of those members has listened to their constituents and brought forth proposals based on that feedback. Hopefully, they will act soon as we need to set SSA and our teacher pay raise so our schools can set their budgets.”
The Greenfield Republican says the House Agriculture Committee did pass Senate File 2391-The Meat Integrity Act. The Bill proposes to create a regulatory structure to provide accurate protein food labeling to enable Iowa consumers to know what they are buying, putting on their plates and into their bodies.
The bill-(a) defines meat products, cultivated-protein, insect-protein, and plant-protein products, (b) creates fair labeling standards, and (c) ensures transparency in the marketplace for consumers. The bill additionally—(1) proscribes lab-grown proteins from being purchased through federal SNAP and WIC programs used by low-income Iowans, (2) curtails schools (K-12) from purchasing lab-grown protein for school breakfast/lunches, and (3)restricts Regent Institutions and community colleges from purchasing lab-grown protein.
