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The Warme Wire: Week 14

We have completed the fourteenth week of the legislative session, which means we are officially in the homestretch. With the 100-day deadline quickly approaching, the Capitol is moving at full speed as we continue debating bills and sending legislation back and forth between the House and ...

Working Families Tax Cuts deliver real results this Tax Day

On April 15, Americans will see the impacts of the Working Families Tax Cuts as they submit their tax filings for the year. For too long, many have seen Tax Day as a day of stress and uncertainty. But this year, Republicans are helping rewrite the course for millions of Americans, and many are ...

The Barker Bulletin: Week 14, workforce and EMS

This week was full of floor action as the House works to pass important policy bills before the end of session, including bills protecting school choice and your 2nd amendment rights. Both Chambers are working diligently on the budget and property tax reform in order to prepare for ...

After the recognition, the work continues

As National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week comes to a close, I find myself thinking less about the spotlight and more about the people behind it. This week each year gives us the opportunity to pause and recognize a profession that is absolutely essential to public safety, yet so often works quietly in the background. It gives us a chance to celebrate the men and women who answer the phone in moments of fear, confusion, pain, and uncertainty. It gives us a chance to remind our communities that before help arrives on scene, before a siren is heard, before lights come into view, ...

A small share, a big impact: Why property tax proposals matter to Iowa Valley

As the Iowa Legislature continues to debate property tax reform, Iowans are right to expect transparency, fairness, and responsible stewardship of public resources. Those are values we share at Iowa Valley Community College District. We understand the motivation behind these proposals and recognize that the broader effort is intended to provide relief and predictability for taxpayers. However, the portions of these bills that affect community colleges tell a different story. While they play only a very small role in overall taxpayer relief, they carry outsized and damaging consequences ...

Child Abuse Prevention Month

It’s April and that means Spring has arrived and we are eager to get out, get moving and feel a newness of life. Children are out and about with Parents trying to keep up and the Blue Kids about town are reminding us it’s Child Abuse Prevention month, as well as a time to celebrate children and the gifts they give us- joy, love, curiosity, inspiration, challenges, hope and more. Children are the seedlings (of the future) while Parents are the gardeners charged with nurturing them each and every day. We as individuals and as a community also play a role in supporting children and ...