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Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is asking House Democrats to “act quickly” to ratify the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement before the week is out. Yesterday Grassley told the Senate the agreement would create hundreds of thousands of jobs and help raise wages for Americans. Grassley says if a deal cannot be reached by the end of this week, he doesn’t see how the USMCA can be ratified this year.
Governor Kim Reynolds says she’s disappointed that a federal judge temporarily blocked a new law critics call “ag-gag two-point-oh”.
The law creates a specific trespass crime for people who go undercover to investigate livestock operations and puppy mills. The ACLU of Iowa says the temporary hold on the law is a victory for free speech.
When Reynolds signed the bill into law, she said it will help further the safety and security of Iowa farmers and the state’s economy.
Iowa’s original so-called “ag-gag law” was struck down by a federal court as unconstitutional in January.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has offered her budget proposals for the next year, saying money is tight and instructing state agencies to reduce spending.
The Republican governor delivered her budget address in Pierre today. The governor told legislators to brace for slower economic growth amid disaster recovery from storms, uncertainty amid the 2020 election and lower farm spending during a trade war with China.
In just a few weeks, legislators will be in session to take up her proposals and hear from state agencies as they craft a final budget for the fiscal year that starts in July.
