Cuts to Medicaid and the National Animal Disease Center in Ames are the ones of immediate concern to Iowa, according to lawmakers who spoke at an Eggs and Issues forum Saturday morning in Fort Dodge.

“I think all of us at the state level are watching this very closely,” said state Rep. Mike Sexton, R-Rockwell City.

The lawmakers also defended their support of a plan to eliminate gender identity as a protected category under state civil rights law.

State Rep. Ann Meyer, R-Fort Dodge, said the bill does not deprive anyone of their civil rights. She said the bill was prompted by a court ruling allowing the use of Medicaid to pay for sex change operations.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
State Rep. Mike Sexton, R-Rockwell City, and state Rep. Ann Meyer, R-Fort Dodge, were among five state legislators who participated in Saturday's Eggs and Issues legislative forum at Iowa Central Community College.

Eminent domain and the prospects for auditing the state system of Education Savings Accounts were also discussed.

Joining Meyer and Sexton for the forum were state senators Tim Kraayenbrink, R-Fort Dodge, and Jesse Green, R-Boone, and state Rep. Mark Thompson, R-Clarion.

About 45 people attended the session at Iowa Central Community College. Eggs and Issues is sponsored by the college and the Greater Fort Dodge Growth Alliance.

Federal cuts

The topic of the sweeping federal budget cuts came up early in the session with a question about Medicaid, the health insurance program for the poor and disabled that is funded jointly by the state and federal governments.

Meyer, who leads the House subcommittee on the health and human services budget, said, “That truly is the top issue we are keeping an eye on.”

While details of what the Trump administration is proposing to do with Medicaid aren’t entirely clear, Meyer said so far it appears that the cuts would target fraud and waste rather than removing large numbers of people from the program.

Kraayenbrink said during the COVID pandemic the federal government basically took over Medicaid. Now, he said, the federal government is gradually reducing its contribution and the state is gradually increasing its role. He said the state will transfer $127 million from its general fund to Medicaid.

The wave of federal employee firings has reached the National Animal Disease Center, which Sexton described as a “major concern.”

He said because of its role in protecting the American food supply, the center is vital to the security of the United States.

Sexton noted that consumers are dealing with the effect of the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak. An outbreak of something like African swine fever would be even worse, he suggested.

“I’m a conservative Republican, but I’m a little frustrated with these broad, sweeping cuts without talking to people at the local level,” he said.

He said no one wants to see fraud and abuse, but the approach to cutting fraud and abuse must be thoughtful.

Gender identity

A bill to remove gender identity as a protected category under Iowa civil rights law has been introduced in the House of Representatives.

Meyer said the legislature has passed multiple bills to protect women and girls by prohibiting males from using women’s bathrooms and locker rooms and barring them from participating in women’s sports. This bill builds on that work, she said.

A court ruling was the impetus for the bill. She said in 2019, a state law was passed prohibiting the use of Medicaid to pay for sex change operations. She said that the courts have ruled that since gender identity is a protected category under civil rights law, the use of Medicaid to pay for those surgeries must be permitted.

She said she will support the bill.

Sexton and Thompson said they also would support it. Thompson said the bill does not prevent anyone from presenting themselves to others as a gender of their choice.

“When I think of this issue, I think of the Pledge of Allegiance where it says ‘one nation under God,'” Green said. “That’s how I identify. I identify as a human being made in the image and likeness of God and every single person in this room fits in that category.”

Kraayenbrink said Iowa is one of 21 states that has gender identity listed as a protected category in its civil rights law.

“When I think of creating protected categories, if you protect a certain person and don’t protect another, that’s discrimination,” he said.

Other issues

Sexton said he has introduced a bill to eliminate state income taxes on overtime pay. He said Iowa workers are being asked to put in extra hours because of the workforce shortage, but then see most of their overtime pay taken by taxes.

He said the bill would reduce state revenue by an estimated $70 million annually,

“I’m not sure how we’re going to get there,” he said.

Green has introduced a bill that would ban the use of eminent domain to acquire property for economic development projects. However, the current Summit Carbon Solutions carbon dioxide pipeline project would be exempt.

Green said it would make the rules clear for future projects.

The state offers Education Savings Accounts, which provide state money to qualifying families to send their children to private and parochial schools. The lawmakers were asked about the potential for auditing the program.

“We shouldn’t be afraid of any programs being audited,” Meyer said.

Green and Kraayenbrink said the Education Savings Accounts can only be used at accredited schools.

“You do have a lot of accountability in that accreditation process,” Green said.