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Lawmakers resolved some years-long disputes between the Iowa House and Senate, as well as approving major segments of the state budget, before adjourning the legislative session early Thursday.One issue that was finally resolved late Wednesday after a three-year stalemate was a bill specifying how to distribute millions of dollars from a court settlement, to be spent addressing the opioid crisis in Iowa.The House and Senate also achieved a compromise on updating the Grain Indemnity Fund, which repays farmers when a grain buyer goes out of business. The two chambers failed to resolve disputes over the size of the fund and other aspects of the bill last year. Lawmakers also completed action on controversial Medicaid work requirements, which has come up in previous sessions but never reached the governor’s desk.Before ending the session, lawmakers had to approve the state’s budget, the collection of bills funding Iowa’s state departments, agencies as well as meeting other spending obligations. Several of the appropriations bills for fiscal year 2026 passed Monday and Tuesday, some moving between chambers and others going to Gov. Kim Reynolds.The spending bills sent to the governor reflect the budget agreement reached between the Senate and House Republican majorities earlier in May. Some of the budget items House Republicans had requested – like $14 million for paraeducator pay and $8 million for the public safety equipment fund – have been provided through a one-time allocation from the Sports Wagering Fund, which currently contains $40 million.In addition to the budget bills being passed, there were several pieces of legislation on policy changes on the list for lawmakers to consider. Here are some of the bills the Iowa Legislature passed during its final day of session:Long-awaited compromiseOpioid Settlement Fund: An agreement was reached between the two chambers and the governor on how to distribute money from the Opioid Settlement Fund, a pool of more than $56 million received in lawsuits brought by states against opioid manufacturers, pharmacies and distributors for their roles in the opioid epidemic.House File 1038 appropriates $29 million from the settlement fund to the state Department of Health and Human Services for several organizations and programs to receive direct funding in fiscal year 2026. The bill also provides ongoing funding from FY 2026 to 2030, with Iowa HHS receiving 75% and the Attorney General’s office receiving 25% of the allocation. Rep. Gary Mohr, R-Bettendorf, said this bill is not exactly what House lawmakers wanted for how to spend money in the Opioid Settlement Fund, but that the measure was a needed compromise.“There were significant differences between the original bills in the House and the Senate, and had we continued down those paths, we would have gone a third year without using these funds to address opioid abuse in Iowa,” Mohr said. “So all three sides have now agreed to changes in their approaches and find some common ground.”Mohr said HHS and the AG’s office will be required to take input and suggestions from the seven behavioral health district advisory councils throughout the state while making decisions on how to allocate the money.House Democrats said they were frustrated by the compromise, saying the changes made from the original House proposal will provide less oversight of where money is distributed. Rep. Megan Srinivas, D-Des Moines, called for her colleagues to support the bill because “we do have Iowans’ lives on our shoulders,” but said she was disappointed by the bill’s final form.“We came to this with a good bill in the House that was going to be a bottom-up approach, that went to the entities who are on the front lines and said, ‘you are the experts, we are not here to dictate to you, we are here to be your partners and facilitate you in saving the lives of our community members,’” Srinivas said. “I am disappointed that that was unfortunately tossed aside in negotiations.”Sen. Janice Weiner, D-Iowa City, teared up while telling fellow lawmakers that between 2020 and 2024, more than 1,000 Iowans died from opioid abuse. While Iowa’s fatality rate has slowed in this regard, she said, it hasn’t declined nearly as much as surrounding states who used opioid funds earlier.While Weiner said she understands the money needs to get out the door in order to help people, she said the legislation is a “last-minute compromise” that doesn’t take into account expert opinions and leaves out important processes for transparency. “You’ve argued about it for three sessions, so here we are racing to adjourn, and we couldn’t take the time to craft a good bill,” Weiner said.The House approved the bill in a 84-1 vote, and then by the Senate in a unanimous vote.Budget bills passedPay increase for paraeducators: Senate File 660 contains the $14 million in supplemental funding for paraeducator and other educational support staff pay, as well as $8 million for the public safety equipment fund and $4 million for the Iowa Film Production Incentive Fund, created in another bill passed Thursday that would provide rebates for film production facilities for certain expenditures.This money is provided through a one-time allocation from the Sports Wagering Fund, which currently contains $40 million. The funding for paraeducator pay was one of the major components House Republicans had asked for in budget negotiations that had not been included in the governor and Senate Republicans’ initial budget.Rep. Dan Gehlbach, R-Urbandale, said he was “proud” of the Republican caucus for standing by its commitment to funding the pay increase for paraeducators originally included in last year’s Area Education Agencies bill, saying “I stand by the promises we made.”The bill also creates the Iowa Major Events and Tourism Program with $4 million in an associated fund while dissolving the Sports Tourism Marketing Program and fund and transferring its associated money into the new program.Trone Garriott expressed her support for the bill and said she is especially happy to see funding for paraeducators included. The bill was amended by the House to include $1.5 million in funding for the Length of Service Award Program (LOSAP), providing funding for the retirement program for volunteer firefighters that was approved by the legislature earlier Wednesday.Gehlbach said this measure will mean the LOSAP program will receive an ongoing appropriation of $1.5 million from the Sports Wagering Fund each year moving forward. Cooling, a Democrat, said he would have liked to see the $2 million earmark included in earlier discussions on the bill, but said he was happy this component was added back into the bill.The House sent the bill back to the Senate in a 80-2 vote, and the Senate sent it to the governor’s desk with a unanimous vote.Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund (RIIF): House File 1039, passed in the House 58-24 and in the Senate unanimously, provides funding for infrastructure projects throughout the state from the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund.Rep. Jacob Bossman, R-Sioux City, said the bill does not contain many of the funding goals House Republicans had proposed.“In our system to pass budgets, we have to reach consensus with the other chamber,” Bossman said. “And unfortunately, this year, we couldn’t reach much consensus. So we agreed to some ongoing appropriations … But there were a lot of good projects in our original budget that didn’t make it. However, this bill still does a lot of good.”Bossman highlighted some new funding for projects that were agreed upon, like $5 million to the state historical building for new storage units, $1 million for renovations of the Commons building at the University of Northern Iowa, $2.5 million for a new educational building at the Iowa State Fairgrounds and $15 million for a new driver training facility at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy.But Rep. Jeff Cooling, D-Cedar Rapids, said though he supported the House GOP’s initial proposal, the new bill did not have sufficient funding in the bill for many important projects originally included. He pointed to $750,000 for deck replacement of the USS Iowa, a retired battleship, and $12.54 million for replacing public broadcasting infrastructure as examples of funding cuts in the RIIF budget agreement.“The original House version did a lot more good, and with the changes that are being made, I can’t support it,” Cooling said.Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-West Des Moines, said the legislation takes steps in the right direction, but she was disappointed to see no funding for Iowa PBS included. Sen. Carrie Koelker, R-Dyersville, thanked lawmakers for their patience in getting to this bill in her closing comments. “This isn’t an easy budget to deal with, with everyone wanting a Christmas tree in there and then also a declining budget,” Koelker said. “So I appreciate everyone’s patience for this, and we’re trying to rebuild Iowa and continue to grow Iowa.”Standings: The standing appropriations bill, Senate File 659 was the final bill passed by both chambers Thursday. The measure includes $4.837 billion for statutory commitments.It is the vehicle for providing the state’s K-12 funding to schools, passed as the State Supplemental Aid (SSA) package in early April that has not yet been signed by the governor, in addition to providing for other state spending obligations and some of the remaining policy pieces not passed earlier this session.The bill includes a decrease of $21.9 million to the state’s overall school foundation aid from the state’s general fund to lower property taxes, with that amount replaced using money from the Economic Emergency Fund. It also reduces funding for Iowa’s Area Education Agencies by $25 million.Other components of the bill added various policy proposals that did not pass as individual legislation throughout the session. An amendment added sections that set up policies on investigations of student abuse by school employees, and change the definition of an Iowa resident when considering medical residency requirements. The bill also creates the Iowa Horse Racing Fund.Sen. Janet Petersen said she would encourage a “no” vote for three reasons — it “opens the floodgates” for private school vouchers, it cuts funding to area education agencies and it included unvetted policy language despite being a budget bill. “Budget bills are not the place to put policy bills in the middle of the night to pass through the legislature,” Petersen said. The legislation passed the Senate with a 28-11 vote. Within an hour, the amended bill went to the House, where it passed in 78-3. Rep. J.D. Scholten, R-Sioux City, asked Gehlbach, the bill’s floor manager, as well as Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison, about what “leverage” the House has to stop Reynolds from vetoing the pipeline-related legislation passed by the Senate Monday if they approve the final spending bill of the year. The question was ruled not relevant to the bill.PeHealth and human services: The Senate sent House File 1049, providing funding for Iowa’s health and human services programs, to the governor with a 31-15 vote. The bill provides a total of $2.469 billion in funding, with a total of $1.903 billion going to Medicaid and expanded Medicaid programs.This funding includes a $230.4 million increase for expected funding shortfalls for Medicaid and Healthy and Well Kids in Iowa (Hawki), the health coverage program for uninsured children of low-income, working families. It also includes $20 million for nursing facility providers Medicaid rate rebasing and more money for Medicaid reimbursement for maternal health care providers.The bill also includes a portion denying Medicaid coverage for transgender Iowans seeking sex reassignment surgery, hormone treatment therapy and other physical interventions for the treatment of gender dysphoria. This provision was amended from earlier versions of the bill that restricted Medicaid coverage for all treatment for gender dysphoria, which could have included mental health care.Sen. Mark Costello, R-Imogene, said he believes prohibiting Medicaid for gender-affirming care is a policy “supported by a majority of Iowans.”The Senate had also debated the measure Tuesday, but deferred the bill. Sen. Molly Donahue, D-Marion, said the provision banning Medicaid coverage of these treatments for transgender Iowans is unconstitutional under the Equal Protections Clause.“This section of the bill is not just bad policy, it is unconstitutional,” Donahue said. “It is cruel, it is inhumane. Just as an example, if I needed a hysterectomy as a female and then hormonal replacement, I can get that. But our friend who may be transgender cannot, because they are transgender.”Donahue also said a vast majority of the funding increase is “merely maintaining a status quo,” backfilling federal money given during the COVID-19 pandemic.“That’s not progress,” she said. “That’s treading water, and for too many Iowans simply not enough, and they’re drowning.”Costello said Wednesday during closing comments the bill provides needed funding for Iowa’s health services and other programs, but stays within needed budget restraints when considering the revenue decreases from implementing income tax cuts in recent years – a tradeoff Iowa Republicans support.“This is a policy that none of us in the majority are questioning,” Costello said. “We know that Iowans deserve to keep more of their hard-earned dollars, and that our budgets are built on that commitment. The minority party’s rhetoric during debate on these budgets shows they want to spend more of your tax dollars, and their answer to spending more is to raise your taxes.”Judicial branch: Senate File 648, the bill appropriating funding for Iowa’s courts, was sent to the governor by the House in a 86-1 vote. It allocates $221.83 for the state’s judicial branch and includes a 2.5% increase to judicial officer salaries, totalling $1.27 million.Rep. Ross Wilburn, D-Ames, said he appreciated the raise for judicial pay included in the budget, though he supported further increases so Iowa can enlist and keep qualified judges in the state. He echoed comments made by Sen. Matt Blake, D-Urbandale, Tuesday, pointing to a recent situation where only two candidates applied for a judge opening in Iowa, as a reason why Iowa needs to increase pay.“I think it’s critical in terms of recruitment, retention, retirement, that we stay competitive, that we have access to an adequate pool of talented justices, court officers, available,” Wilburn said.Rep. Brian Lohse, R-Bondurant, the bill’s floor manager, said he spoke Thursday morning with former Iowa Rep. Dustin Hite, who was appointed as a district court judge in 2024, who said he believed he was “a better judge because he had been in private practice.” Increasing pay for judges will help the state recruit more lawyers in private practices to take judgeships, Lohse said, who can offer different expertise than county attorneys and lawyers in the public defender’s office or indigent defense – the people who typically take judge positions.“We have to continue to fight to increase judge pay to a point where it is truly competitive, so that we can get the best applicants available – and from the positions and those areas of the law where we need really good, qualified, well-rounded judges,” Lohse said.He also said the budget includes a change based on issues identified during the judicial branch’s review of a coding error that caused the misallocation of court debt funds. Lohse said it was discovered roughly $140,000 each year in fees paid by individuals for a court interpreter were being transferred to the jury and witness fee revolving fund instead of into the general fund as intended. The budget bill includes a policy change to continue transferring this money into the revolving fund, he said.Justice system: Senate File 644, passed 60-27, provides $924.9 million for Iowa’s justice system, including funding for the state’s law enforcement entities including the departments of justice, corrections and public safety. Of that amount, $703.1 million comes from the general fund.Lohse, who also managed the justice system spending bill, said the measure includes $1.07 million for indigent defense, raising the pay rate by roughly $2 per hour, in addition to transferring $1.95 million from the Indigent Defense Fund to the state Public Defender’s Office for the hiring of 13 new staff.Rep. Charley Thomson, R-Charles City, said though he supported the bill and Lohse’s efforts to provide funding for indigent defense, the state is still not meeting its legal or moral obligation to provide adequate funding for the lawyers representing people who cannot afford a lawyer.“It’s pretty simple,” Thomson said. “It’s not that expensive. Yet we are paying so little as a state that we are not able to attract very many competent counsel to do the job while we’re making progress in raising that rate, it is still hopelessly too low. … At some point, sooner rather than later, we’re going to get sued and be compelled to pay adequate amounts.”Lohse said he agreed with Thomson, saying House lawmakers will come back in 2026 to “continue to fight for indigent defense to do what we can, both in terms of dollars, but also in other legislation.”The measure also includes $150,000 for the victims assistance grant fund through the Iowa Attorney General’s office to provide services for human trafficking victims, and has a transfer of $100,000 from the public defender’s office to the College Student Aid Commission, providing funding for the Rural Attorney Recruitment Assistance Program.Rep. Megan Jones, R-Sioux Rapids, proposed but withdrew an amendment to limit the use of “geofencing,” the ability to obtain information from devices being used within geolocational boundaries, to monitor mobile phone use within the Iowa Capitol. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation used “geofencing” software in the sports wagering probe that resulted in four Iowa State University athletes facing charges.She said filings in a lawsuit on the sports wagering case contained information showing geofencing software had been used at the Capitol, a practice she said violated the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, protecting people from unreasonable searches and seizures from the government.“The innocent, our constituents, Iowans, our visitors to this very building suffer at the very contemplation that their phones were being geofenced for whatever legal purpose and monitored while they were in this building,” Jones said. “How sad it is that these words have to even be spoken in this building. Iowans, you deserve to be safe in this building, in these hallowed walls. You deserve to be able to seek redress against your government without being feared of being spied on.”The measure heads to the governor for final approval.Administration and regulation: The Senate sent legislation setting the administration and regulation budget for the state to the governor’s desk Wednesday with a vote of 31-15. House File 1044 sets general and other state appropriations for statewide offices and agencies to the tune of more than $200 million, $73 million from the state’s general fund. Sen. Dennis Guth, R-Klemme, said many of the items in the bill are receiving status-quo funding, but the overall appropriation amount increased by more than $62 million. Senate Democrats thanked Guth for his transparency and openness in the process of crafting the legislation, but still called for their fellow lawmakers to vote no on the bill. Discussion of the bill turned to accusations of past budget mismanagement and overspending before its passage, with Petersen saying Reynolds is “breaking her own budgeting policies” by planning recurring withdrawal from the state taxpayer relief fund despite saying one-time funds should only be used for one-time expenses. There is also a $917 million “hole in the budget,” she said, that Reynolds didn’t address with cuts to her own office. Sen. Tim Kraayenbrink, R-Fort Dodge, said over the past nine years, the state has gone from a $400 million budget shortfall to a $6 billion surplus. He attributed the $917 million shortfall to $300 million in property tax relief provided to small businesses over three years. He added he wished other lawmakers would “tell the truth” about how the budget works and said there is a plan in place that works and that his party understands. “Go figure out whatever numbers you want to put in your projections, but my projections look very good,” Kraayenbrink said. Policy bills advanceExpanded Medicaid work requirements: The Iowa House approved an amendment from the Senate on the bill setting work requirements for the Iowa Health and Wellness Plan (IHAWP), sending it to Reynolds for final approval.Senate File 615 requires IHAWP recipients to work at least 80 hours per month in order to remain eligible for health coverage through the expanded Medicaid program that covers able-bodied adults from ages 19 to 64 with incomes 133% or below the federal poverty level. It includes exceptions for people with high-risk pregnancies, those with children under age 6 and those in substance abuse treatment programs for up to six months. The measure also includes “trigger” language that would end IHAWP if the federal government approves, then later rescinds, approval of work requirements.The Senate amended the bill to remove a provision included in a House amendment to the bill directing Iowa HHS to study and return to lawmakers before the 2026 legislative session with a report on the Medicaid for Employed People with Disabilities (MEPD) program.The House approved this change. Rep. Carter Nordman, R-Adel, said he was still in support of the study, but said the language was not necessary as Iowa HHS director Kelly Garcia has made a “commitment” to study and discuss the program with lawmakers before the next session.“I will also commit, while we will be taking this out of the bill, (to) working with Rep. Turek and Director Garcia in the interim to see to it that this still gets done,” Nordman said.Rep. Josh Turek, D-Council Bluffs, said this provision was a step to ensure “work without worry” efforts – removing the Medicaid asset and income limits for people with disabilities – moves forward. A subcommittee meeting was held on a bill making these changes to Medicaid in 2025, but the measure did not advance.He said he appreciated work Nordman has done on this issue, and said the issue was with the Senate.“I think that we should send this back to them,” Turek said. “Let them choke on it.”Turek and other Democrats also took issue with the bill as a whole. Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell, D-Ames, called the MEPD study “the only good piece in the bill.”“The governor has already requested this waiver unilaterally,” Wessel-Kroeschell said. “So then the only thing left is to gamble with the lives of over 180,000 Iowans who would lose their health insurance. … That’s the gamble. Stop gambling with the lives of Iowans who make less than $17,000 a year.”Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services have submitted a waiver request to the federal government to implement work requirements. The HHS proposal is slightly different from the legislative proposal, requiring Iowans on IHAWP work 100 hours per month or earn the equivalent to working 100 hours per month at $7.25 per hour. People can also retain coverage if they are enrolled in education or job skills programs.The legislation was approved 56-30 and heads to Reynolds’ desk.Grain indemnity: After bouncing from the Senate to the House and back, legislation to expand the minimum and maximum amount of money allowed in the fund made to reimburse farmers when grain buyers close down has been sent to the governor’s desk. The House passed the bill May 8 with an amendment changing the proposed new lower and upper limits to $8 million and $16 million, reflecting original House legislation on the topic and increasing what the Senate proposed. Sen. Kerry Gruenhagen, R-Walcott, said the amendment also determines what qualifies as purchased grain for deferred pricing and deferred payment contracts, raises the maximum loss cap and sets up a review process for sellers to recover losses from repaying grain dealers’ bankruptcy estates. Sen. Mike Zimmer, D-DeWitt, encouraged lawmakers to vote in favor of the legislation and thanked them for their work on the bill, which he said is good for farmers and grain producers. “This is a long time coming,” he said. The legislation passed unanimously.Nonpublic student extracurriculars: House File 189 would allow nonpublic school students to participate in public school extracurricular activities and competitions within their district, as long as the nonpublic school has not offered the same activity within the last two years. The legislation was amended to change listed dates and clarifying language relating to voluntary athletic agreements. Trone Garriott introduced an amendment that would have given public and nonpublic school students the same access to extracurricular activities at school receiving Iowa tax dollars, which failed to be adopted. Zimmer brought up concerns about cost burdens on public schools, saying families who have decided to send their children to private schools now want to have access to more, even though they’re not part of the community. But Sen. Lynn Evans, R-Aurelia, said this bill is about “letting kids play on the team.” “I think sometimes you just lose sight, that we look at everything through dollars and cents, and not through the experience that these young athletes (receive) and the skills that they’re going to gain for future productivity in their lives, and problem solving skills and also relationship skills that they’re going to get being part of a team,” Kraayenbrink said. The bill bounced back to the House with a vote of 31-13. The House accepted the Senate amendment and sent the bill to the governor on a 59-26 vote.State employee paid leave: The Iowa Senate passed legislation to expand paid leave for state employees — another of the governor’s priorities for the session — sending it to Reynolds’ desk with a 44-1 vote. House File 889 would add new employees to policies allowing state employees with a certain amount of sick days accrued, who haven’t used those days in at least one month, to instead accrue half of a vacation day. The bill also includes a policy providing paid parental leave for parents within 12 months of birth or adoption. Regents employees and faculty are not included in the provisions of the bill.Sen. Dawn Driscoll, R-Williamsburg, said the legislation is an “important step in showing how much we value Iowans.“This bill will … help significantly in recruitment and retention for young employees,” she said.Reynolds released a statement thanking lawmakers for sending the bill to her after working for three years to pass the measure. “This bill will provide the crucial time needed for employees to bond with their newborn children,” the governor said.Unemployment insurance tax: The governor’s proposal making changes to Iowa’s unemployment insurance taxes passed both chambers. Iowa Capital Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Iowa Capital Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kathie Obradovich for questions: info@iowacapitaldispatch.com.