Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
A bill that would change the workers compensation system to permit employees injured on the job to choose the doctors who treat them will go before the public Tuesday.
A public hearing on the measure, known as the “Choice of Doctor Bill,” will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday in the chamber of the Iowa House.
The House is expected to vote on the bill Friday.
House File 530 would give employees the right to choose a physician who is a primary care provider, who has previously provided treatment to the employee and has retained the employee’s medical records to provide treatment for a work-related injury. Employers would be required to provide written notice to employees of this right upon hire and periodically during employment.
Business groups have lined up against the bill, saying it would drive up workers’ compensation insurance costs for Iowa employers.
A similar bill passed a Senate committee last month on a party line 6-4 vote. Most observers believe the Senate is holding off on pushing labor-backed legislation until the House passes it first. While Democrats hold a majority in both legislative chambers, the 56-44 advantage in the House is more fragile since it consists of several Democrats from rural, conservative districts who have publically opposed union-backed legislation in the past.
House Democrats recently failed to muster 51 supporters for prevailing wage, a bill that would have required contractors to pay the same hourly wages and benefits on public projects as they would pay on private sector projects. Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, told the Iowa Independent that all four measures currently listed at the top of organized labor’s priority list – choice of doctor, prevailing wage, open-scope bargaining and Fair Share – could pass in the Senate, but “we can only vote on what the House sends us.”
Currently, 35 states have some form of employee choice of doctor, including all of Iowa’s surrounding states except Missouri.
Follow Jason Hancock on Twitter
Do you know where to vote on Election Day? Do you know what to bring with you? Get comprehensive voter information for your state here.
Sign up for our email newsletter