Iowa Catholic Conference Newsletter, May 11, 2025

Budget deal reached

A budget deal has been agreed upon by the governor, Senate and House Republican leadership, so the legislative session may be headed towards adjournment during the next week or so.

The total spending for Fiscal Year 2026 is agreed to be $9.425 billion, about a 5% increase over the current year. The House agreed to a smaller total number partly in exchange for the $14 million in salaries for paraeducators they wanted. About $900 million will be spent from state reserves this year; revenues have decreased primarily because of state income tax cuts.

In addition, 12 Republican Senators have announced that they will not vote for a budget unless they get a vote on the “pipeline” bill that limits the use of eminent domain by private companies.

The Senate also passed the department of education appropriations bill, which contains funding for concurrent enrollment for nonpublic schools (college courses for high school students), as well as funding for nonpublic schools to provide the state assessment test to students.

Healthy Kids Iowa pilot program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service has approved a demonstration project submitted by Iowa Health and Human Services for a summer food pilot program. Food banks will purchase healthy food options and deliver it to the selected sites. The program will allow eligible families to select $40 of food each month from access points. Households with children aged 4-18 and at 185% or below the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) are eligible. The program is an alternative to implementing the Summer EBT program using SNAP cards.

U.S. bishops welcome Pope Leo XIV

Upon the news that the Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, has been elected as the 267th pope, Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops offered the following statement:

“In communion with Catholics around the world, the bishops of the United States offer prayers of thanksgiving for the election of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV … Certainly, we rejoice that a son of this Nation has been chosen by the cardinals, but we recognize that he now belongs to all Catholics and to all people of good will. His words advocating peace, unity, and missionary activity already indicate a path forward.”

After he was named pope, the Holy Father said, “We have to look together how to be a missionary Church, building bridges, dialogue, always open to receiving with open arms for everyone, like this square, open to all, to all who need our charity, our presence, dialogue, love.”