BW INSIGHTS

2019 Legislative Session - Week 13

By BrownWinick | 04.12.2019

House and Senate Republicans are continuing to hash-out next year’s budget (FY20), but have yet to agree on the final figures. Those so-called “joint budget targets” lay out how much both chambers are willing to spend on big-ticket appropriations, like education, economic development, and health and human services. In the absence of joint targets,... Read More

2019 Legislative Session - Week 12

By BrownWinick | 04.05.2019

Lawmakers raced bills through committee this week, scrambling to beat the second legislative “Funnel.” Most policy measures that didn’t pass out of the House or Senate, and a full committee in the opposite chamber by Friday are dead for the remainder of session. Tax, spending, government oversight, and leadership bills are largely exempt from this... Read More

DOL Proposes Updates to Regular Rate Under FLSA

By BrownWinick | 04.03.2019

On March 28, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced another proposed rule to update regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The proposed rule would amend 29 CFR part 778 to revise the “regular rate” requirements under section 7(e) of the FLSA, 29 U.S.C. § 207(e). Under the default rule for calculating required overtime... Read More

2019 Legislative Session - Week 11

By BrownWinick | 03.29.2019

A vast majority of the Iowa House advanced a key piece of of the governor’s agenda this week. Under HJR 14, the state constitution would be amended to restore felons’ voting rights after they complete their sentences. Governor Kim Reynolds made the issue a centerpiece of her agenda this year, proposing the amendment in her January Condition of the... Read More

UnitedHealthcare Withdraws as MCO

By BrownWinick | 03.29.2019

UnitedHealthcare provided notice today (Friday, March 29, 2019) that it is withdrawing from the Iowa MCO program. Please see the Iowa Department of Human Services press release link below for additional detail. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/IACIO/bulletins/23a4114 Read More

2019 Legislative Session - Week 10

By BrownWinick | 03.22.2019

Governor Kim Reynolds has shifted her focus toward disaster relief following catastrophic floods across Iowa. Yesterday, she requested that President Donald Trump issue an expedited Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for 57 counties. That move would immediately free up federal recovery resources, including FEMA funding. So far, the floods... Read More

March 2019 REC Summary

By BrownWinick | 03.18.2019

The Revenue Estimating Conference ("REC") met yesterday morning (3/15/19) in Des Moines. A short summary of the information discussed during the meeting is below, along with the below spreadsheet handed out during the meeting that contains more detailed information. In short, the report from yesterday shows that revenues for the existing fiscal... Read More

2019 Legislative Session - Week 9

By BrownWinick | 03.18.2019

Iowa’s budget forecast remains relatively stable, although the state will bring in slightly less revenue than anticipated. That’s according to numbers released today by the Revenue Estimating Conference (REC). The expert panel projected the state will rake in $7.84 billion for the fiscal year beginning July 1. That’s roughly $20 million less than... Read More

Checklist for Forming an Iowa LLC

By BrownWinick | 03.12.2019

If you have decided that forming an LLC is the right choice for your business, trying to figure out what exactly must be done can be a confusing process. The list below serves as a general checklist for forming an Iowa LLC. Step 1: Filing the Certificate of Organization The first step in forming the LLC is filing a Certificate of Organization with... Read More

DOL Proposes New $35,308 Salary Threshold for Overtime Exemption

By BrownWinick | 03.08.2019

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, (again) proposing a hike to the salary threshold requirement under certain exemptions from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In short, the DOL says the change "would make more than a million more American workers eligible for overtime." The proposal seeks to... Read More