Recently both major political parties held county conventions. At the Clarke County Democratic Convention, delegates were elected representing all corners of the county, delegates were elected to the district and state conventions, and policy statements were approved by majority vote of those attending.
I wish to share the policy statements agreed to by your friends and neighbors who are Democratic Clarke County Delegates.
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
1. revert back to state run Medicaid, adopt the full Medicaid expansion rules established by the Affordable Care Act, and allow Iowans to buy into Medicaid as recently as proposed by Nevada
2. provide full funding and financial stability for the mental health services plans currently being developed by MHDA (Mental Health and Disability Services)
3. reinstate rights for all people, including the elderly and their caregivers and LGBTQ persons, to have access to public restrooms consistent with dignity and respect for all
4. require all children in foster care and adopted from foster care to have wellness checks every 6 months up to the age of 18
5. ensure that existing laws regarding in-home visits are enforced with proper funding
AGRICULTURE, ENERGY, AND ENVIRONMENT
6. enact a 3/8 percent sales tax to fund conservation and water quality
7. enact legislation to ensure public utility rate structures that encourage customers to install solar and/or wind power on their own properties
8. fully fund the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture
9. enact legislation to require trash collection services to provide curbside pickup of recycling materials
EDUCATION
10.enact a ten-year tuition freeze on public higher education with increased state funding
11. require credentialed supervision for all home school students
LABOR, ECONOMY, AND COMMERCE
12. restore full collective bargaining rights to Iowa public employees and enact legislation to expand the rights of workers to organize unions without undue interference from their employers
13. protect IPERS and maintain its status as a public pension fund without converting any IPERS funding to 401k, 457b, or similar type of retirement plans
14. enact legislation with funding to ensure accessibility to rural broadband internet at prices competative with urban ares
15. repeal the state prohibition on municipal minimum wage ordinances and enact legislation to restore minimum wage to its 1968 level adjusted for inflation
GOVERNMENT AND LAW
16. enact state legislation to fund all mandates
17. restore voting rights to citizens convicted of felonies who have served their prison sentences
18. legalize and regulate all forms of marijuana and its derivatives for medical purposes to be determined by the regulatory board and reduce the penalty for possession of all forms of marijuana less than or equal to one ounce and paraphernalia to an infraction with a maximum $100 fine
19. Amend the Iowa Constitution to limit the time in office of a governor to two consecutive 4 year terms
These policy suggestions have been sent to the District Democratic Platform Committee along with platform suggestions from other counties. Not all of these Clarke County suggestions will be approved at the District but I want to bring attention to the citizens of Clarke County what the feelings of the leadership of the Clarke County Democrats are on some of the vital issues facing our great state.