The 2007 Iowa Legislative session wrapped up its work early Sunday morning. The Iowa Senate adjourned at 12:06. The House adjourned at 12:36. Here is Radio Iowa’s review of some of the top actions lawmakers took and some of the things that failed to win approval.
If you are a smoker, your cigarettes cost more because of that tax hike lawmakers approved earlier this year. Legislators did snuff out the idea of making Iowa bars and restaurants "smoke-free" zones, however.
If you hunt, you’ll pay $3 more when you get a license because of a hike in the habitat stamp. But if you see a cougar or mountain lion, you can still shoot it. Lawmakers abandoned a plan to put the cougar on the endangered species list.
If you’ve got a wild animal for a pet, you’ll have to pay up to $500 for a new state license to keep the animal. If you earn the minimum wage, the 2007 Iowa Legislature voted to hike it and if you’re a teacher, the legislature voted to boost your salary, too.
A plan to hike the license fee for pick-ups stalled. Efforts to toughen the standards for judging who’s drunk when they’re driving a boat were ditched.
Lawmakers made it a crime to abuse a human corpse, but an effort to impose cleanliness standards on body piercing businesses failed.