News and notes
- The Republicans in the Iowa Senate elected Sen. Mike Klimesh (R-Spillville) as their new leader on Sept. 24. Sen. Jack Whitver (R-Grimes) has stepped down as Senate Majority Leader after seven years of service. He was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2024 and is still undergoing treatment. Sen. Whitver also said he does not plan to run for re-election next year. Among the duties of a majority leader is to lead discussions with members of the majority party and decide what bills will be debated on the floor.
- Rep. Mike Sexton (R-Rockwell City) has left the legislature to take a job as head of rural development in Iowa for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He served as chair of the Iowa House Agriculture Committee.
- Nearly 44,000 applications for Education Savings Accounts in Iowa were approved for the current school year. Later we’ll provide a report on final 2025-26 enrollment figures for Catholic schools.
For October’s Respect Life Month, contact Congress about ACA subsidies
Congress is facing a December 2025 deadline for subsidies that were set in place a few years ago. Despite section 1303 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) allowing for “separate payments” to be routed to health care plans that cover abortion, our tax dollars are still being designated for plans that cover abortions. These tax credits that were set in place in the ACA were given a temporary increase in 2021, which is scheduled to expire at the end of 2025.
Congress has the opportunity to attach the Hyde Amendment protections to these ACA subsidies. The Hyde policy simply means that no taxpayer funds will be used for plans that cover elective abortions. In this case, if Congress wants to extend the increased tax credits/subsidies in the Health Insurance Marketplace, then they should also apply the Hyde policy to all the plans that otherwise support elective abortions.
Please encourage your representatives in Congress to uphold Hyde protections, support women and children, and respect proper health care coverage.
You can also help recognize Respect Life Month by using the USCCB’s available materials at respectlife.org/respect-life-month.
Recognizing migrants as “Missionaries of Hope”
The World Day of Migrants and Refugees will be observed on Oct. 4-5, coinciding with the Jubilee of Migrants. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is offering a “Cabrini Pledge,” where Catholics can sign onto an online pledge to engage with Scripture and the Church’s social teaching, reflecting on the role of migration in salvation history, the history of the United States, and the history of our own families.
Last month the Iowa bishops released a pastoral reflection, “Pilgrims of Hope,” which asks the People of God to uphold the dignity of the human person, created in the image and likeness of God, “by welcoming the stranger, defending the oppressed, and standing in solidarity with those who are displaced.”
Solidarity with the bishops and faithful of Africa amidst ongoing conflicts
“We reiterate our solidarity with the bishops and faithful of Africa, as they offer the world a profound witness of respect for human life and dignity amidst ongoing conflicts,” said Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on International Justice and Peace. “In 2025, millions of our brothers and sisters on the African continent live displaced from their homes and communities, forced to flee due to conflict, religious and ethnic persecution, economic hardship and environmental crises.”
Archbishop Thomas Zinkula of Dubuque is the chair of the USCCB Subcommittee on the Church in Africa. During a recent trip, Archbishop Zinkula said, “We are inspired by the faith and resilience of the Church in Africa.” According to Aciafrica, he said “the work of listening, discerning, and building a self-sustaining Church rooted in the Gospel is more important than ever” for the Church in Africa, as it works “to bring hope and peace where violence, indifference, and hardship persist.”
Archdiocese of Dubuque’s task force introduces mental health resource
Earlier this year, a “Mental Health Task Force” was formed in the Archdiocese of Dubuque. This task force is rolling out a new mental health resource webpage at dbqarch.org/mental-health. It contains content and links to relevant resources, including crisis numbers, information on suicide awareness, books, readings/prayers, websites, and videos. You are also encouraged to pray the Novena for Mental Health in solidarity with Catholics across the United States from Friday, Oct. 10, to Saturday, Oct. 18.
