By State Representative Annette Sweeney (R-Alden)
This past Thursday, General Timothy Orr of the Iowa National Guard gave his Condition of the Guard Address to the Legislature. During his address, General Orr briefed the Legislature on the record deployments the Iowa National Guard has been apart of this past year. With deployments ranging from Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo and 1,000 soldiers and airmen who protected Western Iowa from the record flooding of the Missouri River.
General Orr also highlighted the sacrifice of 100 wounded Iowa National Guard members still receiving medical care, either at military treatment facilities across the country or at local health care facilities.
Here are a few of the highlights that the House Veterans Committee and I are working on:
- Military income tax exemption for active duty pay military personnel who were not covered in code with last year’s HF 652
- War bonuses for those who served during periods defined by Iowa Code 35.1 for Lebanon or Grenada service or Panama service and the Persian Gulf conflict
- Hunting license benefits for certain out of state residents
- Cemetery interment rights for spouses of veterans
- Additional Veterans Trust Fund to use for veterans services already established in code
- Honoring Iowan’s who lost their lives on the USS Indianapolis and those who survived with a House Resolution
These men and women that wear the uniform deserve our undying gratitude for the service to the state and nation. May God bless them, their families and this Great State.
To view my interview with former IA Representative and current Director of the Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs Jodi Tymeson and local veterans that were at the Capitol please watch below:
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- Lawmakers plan action on tuition aid for Iowa National Guard members (thegazette.com)
- SPC Dustin Morrison & the Purple Heart Club (waronterrornews.typepad.com)
- Iowa National Guard reducing college assistance (thegazette.com)
