Taking part

Subcommittees are where the public is most likely to be heard. Each bill goes first to a subcommittee of three (sometimes five) legislators, who meet briefly, take comments, and recommend whether the full committee should take it up. A bill that stalls here usually goes no further.

Full committees, the floor and conference committees generally don’t take public testimony. There, the way in is your own legislators: a call, an email, or a note asking them to step out to talk. Funnel’s Write your legislators tool helps.

Public hearings are sometimes held on major bills, usually in the evening at the Capitol. You sign up in advance to speak for a few minutes.

Meetings are often posted only a day or two ahead, so follow the bill (Funnel sends meeting notices right away). Each meeting’s agenda on the Legislature’s site says where it is and, for many, how to join by Zoom.

Before

• Read the bill’s explanation and “Where it is now” on Funnel, so you know what this meeting decides.
• Decide your ask: support, oppose, or change something specific.
• Write two minutes of remarks, starting with your name, where you live and why it matters to you. Time is short, and the chair decides who speaks.
• If you can’t attend, send a written comment through the Legislature’s form (linked on each meeting in Funnel). Names and comments are public records.
• Tell your own legislators, even if they’re not on the subcommittee.

At the meeting

• Arrive early. Subcommittees meet in small rooms around the Capitol and can start late or move.
• Sign in, with your full name (on Zoom, too), and say whether you want to speak.
• Lobbyists registered on the bill often speak first; the chair usually then asks the public.
• Keep to your two minutes and be ready for a question.

After

• Thank the members by email, and repeat your ask in a sentence.
• Keep following the bill: the full committee usually acts within a few weeks, and the funnel deadlines decide whether it survives.

The Capitol in Des Moines is open to the public during session. Floor debate can be watched from the galleries or live online, and you can ask a doorkeeper to send a note asking your legislator to step out to talk. Lobby days organized by groups are a common way to visit with others.