A roundup of state government and Capitol news items of interest for Wednesday:
MORE STATE EMPLOYEE CONTRACT TALKS: The head of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 61 on Wednesday requested a 3 percent annual pay boost for each of the next two fiscal years for a unit of AFSCME-covered public safety workers eligible for expanded negotiations under Iowaâs 2017 collective bargaining law.
The unit includes motor vehicle enforcement officers within the state Department of Transportation and campus public safety officers at regent university campuses in Ames, Cedar Falls and Iowa City.
AFSCME President Danny Homan laid out the union proposal to a state negotiator during a Zoom call to open contract talks aimed at reaching a new two-year labor agreement beginning next July 1.