Congresswoman Ashley Hinson spent part of her weekend in northwest Iowa — and she says farmers here are about to feel the impact of the new Farm Bill.
Hinson, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat that Senator Joni Ernst is leaving at the end of her term, visited a Sac County GOP meet‑and‑greet in Lake View and later the Laurens Care Center in Laurens on Saturday. Both events were closed to the media, but she spoke with Storm Lake Radio following her Laurens visit about the Farm Bill that passed the U.S. House last week with bipartisan support.
Hinson says the biggest immediate change for producers is something they’ve been waiting on for years: stability.
The bill includes several provisions Hinson has pushed for, including expanded access to precision agriculture tools. She says those technologies are becoming essential as farmers face high input costs and uneven commodity prices.
Hinson’s Producing Responsible Energy and Conservation Incentives and Solutions for the Environment, or PRECISE Act, which is folded into the Farm Bill, aims to help farmers adopt those tools more affordably.
The bill also includes her Save Our Bacon Act, which addresses the impact of California’s Proposition 12 on pork producers. Iowa farm groups have warned for years that Prop 12 compliance costs are squeezing producers and raising pork prices.
Hinson also offered her stance on federal red flag laws, after Ernst recently voted in favor of a national proposal. Red flag laws — sometimes called “extreme risk protection orders” — allow law enforcement to temporarily remove firearms from someone a court determines may pose a danger to themselves or others.
Under most versions of these laws, a family member or law enforcement officer can petition a judge, who then decides whether there is enough evidence to order a temporary removal of firearms. Supporters say the laws can prevent suicides and mass shootings; opponents argue they can be misused and may not include strong enough due‑process protections.
Hinson said she shares concerns about how the federal proposal handles due process.
She added that existing legal tools already allow law enforcement and courts to intervene when someone poses a threat.
Hinson is one of several candidates running for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Ernst, a Republican from Red Oak, who is not seeking reelection. One other Republican — former state Sen. Jim Carlin of Sergeant Bluff — is campaigning for the seat, as are two Democrats — state Rep. Josh Turek of Council Bluffs and state Sen. Zach Wahls of Coralville. Libertarian Thomas Laehn also is running, but he will not appear on the June primary ballot.
The primary election is June 2, and the general election is Nov. 3.
