Waylon Brown

Waylon Brown (born July 13, 1979) is an American politician who was elected as a Republican member of the Iowa State Senate's 26nd district in 2016. He defeated Democratic incumbent Mary Jo Wilhelm.^[1]

A resident of St. Ansgar, Iowa, he is a farmer and a small businessman who owns a construction company. He also serves as the Vice President of the Mitchell County, Iowa Farm Bureau Board.^[2]

Political stances

Voters' rights

During the 2017 legislative session, Brown voted^[3] to shorten both the amount of time one may cast an absentee ballot and the number of days one can vote at satellite polling sites, and he voted to require all voters to present a state-issued ID.^[4] Though he voted for the measure, the bill was opposed by the Iowa State Association of Counties, an advocacy group for Iowa's disabled, and Iowa's Department on Aging opposed the bill.^[5]

Healthcare

Brown voted in support^[6] of House File 625,^[7] which eliminated the requirement that parents report on their state taxes whether or not they have healthcare for their children.^[8] In this bill, Brown also voted to eliminate the requirement that parents apply for healthcare coverage, such as Hawk-i or Medicaid, for their children.^[9]

Workers' Rights

During the 2017 legislative session, Brown voted^[10] for House File 295^[11] which eliminates local control in municipalities that voted to increase their own minimum wage locally. Brown's vote will cause the minimum wage to be lowered in four counties which had already voted to raise their minimum wage (Johnson, Linn, Wapello, and Polk^[12]).^[13] Estimates show that at least 64,300 residents of Iowa will have their wages effectively lowered, including 35,800 to 36,000 in Polk County,^[14] 10,100 in Johnson County,^[15] and 18,400 in Linn County.^[16]

Immigration

Brown voted^[17] for an amended^[18] form of Senate File 481.^[19] This bill eliminated elements of local control by requiring a local officer to comply and detain an immigrant who is guilty of three misdemeanors,^[20] non-violent felonies,^[21] and felonies^[22] until ICE arrives. This bill was opposed by a number of organizations in Iowa, including the Iowa Police Chief Association, the Iowa Catholic Conference, the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, the Iowa Coalition against Sexual Assault, and the Iowa State Bar Association.^[23]

References