District 4 Carroll County Supervisor Stephanie Hausman recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to attend the National Association of Counties’ (NACo) 2026 Legislative Conference to bring local issues to the federal level. The NACo conference was hosted from Feb. 21 through Feb. 24 and featured more than 2,000 county leaders from around the country. Carroll County has been a longtime member of NACo, but Hausman says this is the first time in well over a decade that somebody from Carroll County has participated.
NACo is analogous to the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC) in that it brings county-level priorities and concerns to the attention of lawmakers. In NACo’s case, it is a countrywide perspective rather than a statewide one. Hausman joined in several discussions, ranging from transportation infrastructure to federal housing vouchers, but she says the most important topic for Carroll County was ag policy.
That is a move that Hausman says would give Carroll County’s farmers a near-direct line to lawmakers. Being a first-time attendee, Hausman says she was there to learn more than anything, but after making the trip, she says Carroll County should remain an active participant in NACo.
Hausman adds that the county’s long-term goal for NACo involvement is to form and maintain connections with decision-makers and offices whose actions directly impact Carroll County, and to ensure those individuals consider the unintended impacts of their policies at one of the smallest levels of government.
