Capitol Comments

Governor Branstad released his budget recommendations this week and he has proposed zero allowable growth for the next two years, Fiscal Year 2014 and FY 2015. He also issued an ultimatum and said he would not talk about school funding or allowable growth until his education reform package has been approved by the Legislature. Senate Democrats have proposed 4% allowable growth for Fiscal Year 2014 and plan to take action by the end of January so school districts can plan before their budgets must be certified in March. As an educator, I believe the Governor’s plan for 0% and delaying approval of allowable growth could have a negative impact on local schools and teachers.

The Governor also introduced an Education Reform package this week and I anticipate this topic will be discussed and debated in the Legislature for the next several months. I also expect the bill will change and that’s why I want to have a continuous dialogue with parents, educators, and students about the impact any reform proposals have in the classroom.

For more information on the Governor’s reform plan or to read the bill, go to www.iowahouse.org/educationreform. I hope you will share your ideas and thoughts with me on these two critical issues.

League of Women Voters public Legislative Forum
Saturday, January 19th at 10:30 AM
Hallagan Education Center at Mercy Medical Center
701 10th St., Cedar Rapids

Representative Art Staed signing his oath of office to take his seat in the Iowa House on January 14, 2013.

State Representative Art Staed getting sworn into office to represent House District 66.

Opening day ceremony with friends from Cedar Rapids: Rev. Lucille King, Kathy Ulrich, Darrel Wrider, Sunny Story, and Kim Miller.

Opening Day Honor Guard with Battalion Chief John Pulver and Cedar Rapids Firefighters.

Representative Art Staed with Chief District Judge Patrick Grady of Cedar Rapids on Wednesday, January 16th after the Condition of the Judiciary.

Representative Art Staed visited Caty Barker about Campaign Finance Reform at the Statehouse this week.

Representative Art Staed also visited with David Benn and Judith Pederson-Benn about Campaign Finance Reform at the Statehouse this week.

Governor Gives Condition of the State Address

The 2013 session opened this week and Governor Branstad gave his Condition of the State Address to a special joint session of the Iowa Legislature. The Governor outlined his agenda for the Legislature and also released his budget recommendations for next year’s state budget.

The Governor is recommending a $6.543 billion general fund budget for fiscal year 2014, which begins on July 1st. The recommendation represents an increase of $270.5 million, or 4.3%, over the current fiscal year.

A top priority of the Governor and legislators, the Governor recommends $14 million in new funding next year for education reform efforts next year, which includes incentives to raise minimum teacher pay from $28,000 to $35,000. When fully implemented in five years, the Governor’s proposal will cost the state $187 million annually.

After lawmakers failed to reach an agreement last year, the Governor also outlined a plan to reduce commercial property taxes. His plan would tie together the taxable value of agricultural, residential, industrial, and commercial property so that no class may grow faster in taxable value than the slowest growing class. Under current law, only agricultural and residential properties are tied together.

The Governor then proposes lowering the maximum annual allowed taxable growth value from 4% to 2% per year. The Governor’s proposal includes a forced rollback on commercial property taxes from the current 100% valuation to 80% over 4 years. The Governor also proposes changing the school finance formula so that allowable growth does not increase local property taxes. The total price tag for the Governor’s plan would cost the state $400 million annually.

The Legislature will consider the Governor’s budget recommendations and ideas from the public as they begin to build the fiscal year 2014 state budget.

Chief Justice: Iowan’s Expect Efficient, Full-Service Court System

Chief Justice Mark Cady delivered the annual State of the Judiciary to a joint session of the Iowa House and Senate on Wednesday. The Chief Justice focused on protecting Iowa’s children and assuring access to the courts.

“Young Iowans who turn to crime, or who must cope with shattered families, or who suffer from daily abuse, represent a tragic failing of our society,” said the Chief Justice.

The Chief Justice noted that taxpayers are better served when troubled children receive timely and full service from the juvenile court system rather than dealing with those kids later in life in the adult court system.

Iowa courts have established nationally recognized family drug courts to help families with substance-related disorders and, while these courts have been effective, it is not enough. Chief Justice Cady stated every child deserves an early face-to-face meeting with a court officer, not a letter as a first contact, to assure as good an outcome as possible in these juvenile cases.

Chief Justice Cady also said Iowans expect full-time, full-service, and efficient courts. The number of adult mental health commitment petitions has grown by 45% and the number of juvenile commitment petitions has increased by 93% over the last decade. The courts are constantly working to improve access and efficiency of operations.

The Chief Justice mentioned two new projects to improve and streamline the civil justice system. The court is developing another track for litigants to utilize in cases that simplifies the discovery process to reduce the cost of bringing a case. The courts also recently approved a pilot project to create business courts in the state that will be specially trained to deal with complex issues of today’s economy.

Representative Art Staed

Read More from the Iowa House

To read the rest of the Statehouse News go to: http://iowahouse.org/StatehouseNews/1-18-13.html