Capitol Comments

Greetings!

After three weeks of working overtime, past the adjournment date, the Legislature adjourned on May 23rd, ending the 2013 session. Democrats and Republicans put politics aside and reached compromise on three issues that divided both parties much of the session and delayed the close of the session – commercial property taxes, education funding and reform, and expansion of health care access for Iowans.

In addtion to the bipartisian work, Iowa continues to be one of only a few with a balanced budget and more – ending the fiscal year with about $1.2 billion in surplus and reserves. In addition, the Legislature made substantial investments in Iowa to grow our economy, help small businesses, strengthen middle class families, assist Veterans, support farmers, protect and educate Iowa children, improve our water quality and conserve our precious land.

Thank you for the opportunity and the honor to serve as your State Representative. I will continue to work hard for you out of session and into the next one – beginning in January 2014.

During the interim, although I will be back in the classroom teaching, I plan to send monthly newsletters updating you on current and emerging legislative issues in Iowa.

And thank you again for your support, visits, emails, ideas, requests and responses throughout the session. Your feedback is always helpful and appreciated.

– Representative Art Staed

Here are some of the end of session highlights…

Commercial Property Taxes

To read the bill click here.

After 30 years of waiting, the legislature finally reached an historic property tax relief agreement. It’s not perfect but it does include compromises that provided something valuable for each party, the Governor, the House and the Senate.

• The agreement provides property tax credit for small businesses on the first $145,000 of commercial property tax value in Iowa. This will help two thirds of all commercial properties, primarily small businesses with property taxed at the residential rate.
• Commercial property taxes are rolled back 10 percent over two years, from the current 100% of property assessment to 90%.
• Local governments will receive direct relief from the state to offset any loss of revenue in local communities.
• The State’s earned income tax credit is doubled from 7% to 14% to help hard-working middle class families keep more of their money to help make ends meet.
• Assessment limitations on agricultural and residential property are reduced from 4% to 3% per year.
• Multi-residential properties, such as apartment complexes and assisted living facilities receive tax reductions the same as residential properties in a phased-in 10 year plan.
• Property tax relief for telecommunications is also included in this agreement. These properties will be based on their value and a study is requested to understand the current and changing telecommunications technologies system.
• The Property Assessment Appeal Board (PAAB) extends the appeal process for at least the next five years.
• A provision was included to give all Iowa income taxpayers relief with a new income tax credit when the state has a surplus.

School Funding and Education Reform

To read the bill click here.

After the Governor and House Republicans delayed the school funding, and later tied it to the passage of “education reform” (the Governor’s proposals), an agreement was reached to provide adequate funding to our schools along with reforms intended to boost the teaching profession and improve achievement outcomes for Iowa students.

In the upcoming school year, schools will receive a 2% increase in funding plus $57.1 million in one-time funding for a total of $133 million. Schools will then receive a 4% or $128 million increase for the following school year. The increase in state school funding for the next two years will make it unnecessary to raise local property taxes for most communities across Iowa.

“Reforms” included:

Items agreed upon by the Governor, Republicans & Democrats

• Increase of teacher minimum salary to $33,500
• Option for districts to add teacher leadership rolls. Districts can choose from 3 teacher leadership pathway models that are funded at $311 per pupil
• Expanded early literacy program
• Class size reduction plan extended for another five years
• Iowa Learning On-line initiative includes professional development of teachers for usage and will provide services to 2,500 students
• There is $10 million provided for high needs schools
• A council on educator development will make recommendations regarding teacher and administrator evaluations
• Schools are given the option of counting school days as 180 days or 1,080 hours
• Competency-based education will support 10 districts at $425,000 for three years to develop competencies, assessments, professional development, and develop pathways statewide
• An extending learning time pilot program will develop a model for student achievement

Items insisted upon by Republicans in the Republican-controlled House

• Allows home-school parents to teach up to four unrelated students
• Exempts home-school parents from the reporting requirement to local schools and removes oversight of the home-schools’ courses taught
• Allows parents to teach their children drivers education
• Allows a nonpublic school to be accredited by an approved independent accrediting agency instead of the Iowa state Board of Education

Health Care

To read the bill click here.

A hard-fought bipartisan agreement was reached to expand health care access for 150,000 Iowans through the Iowa Health and Wellness Plan. This was a compromise of the Iowa Senate plan to accept the use of federal dollars by expanding Medicaid and the Governor’s own plan. Working adults with no insurance, and making less than $15,414 a year, will now qualify under the plan. The benefit package is similar to state employee health insurance plans with additional services for mental health. The federal government will pay up to 100% of the costs for the first three years and then cover up to 90% of the cost after that. If the federal government fails to fulfill its promise on funding, the bill includes a provision for Iowa to opt-out. The Iowa Health and Wellness Plan now must go through a waiver process to receive federal government approval and funding.

Water Quality

Iowa’s lakes and rivers will receive much needed help with new water quality and soil conservation initiatives of $27 million.

At the beginning of this Legislative session, lawmakers received Iowa’s Nutrient Reduction Strategy, which is a science and technology-based framework to assess and reduce nutrients in Iowa waters that cause a “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico and impact water quality and recreation here, in Iowa lakes and rivers. The voluntary effort for producers is spearheaded by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS), Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and Iowa State University (ISU).

New funding is at $10 million to IDALS to be available over a five year period to establish and strengthen watershed projects. The intent is for these funds to be utilized in activities establishing watershed communities in priority watersheds across the state. The Watershed Improvement Review Board (WIRB) projects will receive $3 million to improve water quality or reduce flooding, and an additional $7 million is provided for the state’s soil conservation efforts. This $7 million is on top of the $6.65 million annual appropriation, for a total of $13.65 million to help farmers install measures to control soil erosion.

An additional $6.8 million is provided over the next two years to IDALS for a water quality initiative tied to the Nutrient Reduction Strategy. This money must be spent to help support reducing nutrient pollution in high-priority watersheds across the state.

The Legislature also created a new Iowa Nutrient Management Center at ISU and provided $1.5 million in new funding to operate the center. The center will be a collaboration between all three state university’s and private colleges to study and issue recommendations to control nutrient pollution into Iowa’s waterways. The center will pursue a science based approach to management nutrient research in making recommendations.

Finally, Iowa’s Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) program is funded at $16 million. REAP provides funding for soil and water enhancement, city and county conservation and recreation projects, and state management of land and waters. This funding level of REAP represents the highest funding level since FY 2009 and 2010, the last time Democrats controlled the budget process, and is the highest level other than that two year period since FY 1991.

Building Iowa’s Skilled Workforce

The Legislature addressed the skilled workforce gap by creating a skilled worker job creation fund with a $66 million investment. This will help Iowans upgrade their work skills, fill key workforce shortage areas and connect businesses with training and education for the jobs that are available today and in the near future. Iowa’s 15 community colleges, including Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, will assist in implementing the regional training in the skilled shortage areas. It wasn’t long age, in 2006, that I requested that the Iowa House convene a task force on our skilled workforce shortages. As a former member of that original task force, I am now delighted that this legislation, and adequate funding, has finally become a reality. Jobs, jobs, jobs!

Part of the investment uses local community colleges to target regional training in skilled shortage areas. Regional committees comprised of business and construction trade professionals will meet annually to develop plans and guarantee the training students receive is the training they need to be successful.

The program is designed to better prepare students to make informed postsecondary education and career decisions, connect students to local career opportunities, develop work-based capacity with employers, and improve skills for Iowa’s future workforce. It will also strive to implement services for all students, staff, and districts within the region, integrate workplace skills into the curriculum and provide core services, which may include student job shadowing and student internships.

Growing Iowa’s Economy

We also passed other important economic initiatives that will help our state create and retain more good-paying jobs, including:

• Expanded the High Quality Jobs
• Improved the Innovation Fund
• Enhanced the Targeted Jobs Program
• Provided new incentives for beginning farmers and agricultural programs
• Renewed support with more investment and research in Iowa renewable energy, biosciences, advanced manufacturing and biofuels
• Increased the economic development tax credits
• Kept tuition affordable at our community colleges, state universities and private colleges so that all Iowa families have the educational opportunities that lead to great jobs. There won’t be a tuition increase at Iowa’s state universities for the first time in 30 years
• Again funded Main Street Iowa – initiatives that have helped Czech Village and New Bohemia in Cedar Rapids

Note: Award winning projects and volunteers were honored at the 27th annual Main Street Iowa Awards celebration on May 17. Congratulations to Sara Reasner, who was named Volunteer of the Year with Czech Village-New Bohemia, and to Judy Hull, Volunteer of the Year with Main Street Marion. In addition, Czech Village-New Bohemia was winner in the New Construction category for the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library. The Cedar Rapids “Main Street” neighborhood has reached $20 million in private dollars invested in commercial rehabilitation and property acquisition.

High Quality Jobs and the Innovation Fund

House File 620 raised the state’s tax credit cap from $120 million to $170 million, with $140 million of the allocation going to the High Quality Jobs tax credits. These credits are used to lure out-of-state businesses to Iowa and for Iowa businesses to expand or modernize their facilities – and create new jobs. We also increased the direct financial assistance in the fund. This is the only Iowa program that gives loans and forgivable loans to businesses moving to Iowa or to expand Iowa businesses already here.

The remaining tax credit cap funds are split between the Enterprise Zones Program ($10 million), Brownfield and Grayfield Redevelopment ($10 million), Innovation and Seed Capital Investments ($2 million), and the Innovation Fund ($8 million).

Additionally, the Innovation Fund tax credit program was revised and improved by increasing the tax credits from 20% to 25% of the taxpayer’s equity investment. The legislation makes the credits transferrable and removes a provision prohibiting redemption of the credits until three years after their issuance.

Targeted Jobs

The Targeted Jobs program was extended until 2018 and improvements were made to program oversight. Senate File 433 also expanded where the program can be used. The program’s goal is to help Iowa’s border communities retain and attract jobs that would otherwise move across our borders to other states. The cities currently in the program are Council Bluffs, Sioux City, Burlington, Fort Madison, and Keokuk.

Community Colleges

Thanks to the largest investment ever in our community colleges, Iowans will get the chance to improve their skills, qualify for better jobs and fill openings at local businesses. A pilot project has already shown that this approach works. That’s why we’re investing more than $34 million to take it statewide.

Community colleges will be the place to go for Iowans who need to get their GED, learn basic skills, and earn industry-recognized certificates in welding, health care, technology and other areas. Job training highlights from the bipartisan Education Budget (HF 604) include:

• Workforce Training and Economic Development Fund: $15.3 million to support job-training efforts by community colleges.

• Adult Basic Education Programs: $5.5 million to help adult workers get the credentials to qualify for middle-skill jobs.

• PACE Career Pathways Program: $5 million to coordinate training and education programs that enable returning students to get the workforce skills they need to fill local job openings.

• Gap Assistance Program: $2 million to “fill the gap” in financial aid by helping Iowans take non-credit classes to earn certifications and professional licenses.

• Work-based Learning Intermediary Program: $1.5 million to provide high school students with career orientation, job shadowing and internship opportunities that allow them to make informed college and career decisions.

• Kibbie Grant Program: $5 million to provide need-based financial assistance to Iowans enrolled in career and technical courses at our community colleges.

Balanced Budget; Winnowing Down the Surplus

The state budget is in the best condition it has ever been, with the state reserve funds filled and surplus revenues still growing. The State general fund budget is anticipated to expend $6.483 billion in FY 2014, an increase of $256 million over last year, and end the fiscal year with about $1.2 billion in surplus and reserves.

The budget will provide a modest increase in funding for K-12 schools, community colleges, and the state universities, as well as funds to help with the transitioning of mental health services to the state budget, and health care costs for Iowa’s children, elderly, and disabled citizens.

The Legislature used some of the huge surplus to pay down state debt, make one-time investments in maintenance and repairs of state buildings, complete public safety projects that have been neglected over the years, shore up retirement funds for public safety and judicial officials, and return a portion of the surplus to the taxpayers.

Standings Bill Highlights

Besides making appropriations and approving language for ongoing services this year’s Standings Bill included:

• Funding for Iowa Regional Tourism Marketing
• Restored funding for Shared Visions, the Child Development Program for At-Risk Children
• Funds the Homestead tax credit , the Agriculture Land tax credit, the Military Service tax credit and the Elderly and Disabled tax credit
• Doubled the annual standing appropriation to the Special Olympics fund to $100,000 for the organizations which administer special Olympics programs benefiting citizens of Iowa with disabilities
• Amends the Administration and Regulation Budget bill to provide adequate funding for the Public Information Board
• Provides for college student aid
• Funds mental health equalization
• Increases supplementary weighting for limited English proficient students from four years to five
• Creates a tax credit for qualified food commodity donations to Iowa food banks
• A $1 million matching fund for Iowa’s food banks to help feed the hungry in Iowa

To read the bill click here.

Health and Human Services Budget

And finally, in addition to funding the new Medicaid expansion, health care initiatives and the Mental Health & Developmental Disabilities redesign, the Health and Human Services Budget provides an increase in provider rates, support for seniors, funding for autism.

To read the bill click here.

List of Bills

For a complete list of bills this session that have been sent to the Governor for his signature please click here

 

Great to attend Kirkwood’s Adult High School/GED Graduation Ceremony. These students are to be commended for their tenacity and commitment to improve their education and job opportunities. Congratulations & Well Done! Afterwards, I attended a reception for the professional teaching staff and Pathway navigators (KPACE) who guided and counseled many of these students to successful completion of their diplomas and GEDs. Shown here with Chair of Kirkwood’s Board of Trustees, Dr. Lois Bartelme; Kirkwood President, Mick Starcevich; and his wife, Linda (also a former math teacher); and the Dean of Distance Learning, Dr. Todd Prusha.

 

Attended a wonderful and meaningful Czech Memorial Day ceremony of the Czech National Cemetery, honoring our Veterans (due to the rain, it was held at Saint Wenceslaus Church). I appreciated the remarks by Don Tyne, Director of Linn Co. Commission of Veterans Affairs, and the presentation of flags by the American Legion Post #727. I especially enjoyed the music provided by the Czech Heritage Singers & the Czech Plus Band.

Thank you to all of our Veterans!

 

After teaching last week, I stopped by the African American Museum to participate in an overview of the legislative session. Iowa’s Democratic Party Chair, Tyler Olson, led the discussion and several other elected officials were present. This Session, we provided another 150,000 Iowans with quality, affordable health care; funded MH/DD; provided adequate funding for education; produced a balanced budget; initiated property tax reform that will help small businesses and residences; and left more than $1billion in additional reserves. And we provided $1million matching funds for Iowa’s food banks for the hungry.

 

Junior League of Cedar Rapids is doing great things in our community! Their program, Bridging the GAP, supports teens with food and life skills workshops as well as “apartments in a suitcase.” The “suitcase” is everything a young adult leaving foster care at 17 or 18 will need to start an independent life in their own apartment or home. To find out how you can contribute to this project, or join Junior League, click here: http://juniorleaguecr.org/

 

At the Kirkwood Community College Campaign Celebration, I learned of the incredible benevolence of Henry and Patricia Tippie. They contributed $1 Million to establish an endowed scholarship fund for Kirkwood students in the business and information technologies department. Mr. Tippie shared his personal story of attending college through the G.I. Bill program. We also heard from a Kirkwood graduate, who attended college on a scholarship program, and is now enrolled at an Iowa university. The evening helped me reflect on the value of our community college, its contributors, staff, faculty and alumni. Shown here with Dean of Agriculture Sciences, Scott Ermer; Dean of Nursing, Jimmy Reyes; Dean of Distance Learning, Todd Prusha and Print Services Director, Steve Carpenter (who is taking a delicious appetizer from the state-of-the-art shrimp cocktail server.)

 

Attended a “Living With Floods” talk & reception at the CSPS Hall that was organized by the U of I Public Policy Center. Mel Andringa, Producing Director at Legion Arts, was one of the speakers discussing how the flood has impacted artists’ creations. In conjunction with the fifth anniversary of Eastern Iowa’s historic flooding, Legion Arts presents “Trouble the Water”, a groundbreaking exhibit in which a dozen contemporary artists explore issues related to water: droughts and floods, climate events and climate change, as well as the economics, distribution, uses and scarcity of this incomparable commodity. Featured artists hail from California, New York, Minnesota, Arizona, the Netherlands and Japan. Exhibit curated by Diane Barber, Houston, Texas. The exhibit will be featured at Legion Arts at CSPS Hall from May 3 through June 16.

Meanwhile – ironically – at street level, volunteers took a break from sandbagging local businesses to visit with me about impending flooding. Complimentary food and drinks, and the gratifying feeling of helping their community was payment enough for these selfless men and women!

 

Cedar Rapid’s new Double Tree Hotel held a gala to celebrate its opening. The hotel’s manager, Matt Felling, had every reason to be proud of this beautiful facility. I spoke with the front desk staff to see if I could tour the hotel, and learned that the rooms were booked for the weekend. A great start to what we hope will be a successful hotel and convention complex!

 

The chance for rain didn’t dampen the spirits of those attending the 2013 CR Pride Fest last Friday at Greene Square Park. This annual event is all about diversity, acceptance and pride in our community of individuals. Quaker Oats was one of many CR sponsors for this event. They were handing out cereal samples and I look forward to tomorrow’s breakfast with Cap’n Crunch!

Read More from the Iowa House

To read the rest of my Statehouse News go to: http://iowahouse.org/StatehouseNews/5-24-13.html