Bill to fund conservation efforts will be topic of Cedar Rapids town halls

CEDAR RAPIDS - Cindy Burke says she wants to see all Iowans support a bill that would fund the Iowa Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund.

And she's willing to help pay for it.

'Our environment has provided ... all of the wonderful things we love,” said Burke, of Cedar Rapids, who attended a Friday town hall hosted by the Iowa Water and Land Legacy Coalition at the Cedar Rapids Public Library. 'If it takes an increase in the sales tax, so be it. I am willing to pay that.”

About 15 people turned out for the noon event to learn about and show support for the bill, House File 597, which now is in the Iowa House Ways and Means Committee.

Filling trust fund

The bill, proposed by Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, R-Wilton, and 12 other Republican lawmakers, calls for increasing the state sales tax by one-eighth-of-a-cent per year for the next three years and putting the money into the trust fund, which has sat empty since voters approved its creation in 2010.

The proposal, when fully phased in, would send $180 million or more a year to the trust fund. The bill requires that at least 60 percent of the money go to research-based water quality initiatives outlined in Iowa's Nutrient Reduction Strategy.

The bill also proposes a companion decrease in Iowa income tax rates, starting with the lowest income brackets, to make the proposal tax-neutral.

The bill also would create an excise tax for water service.

Ruth Lapointe, a representative for the Iowa Water and Land Legacy Coalition, said the organization thinks the bill has the best shot at passage, given the sales tax increase is paired with the income tax rate decreases and has the support of several Republican legislators, which hasn't been the case in past funding bills.

Co-sponsors on the bill include Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Marion, and Rep. Andy McKean, R-Anamosa.

The first hurdle for the bill is getting it to the House floor.

‘We can do this'

Lapointe asked those in attendance to reach out to their legislators and voice support for the bill.

'A lot of why we (brought) people here today is because we still have a lot of grass-roots work to be done on this, potentially even reinforming some of our previous supporters,” she said.

Similar town halls took place Friday in Ottumwa, Sergeant Bluff and Davenport. Organizers had hoped that local lawmakers would attend, but none did.

Bill Schoon of Cedar Rapids said that because he is retired and on a fixed income, he doesn't pay taxes. However, Schoon said he is willing to pay a higher sales tax without the income tax break if it would help fix the environment.

Burke said she is concerned about the loss of prairieland in the state and about nitrates leaching into Iowa's water.

'We have to figure out how to fix it because we have screwed it up,” she said. 'We can do this.”

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