Flood protection funding clears Iowa Senate

By Rick Smith and Rod Boshart

A unanimous Iowa Senate approved a plan Tuesday to provide state funds to help cities that contribute local funds to build flood protection,

Tuesday's vote comes just a week before a crucial election in Cedar Rapids in which voters will be asked to extend a 1 percent local-option sales tax for 10 years to provide local matching funds required in the state legislation.

“It's a pro-growth, progressive policy that we can all be proud of,” said Sen. Jeff Danielson, D-Waterloo, who noted that Senate File 2217 had its roots in a bipartisan, bicameral working group that began crafting the approach last session. The legislation was set aside last year when Cedar Rapids voters turned down a 20-year tax extension by a narrow margin May 3.

Danielson said the legislation now has an even broader application given the flooding that hit communities along the Missouri River and a flash-flooding problem in Dubuque last summer that followed the state's worst natural disaster in 2008 that hit Linn County and other parts of Iowa.

Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett called the Senate vote “a big step” in a political era where “partisan bickering can overshadow everything.”

“This is an example where both parties came together and put together good public policy for the state of Iowa,” he said.

The bill would establish a 10-year state flood mitigation program capped at $30 million annually in state sales tax revenue with a maximum award of up to $15 million a year for any qualifying single community to match local and federal funds to spend on flood protection.

The bill sets up a nine-member board to scrutinize applications and allows qualifying local entities to capture a share of the growth in their sales tax collections to match state and federal financial assistance.

Gary Ficken, who is part of community group CREST that is advocating for passage of the local sales tax extension next week, called the Senate vote “a first step in the state match.”

Corbett said the state legislation to provide support for flood protection has gotten backing because it is open to all Iowa communities in need of flood protection help.

“It's not just a handout from the state,” he said. “It's sound public policy with a lot of stipulations that communities have to meet to qualify. But that's how it should be.”

Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, said the Senate bill provides a mechanism for the state to become a partner to invest in “fairly intensive” infrastructure improvements that provide an essential public purpose along with safeguards for taxpayers.

“I think it's got a good shot at being one of the defining bipartisan achievements of this Legislature,” he said.

Sen. Bill Dix, R-Shell Rock, said the bill recognizes that the state has a role to play in restoring economic vitality and preserving jobs in communities hard hit by natural disasters that have a ripple effect on surrounding areas.

“I believe it is a proposal with significant merit,” he said. “A number of taxpayer protections have been incorporated in this bill.”