Giving Lawmakers Some Credit

State lawmakers often take a beating in this space. So I feel a need to offer praise when I think they get something right.

The trouble with focusing only on deep divides, as I often do, is that we may have a blind spot for bridge-building. If you think politics is broken beyond repair, consider the bipartisan effort to address flood protection funding in Cedar Rapids and across Iowa.

Maybe you don't like Cedar Rapids' flood protection strategy. But set that aside for a minute.

Instead, think about the fact that the top legislative leaders in the House and Senate sent equal numbers of Republicans and Democrats into this process. The 12-member working group, unlike every other legislative committee, had no majority, no minority. And unlike working groups of the past, this one met and operated in public.

“This was an open process. I thought it worked,” said Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, who had a seat on the panel.

The group met early in the morning or on Thursday afternoon, after many lawmakers skedaddled for the weekend. Some members took field trips to Cedar Rapids to get a firsthand look.

And after thinking it over and discussing it for several weeks, the group signed off on a bill last week that has a decent chance of becoming law. It's a bipartisan proposal on an important issue at a time when just about every important issue sparks fisticuffs.

Is it perfect? No. Legislation rarely is. But it's progress, and proof that lawmakers can still work together. “It's a welcome change,” said Sen. Merlin Bartz, R-Grafton, a group member.

The bill isn't just for Cedar Rapids, although that's where the push came from initially. It sets up a state flood mitigation board that would consider requests from any Iowa community. The bill requires that local public and private dollars cover half of a project's cost, and that federal dollars are in the mix. For the state's share, communities could keep a portion of state sales taxes collected locally.

Communities must detail how a project will spur economic growth, including the number of jobs that would be created, and explain how a protection system would affect property upstream and downstream.

It could evolve into a useful, successful program. Cedar Rapids will be the first applicant, but approval is no slam dunk. And the process that created it could be a model for handling legislative issues in the future.

The bill's statewide scope enhances its chances for passage, but the future is still fuzzy. Time is running short. The plan might become a “leadership bill” with the backing of top GOP and Democratic leaders, but none has endorsed it yet. They're still digging through the details.

Gov. Terry Branstad is letting the "legislative process work," according to his spokesman Tim Albrecht:

"There may be other options out there that are also viable. The governor wants to work with the Legislature to find a solution that best serves the needs of Cedar Rapids, but also realizing that sometimes these are precedent-setting issues in terms of dealing with communities. When looking at flood recovery and disaster issues, it could also make sense to look at a policy that doesn't just embrace one city but looks at wider protection measures on a statewide basis."

In the meantime, backers are hoping to get the bill through the committee process in at least one chamber by week's end. The 2011 session is supposed to end next week.

It's also possible that this bipartisan effort will get buried in last-minute horse trading or partisan squabbles. Then we get yet another bridge to nowhere. That would be a shame, but not a wasted effort.