Corbett seeks more state disaster aid

DES MOINES – As a former legislative leader and budget maker, Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett knows lawmakers make their key spending decisions as the session winds down.

The former House speaker and appropriations committee chairman stopped by the Capitol Wednesday to make a pitch for Cedar Rapids to get a share of the $100 million in I-JOBS bonding that Gov. Chet Culver and lawmakers plan to carve up this session.

“We still have incredible needs in our community. We've taken a few steps toward recovery but we just have a long way to go,” said Corbett, who hoped some of the money would be earmarked for Cedar Rapids infrastructure needs.

“We've been saying since day one that Cedar Rapids can't do this alone,” he added. “We need the state to help, along with the federal government. We want to make sure that the state's going to continue to be a partner, not just for this year but for many years to come.”

Corbett's message got a receptive response, however, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, said he didn't want to speculate on what any individual community might receive but he said he is not a fan of earmarking money outside of making money available for a larger pool.

Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, chairman of the Senate Rebuild Iowa Committee, said most legislators are aware that recovering from Iowa's worst natural disaster requires a multi-year commitment, which made him hopeful Cedar Rapids would be in line for “a significant portion” of the I-JOBS money.

Hogg said “a wild card” in the decision-making process will be whether Iowa incurs another round of catastrophic flooding this spring as snow melts and Iowa river basins continue to swell that could create additional, competing needs.

Corbett, who made a similar appeal to Culver during an earlier Statehouse visit, noted that television coverage of last month's Super Bowl featured the fact that New Orleans is still recovering 4 ½ years after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast.

“That was great for them to get that national attention. We're not going to have that same opportunity,” he said. “We just have to do it the old-fashioned way and make sure we have people from Cedar Rapids letting the Legislature and Washington D.C. know we still have needs.”

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