Capitol Digest 3-23-2010

A roundup of legislative and Statehouse items of interest for Tuesday, March 23:

CAT MAY GROW CLAWS: Sen. Steve Kettering, R-Lake View, ranking member on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said he expects Republicans will challenge a proposal that would use I-JOBS bonding proceeds to fund Iowa's community attraction and tourism (CAT) and river enhancement community attraction and tourism (RE-CAT) programs in fiscal 2011. Traditionally those programs are financed using state gambling profits that flow into the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund (RIIF). However, initial spreadsheets show the programs getting zero RIIF dollars, but $12 million for CAT and $5 million for RE-CAT were included among projects to be funded by $105 million in I-JOBS revenue bonds. Some lawmakers complained the $17 million should go toward flood recovery efforts, which made up $32 million of the current proposed I-JOBS allocation.

MILITARY PROCLAMATION: Gov. Chet Culver signed a proclamation Tuesday declaring March as the “Month of the Military Child,” in honor of Iowa children who have a close relative serving in the armed forces. The governor also signed two bill affecting military veterans. House File 2384 directs the state Department of Veterans Affairs to advise service members who are deploying outside the United States about issues relating to tax returns and taxes due or owed. It also encourages soldiers to contact the state Department of Revenue prior to deployment. He also signed House File 2321, which directs the personnel of a jail or holding facility to ask an individual being incarcerated if they are a veteran. Within 24 hours, the facility must inform the prisoner, if they are a veteran, that they may be entitled to a visit from a veterans' service officer and provide contact information for the service officer within 72 hours. 

STATE TAXES PLUNGE: Iowa isn't the only state experiencing a drop in state tax collections. The U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday that state government tax collections totaled $715.2 billion in fiscal year 2009, a $66.9 billion (8.6 percent) decrease from the previous year. According to data from the 2009 Annual Survey of State Government Tax Collections, taxes on individual income were $245.9 billion, down 11.8 percent, while general sales taxes were $228.1 billion, down 5.4 percent. Corporate net income taxes were $40.3 billion, down 20.7 percent. These taxes made up 71.9 percent of all state government tax collections nationally.

SPRINKLER NULLIFICATION: The Senate approved a resolution Tuesday that would nullify a narrowly crafted state rule dealing with fire sprinklers that mistakenly was construed to include installation of new one- and two-family homes and modular homes starting in 2013, said Sen. Jeff Danielson, D-Waterloo. Senate Joint Resolution 2009 is designed to “start the conversation anew” regarding a rule change to building code specifications – a rule that he said was not intended to apply to private residences, Danielson said. The state issue would not limit the scope of authority for communities to adopt local sprinkler ordinances in their own building codes, which is what predominantly happens around Iowa now, he added. Craig Schoenfeld, a representative for the Home Builders Association of Iowa, said the major concern was a state requirement would add $3,500 up to $10,000 in construction costs depending on the size of the house. The resolution passed on a 49-0 vote.

RATE CHANGE ALERT: AARP Iowa members urged state lawmakers Tuesday to beef up accountability, transparency and public notification requirements for Iowa insurance companies that plan to increase premium rates. Anthony Carroll, the group's associate state director for advocacy, said this year's unprecedented spikes in health insurance premium rates should be a “wake-up call” that something is wrong with Iowa's current system. Rep. Janet Petersen, D-Des Moines, used an AARP Iowa Statehouse news conference to urge public support for an amendment she has offered that would require insurance carriers to immediately notify policyholders of a proposed rate increase and require public hearings before any changes took effect. Des Moines resident Don Corrigan said he was notified his Wellmark health insurance rates will increase from $316 to $497.60 a month with little advance notice or explanation. The costs associated with Petersen's amendment were estimated at about $450,000 a year.

STUDENT SHOWCASE: Representatives and students from pre-engineering programs flooded the Capitol rotunda to give lawmakers a state of activities going on at more than 100 schools across Iowa. The legislative showcase was hosted by Iowa Project Lead the Way, Inc. (PLTW) -- the Iowa edition of a national, nonprofit organization established to help schools give middle and high school students the knowledge they need to excel in high-tech fields. Enrolled PLTW students from across Iowa displayed their engineering notebooks, portfolios and projects around the Capitol rotunda to show the relationship between the projects they designed and the science, technology, engineering and math skills used in the design process. Iowa PLTW is a partnership between the engineering colleges at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University and participating schools. Go to http://www.pltwiowa.org/ for more information. During Tuesday event, the 2009 Joseph H. Oakley Excellence in Education Award was presented to Gov. Chet Culver, who accepted on behalf of the hundreds of students and business leaders who are helping to build Iowa's future.

ENERGY GRANTS AWARDED The Iowa Office of Energy Independence (OEI) has awarded 78 grants totaling $5.84 million under the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) program. The awards are for projects from cities and counties to reduce fossil fuel emissions, reduce total energy use, improve energy efficiency in the building, transportation and other sectors and create and retain jobs. For a list of the grants, visit www.energy.iowa.gov. Iowa's 13 largest cities – Ames, Ankeny, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, Dubuque, Iowa City, Sioux City, Urbandale, Waterloo, and West Des Moines – and 10 largest counties – Cerro Gordo, Clinton, Dallas, Des Moines, Johnson, Linn, Muscatine, Polk, Scott, and Warren – that already have received allocations from the U.S. Department of Energy were eligible to compete for approximately $2.9 million in funding. These awards are expected to be announced soon.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I've now become a missionary and telling people if you see anything that is free on your computer, believe me it is not free. Beware of free trial offers because there's no such thing as a free trial offer.” – Mary Grefe, 87, a retired Des Moines school teacher who became embroiled in a dispute over a “buying club” membership.