GOP legislators modify $117.8 million in state budget cuts

DES MOINES - Legislative Republicans agreed Monday to make $117.8 million in cuts to the state general fund budget by June 30 that include decreases for higher education, corrections, public safety and courts - but not as severe as Gov. Terry Branstad had recommended for those areas.

Under the tentative agreement, regent universities would be cut by $18 million rather than the $25.56 million the governor sought; community college funding would be shaved by $3 million rather than $8.7 million; corrections would be cut $5.5 million, not $15 million; the court system would be cut by $3 million not $7.7 million; and public safety's proposed $3.8 million cut would be lowered to $1 million.

Sen. Charles Schneider, R-West Des Moines, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said changes made to the governor's $110 million starting point for erasing the projected shortfall reflect priorities from GOP legislators.

'They are tough decisions. You could hear in the room today people aren't happy,” he said after the de-appropriations bill cleared subcommittee. 'But it is what it is. We can only work with what we're given. We can't spend more than we have. That's just the reality. That's not politics, that's math.”

Overall, the plan moving forward by majority Republicans would make $88.2 million in targeted cuts, return $4.5 million in unused property tax credits, transfer $25 million from economic development, cultural and other trust funds and provide a $4.3 million supplemental appropriation for indigent military spending. The changes would not affect current year funding for K-12 schools, Medicaid and 'backfill” to local governments for property tax reductions.

House and Senate Republicans did not go along with recommendations from Branstad to partially couple the state tax code with federal changes, which would have allowed farmers and businesses to deduct certain expenses. By not doing that, lawmakers saved about $29 million.

They also disagreed with a Branstad proposal to scoop $8.2 million from a taxpayer trust fund, deciding instead to hold that harmless from cuts.

Subcommittee member Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, said minority Democrats disagreed with the proposed GOP cuts in a number of areas. But Republicans noted the problem was a carry-over from budget decisions made last session based on projected revenue growth that didn't materialize.

'We're not dealing with a situation where revenues are decreasing now. We're dealing with a situation where growth is slower than we anticipated it. There was no room for error,” Schneider said.

Sen. Tim Kraayenbrink, R-Fort Dodge, said the problem relates to decisions made over the past three or four years to spend down more than $750 million in state surplus funds that GOP senators had opposed.

'It's ironic that we vote ‘no' on something for three or four years when we're not in the majority and then all of a sudden we're to blame when it does happen,” he said.

Along with targeted cuts, GOP legislators are directing agencies to identify $11.5 million in reductions by trimming out-of-state travel, purchases and leaving unfilled positions vacant.

The specific cuts to regent universities would trim funding by $8 million each at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University, and $2 million at the University of Northern Iowa.

'We're concerned about the cuts to higher education. We're especially concerned about significant increases in tuition for our community college students and our university students and their families as a result of these underfunding of these institutions,” Bolkcom said.

Last week, after Branstad had proposed the larger reduction, UI President Bruce Harreld issued a 'call to action” in a campus message.

'Though we have weathered setbacks like this before, we must make clear to the citizens and representatives of Iowa what effect cuts like this one could have on our state's flagship university,” he wrote. 'Indeed, on all of Iowa's public universities.”

Bolkcom suggested an alternative approach might be to slash state tax credits to corporations, which have grown in recent years.

After the subcommittee meeting, Bolkcom issued a statement warning the proposed GOP cuts threaten public safety, education and human services.

'The last thing we should do is cut services that Iowans depend on, including higher education, job training, public safety and human services,” he said.

Schneider said he expected the provisions of Senate Study Bill 1018 would clear committee Tuesday and he expected both the House and Senate would send the measure to the governor possibly yet this week.

l Comments: (515) 243-7220; rod.boshart@thegazette.com

Vanessa Miller of The Gazette contributed to this report.