Capitol Digest 04.16.13

A roundup of legislative and Capitol news items of interest for Tuesday, April 16, 2013:

Economic development: The Iowa House approved SF 430 52-46 to authorize spending $45 million in general funds to support the departments of Cultural Affairs, Economic Development, Workforce Development and for the Board of Regents' economic development activities.

As approved by the Senate, SF 430 contained $78 million from the general fund -- $33 million more than the House budget and $40 million more than the current budget. It spends $316,000 less than proposed by the governor. The primary increases from FY 13 are additional allocations to the Historical and Arts Divisions.

Assuming the Senate does not accept the changes made by the House, the bill will go to a conference committee of five House members and five Senate members.

Hydroelectric tax break: The House approved HF 630 95-3 to extend tax breaks available for wind energy projects to hydroelectric projects.

The bill provides a sales tax exemption for the sales price of wind energy conversion property, such as a generator, turbine, powerhouse, coffer dam, electrical equipment substation, poles, wires, transformers, breakers, and switches used to convert water, water power, or hydroelectricity to a form of usable energy.

The bill will aid a project at Lake Red Rock, floor manager Rep. Lee Hein, R-Monticello.

Lobbyists for Missouri River Energy Services and the Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities supported the bill. Other lobbyists were undecided.

According to the Legislative Services Agency, the bill would reduce state sales tax revenues an estimated $2.4 million in fiscal 2014, $2.4 million in 2015 and $1.8 million in fiscal 2016.

Plant more shade: Iowa residential customers of MidAmerican Energy Company can reduce future energy use, landscape their properties, and green up their communities through Plant Some Shade.

Plant Some Shade is funded by MidAmerican Energy and administered by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Bureau of Forestry, with partners in the cities of Waterloo and Cedar Rapids, Johnson County Extension, Polk County Conservation, Pottawattamie County Conservation Board, Scott County Conservation Board, Warren County Conservation Board and Webster County Conservation Board.

Plant Some Shade enables MidAmerican Energy's residential customers to purchase up to two, 3- to 8-foot landscaping trees for $30 each. Advance orders are required and order forms are available at www.midamericanenergy.com/iowa_plantsomeshade.

Hunting works: A coalition of local and regional sporting organizations, small lodging and retail businesses plan to highlight the importance of hunting Wednesday at the Iowa Capitol.

The partnership, Hunting Works for Iowa, will announce the group's Iowa co-chairs and discuss the impact of hunting and shooting sports with legislators. Organizers pointed to Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation data indicating 253,000 people hunt in Iowa each year -- spending nearly $450 million on lodging, food, gas, and gear while paying $47.9 million in state taxes. For more information visit www.huntingworksforia.com.

Vehicle thefts: The Iowa State Patrol and Nationwide Insurance Company are launching a statewide “bait car initiative” Wednesday designed to deter and catch vehicle thieves.

Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, Col. Dave Garrison of the Iowa State Patrol and Bob O'Hollearn, Des Moines regional vice president for Allied Insurance, have called an afternoon news conference to discuss an enforcement program that organizers say will use “a combination of old-fashioned police work, paired with modern technology to catch vehicle thieves red-handed.” Problems associated with vehicle thefts in Iowa have prompted state law officers and Nationwide Insurance to pool resources to curb the illegal activity.

Wisconsin governor: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, currently is accompanying Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad on a trade mission to China, will deliver the keynote address to the Polk County Republican Party's 4

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annual Robb Kelley Club spring dinner May 23 at the West Des Moines Sheraton.

Walker, 43, a Colorado native whose family lived in Plainfield, Iowa, when he was a youngster, was elected as Wisconsin's 45www.polkgop.net.

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governor in 2010 and survived a recall election in June 2012. More information on the May 23 event is available at

Travel guide: The Iowa Tourism Office's latest edition of the Iowa Travel Guide is now available to assist travelers in planning an Iowa vacation. The guide is free and may be ordered by phone at (800) 345-4692 or via www.traveliowa.com. An online version of the guide is available on the website or travelers may pick one up at any Iowa Welcome Center.

The four-color, guide is Iowa's comprehensive trip-planning publication with listings from more than 700 attractions, 550 hotels, 160 bed and breakfasts and 400 campgrounds in addition to information on state parks, trails and scenic areas. The Iowa Tourism Office distributes more than 100,000 copies of the Iowa Travel Guide annually to travelers from every state and around the world to promote an industry that generates more than $7 billion in expenditures, employs 63,400 people statewide and produces $328 million in state taxes.

Telemarketer barred: A Polk County judge has barred Osceola-based telemarketer, Telequal LLC, from professional fundraising in Iowa after a state undercover phone line recorded what Attorney General Tom Miller called a “highly deceptive pitch” that claimed it was raising money for “A Child's Dream,” a Knoxville, Tennessee non-profit organization.

To hear the recording, click here.

The intended recipient of the call was a 73-year-old woman with Alzheimer's disease who had given money in the past. Her calls were being forwarded to the Consumer Protection Division's undercover phone line.

Shortly before Miller planned to file a consumer fraud lawsuit, the business began to shut down. Although the defendants denied wrongdoing, they signed a consent decree barring Telequal and individuals targeted by the state probe from moving operations to another state and then calling into Iowa. They also are barred from ever using any of Telequal's donor information.

For information about avoiding charity fraud, visit www.IowaAttorneyGeneral.gov.

Quote of the day: “It's been a challenge moving this because the lobby's powerful and they like making money off the backs of low-income, working Iowans.” – Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, commenting on a bill that passed the Iowa Senate Ways and Means Committee 8-6 that would cap the yearly interest rate on deferred deposit loans at 36 percent.

--Compiled by the Des Moines Bureau