Iowa House panel OKs $106 million more in infrastructure spending

As thunder rolled over the Capitol Wednesday as a $205 million infrastructure budget – including money for a lightning protection system – was approved by lawmakers.

The Rebuilding Iowa Infrastructure Fund (RIIF) – one of a pair of “Christmas tree” budget bills that typically are among the last to move through the General Assembly on its way to adjournment -- won unanimous approval in the House Appropriations Committee.

House Study Bill 235 appropriates $106 million in new funds, including $330,000 for the lightning suppression system for the century-old Capitol. Lightning strikes to the building or nearby trees cause problems for the Statehouse's electrical system, a legislative staffer said.

That was one of the smaller appropriations in the bill. A larger share of the infrastructure budget were appropriations totaling about $20 million for major maintenance at state facilities, including universities. The Legislature has been “a little lax” in funding both major maintenance and routine maintenance over the years, floor manager Rep. Dan Huseman, R-Aurelia, said.

The Legislature hasn't done such a good job of routine maintenance, added Rep. Dennis Cohoon, D-Burlington.

A good example of that, Cohoon said, is the more than $50 million earmarked for the complete renovation of the Wallace Office Building that houses, among other agencies, the departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The original construction cost was about $10 million, he said. Over the years, lawmakers have discussed razing the building and starting over.

“We need to take a hard look at whether we want to invest in some of our buildings,” he said. “We have to address routine maintenance.”

Huseman agreed lawmakers need to address routine maintenance and also agreed with Cohoon that each year the list of needs exceeds the RIIF funding available.

Larger appropriations in HSB 235 include $27 million next year and $29 million in fiscal 2015 for tuition replacement at the three regents' universities. That money is used to pay off academic revenue bonds that finance construction of classrooms and labs at the universities. It also will make it possible for the regents to avoid a tuition hike, Huseman said.

Specifically, the RIIF appropriations will fund about $67 million for the new pharmacy building at the University of Iowa, $42 million for the new biosciences building at Iowa State University and about $30 million for the Schindler Education Center at the University of Northern Iowa.

Another $7 million was directed toward deferred maintenance on the university campuses, Huseman said.

RIIF includes $12 million over two years for accelerated career education capital projects at community colleges, $3 million for planning, design, construction and renovation of the State Historical Building and $1 million in matching funds for a new plaza on the state fair grounds.

Among the changes in RIIF is that wagering tax revenue no longer will be transferred from the fund to the Environment First Fund. In the future, $42 million of wagering tax revenue will be directly deposited into the environmental fund. Another $24 million in wagering tax revenue will go to RIIF.

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