Branstad, Schulte shirk flood protection

After the flood of 1993, Terry Branstad was given recommendations to improve watershed and flood plain management to reduce future flood damage.

One recommendation was to invest in better watershed management. Another was to develop better flood monitoring and modeling. A third was to provide state assistance to local communities to reduce flood hazards.

Branstad did not take any action on those recommendations. As a result, there was a lot of unnecessary flood damage in Iowa in the years since 1993, especially during 2008 and 2010.

This is what happens when an elected official has a goal of reducing the size of government, rather than making sure government works better. It is the hidden cost of doing nothing, and merely passes the buck instead of fixing problems.

State Rep. Renee Schulte seems to have the same philosophy. She voted against I-JOBS, the Disaster Mitigation Fund, the Iowa Flood Center, watershed repairs and smart planning principles.

Neither Branstad nor Schulte has presented any plan for further recovery or for preventing future flood damage.

Please join me in voting for leaders who will address these problems. Vote for Chet Culver and Mark Seidl.

Frank Olsen

Cedar Rapids