Iowa lawmakers hope for quick education compromise, orderly 2016 session timetable

DES MOINES - A key House leader said Wednesday she is hopeful the split-control Legislature can address education funding early in the 2016 session and find other common-ground solutions while finishing in a timely fashion that adjourns close to the 100-day target.

House Speaker-select Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, told about 100 members of the Iowa Chamber Alliance she expects lawmakers will face new spending challenges, with about $175 million in increased state revenue available for budgeting in fiscal 2017.

She said that should be enough to fund priorities along with reallocating money from less-vital state programs to maintain fiscal principles of not spending more than the state takes in and not allocating one-time surpluses for ongoing expenses. Upmeyer noted the GOP-led Iowa House passed a 2 percent increase in supplemental state aid to schools last session for the fiscal year that begins next July 1, and that bill is before the Iowa Senate if majority Democrats choose to take it up.

'We'll see what we can do, but we're going to do it early and hopefully that gets down to the governor's desk,” she said in an interview after the ICA forum. 'Schools need to be able to do their budgets. There's no reason to drag this out all session. I'm really going to be optimistic that we can get that done. This shouldn't be some kind of political football. We should get this done and get it out to the schools.”

School funding was a major source of division during the past session that ended with lawmakers passing a 1.25 percent across-the-board boost in state aid to K-12 schools and earmarking another $55.7 million in one-time surplus money to K-12 schools. Gov. Terry Branstad signed the 1.25 percent increase in July, but vetoed the extra one-time money.

Democrats who control the Iowa Senate have indicated the outcome of the 2015 session could have carry-over implications for 2016 and the state's tight money situation likely has taken major tax policy changes off the table - although the four legislators at Wednesday's forum said they expected the governor and Legislature will stand by a commitment to provide cities and counties state 'backfill” resources to cover a third year of property-tax relief passed in 2013.

'We think there's some unfinished business from last year,” said Rep. Todd Prichard, D-Charles City. 'I think far and away education is going to be our top priority,” but attention also will focus on economic growth, worker shortage and job-skill gaps, and environmental concerns once the session convenes Jan. 11.

Senate GOP Leader Bill Dix of Shell Rock said every year poses budget challenges due to resource limitations, and he would be disappointed if 2016 was devoid of Iowa income tax changes - noting that the states that are growing fastest economically are ones with low or no income taxes.

'The income tax needs to be on the table this year and every year looking into the future until we find a way to eliminate it,” Dix said. 'If all we do is have a fight over the budget and don't address the potential and the opportunities that are out there for us in economic growth, then that will have been a mistake.

'If all we do is fight over the budget, it will be a failed year,” he told the chamber officials.

Sen. Chaz Allen, D-Newton, said he didn't 'see anything that would derail the session,” noting that lawmakers from both political parties generally agree on about 90 percent of the bills passed with only about 3 percent 'where we throw bombs at each other that the press reports on.”

Alliance executive director John Stineman said he came away from Wednesday's forum upbeat about what he heard, especially the indication that the protection for local governments from financial effects of the property-tax relief would be funded again in 2016.

'Overall, I was encouraged by level of discourse and the focus on common ground, which I think is certainly an improvement from where we left off last session and through the summer,” he said. 'I'm cautiously optimistic that we can enter this session and focus on areas where we have common ground and get to work on the areas where we have to find that common ground.”

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