Entitlement programs are the biggest challenge

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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Republicans who stormed to a majority in the Iowa House in November gave us a glimpse last week at how they'd trim the current state budget when they arrive at the Statehouse for the 2011 session Monday.

In many ways, it's a good opening bid.

The plan erases some significant items, such as the Iowa Power Fund, Grow Iowa Values Fund and millions of dollars spent on smoking cessation programs. All those programs initiated by past administrations have made important investments and contributions, but with a sizable budget hole to fill, we agree that it's time to move on.

The same goes for boards and commissions, such as the Generation Iowa Commission, that were created to do a temporary job but have somehow remained as permanent budgetary fixtures. It's time to thin those ranks.

Republicans call for state employees to contribute $50 monthly for health insurance. We think that's a good idea, while acknowledging that's it's unlikely state employee unions will agree to reopening their contracts to accept it.

There are also ideas on the list that we're less interested in.

Although we believe regents universities should play a role in budget trimming, proposals for cutting sabbaticals, slicing library acquisitions and mandating management consolidation amount to legislative micromanagement.

We've been supportive of efforts to make quality preschool available to Iowa children, so we're wary of a voucher system that the House GOP would use to replace a state-funded effort. At a time when school districts are being asked to do more with less, it seems odd to slash funding for Area Education Agencies that help schools share resources and save. Prohibiting taxpayer-funded lobbying by state agencies sounds good politically, but we're not convinced cutting state agencies out of the lawmaking process will bring better legislation.

Although the House list will spark plenty of debate, it only scratches the surface.

Solving Iowa's budget problems will require more than taking bites and nibbles from spending here and there. The state's array of entitlement programs, led by Medicaid, are growing at a rate that's not sustainable. A large portion of the budget goes for education, and significant savings will only come from restructuring and fundamental reform, not from annual budget cuts.

The House GOP plan should be seen as only an appetizer for a much larger, tougher-to-swallow debate over what functions state government should continue doing, and which should be tossed. Simply reshuffling revenues to reward political friends and punish adversaries is the kind of fiscal management that's put us in the hole over and over again through the years.

Having a Republican House and Democratic Senate looks like a recipe for gridlock. But it could be a chance to hammer out a bipartisan budget blueprint with shared priorities and sacrifices.