Iowa’s legislators must tackle the state’s most pressing needs when they return to the Capitol

By The Des Moines Register

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It's the first day of 2012. That means Iowans are promising to lose weight or save more money or quit smoking. New Year's resolutions are about making changes now to create a better tomorrow. They are about proactively trying to shape your own future.

Iowa lawmakers, however, can take actions that impact the future of others, of the entire state. In one week the 84th Iowa General Assembly will convene in Des Moines. Our elected officials should remain solely focused on creating a better Iowa going forward.

In that spirit, lawmakers should resolve to do the following:

Iowa's child abuse registry has more than 50,000 names on it. The sheer number raises questions about the legitimacy of this list. Complaints from Iowans about a lack of due process rights, lengthy appeals and being wrongly labeled an “abuser” raise concerns. The government blacklisting people who have not been convicted in a court is constitutionally questionable.

Recently a workgroup made recommendations about what lawmakers should do to address problems with the registry. Legislators should adopt them, as well as recommendations in the “minority report” that would protect those who work with children from immediately putting their jobs at risk if placed on the registry. Our elected officials should also re-examine the burden of proof required to place someone on the list. It is currently “more likely than not” abuse occurred rather than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard for finding someone guilty in a criminal court.

A registry that is supposed to protect kids also has to ensure adequate safeguards for those accused by social workers of wrongdoing. Right now there are many indications it's not doing that.

Gov. Terry Branstad is pushing a plan to reform Iowa's public schools. Before adopting any specific recommendations, lawmakers should ensure such changes have been proven to work. That means taking the time to demand evidence on everything from changing how teachers are paid to third-grade reading initiatives to additional testing.

Also, lawmakers cannot overlook how other areas of government affect education. Human services, for example, help ensure kids have health care, food and stability at home. Libraries help foster the love of reading but have seen state funding cut. Funding schools should not come at the expense of other important programs that impact student achievement.

One thing lawmakers should seriously consider: require students to spend more time in class. Current Iowa law requires school to be held a minimum of 5.5 hours per day (and 27.5 hours over a 5-day segment) for 180 days of the year. This calendar was implemented when people were traveling on mud roads and kids spent summers working on the farm.

Perhaps the most shameful act of the 2011 Legislature: approving dove hunting in the state. Iowa had protected the birds for nearly a century. Polls show Iowans are opposed to killing them. The only silver lining: the controversy has renewed an effort to ban lead ammunition. Hunters using lead ammunition spread it all over Iowa's fields and forests, which kills other wildlife, including the beloved bald eagles.

Lawmakers should ban lead shot in all public areas, regardless of what wildlife a hunter is targeting. There is no question lead is dangerous. It has been banned from paint and gasoline. It can damage organs in all animals, including humans.

Last year The Des Moines Register Opinion pages detailed the job perks of state legislators. They receive salaries of $25,000 to $37,500 annually. They automatically receive per diems and “constituent allowances” that are frequently sheltered from taxes. They don't have to account for how the expense money is spent. The vast majority receive free health insurance, frequently for their entire families. These and other fringe benefits can cost taxpayers more than $18,000 per lawmaker, per year.

Lawmakers should pay themselves in a way that is transparent. Compensation should be subject to taxes. Per diems for lawmakers who live near the Capitol should be reduced, and all money provided for expenses should be accounted for by the lawmakers. They should at least contribute to covering the cost of their health insurance if not pay the entire amount themselves.

Lawmakers talk about streamlining government, making sacrifices and tightening the state's budgetary belt. This is an opportunity for them to practice what they preach.

The board would resolve disputes over public records and meetings and take a huge step toward more transparent government. The Senate has passed this legislation several times, and Gov. Terry Branstad supports it. The House should finish the job this year.

The governor and both parties are determined to do something about the disproportionately high property tax rates paid by business and industry. The solution should not substantially reduce revenue that pays for critical local services, such as schools, libraries, human services and public safety.

A recent report projects Iowa will outgrow its existing prisons in the next decade unless criminal sentences are reduced. Lawmakers should start by trimming mandatory minimum sentences and lifetime parole for sex offenders. The alternative is to build several costly prisons.

Roads and bridges are in bad shape, demand is increasing and the revenue is falling short. Phase in an increase in the gas tax if necessary, but do it now.

Iowa has the nation's model for state and federal redistricting. The Legislature should extend that model to counties, where politics still plays too large a role.