Looking back at 2014

It is customary as a new year approaches to look back at major events of the previous year even as we resolve to do better in the days to come.

Here, then, are our major positions of 2014, grouped in accordance with our guiding principles.

First Amendment freedoms of speech, press, religion, petition and assembly.

' VACANT & ABANDONED - We gave praise to the City of Cedar Rapids and Mayor Ron Corbett following his State of the City address, which noted improvements despite ongoing flood recovery efforts. Not noted in Corbett's speech, however, were the vacant and abandoned houses - those that opted out of buyout programs following the flood as well as other properties scattered throughout the city.

' DO-OVER - We felt Sally Mason unfortunately misspoke when attributing rape to human nature, and appreciated that she very forcefully followed up her misstatement with a no tolerance policy toward sexual assaults on the University of Iowa campus. We also believe, however, that actions will speak louder than words, and that we've not seen nearly enough action yet.

' STRIP STANDARDS - We opposed an Iowa House bill that would have lowered the threshold for allowing strip searches in county jails and municipal holding facilities. We believe it should remain within the bounds of 'probable cause,” the same legal standard law enforcement must meet to obtain a search warrant.

' WALKING ON SUNSHINE - We were encouraged by growing use of the Iowa Public Information Board, which was formed under the umbrella of the Governor's Office. It's a one-stop agency where Iowans can get answers and file complaints about state and local government compliance with Iowa's open records and open meetings laws.

' NAUGHTY LIST - We argued that if the state wants to continue flagging former employees who are barred from state service on an official list, Iowa lawmakers and the governor must give agencies the statutory authority to do it. Such legislation also must set a clear process for compiling the list and for appeals.

Open, effective, accountable government at every level.

' CAMERA RULES - We argued that traffic camera policies set by the Iowa Department of Transportation appear to be more focused on local justification of use than an assessment of safety. They've created additional paperwork and cost for local jurisdictions and have already led to one legal battle.

' ROAD FUND - We weren't alone in noting that Iowa's roads and bridges aren't magically fixing themselves. The immediate concern is the poor condition of our infrastructure will hinder economic development. The looming concern is public safety.

' ETHICS TRANSPARENCY - We applauded the City of Cedar Rapids for forming the state's only local ethics board and suggested the board develop a process to address transparency issues related to the Cedar Rapids Council's tax incentives for unnamed developers and investors.

' I-380 CONGESTION - We advocated for officials to move beyond thinking that traffic congestion should always result in road expansion, which leads to more road maintenance. Instead, we argued, officials should look for other ways to tackle traffic issues, such as light rail or commuter busing.

' SPEAK EASY - We gave kudos to Linn County, Cedar Rapids and Marion for sharing the $19.2 million price tag for a new countywide digital radio system. The new equipment also enhanced communications with Johnson County.

' DATA SHARING - The University of Iowa and Linn County Public Health, both public institutions, should be able to find a way to share data on cancer cases without violating patient privacy, we argued. LCPH wants to study whether environmental factors are behind a county cancer rate that's higher than the state average. UI has collected cancer statistics statewide for 40 years, but hesitated in releasing data to Linn County.

' FEEDING THE HUNGRY - We had no qualms supporting a second appropriation of $1 million to Iowa's food banks and support a proposed food bank checkoff option on state income tax forms, and a sales tax exemption for Iowa's eight Feeding America food banks. We hesitated in supporting a standing appropriation for Iowa's food banks, however, preferring longer-term solutions, such as job training, that will help households support themselves.

' LOW ROI - Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz's intent may have had good when he launched a costly voter fraud probe, but our view is that the return on investment has been puny. The federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) dollars spent on the probe would have been better spent in looking for ways county auditors can improve the voting process.

' SECRET DEALS - We were shocked by revelations that 12 state agencies made 24 secret employment termination settlement agreements since Gov. Terry Branstad took office in 2011. While we appreciated the governor's assurances that it shouldn't happen again, we wished that leaders had immediately been held accountable for the misuse of taxpayer dollars.

Federal budgets that reduce or eliminate deficits and pay down the national debt.

' MANDATORY BED COUNTS - We argued that an immigration system that requires federal authorities to pay for a minimum number of prison beds each day (34,000) unnecessarily pads an already bloated prison system and is an inefficient use of taxpayer dollars.

' DISGRACEFUL - Few would disagree that we must honor our country's commitment to our military veterans and their families. When scandal broke this year about wait times at Veterans' hospitals, and attempts to mask the problem's severity, we adamantly argued that politicians need to walk the walk in funding veterans' care.

Regional economic development and cooperation among area communities.

' PASSENGER RAIL - We argued state leaders dropped the ball on passenger rail service linking Iowa City to Chicago through the Quad Cities, and possible future expansion through Des Moines to Omaha, noting that a state investment in rail travel could pave the way for more local, commuter rail service too.

' LEGION ARTS/PUBLIC SPACE ONE - We applauded this partnership, which has Legion Arts serving as Public Space One's fiscal sponsor and the two collaborating on some shows and events.

' 1105 PROJECT - Another collaboration we felt deserved special recognition was the 1105 Project in Iowa City, which achieved its $1.25 million fundraising goal to renovate a building the county sold for $1. The funding allows four social service agencies to be housed under one roof, sharing staff and resources.

' REGIONAL MISSTEP - We were disappointed the Corridor Metropolitan Planning Organization wanted to use federal funds for roads and trails in the communities of Cedar Rapids, Marion, Hiawatha, Fairfax, Robins and Ely to build a section of skywalk in downtown Cedar Rapids.

' SKILLS GAP - We applauded Branstad's proposed skills initiative as a step in the right direction to address the gap between available middle-skill jobs and the qualification of Iowa workers. More than half the jobs in Iowa are middle-skill and provide higher wages and benefits, but only 33 percent of workers have the needed qualifications.

Health care systems that are patient-centered and control costs.

' MENTAL HEALTH - The state's move to regional systems has resulted in funding shortfalls, especially in noncore support areas like emergency housing. We advocated for more supplemental funding and decreased reliance on an already overburdened private system to ensure that Iowans with serious mental health issues can thrive. Today, the number one provider of mental health services in Iowa are jails and prisons. That situation cannot be allowed to continue.

' MEDICAL MARIJUANA - We supported the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes, arguing that potential benefits far outweigh risks and fear of abuse should not stall legalization.

Transforming Iowa's educational system into one that unfolds the full potential of every child.

' COMMON CORE - So long as Common Core and Iowa Core standards continue to function as benchmarks and guidelines, we argued, we have no issues with adoption by Iowa school districts. We believe fears by GOP lawmakers for diminished local control due to Common Core are overblown.

' STUDENT DEBT - We argued that state support, which includes assistance for community colleges, must be robust so that graduates don't spend a decade or more digging out of debt.

' ONLINE PILOT - We urged lawmakers to be cautious and allow the ongoing three-year pilot of two private, for-profit companies offering K-12 education online to be completed before deciding whether to make the arrangement permanent. Before turning over a segment of Iowa education to private, for-profit companies, we argued, let's be sure there are adequate safeguards and standards in place to ensure that students get a quality education.

' DISPARITY - We were dismayed by a Cedar Rapids Civil Rights Commission report showing that while students of color represent 22.8 percent of the population, they received 45 percent of in-school suspensions and 51 percent of out-of-school suspensions, and that children of low socioeconomic status account for 46.2 percent of the school population, but made up 80 percent of in-school suspensions and 86 percent of out-of-school suspensions.

' UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL - We supported earmarking additional state funding to add space for all of Iowa's 4-year-olds in early childhood instructional programs and clearing waiting lists statewide. If the state is going to offer the promise of early childhood instruction, we argued, it should be universally accessible.

Regional diversity in ethnicity, culture and business.

' WAGE THEFT - We were disheartened by an IowaWatch report that found the state's migrant workers remain vulnerable to wage theft and other abuses, even after high-profile cases at Postville and Atalissa. We argued the findings were yet another argument for fair, effective reform of our nation's immigration policy.

' TEACHER-STUDENT RATIOS - We were disappointed to learn that even as Iowa's student population is becoming more diverse, diversity among teachers is winnowing. Only 2.5 percent of the state's beginning public school full-time teachers are minority; 20.3 percent of students are.

' COMMUNITY ID - We supported work by Johnson County groups to launch a community ID program, and hoped their experience will serve as a model for other Iowa communities.

' PROJECT THRIVE - We applauded the efforts of Diversity Focus, Four Oaks and General Mills to launch Project Thrive, which aims to diversify the region's workforce.

' BIG IDEAS - We supported initiatives like the Iowa BIG program and Roosevelt Option that seek to offer students collaborative and creative learning opportunities that involve and benefit the broader community.

Vibrant, safe neighborhoods.

' DISTRACTED DRIVING - We supported the Iowa Department of Public Safety's call for a stronger, broader distracted driving law to replace a narrow texting ban. We've long held that texting while driving is only one example of distracted driving and the law should be broadened to encompass more.

' COHOUSING DEVELOPMENT - We were interested and tentatively supportive of an Iowa City proposal for development of an eight acre parcel into about 30 housing units. The units would be a mix of single-family dwellings and apartments that shared common facilities, open space and gardens.

' URBAN FARMING - We approved of a Cedar Rapids committee proposed expansion of urban farming options to allow small-scale farming on vacant or undeveloped land to encourage local food systems. Neighbors and other volunteers could join forces to raise food for their own use and to assist local pantries.

' GUN FORFEITURE - We applauded Linn County Sheriff Brian Gardner's new policy, requiring responding deputies to ask people seeking help in a mental health or substance-abuse crisis to voluntarily give their weapons to a family member or the Sheriff's Office for temporary safekeeping. While nothing had previously prevented deputies from asking, the new policy, which followed a double murder-suicide in Cedar Rapids, required them to make the request.

' FIREWORKS BAN - We supported lifting a ban on fireworks sales in Iowa due to ineffectiveness of the law. We also questioned the residents' need of such state protection from their own careless mistakes.

' HELPING HANDS - We were glad to see The University of Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities had students and teachers from about 10 academic disciplines working on about 25 community projects in 2014. That's the most the program has ever attempted in a single year.

' INDUSTRIAL PRISONS - The annual report on Iowa's Prison Industries was a testament to the effectiveness of the program, and a key reason we've remained wary of legislative reduction efforts. Inmates develop marketable skills, and state agencies purchase products ranging from furniture to signs to graphic design services. Inmates who have participated in the program have a recidivism rate of 4.9 percent, compared to 35 percent among those who did not. The program may, however, come under increased scrutiny as federal authorities push for more niche workforces to be moved to competitive wage employment.

Forward-looking stewardship of natural resources.

' CHICKADEE CHECKOFF - We were glad to see that following a 10-year decline, Iowa taxpayers increased donations to the state's wildlife conservation fund.

' DARLING PROJECT - We approved of the $16 million renovation at 1,400-acre Lake Darling State Park, which included new dam, runoff and erosion control measures, while more than 80 percent of landowners in the watershed built ponds, terraces and other conservation structures.

' AMAZING SPACE - We supported Indian Creek Nature Center's three-year push to raise money for a new education and interpretive building and campus. When completed, it would be Iowa's largest 'net-zero” (fully self-sustaining) building. It also aims to become the only Iowa project to achieve the Living Building Challenge certification - something only five other buildings in the world have achieved to date.

' KNOWING THE UNKNOWN - We called for more facts to support a group's plan to revitalize Cedar Lake in Cedar Rapids as a tourism destination and called for tests and measures that will show the lake's condition.

' DEADLY LEAD - We called on state lawmakers to pass legislation to protect eagles and other wildlife from environmental lead poisoning after a two-year study by federal biologists examining 168 dead eagles in Iowa and three other states found detectable concentrations of lead in early half the eagles studied, with 21 percent of the birds showing lethal concentrations of lead concentrations.

' MISGUIDED VETO - We were disappointed Gov. Terry Branstad exercised his line-item veto authority to strip bipartisan funding for the Resource Enhancement And Protection Program (REAP) and agriculture's nutrient reduction strategy, and called for lawmakers to try again during this upcoming session.

' Comments: editorial@thegazette.com; (319) 398-8262.