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Funnel Week Update

Feb 15th, 2010
by Chris.
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law library stairs tallThe Legislature was put into overdrive last week, as we faced the first of two “funnel” deadlines where bills had to be voted out of committee in order to be eligible for further debate.  Several high-profile bills managed to make it through, and now will be placed on the Calendar for consideration on the House floor.

Funnel week saw the consideration in committee of two controversial labor bills.  Still active is a mandate for artificial wages rates on public projects and a bill to mandate that non-union public employees pay union dues.

HSB 699, commonly referred to as “prevailing wage,” would be a huge burden on Iowa taxpayers.  When cities, counties, and the state are forced to pay more for public projects, the cost is either passed on to you and I, the taxpayers, or else the projects are scrapped altogether.  The bill interferes with the free market, and does not allow projects to be bid competitively.

HSB 702 is an effort to substantially weaken Iowa’s Right-to-Work Law (inappropriately called “Fair Share”).  For the better part of a century, Iowa’s Right to Work Law has protected employees from being forced to join a union or forced to pay union dues against their will.  If this passes, non-union employees would be required to pay dues to an organization to which they do not belong, and to a union with whom they may disagree on political and social issues.

Iowa’s Right-to-Work laws are an important factor for employers when considering Iowa as a place to establish or expand their business.  We ought to be focused on giving employers positive reasons to choose our state for their business.

These bills are anti-economic growth, anti-free choice, and bad for job creation.  I will continue to strongly oppose these bills, and work instead for opportunities to get our economy growing again.

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State Auditor’s Review of the 2011 Budget

Feb 11th, 2010
by Chris.
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State Auditor David Vaudt completed his audit of Governor Culver’s FY 2011 budget this week and the results were troubling.  Auditor Vaudt used numbers from the non-partisan Legislative Services Agency, and found that the Governor’s budget may be as much as $400 million out of balance.  Auditor Vaudt’s review also indicates that this budget exceeds out state laws’ 99% spending limitation by $25 million.

Also troubling, is the Auditor’s finding that the Governor’s budget shortchanges local school districts, and ultimately local property taxpayers.  Auditor Vaudt’s report states that the “…Governor’s budget could have the effect of raising property taxes
on Iowans by as much as $170 million.”

House Republicans have already offered $290 million dollars in budget savings, and we will continue to offer our ideas to fix the budget, while protecting taxpayers.

Read Auditor Vaudt’s report here.

Posted in: Policy, budget.
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Newsletter – February 8, 2010

Feb 8th, 2010
by Chris.
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law library stairs tallCurrently working its way through the legislative process is a massive 250 page bill with a plan for reorganization of state government.  We should always be looking for ways to streamline government, but the need is especially great this year, given the $1.1 billion spending gap for the coming fiscal year.

Many of the ideas in the bill were already proposed by House Republicans last year, and I’m glad to see them now being considered.  Our ideas in the bill include selling and privatization of the state vehicle fleet ($18 million), partial elimination of unfilled positions in state government (up to $14.5 million) and consolidation of information technology services ($1 million).

Unfortunately, there are also several items in the bill which I do not support.

HSB565 makes sweeping changes to Iowa’s Empowerment program, moving administration to the Department of Education and away from our local school districts.  Empowerment has been very effective in helping to meet the needs of low income/at-risk students.  We have seen great benefits locally from this program here locally.

The Governor’s proposed budget anticipates the reorganization bill will result in $341 million in savings; however the non-partisan Legislative Services Agency estimates the FY2011 savings at only $52.7 million.  To bridge this gap, House Republicans recently offered another $290 million in cost saving proposals, yet none of these ideas have been considered.

Included in our new budget saving ideas include elimination of taxpayer funded lobbyists ($4 million), selling the Iowa Communications Network ($15 million), delayed implementation of the model core curriculum ($10.5 million), and cuts to office supplies and equipment ($5 million).

Our budget problems stem from overspending during the past several years.  The solutions therefore, must come from responsible budget cuts, not tax increases.

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Newsletter – February 1, 2010

Feb 1st, 2010
by Chris.
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law library stairs tallThis week Governor Culver released his budget to Iowans.  While the budget is smaller than in previous years, spending is still too high.  The budget includes a $170 million dollar property tax increase that Iowa’s families and business simply cannot afford.

The Legislature will now get to work to determine the fine details of the budget.  I will not support any bill which will ask for more from any taxpayer.  We need to rein in government spending, set funding priorities, and place Iowa on a strong financial path once again.  Employed and unemployed Iowans are counting on us to help improve the state of Iowa’s economy, not enact more regulations and taxes to pay for other programs.

Private business will be the real engine for economic recovery.

I am also calling on the majority party to set aside several job-killing bills.  The Legislature has already wasted too much time on efforts to repeal Iowa’s Right-to-Work law and to allow doctor shopping in worker’s compensation claims.  Again this week, a bill was introduced to repeal federal deductibility, which would be a huge tax increase as it would force us to pay a state tax on the dollars we send to the federal government.  Any of these bills would be bad for business and workers.

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Newsletter – January 22nd, 2010

Jan 22nd, 2010
by Chris.
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As many predicted, Iowa’s budget has quickly come to the forefront of this year’s legislative session.  Many lawmakers continue to suggest ideas to help fix our state’s $1 Billion budget gap.  In the same spirit of protecting Iowa taxpayers, I am working to assure that we balance the budget not just for this year, but to protect taxpayers into the future.

This week, I introduced legislation to create a Constitutional Spending Limitation to our state’s budgeting practices.  Currently, there is a provision in Iowa law which only allows lawmakers to spend 99% of its tax receipts.  Unfortunately, the expenditure limit is not in the Constitution and the legislature has repeatedly found ways around this statutory limit.  Over the past several years, the spending limit has been temporarily suspended altogether, resulting in our current budget disaster.

In 2006, for example, the limit was suspended, resulting in an additional $84.2 Million in spending.  In 2007, the limit was again suspended resulting in $45.7 Million more in spending.  According to projections, if we had abided by this 99% limitation since 2007, our state would have saved $179 Million.

Years of ignoring the existing spending limit has contributed to the budget disaster we now faces.  Our state could have avoided these bloated, unsustainable state budgets.  That is why I have introduced this Constitutional Spending Limitation.  Not only will this Constitutional Spending Limitation provide needed budgeting reform, it will also effectively provide much greater protection for the Iowa taxpayer.

If you have any additional thoughts on how we can save money, return the power to the people, or protect the Iowa taxpayers, please let me know.

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Newsletter – January 15th 2010

Jan 17th, 2010
by Chris.
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law library stairs tallAs the session begins, there is not only an atmosphere of excitement, but also one of trepidation.  It is no secret to most of you that Iowa faces many challenges, but as public servants I believe we should be here to meet those challenges head-on, rather than try to hide them or pass them along to another year and to another generation.

In Governor Culver’s address this week on the Condition of the State, I was pleased to hear his promise to not burden Iowa’s families with tax increases.  Unfortunately, his record on taxes says otherwise.

Last fall, Governor Culver’s ten percent across the board cut would have crippled Iowa’s schools had it affected their spending authority, but since it only slashed the funding they receive from the state, it saddles the property taxpayer with a loss that must be backfilled.  The Non-Partisan Legislative Services Agency estimates this property tax increase for the next fiscal year at $268.9 million.

We must also be vigilant against other tax increases which creep into our code through new fees and charges that prevent Iowans from keeping more of their hard earned money.

In the past three years, Iowans have had to deal with, and defeat, initiatives such as combined corporate reporting (proposal would cost Iowans an additional $25 million), the “bottle deposit bill” (proposal would cost Iowans an additional $21.5 million), and a repeal of federal deductibility (proposal would cost Iowans an additional $600 million).  Fortunately, those proposals have failed so far.  Unfortunately, others passed and Iowans are financially responsible for more government spending.

I promise to fight against any measure that perpetuates this pseudo-balancing act.  As House Republican Leader Kraig Paulsen stated in his opening comments on the session, “House Republicans will not support any budget that spends more money than it takes in. Balancing the budget is not good enough if it’s on the backs of the property taxpayer.”

As always, please let me know if you have any ideas on how we can save money and protect the taxpayers of Iowa.

Posted in: Newsletters, Policy, budget.
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Newsletter – December 30, 2009

Dec 30th, 2009
by Chris.
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law library stairs tall“…And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.”

– President Obama, Inaugural Address, January 20th 2009.

Friends and neighbors,

Over the past several months, I have enjoyed talking with many of you and listening to your concerns about the direction of our state and our country. One thing that I continue to hear from people is a growing concern that government is no longer accountable to the people. There is frustration at runaway spending, without an ability to understand where our tax dollars are being spent. This must change.

Again this year, my colleagues and I in the House Republican caucus will be working to pass the Iowa Transparency Act. This bill directs the Iowa Department of Administrative Services to develop and operate a single searchable web site for Iowa taxpayers to see how and where their tax dollars are being collected and spent.

The Iowa Transparency web site will allow the public, at no cost, to search a database that would provide the names and principal location or residence of recipients of state funds, amount of funds expended, the agency that provided those funds, the program or activity of the expenditure, description of the purpose of the expenditure, expected and past outcomes of funding actions or expenditures, state audits relating to expenditures, and other relevant information.

The Iowa House passed this legislation in 2009 with bi-partisan support, but the bill was not taken up by the Senate.

The people of Iowa hold power over their government, not the other way around. The public should always be kept informed.

I am always eager to hear your ideas on how to not only improve our budgeting practices, but also how we can reform the way our government does business. Please stay in touch, and together we can work toward getting Iowa back on track.

Posted in: Iowa, Newsletters, Policy.
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Newsletter – December 2nd

Dec 2nd, 2009
by Chris.
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law library stairs tall

Greetings! With the 2010 legislative session quickly approaching, it is time to begin my regular newsletters once again. Over the next several weeks, I want to provide a preview of the upcoming session, so we can work together to address the concerns which are ahead for Iowa.

These are difficult financial times across the country, with unemployment continuing to rise and uncertainty about the direction of our economy. I have talked with many families facing job losses and others who have seen cutbacks in pay. Just like many family budgets, the state budget is also in rough shape. After three years of rapid growth in state spending, we are now faced with sharp declines in revenue. This has created a deep budget hole from which we have only begun to recover.

Do not be misled by claims that these budget problems are solely because of the downturn in the national economy. In April, Governor Culver signed into law the largest budget in the history of the State of Iowa at $6.3 billion. I voted NO on this budget and I would do so again today. While every family was working to prioritize spending and make sure all bills would be paid, our government over-spent.

By law, Iowa must have a balanced budget. After finally being forced remedy the huge gap in the state state spending, Governor Culver made a decision to balance the budget with a simple 10% across-the-board (ATB) cut. In our family budgets, we work to find places where we can afford to cut back spending: cable television, eating out, travel, etc. We don’t cut back on our mortgage and insurance payments. We make choices about what is most important.

Although I appreciate that the Governor has finally seen the need to reduce government spending, his across-the-board cut was not the right way to tackle the problem. The Governor should have called the Legislature back into special session, so that our elected representatives could do the work of prioritizing programs which are the most critical functions of government and which programs are optional.

It is also important to note even with the 10% ATB cut the past three annual Iowa government budgets are still the largest in state history. This chart shows how state spending has grown in recent years:

Beyond our current budget year, the upcoming FY 2010 budget looks to be even more challenging. The non-partisan Legislative Services Agency (LSA) just released their preview of the 2010 budget. LSA took a look at built-in spending increases and ongoing obligations and determined that the 2010 budget gap is $1.07 billion dollars.

(The full LSA report can be found here)
http://www.legis.state.ia.us/lsadocs/IssReview/2010/IRDLR000.PDF

This year at the Capitol, I will once again be working to protect the taxpayer and find ways to limit government spending. With your help, we must work to determine which spending programs are most critical to the people of Iowa and which programs can be reduced or eliminated.

As always, I would very much appreciate your ideas and input. Let’s get our ideas ready to take to the Capitol, and get our state back on track.

Posted in: Newsletters, Policy, budget.
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Owen’s Tax Dollars at Work in Windsor Heights

Nov 19th, 2009
by Chris.
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My wife Amanda and my son Owen went out for a walk today, and ended up at Colby Park here in Windsor Heights.  Amanda sent me a picture message from her phone of a new sign in front of the job site for the new community center:

colby park ijobs sign

I suspect that the Culver Administration thinks that this will help them buy votes next year, but based on the conversations I have with my fellow citizens, it will likely backfire.  The people of Iowa simply do not want more debt.  They are frustrated with exploding deficits at the federal level and concerned about runaway spending here in Iowa.

Amanda pointed out that there used to be a sign near this job site that said “Your Tax Dollars at Work” (or something similar).  This new one ought to instead read “Your Children’s Tax Dollars at Work.”  I hope Owen gets his money’s worth.

Posted in: Community Info, Iowa, Policy.
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General Fund Spending Chart

Nov 16th, 2009
by Chris.
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This chart was forwarded to me today.  The following chart displays state expenditures over the past ten years.  This clearly illustrates how the Gov. Culver has passed the three largest budgets in state history, even factoring the recent 10% across-the-board cut.

Do not be misled by claims that this is just a revenue problem.  Rather than point fingers at external causes, we must come to grip with the fact that a big part of our current budget shortfall is runaway state spending.

GF spending chart

(Numbers on the chart from the non-partisan Legislative Services Agency.  The dark blue and light blue bars indicate general fund expenditures (light blue for one-time federal stimulus money).  The green bar indicates Gov. Culver’s recent 10% cut)

Posted in: Uncategorized.

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