Category: Political
News from the Hill…
I am sponsoring two different bills this year that address problems constituents and other Iowans are having. The first one is the over reach by the DNR and some of its game wardens. House File 2196 permits land owners or tenants of the land, including people with them to drive around on their land after dark and not be cited for hunting with an artificial light, such as their headlights. They cannot confiscate your gun, if you are not doing anything criminal and you cannot be ticketed for walking on the wrong side of a fence with some allowances. Most of these would be classified as common sense, but some officer somewhere has to push the limit on enforcement to the exact letter of the law, or at least in their interpretation. This bill needs to be passed out of the Natural Resources Committee by Friday February 21st to stay eligible for debate.
The second bill, House File 2198 establishes a new classification for race car haulers. Once again over zealous IDOT officers are ticketing race car haulers because they are licensed as recreational vehicles, (RV). Under present law, they exceed the legal length of a RV and trailer. This bill has been assigned to the Ways and Means Committee, because it has an annual registration fee. With the bill being a Ways and Means bill, we have some time to work this bill through the process. I have assigned one of my best members to floor manage this bill.
First floor debate…
The first floor debate for this session was Tuesday, February 11. Two of the more controversial bills were HF 2109 dealing with electronic cigarettes and HF 2175 dealing with Telemedicine Abortion. The debate for both bills had numerous speakers and took some time to work through all of the comments. Presently e-cigarettes are unregulated and while most retailers are not selling them to minors, current law does not prevent this. This bill prohibits the sale, forbids the purchase and they cannot be in the possession of minor’s. Electronic cigarettes are used by adults as an alternative nicotine product. The main function would be for adults who use nicotine could use an e-cigarette instead of smoking tobacco. E-cigarettes do not contain tobacco. They are not harmful to ones health and they do not emit any smoke, only a vapor that is steam. Nicotine, is addictive, but is not harmful to your health. The bill does not subject electronic cigarettes to the state tobacco tax or the Iowa Smoke-Free Air Act, because they clearly are not tobacco product.
The second bill, HF 2175 prohibits a person from dispensing or causing to be dispensed any chemical agent or drug, via telecommunication for the termination of a human pregnancy with the intent that the pregnant woman will use the chemical agent to terminate her pregnancy. This bill only affects abortions that are performed using telecommunication technology to terminate a woman’s pregnancy.
Education Funding…
Under present Iowa Law, the legislature is supposed to establish the statewide growth for local school districts for the fiscal year following the fiscal budget we are working on. Simply, we are supposed to establish the percentage of growth for fiscal year 2016. We have already set the amount for fiscal year 2015 at 4%. The democrats want to set the growth for FY16 at 6%. I have never liked or agreed with the idea of the legislature setting the allowed growth for the fiscal year that far in advance because there are too many unknowns. Once the growth is set and if the state cannot honor its commitment, there are two options, one the property tax payers would have to pick up the shortfall or there would have to be a cut in their funding. Neither is a good option. We passed a bill on Thursday, HF2194 to change the law and not set the allowed growth this far in advance every year. Instead the General Assembly would set a two year amount in odd numbered years.
“My dream is of a place and a time where America will once again be seen as the last best hope of earth.” – Abraham Lincoln
For more information on these and other bills: www.legis.iowa.gov
Until next time,
Tom Sands
News from the Hill…
This week was our third joint session with the Iowa Senate for the year. Wednesday morning we were given the Condition of the Iowa National Guard. We are all proud of our soldiers, including the Iowa National Guard members and we owe them a great deal. One of the bills that will get lots of attention this year is military pension dollars exempted from Iowa Income Tax. A couple different versions are in the Ways and Means committee waiting to be assigned to sub-committee. This will happen in the next couple of weeks.
Great River Region Days…
This week was Southeast Iowa Great River Region Days at the Capitol. Individuals from businesses, local chambers, local government leaders and M Power U Youth Leadership students made the snowy trip on Wednesday morning. High School Juniors in school districts from Louisa, Des Moines, Lee and Henry County have the opportunity to take a leadership course offered by Southeast Community College. This college accredited class is called M Power U Youth Leadership; one of the main focuses is on the importance of leadership, to be involved in their communities and government. During Great River Region Days they divide up into three groups and make a presentation on three different topics. This year the three topics were: Money for Occupation-Not Education, Iowa School Start Date and Welfare Reform. The students put a lot of time and effort into their topics and research. Each group gave their presentation to the group and then the audience was expected to ask questions. The students did a great job of thinking through each question and defending their position. I was proud of the students and the job they did.
Iowa Income Tax Receipts…
Iowa personal income tax payments have declined in the past seven months when compared to the same period a year ago. This represents a decline of $24 million. According to the Legislative Services Agency, (LSA) there was a 17 percent drop in total state tax collections in December of last year with a slight increase last month. Specifically, personal income tax payments were down 10 percent in December. The Personal Income Tax makes up about half of Iowa’s general fund revenue.
From July 2013 through January 2014, Iowa collected more than $3.7 billion in taxes. That is 1.2 percent less than the same period one year prior. Some of this difference is due to the deposit of tobacco and gambling taxes in a separate account. If those items were still included in the state general fund, revenue would be at about 0.6 percent more than last year.
Fiscal House…
In Iowa we have a balanced budget established by law that we cannot spend more than 99% of available revenue. However, when there is a will there is a way when big spenders want to follow the law, but spend more. Too often in the past the big spenders would pass a budget under the 99% spending limitation, but do so by intentionally underfunding entitlements. They then would come back in for a special session or early in the next session and pass a supplemental spending bill that surpassed the spending limitation. Those tricks were used extensively under the Culver administration. Since then, House Republicans vowed we would not do that while we were in the majority and under Governor Branstads leadership. We have not broken that promise. The spending limitation is based on a projection made in December for the fiscal year that starts in the following July. While there is a lot of time and effort put into the projection, it is just that a projection and actual receipts can be greater or less than the projection. People expect their government to live within its means just like we do in our own family and/or businesses. I have vowed that we will keep our on-going expenditure under our on-going revenue. The general fund in Iowa has just about doubled in the twelve years I have been here. It is more important than ever, to keep our spending in check. But the Big Spenders are circling.
“Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties.” – Abraham Lincoln
For more information on these and other bills: www.legis.iowa.gov
Until next time,
Tom Sands
