Key middle class issues in forefront at Iowa Capitol
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By Charlotte Eby | Sunday, January 13, 2008 |
DES MOINES — As the presidential caucuses dominating Iowa’s political scene have come and gone, the spotlight will now shift to the Capitol, where Iowa lawmakers are set to convene for the 2008 session on Monday.
Gov. Chet Culver, a Democrat, and legislative leaders have said they want to help Iowa’s middle class this year.
Culver points out that last year the state raised the minimum wage and expanded the earned income tax credit to assist working families.
“We want to build on that record of helping the middle class and helping others get an opportunity to move into the middle class,” Culver said in an interview with the Quad-City Times.
To build on that success, Culver thinks lawmakers will discuss what can be done to raise worker salaries.
Iowa has long been considered a “low-wage” state, and state leaders have moved to develop more lucrative positions. Culver wants to build on those efforts, although he has not given Iowans a preview of his plans.
“We’d like to do something to increase the wages of workers,” Culver said. “Right now, we’re 42nd in the nation. That’s not good enough.”
As lawmakers are set to drop the gavel on the 2008 session, Culver has stressed a need for discipline on spending this year and has asked the heads of state agencies to limit their budgets.
At the same time, he’s promised to maintain spending commitments made last year to raise teacher salaries, fund preschool initiatives and the Iowa Power fund, a $100 million pool of dollars meant to help spur the state’s renewable energy industry.
Iowa House Minority Leader Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City, said Republicans are worried about the spending increases that Culver has approved.
“It’s kind of like the guy who suddenly wakes up after New Year’s Eve and gets his first credit-card bill and says, ‘Oh, my gosh. Who charged all this stuff? How am I going to pay off these debts?’” Rants said.
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, D-Des Moines, describes the session’s agenda as standing up for the middle class and being responsible with the state’s pocketbook.
With fewer dollars to spend this year, lawmakers are likely to zero in on policy initiatives. Among those simmering issues:
-- Crackdown on businesses that hire illegal workers: House Democrats say one of their policy focuses for the session will be to create penalties for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants. They say the federal government has failed in its enforcement role, and the state should step in.
-- Affordable health care: A special commission studying Iowa’s health-care system has released a recommendation that Iowa achieve universal health-care coverage. The commission said the first step is insuring all of Iowa’s children and signing up those who are eligible, but not enrolled, in health-care
programs for the poor.
-- Local smoking restrictions: McCarthy said the House likely will consider proposals to allow local governments to enact smoking restrictions. He predicts the Legislature will stop short of passing a statewide ban in public places.Even with spending limitations, legislators appear ready to take on some expensive projects this session:
-- Building a new prison in Fort Madison: Talk of replacing the aging maximum-security prison, built in 1839, has swirled around the Legislature since the escapes of two inmates in 2005. Some have raised questions whether Fort Madison, in the far southeast corner of the state, is the best place for facility. But Democratic leaders say building a new prison is likely and have begun discussions on how it would be paid for.
-- Road construction funding: The Legislature also will be looking at dealing with an estimated $200 million annual shortfall in funding for road construction and maintenance. Culver has ruled out the idea of raising Iowa’s gasoline tax, and legislators are likely to consider raising registration fees for pickups.
-- Statewide sales tax for schools: The Legislature will study ways to replace county-by-county local-option sales taxes used to pay for school infrastructure projects with a statewide penny tax.
Looming over this year’s legislative session is the November election, which will see all 100 Iowa House seats up for re-election and 25 of the Senate’s 50 seats.
Democrats will be looking to widen their majorities in both the House and Senate, while Republicans will be looking to win back control. The focus will be heavily concentrated on the narrowly divided Iowa House.
Rants thinks the House will be in play and said the GOP has worked hard to recruit House candidates.
“We’ve got a lot of good people stepping forward,” Rants said.
Charlotte Eby can be contacted at (515) 243-0138 or chareby@aol.com.
2008 Session of the 82nd General Assembly
Schedule
Monday, Jan. 14 — Opening Day, House and Senate convene at 10 a.m.
Tuesday, April 22 — 100th Day, the last scheduled day.
Iowa Senate
30 Democrats, 20 Republicans
LEADERS:
Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs
Senate President Jack Kibbie, D-Emmetsburg
Senate President Pro Tempore, Jeff Danielson, D-Waterloo
Senate Minority Leader Ron Wieck, R-Sioux City
Senate Minority Whip Mark Zieman, R-Postville
Iowa House of Representatives
53 Democrats, 47 Republicans
LEADERS:
House Speaker Pat Murphy, D-Dubuque
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, D-Des Moines
Speaker Pro Tempore Polly Bukta, D-Clinton
House Minority Leader Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City
House Minority Whip Kraig Paulsen, R-Hiawatha
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