Bacon Beacon STATE REPRESENTATIVE ROB BACON Forty-Eighth District Statehouse: (515) 281-3221 e-mail:
[email protected]
House of Representatives State of Iowa Eighty-Sixth General Assembly STATEHOUSE
Des Moines, Iowa 50319
Week Two
COMMITTEES Human Resources, Vice Chair Natural Resources State Government Appropriations APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE Health and Human Services
Governor Branstad’s Budget Proposal The Governor’s Budget spends $7.3410 billion in FY 2016, an increase of $346.7 million over FY 2015 or 4.95 percent. 90 percent of Iowa’s budget goes to three areas - School aid ($2.9 billion), wages and benefits for state employees ($2.1 billion), and Medicaid ($1.6 billion). Over the past decade, state revenue has grown by 4.1 percent annually, state spending on K-12 education grew by 4.2 percent, and Medicaid grew by 11.7 percent. 55 percent of the Governor’s FY 2016 budget proposal is targeted to education. State Aid to Schools over the last four years (FY 11-15) has increased $421 million or 16.6%. If Education Reform dollars are included that number jumps to $471 million or 18.6%. If the Governor’s plan for FY 16 is included that number jumps to $554 or 21.9%. That is a tremendous investment in our K-12 schools over the last 4 years especially considering statewide enrollment has been relatively flat. According to the Department of Education’s Allocation Summary documents, Iowa will spend $10,231 per student in FY 15. That means in a classroom of 20, Iowa spends just over $200,000. Medicaid Medicaid is the second biggest program in state government, and without major reform it will continue to take funding away from other priorities like schools. Medicaid was 9% of the state budget in FY 2000. Today it is over 20%. While many are focused on targeting more money to schools, Medicaid is a looming issue that cannot be ignored. Over the past ten years, state revenue has grown by an average of 4.1%. School aid during this time grew at 4.2% annually
while Medicaid had an annual growth rate of 11.7%. The growth of Medicaid is crowding out other areas of the budget within the debate for additional resources. Social Security Legislation passed in 2006 to phase out the state income tax on social security benefits has finally been fully implemented. Senate File 2408 (2006) phased out the tax over eight years and started out by exempting 32 percent of taxable social security benefits from state income tax for the first two years. That number than ratcheted up every year until reaching 100 percent in tax year 2014. According to the latest estimate by the Iowa Department of Revenue the impact of the phase out of income tax on social security was $106 million for fiscal year 2014 and $128 million for fiscal year 2015. That is more than $240 million in taxpayer savings in the last two years. Veterans Affairs There is little doubt that last year’s Home Base Iowa package provided incentives for veterans to come to Iowa and make it their home. These incentives were mostly geared toward veterans—but also included were some provisions for the spouses of veterans. One division of Home Base Iowa required Iowa’s licensing boards to grant expedited licenses to veterans and their spouses who already held professional licenses in other states. The boards were instructed to streamline the process and make it easier for veterans and their spouses coming into the state to get to work in their chosen field—often times in professions they had been doing for years. Because military families move often, licensing requirements in the various jurisdictions can prove cumbersome and time consuming. The Iowa Board of Educational Examiners is offering a three year “military exchange license” to veterans and their spouses. The license is offered at a reduced cost. This temporary license lets the veteran and their spouse continue teaching in Iowa for three years without having to do additional coursework or testing. Our veterans were honored at the state capitol rotunda on Wednesday with a personal message from Governor Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds. It was an honor to see so many veterans in attendance and I am deeply humbled by their service. Thank you for allowing me to represent you in the Iowa House. As always, feel free to contact me at
[email protected]
