January 15, 2015 The elections of 2014 brought huge changes in the political landscape at the national level. An expanded majority in the House of Representatives, control of the Senate switched from Democrat to Republican and across the nation Republicans saw huge successes in Governor and Legislative races. In contrast, Iowa maintained the status quo. Republicans picked up three seats in the House where we now have a 56 to 43 majority with one seat yet to be determined, the Senate is still in Democratic control with the same 26-24 split that existed prior to the election and Governor Branstad is still our chief executive. Governor Branstad presented his State of the State address on Tuesday and Chief Justice Mark Cady gave the State of the Courts address on Wednesday. We will have one more joint session of the Legislature in February to receive the State of the Iowa National Guard from General Orr. Governor Branstad laid out his goals for the 2015 session in broad strokes, most of which were familiar to us. Connect Every Acre, an initiative to bring high speed internet to every nook and cranny of the state, an anti-bullying initiative in our schools, a more vigorous effort to increase funding for our decaying roads and bridges, and a renewed commitment to a balanced budget that meets the needs of the state while respecting the taxpayer. New issues that the Governor wants to focus on included an increased emphasis on domestic abuse including enhanced penalties for repeat offenders, reducing the cost of higher education and the debt load of Iowa students, a government accountability court that would increase transparency at all levels of government, and an initiative that he is calling Iowa Next that will work on lifestyle issues in order to attract business and workers to Iowa. Chief Justice Cady’s address focused on the success the courts have seen in the last two years as they have been able to restore Juvenile Court services and Juvenile Court officers. A dramatic reduction in juvenile offender recidivism rates indicates that we are on the right path with the increased emphasis in this area along with expanding the Family Court system. Justice Cady also raised the issue of courthouse security with the recent shooting incident in the Jackson County Courthouse. This will be a very complicated issue to resolve as Iowa courts reside in our county courthouses at no cost to the state. Increased security for the courts is a cost that should not be pushed off on the property tax payers. While increased security is a legitimate goal we must not push the burden onto our sheriff’s departments without compensation.
All committees in the Legislature are meeting this week where we will get acquainted, orient new members and do the organizational housekeeping required to be ready to do business when we return next week. From a budget perspective, this will be a difficult year but we will stand by our principles: We will not spend more than we take in; We will not use one time monies to fund ongoing expenses; We will not deliberately underfund any line item in order to make the budget balance; and we will return unused tax dollars to Iowa taxpayers. I am looking forward to hearing from you as the session advances. Please feel free to contact me with any concerns or suggestions that you might have.
I look forward to seeing you at my upcoming legislative forums: January 17
February 21
March 21
Kings Pointe Regatta Grill
Kings Pointe Regatta Grill
Kings Pointe Regatta Grill
10:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
