The Rozenboom Report – February 18th, 2022

by Senator Ken Rozenboom

This was one of the busiest weeks of the year. By the end of this week Senate bills need to be out of committees in order for them to be debated by the full Senate and considered in the House of Representatives, with the exception of bills in the Appropriations, Ways and Means, and Government Oversight committees. This self-imposed deadline narrows the focus to the most important legislation of the year.

The governor’s workforce bill, Senate File 2275, passed through the Commerce Committee this week. The goal of the bill is to help address the workforce shortage impacting nearly every part of the Iowa economy. Some highlighted provisions include implementing a one-week waiting period for unemployment benefits, and moving the duration from 6 months to 4 months. Long-term government payments replacing work has negative implications not only for the economy in general, but for individuals and their families. This bill will help combat fraud and provide an incentive to get back to work.

Another topic covered this week addresses athletic eligibility in school sports. Senate Study Bill 3146 is a bill aimed at fairness in school sports and requires that only female students, based on their sex, may participate in any team, sport, or athletic event designated as being for females, women or girls. This bill is not attacking anyone or their identity; rather, it simply recognizes the biological differences between males and females, and ensures all athletes have an equal opportunity to accomplish their athletic goals.

House File 2316, the school funding bill, was passed in the Senate on Monday and signed by the Governor on Thursday. The bill dedicates nearly $160 million in additional spending for K-12 schools for the next fiscal year. This bill also provides additional funds to help rural schools with transportation costs.

This week Senate Republicans released budget targets for the fiscal year starting July 1, 2022. These targets outline our spending priorities. As always, education, health care and public safety dominate state spending. This budget outline also includes $71 million for mental health funding and the complete elimination of the property tax levy for mental health.

The total budget target for next year is slightly more than $8.2 billion, an amount that matches Governor Reynolds spending proposal. These budget targets provide reasonable increases to state government and sustainable funding in future years. This budget maintains our reserve funds, spends only 90 percent of available revenue, and allows room for our proposed tax cuts.

Keeping spending under control makes sure the largest income tax cut in Iowa history is sustainable. The Senate tax cut plan implements a flat 3.6 percent tax rate and will save Iowa taxpayers an average of nearly $1600 when fully implemented. It eliminates taxes on pensions, reforms the corporate tax rate to make it flatter and fairer, and provides retirement relief for Iowa farmers.

These tax cuts improve Iowa’s income tax rate from the eighth highest rate to the fourth lowest. It puts the state on the path to eliminate the income tax and eases the burden of government on hard-working Iowans. A lower tax rate will make Iowa more competitive in the global economy as states compete for jobs and people.

On Wednesday afternoon I attended a wonderful event in Pella along with Governor Reynolds and Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks. Last December, Maddie Schmitz, a junior at Pella High School, noted that she and her fellow classroom students were reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the image of a flag printed on an 8×11 piece of laminated paper. Iowa passed legislation in May 2021 that requires schools to administer the Pledge of Allegiance and show the U.S. flag each school day. Due to budget constraints, Pella High School was not able to provide a flag in every classroom. So Maddie enlisted the help of American Legion Post 89 to provide funding to purchase 175 American flags for placement in every Pella school district classroom. Hats off to Maddie!