Hite Capitol Update
This week of session was a bit condensed because we took Monday off to celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Nevertheless, it was still a busy week with committee meetings, subcommittee meetings, and meetings with different state agencies. Friday is the last day for Representatives and Senators to request bills to be drafted by the Legislative Services Agency. I am happy to say I have submitted three bills to be drafted that were requested by our local county officials. I will keep you posted as these bills progress through the Statehouse.
As I mentioned in my last newsletter, improving broadband internet access in rural Iowa is a goal we are strongly pursuing this session. Central to those efforts is legislation regarding cell siting. In 2015 the Legislature passed the “Iowa Cell Siting Act” implementing the FCC’s Report and Order, “Acceleration of Broadband Deployment by Improving Wireless Facilities Siting Policies.”
Governor Branstad signed the bipartisan bill aimed at speeding up and streamlining the deployment of wireless infrastructure. The Iowa Cell Siting Act (HF 655) expanded the deemed granted remedy beyond collocations to include new builds. Also, the definition of “substantial change” was modified to the existing support structure, which determines if a wireless application can be treated as an eligible facility request and expedited treatment under Section 6409(a). One of several litmus tests for a substantial change was if the tower height increases 10 percent or by the height of an additional array. The bill also limited a permit authority’s ability to evaluate an applicant’s business decisions concerning the customer demand, service quality or desired signal strength to a particular location.
In 2017 unanimous legislation built on the Cell Siting Act to add small cells to the macro tower streamlined process. This was given sunset of July 1, 2022 to ensure that all the stakeholders had regular communication and were working together.
Wireless internet access is an important part of connectivity and expanding broadband in the state of Iowa. Extending the sunset until 2025 allows this technology to continue to develop and mature. This includes expanding access to the fifth generation of wireless (5G) which provides users with faster internet options. It also continues to encourage wireless carriers and local jurisdictions to have open lines of communication.
We are working on several ideas to give every Iowan the ability to connect to the internet. Extending the Cell Siting Act is an important part of these efforts.
In addition to high speed internet access, providing adequate funding for education remains a priority this session. Our commitment to supporting Iowa’s K-12 education system has been strong over the last nine years. Since 2011, investment in Iowa schools has increased by $863 million, or about 35%.
Below is how the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency breaks that down year by year:
Fiscal Year (school year) Percent Growth State Cost Per Pupil State Foundation School Aid State Aid Increase
FY11 (10/11) $2,444,144,299
FY12 (11/12) 0% $5883 $2,623,826,586 $179,682,287
FY13 (12/13) 2% $6001 $2,652,633,798 $28,807,212
FY14 (13/14) 2% + 2% one-time $6121 $2,716,133,473 $63,499,675
FY15 (14/15) 4% $6366 $2,865,029,554 $148,896,081
FY16 (15/16) 1.25% $6446 $2,952,004,924 $86,975,370
FY17 (16/17) 2.25% $6591 $3,089,422,722 $137,417,798
FY18 (17/18) 1.11% $6664 $3,179,629,446 $90,206,724
FY19 (18/19) 1% $6736 * $3,207,571,601 $27,942,155
Transportation $11,200,000
FY20 (19/20) 2.06% $6880 * $3,289,036,113 $81,464,512
Transportation $7,800,000
9-yr total increase 35.3% $863,891,814
To put these numbers in perspective, here is how investment in K-12 has increased compared to inflation since 2011:
K-12 funding increase – 35.3%
Midwest Consumer Price Index – 13.47%
House Republicans want to make Iowa schools first and are committed to setting SSA as early as possible so school boards have time to plan their budgets for the 2020-21 school year.
With that, we have finished another week in Des Moines. I look forward to continuing our work next week, and I will keep you updated on the progress of bills through the House. As always, I encourage any constituent making a trip to the Statehouse to email me at dustin.hite@legis.iowa.gov if they would like to set up a meeting.
