Iowa Legislature in budget battle stalemate with Iowans the victim of partisian politics
Iowa Capitol
Oskaloosa, Iowa – The people of Iowa are nearing a shutdown of their State Government.
July 1st is the deadline for a budget to be approved without a stoppage happening. The Republicans, who feel a mandate from the voters to help curb costs and watch the budget, are standing firm on several points they consider important, such as property taxes and not spending more than is taken in.
Democrat leaders contend that there is nearly $1 billion more in revenue than is projected and that school funding needs its’ two percent allowable growth. Democrats are also concerned that drastic property tax cuts will hurt counties and cities and they will be forced to lay off staff or cut services.
Recently, the Iowa House passed an omnibus bill that meets the demands of the Democrats with the two percent allowable growth. There had originally been a sticking point on that issue, with Republicans pointing towards the fact that their budget would help fill the gap left by former Governor Chet Culver when he slashed the budget across the board by ten percent last year.
Democrats still insisted on the two percent growth, and the Republican’s stepped forward with the compromise on that part of the budget.
Senator Paul McKinley answers a question by a local resident
Last Thursday I sat down with Senator Paul McKinley (R- Chariton), the Republican leader in the Senate. I asked him what he would say if Mike Gronstal (D- Council Bluffs) was sitting directly in front of him at that point. “I’d say Mike, we were elected to do the right thing for Iowans, and Iowans indicated very clearly they want us to live within our means and not spend more than we take in. This budget does that. We have leeway within that budget, we’ll negotiate on priorities, we told you that repeatedly. If you think K-12 ought to have more money, great we’ll talk about it, but it has to be within in the 5.99 billion framework, cause we can’t afford to spend more. Quit playing politics. You know there’s an election a year and a half from now. It will sort itself out, but let’s get this done and not deliberately shut down government.”
That last statement was a question I had posed earlier in the day to Governor Branstad. My question to him was “Do you think that the Senate Democrats are not compromising in order to try and make your administration look bad through all of this?”
Governor Branstad responded to that question by saying, “I really don’t know. I think they’re use to calling the shots when they had the Governorship and control of both houses of the legislature. Senator Gronstal was able to basically do what he wanted to because Governor Culver wasn’t that interest in policies, and the House just wasn’t as sophisticated as the Senate. But now he’s got a Republican Governor who has background and experience and has a definite agenda, and he’s got a Republican House, 60 percent majority there, he only has a bare 26 percent majority in the Senate. I think that circumstances have changed and it’s taken them a while to adjust to the fact that it’s a new reality.”
Governor Branstad was in Oskaloosa on Thursday on one of 43 stops for his “Working Together for a Better Future” tour
Gronstal has been accused by many all year of blocking many legislative measures on making it to the floor of the Senate. A vote on gay marriage and late term abortions have ended early under his leadership without making it to the floor for votes. Instead, on the late term abortion bill, the Senate Democrats rejected the House bill and wrote a piece of legislation that sets up a permitting process, and according to them makes it nearly impossible for Dr. Leroy Carhart, a Nebraska late term abortion doctor, to set up shop in Iowa.
I asked Senator McKinley about Gronstal potentially being a roadblock and not allowing important votes to Iowans to come to the floor. “We need to get people like Tom Rielly (D – Oskaloosa) to stop just marching down the track and doing everything Mike Gronstal tells them to do. We need to have some independent thinkers on the Democratic side. We don’t want them to engineer a shutdown a shutdown only to try and make it look like it’s the Republicans doing it, cause we’ve bent over backwards,” McKinley said of the looming shutdown if a budget compromise is not reached.
Rep. Guy Vander Linden (R) spoke about issues being dealt with in the Iowa House, Eggs and Issues March 12th, 2011
On June 3rd during a Republican fund raising event in Montezuma, I spoke with Representative Guy Vander Linden of Oskaloosa about the budget impasse. “Our understanding was what their big concerns were,” Vander Linden said at this event before the House voted to pass the omnibus bill that gave Democrats some of their demands. “We’re willing to compromise on those things,” he went on to say.
“When we started out negations as we were going through the regular process, it was something like 147 million dollar difference. We have now offered them another 101 million. Our offer has come up and instead of coming our way, they moved to a higher number. They haven’t even met their own targets,” Vander Linden said to Osky News at the June 3rd Republican event.
“We are going to stay under what we’re taking in. We’re not going to spend more than we take in. We’re going to insist on that,” Vander Linden said as many Republicans have said during this budget debate.
Iowa State Senator Tim Kapucian
Iowa State Senator Tim Kapucian was also on hand at the June 3rd meeting in Montezuma. Osky News had the opportunity to sit with him and ask him his thoughts on the budget battle that threatens the State.
“I think the Governor and the [Iowa] House came out with a proposal yesterday [June 2] that moves somewhat closer to where the Democrats want to be. All the rhetoric on the news is they’re saying that’s not enough. I thought compromise was where both sides gave a little,” Kapucian said on the reports of the House bill that did eventually pass the house and has been sent to the Senate.
“The Governor has shown this, and the House, that their willing to come make some concessions, try and get this thing moving, and yet Gronstal calling us trying to shut down state government. It’s not us [Republicans]. It’s Gronstal that’s blocking the way, I mean come on, lets get to the table,” Kapucian said at the June 3rd meeting.
Kapucian explained that Branstad is wanting the 2 year budget, and that the zero percent allowable growth in the budget for this year “but next year would give two percent. Now keep in mind that that zero percent allowable growth that we’re giving this year still is costing us 216 million more than it did last year. Because along with that we’re going to back fill things that didn’t get done when Governor Culver did his ten percent across the board cut.”
Senator Tom Rielly (D) speaks at Eggs and Issues April 8th 2011
I would like to point out that I have attempted to contact Senator Tom Rielly, but have got no response from him or his office. I really wanted to hear what Democrats wanted from this years budget, I wanted their side of the story. I waited some time to publish this one in an attempt to be as fair as possible.
Normally, I don’t inject my own opinion as that is for the reader to come to their own conclusion, but since this is obviously a biased story because of the mentioned issue of not being able to hear all sides of the story, I may as well at this point.
To all Republicans and Democrats. House members or Senators, Governor, Lt. Governor, School Administrator, Teacher, Mayor, Council Member, Supervisors. It’s time to take care of the people of Iowa. I dare you take take off that (R) or the (D) and instead replace it with an (I). No the (I) is not for Independent, it means that your an (I)owan, and you’re going to do the right thing for Iowa and the people you serve, not some political figure or leader. Quit worrying what your peers may think of you, or what office you may hold. Do the right thing and listen to those that put you in office.
I will once again make the offer to Sen. Tom Rielly to have a conversation on the issue. I will add that Sen. Mike Gronstal is also welcome to call or email me his thoughts about the budget process and I will be more than willing to share those with our readers.
*Editors Note- Osky News strives for political fairness. We try to share all Democrat and Republican points of view. Any views expressed by the writer in this piece are not necessarily the views of Osky News.*
