The Rozenboom Report – Week 13 – Debate and Confirmations
by Ken Rozenboom
The thirteenth week of the legislative session involved a lot of debate by the Senate on wide-ranging legislation and issues. We are working our way through bills that have been amended by the House and Senate, finding an agreement on the budget for the year, and confirming a number of appointees by the governor.
One of the job duties unique to the Senate is the confirmation of governor appointees. Each year the governor appoints people as the head of departments or to various boards and commissions. These candidates are called by senators so they can discuss their qualifications, goals, and why they want these jobs, just like any other job interview. Governor appointments require a two-thirds majority vote in the Iowa Senate, meaning Iowans who are appointed need 34 votes of support in order to be confirmed.
Finishing up AEA Reform
After nearly three months of intense conversations, on March 27 Gov. Reynolds signed HF2612 into law. It’s always difficult to reform a long-standing institution such the AEA system. The AEAs have done a tremendous amount of good for many, many years in Iowa, and all of us are appreciative of that work. As I’ve said many times, there are a thousand bright stars in the AEA constellation, but the world has changed since the AEAs were created in 1974 and reform was needed.
The bill itself makes changes that are modest and fair, but necessary, and will pose no threat to the viability of the AEA system despite all the rhetoric. We will have new accountability and transparency that is currently lacking. Under the current system, our school districts were forced to simply pass their property tax dollars for education and media services on to the AEA, with no way to measure the value of the bundle of services they receive in return. We have given those school boards and superintendents the ability to hold those dollars until they can determine the value they are receiving in return.
One of the driving needs behind this bill is the need for us to serve our special needs children better tomorrow than we do today. We have returned the oversight of delivery of services to our special needs children back to the Department of Education where it historically was, and where it belongs.
Grain Indemnity Fund Update
Senate File 2401 is one of the bills we debated this week to help support farmers and the agriculture industry in our state. The Grain Indemnity Fund was created in 1986 during the farm crisis and acts as an insurance policy for the grain farmers store at grain elevators. Currently, all grain dealers and warehouse operators are required to participate in the Grain Indemnity Fund and pay fees on purchased or stored grain. If at the end of a fiscal year the fund exceeds $8 million, the fees are waived, but if the balance of the fund falls below $3 million, the Grain Indemnity Fund Board reinstates these fees. Senate File 2401 adjusts those amounts to $12 million and $5 million and also extends coverage to credit sale contracts. Last year, the Grain Indemnity Fund ran out of money due to a number of circumstances and the fee had to be reinstated. This bill updates these numbers to better reflect today’s commodity values and hopefully prevent additional fees on farmers in the future.
Increasing Taxpayer Protections
On Tuesday the Iowa Senate passed Senate Joint Resolution 2004, a proposal to put a flat tax into the Iowa Constitution. SJR 2004 is a constitutional amendment, which means it needs to pass two consecutive General Assemblies (meaning it will have to pass the legislature again in 2025 or 2026) before going before the people of Iowa for a vote. The constitutional amendment would add a single tax rate into the constitution, ensuring one single rate for all Iowans and making it more difficult for a graduated tax rate to be put back into place.
Protecting Farmers from Higher Costs
This week the Senate passed SF 2412 to help control the cost of herbicide for farmers. A few years ago, trial lawyers took aim at RoundUp (glyphosate), a commonly used herbicide on many farms. Trial lawyers found a willing judge and jury in California to award a multi-billion dollar judgement against the maker of that product, claiming the label the company used did not adequately warn the users of the product of the risks of using it.
The label used on RoundUp is determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has determined the label on RoundUp is correct and appropriate given the risk of the product, which is minimal.
There is absolutely no scientific proof that suggests that Roundup is carcinogenic, despite the efforts of some to suggest there is a link. RoundUp is more effective, cheaper, safer for farmers, and better for the environment than many herbicides used a couple decades ago.
SF 2412 simply states manufacturers cannot be sued for the required EPA label they put on their agricultural products. It is a common-sense proposal, but during debate in the Senate, many wild claims were made about not allowing farmers to sue if they get sick. Despite the false rhetoric of Democrats, nothing in this bill prevents farmers from suing if a product is found to actually cause cancer. It just states a manufacturer cannot be sued if they label their product as required under federal law and regulated by the EPA.
In Iowa, the legislature is routinely battling out-of-state attacks on production agriculture. The attack on an effective, affordable product that helps Iowa farmers produce the cheapest and safest food supply in human history is unfortunate, but not surprising. The House has not yet acted on the legislation but hopefully they will soon, and put the interests of Iowa farmers and consumers ahead of trial lawyers.
