The Capitol Report  by Rep. Curt Hanson

Session report for week 12.

I recently toured the new Iowa Utilities Board building; this building was designed and constructed with the latest energy savings ideas ? Platinum LEED standards.

Included in the design are geothermal heating and solar panels, as well as natural lighting and super insulation.

Already the building is showing energy savings of 70 percent over a conventionally constructed building, and in most office areas, no artificial lighting is needed during normal working hours. However, one need not drive to Des Moines to find the latest energy savings construction techniques ? many homes and offices in the Fairfield area are constructed to LEED design standards.

I think we can learn a great deal from these examples in improving our building design to achieve long-term energy (cost) savings.

March 23, I had the opportunity to tour the industrial complex near Eddyville. There are four industries and an Indian Hills Community College training facility located at this complex. More than 660 people are directly employed by these companies with an average salary of about $60,000 per year. The stepping stone to these good paying middle class family jobs is the training partnership these industries have with Indian Hills. Many of the employees have completed programs tailored for employment at these industries by Indian Hills. It is

a good example of how our community colleges are supporting families and industries in our area. An estimated 2,000 additional jobs are created by having the complex located at Eddyville. Examples of these additional jobs are the drivers of the 375 daily truckloads of grain necessary for maximum production, as well as the private contractors needed for daily maintenance of this $1.2 billion complex. Diane and I capped the day with a trip back in time as we attended ?A Tribute to the Beatles? at the Sondheim Center for Performing Arts. It was a sold-out crowd and many had a chance to again hear the songs of their youth.

March 24 included an early morning ?Coffee with Curt? meeting in Keosauqua. I was pleased with the turnout, and I will carry your thoughts and questions back to the Capitol. I then attended meetings in Fairfield and Bloomfield. That night many of us attended a free concert performed by the United States Air Force Heartland of America Band. The band is based at the Offutt Air Force Base and is currently on tour.

Our son, his wife and our 15-month old grandson visited the Capitol March 26. I was pleased to introduce the family to the entire House. I understand our grandson slept all the way home. We spent the afternoon in committee meetings and caucus. April 17 is the last date legislators and their staff members are paid. After that date, legislators are not paid, even if we are still working at the Capitol. Usually by this time, conference committee bills are under consideration and movement is being made toward shutdown. March 27 my question was answered, as we began debate on a number of budget bills that the Senate, House and governor have vastly different positions. I listened to the debate as members asked us to reduce the budgets of community colleges and universities. Those of us who attended the meeting with the industries located at Eddyville know how those industries depend on graduates produced by our community colleges and universities. I spoke in support for educational programs that provide good jobs in southeast Iowa and educational programs that are affordable by area students. Providing the education and jobs that allow the middleclass to raise families in southeast Iowa is a win for all! Alas, the House voted to send this budget of yesteryear to a conference committee with the Senate ? one representative stated during floor debate that this funding is at the 1994 level. The afternoon debate continued with other department budgets being sent to conference committees with the Senate. I?m sorry we do not seem to agree on these budgets; however, sending these budgets to a conference committee is a necessary step toward resolution.

Nurses in Iowa are paid near the bottom of the national pay scale, and we are approaching a crisis partially because to become a nurse educator in many cases requires a nurse to take a pay cut. An amendment to the education budget to prepare for an expected nurse shortage was defeated on a voice vote. As our population ages, I?m sure we will revisit this issue in the future. We also approved an amendment that treats all college students the same: freezing the tuition of only university students did not seem fair to most of us, so an amendment was passed to freeze tuition of community college students as well. Fairness is something Iowans understand. Many may not be aware Iowa community colleges? tuition rates rank among the highest in the nation. This budget passed 56-40-4 along party lines. This budget is expected to be rejected by the Senate, as it is well below the governor?s proposed budget and sets a tone that not all Iowans are interested in meaningful educational reform. We ended the evening with the passage of a number of noncontroversial bills.

The morning of March 28, we again debated budget bills ? a sign we are moving toward the end of the session. The infrastructure budget was debated first, which includes the budget for Great Places. The Villages of Van Buren County have recently received the distinction of being named to the Great Places of Iowa list. I supported an amendment to move money from gambling receipts and use that money to increase the total funding for this outstanding program because I think it relates to jobs and tourism in Iowa. The amendment failed on a voice vote. This bill, as amended and passed, is far different from the Senate version, so I expect this bill to also move to a conference committee. In the afternoon, we passed a number of noncontroversial bills.

Thursday was spent in caucus and committee meetings with afternoon debate dealing with noncontroversial bills such as illegal controlled substances, including kindergarten through second grade, and child abuse reports. Thursday was the Boys and Girls Club Peanut Butter and Jelly Legislative Day at the Capitol. The rotunda was filled with children enjoying their sack lunches.

Iowa?s panel of non-partisan budget experts (REC) tell us that Iowa?s economy is continuing to improve, and the state budget remains on stable ground with well over $1 billion in surplus and reserves. This good news should make it easier for the Legislature and the governor to find common ground on the state budget. Iowa is not Washington, D.C., and Iowans should be proud of the fiscal management of Iowa?s government.

(Curt Hanson represents House District 90. He writes a weekly column during the legislative session. He can be contacted on his cell phone at 919-2314. His email address is curt.hanson@legis.state.ia.us.)