Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal:
“We did some things on job creation in this state on making sure that the resources are there to provide for education and training of employees in this state to match the skills to the jobs that are out there and get thousands of Iowans back to work. So I’m pretty excited about some of the things we did for higher education and in particular community colleges. There are disappointments, there are disappointments in every session. I would have really loved to have gotten something done on commercial property taxes in this state. In the end we felt the plan that the Governor was advancing was one that would shift taxes to homeowners and we couldn’t go along with that.”

Video, audio and a transcript can be found at IPTV.

In 2007, work began on fundamental reforms of Iowa’s open records and open meetings laws. The goal was to make the proceedings and records of state and local government open and accessible to citizens. The Legislature has now approved Senate File 430, giving Iowans better access to government information and public records.

The bill, which goes to the Governor for his signature, helps make sure officials obey open meetings and open records laws in an efficient and cost-effective way. SF 430 creates the Iowa Public Information Board to address and resolve complaints. The board will provide informal assistance, mediation and settlement, formal investigation of grievances and determination of when violations have occurred.

We support Tax Incremental Financing — better known as TIF — because it is an important economic development tool for cities and counties. After a TIF district is created, the property tax income generated from increased property values in that area are diverted from schools, cities or counties and used instead for economic development efforts in the TIF area.

House File 2460, as amended by the Senate, requires robust reporting, increases transparency and puts some restrictions on how communities use TIF. For example, the legislation would prevent TIF dollars in certain instances from being used to “steal” businesses away from a neighboring community. The bill also ensures taxpayers know how their property taxes are affected by TIF projects.

HF 2460, as amended by the Senate, now goes back to the House for their further consideration.

In JUNE of 2011, agreements were hammered out only after legislators met in conference committees.  For example, compromises were found on four major budget bills just 36 hours after they were sent to conference committee.

In 2012, Senate Democrats hope that a public comparison of the House and Senate differences will again quickly result in agreements that will benefit educational opportunity and support job creation efforts.

Below:

• Senate Conference Committee members
• Legislative Conference Committee Rules

Conference Committee members

SF 2313  Admin & Reg budget

• SENATE: Jochum; Danielson; Bowman; Bartz; Ernst.
• HOUSE: Watts; Iverson; Smith; Kelley; Hunter.

SF 2321  Education budget

• SENATE: Schoenjahn; Quirmbach; Horn; Hamerlinck; McKinley.
• HOUSE: Dolecheck; Jorgenson; Cownie; Winkler; Steckman.

SF 2316 RIIF

• SENATE: McCoy; Beall; Dvorsky; Kapucian; Anderson
• HOUSE: Huseman; Chambers; Hein; Cohoon; Quirk.

HF 2338  Judicial

• SENATE: Hogg; Hancock; Fraise; Kettering; Smith
• HOUSE: Representatives Worthan, Horbach, Arnold, T. Taylor, Wolfe

HF 2335  Justice

• SENATE: Hancock, Hogg, Fraise, Seymour, Whitver.
• HOUSE: Representatives Worthan, Horbach, Arnold, T. Taylor, Wolfe

HF 2336 Ag& NR

• SENATE: Black; Dearden; Wilhelm; Houser; Greiner.
• HOUSE: Representatives Drake, Paustian, Alons, Muhlbauer, Lykam

HF 2337 Economic Devolopment

• SENATE: Dotzler; Seng; Mathis; Dix; Bertrand.
• HOUSE: Representatives Schultz, J. Taylor, Baltimore, Hall, Jacoby

Legislative Conference Committee Rules

Excerpted below is Joint Rule #13 detailing the conference committee process:

1. Within one legislative day after either house insists upon an amendment to a bill, the presiding officer of the house, after consultation with the majority leader, shall appoint three majority party members and, after consultation with the minority leader, shall appoint two minority party members to a conference committee.  The majority leader of the senate, after consultation with the president, shall appoint three majority party members and, after consultation with and approval by the minority leader, shall appoint two minority party members to a conference committee.  The papers shall remain with the house that originated the bill.

2.  The conference committee shall meet before the end of the next legislative day after their appointment, shall select a chair and shall discuss the controversy.

3.  The authority of the first conference committee shall cover only issues related to provisions of the bill and amendments to the bill which were adopted by either the senate or the house of representatives and on which the senate and house of representatives differed.  If a conference committee report is not acted upon because such action would violate this subsection of this rule, the inaction on the report shall constitute refusal to adopt the conference committee report and shall have the same effect as if the conference committee had disagreed.

4.  An agreement on recommendations must be approved by a majority of the committee members from each house.  The committee shall submit two originals of the report signed by a majority of the committee members of each house with one signed original and three copies to be submitted to each house.  The report shall first be acted upon in the house originating the bill.  Such action, including all papers, shall be immediately referred by the secretary of the senate or the chief clerk of the house of representatives to the other house.

5.  The report of agreement is debatable, but cannot be amended.  If the report contains recommended amendments to the bill, adoption of the report shall automatically adopt all amendments contained therein.  After the report is adopted, there shall be no more debate, and the bill shall immediately be placed upon its final passage.

6.  Refusal of either house to adopt the conference committee report has the same effect as if the committee had disagreed.

7.  If the conference committee fails to reach agreement, a report of such failure signed by a majority of the committee members of each house shall be given promptly to each house.  The bill shall be returned to the house that originated the bill, the members of the committee shall be immediately discharged, and a new conference committee appointed in the same manner as the first conference committee.

8.  The authority of a second or subsequent conference committee shall cover free conference during which the committee has authority to propose amendments to any portion of a bill provided the amendment is within the subject matter content of the bill as passed by the house of origin or as amended by the second house.

The complete document of Joint Senate and House rules can be found here: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/DOCS/ChamberRules/JointRules.pdf

The first measure, sponsored by Iowa’s Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board, closes loopholes and requires more public reporting by groups involved in issue advocacy and non-candidate campaign spending. The funders of automated “robo-calls” will have to identify themselves.

The second measure, approved overwhelmingly by the Iowa Senate, urges the U.S. Congress to regulate and restrict corporate participation in election campaigns. In the Citizens United decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that corporations have the same free speech rights as you, including the right to contribute to political campaigns. Since then, skyrocketing corporate campaign contributions have threatened to drown out the voices of living, breathing Americans.

Early in the session, the Senate approved a 4 percent increase in basic state support for local schools for the 2013-2014 school year. These funds are used for textbooks, heating bills, technology and other necessities required for students and teachers to be successful.

Unfortunately, the House did not take up this legislation. Instead the House voted to end 40 years of bipartisan agreement to set basic state funding for local schools two years in advance. I think that is a mistake that harms our schools.

This week, the Senate Education Committee amended the House proposal to include a 4 increase basic state aid for our local schools and returned to setting funding two years in advance.

The state budget has recovered from the national recession to the point that we have a billion dollars in the bank. After several tough years, it is time to ensure our local schools recover as well.

As the Legislature considers a range of proposals to help our students be more successful, we’ve got to make sure state government is a reliable, predictable partner.

Senate: Change law and resume Iowa care facility inspections

7 top ideas for TIF reform:

(VIDEO) On January 21, Ways and Means Chair Joe Bolkcom hosting a meeting of more than 90 people to discuss ideas on reforming TIF. To offer your opinion, contact Senator Bolkcom at: Joe.Bolkcom@legis.state.ia.us

1. No open ended TIFs: The revenue diversion ends when project finance obligations end.

2. Put teeth in Anti-piracy provisions to ban the use of TIFs to entice employers and jobs from one Iowa location to another.

3. Require job creation and/or job retention impact statement of all new TIFs.

4. Increase state oversight of TIFs. Require the Iowa Economic Development Authority to review the economic impact of the proposed TIFs. For example, required that the project be shown to expand the property tax base of the state and show a financial need before granting approval.

5. Limit a city’s TIF debt to no more than a specific percentage of that city’s taxable value.

6. Require “But For” analysis on all TIF proposal.

7. Restrict a city’s TIF income to no more than a specific percentage of that city’s regular property tax income.

Senator Bolkcom’s full report on the reform ideas can be found in his district newsletter, available here, http://www.senate.iowa.gov/bolkcom/newsletter/default.htm

An earlier TIF forum was held in Coralville, hosted by Senator Bolkcom and House Ways and Means Committee Chair, Tom Sands.

1/24/12: Iowa City no longer part of TIF meeting (Iowa City Press Citizen)
1/24/12: Top priority: Limit time for TIF districts (Iowa City Press Citizen)
1/17/12: Iowa lawmakers study tax increment financing rules (QCT)
1/18/12: Tax increment financing getting legislative scrutiny (CRG)

You can also follow what’s happening in the House and Senate at www.legis.iowa.gov, where you can track bills of interest, review what’s happening in legislative committees, listen to live debate in the chambers, and even set up a tour of the Statehouse if you’re planning a visit.

From left to right: Senator Danielson, Cindy Gross, Buchanan County Auditor (D), Senator Joni Ernst of Red Oak (R), and Clay County Auditor Marjorie Pitts (R).

Senator Jeff Danielson (Black Hawk) recently met with local county auditors to discuss “Precinct Atlas,” the award-winning election software developed in Iowa that improves the voting process for voters and poll workers while protecting the integrity of elections.  As chair of the Senate State Government Committee, Senator Danielson helps craft election law.

Using “Precinct Atlas,” election workers can quickly verify a voters address, update their registration, and prevent election fraud.

“Precinct Atlas” has won 2 national awards: 2010 Starts & Stripes Award from The Election Center; 2011 Achievement Award “Best of Category” from the National Association of Counties; and 2010 Excellence in Action Award from the Iowa State Association of Counties.

More information can be found here.