The Iowa Legislature authorized up to $1 million to help Iowans coping with the winter storms that hit Iowa during the past two weeks. The bill authorizing the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program was signed by Governor Chet Culver last Wednesday.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program will receive up to $1 million and provide grants to Iowans in need of personal property, home repair, temporary housing assistance, or food costs. Recipients must reside in a county declared an emergency by Governor Culver and have annual household income less than 130% of the federal poverty guideline, which is $13,273 for an individual or $26,845 for a family of four. The maximum per household grant is approximately $3,110.

To apply for disaster aid, Iowans should contact their county emergency coordinator. A list of county emergency coordinators is available at www.iowahouse.org or Iowans can call 2-1-1 and ask for their county emergency coordinator. For more information on disaster assistance or to find out if your county has received the emergency declaration, go to www.bereadyiowa.org.

The Iowa Secretary of Agriculture said this week the winter storms have disrupted the state’s agriculture sector. Livestock producers have reported a critical need for generators to power environmental controls and supply water for livestock in many counties. Producers in need of generators should contact the Center for Agriculture Security at 515-281-5798. Producers suffering massive livestock mortalities or faced with an emergency situation should contact their local Emergency Management Agency, their county Sheriff’s office, or the agriculture desk at the State Emergency Operations Center at 515-323-4267.

Some good news for the state came this week from the Broin Company in Emmetsburg, in NW Iowa. Broin was one of just six companies nationwide to receive an $80 million federal grant to develop the next generation of ethanol technology—a biorefinery producing cellulosic ethanol. This grant will help Iowa stay on the cutting edge of renewable energy technology and will create good-paying jobs.

Cellulosic ethanol is an alternative fuel that can be made from a wide variety of plant materials, including agricultural wastes like corn stover, industrial plant waste like saw dust, or energy crops grown specifically for fuel production like switch grass. Instead of just using corn, the cellulosic ethanol plant in Emmetsburg will use corn fiber, cobs and stalks. Although the process is more complex than the corn-based ethanol process used today, it produces more energy while using less water and energy. This process has the potential to increase the availability of ethanol, while reducing the cost and dramatically reducing our dependence on foreign oil.

When the Broin Facility in Emmetsburg is operational in about three years, it will produce 125 million gallons of ethanol per year, 25% of which will be cellulosic ethanol. The new plant in Emmetsburg is the kind of renewable energy research and technology that we Democrats hope to bring to Iowa as part of our Plan for Prosperity. I’m optimistic that this is just the first in a series of great developments in renewable energy over the next few years.

Thanks to all the folks who have contacted me so far this year. I encourage anyone with ideas for legislation or comments on specific legislation to contact me at the Capitol. You can write me at the State Capitol, Des Moines, IA 50319; call 515/281-7328 or e-mail me at ro.foege@legis.state.ia.us.

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