This is the week most of us have taxes on our mind and on our calendar. Most of us become more concerned with how our hard earned dollars are being spent by the various governmental bodies. The week when we file our personal income tax returns coincides this year with some of the major budget bills being addressed in the Iowa Legislature.

Before the legislative session ends in a couple of weeks, the must do list includes the state’s budget bills. In February, Governor Culver presented his budget recommendations to the General Assembly. The ball then landed in our court to consider those recommendations as we crafted a balanced and fiscally prudent budget. In addition, Democrats felt the need to eliminate many of the tricks and gimmicks that were used in previous years to balance the budget.

Among the tricks that we will eliminate is the failure in past years to fully fund the salaries of some state workers, including our correctional officers and university staff. The result of that underfunded budget was understaffed and dangerous prisons and skyrocketing tuitions for Iowa students and families.

Another trick we will discontinue this year is shortchanging Medicaid. As the House chair of the Sub-committee responsible for this budget, it is my responsibility to end this gimmick. The trick in past years has been to underfund Medicaid and then come back into session the next year and clean up the planned short-fall by passing a supplemental appropriation. This is the equivalent of balancing our household budget by pretending we only have to pay our mortgage or rent for six months of the year instead of twelve months. Sooner or later we have to face reality and come up with the rest of the money. Eliminating these two gimmicks alone makes our general fund budget grow over the current year, even though we really are not spending any new money.

Another trick we are working to eliminate is paying for general fund spending out of other funds. When we use our savings account to pay for expenses that should come from our checking account, we can make it look like we are not spending very much of our income. However, we are actually spending more than we show, and sooner or later we will deplete our saving account.

So what are we doing differently this year? We are creating a balanced budget that meets Iowa’s expenditure law requiring that we spend no more than 99% of our income. We are filling our reserve accounts, often referred to as the rainy day funds, to the highest levels ever, at nearly $580 million.

Are we spending more for education and health care and job creation? Yes we are, because we promised during the campaign that we would do so. Our budget will address those areas that are priorities for most Iowans—educating our children, providing health care services to the elderly and those in need, creating good paying jobs for Iowans, making Iowa a world leader in renewable energy and providing tax relief for commercial property owners and more Iowa families.

Are we making everyone happy? No we are not, because the needs and wishes exceed our revenues. Some of what we would like to do will not be accomplished in this first year or even next year. As Chair of the Health & Human Services Budget committee, I have found that I have to say, “NO,” more often than I can say, “YES”.

We are hopeful that over the next several years we can come closer to fully funding our priorities. Some of the problems have been years in the making and cannot be fixed overnight. And, some of our challenges are new, created by cuts made by the federal government in health and human services, through what is called the Deficit Reduction Act. The state of Iowa has been forced to pick up many costs previously paid with federal dollars. We are fortunate to have a new Congressional delegation that will work with us to meet the health, education, and human services needs of Iowans.

Our goal is to leave the state in better financial shape than last year. Our budget will be balanced and more honest than in previous years.

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.

Ro

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