From the ground up

Guest Column
By: 
Dan Zumbach
Iowa State Senator, 48th Dist.

     It was week 10 of the legislative session. Time is flying by as we address the business at hand.

     Last week I was the floor manager of Senate File 447, a bill which came through the Senate Agriculture Committee. Senate File 447 protects our state’s livestock producers. This bill is providing an affirmative defense and a cap on compensatory damages for animal feeding operations provided the operation complies with applicable federal or state statutes or regulations, uses existing reasonable management practices, and the owner is not a habitual environmental violator.

     This bill only protects the good actors (producers) who are abiding by our state and federal laws and using best practices. This bill does not cover those who choose not to follow best practices. This bill passed the Senate 31-18.

     Senate File 404, known as the “Right to Try” bill, allows a person with a terminal illness to have a shot at trying a medicine that could potentially save their life when all other treatments have failed. Eligible patients have a terminal illness, have tried and failed all other treatment options approved by the FDA, have a recommendation from their physician for a drug or product, have given informed, written consent, and have documentation from their doctor stating the individual meets these requirements. The bill passed the Senate unanimously.

     Senate File 472 increases the percentage of money that may be granted from the snowmobile fund to the snowmobile association from 50 to 70 percent. In exchange, the snowmobile association will assume more of the responsibility for maintaining the public snowmobile trails in the state. The bill passed the Senate 49-0.

     I have received a lot of messages regarding the gun bill sent over from the House. While the bill is still going through the legislative process here in the Senate, it is nice to finally be having these conversations with our colleagues. In the past, rarely have bills regarding firearms and the Second Amendment been brought to the Senate floor for a vote. There will be more to come in the next few weeks on your Second Amendment rights.

     Last week, the Iowa Revenue Estimating Conference projected a reduction of state revenues for fiscal year 2017 of $131 million. While we learned our economy continues to grow, with the price of corn, soybeans, and other commodities continuing to remain below the cost of production for Iowa farmers, our state revenues have lagged. This makes it even more important we focus on policies promoting growth all across Iowa.

     This is why we treat the state budget like the family budget.

     Considering cuts we already were forced to make this year, as required by Iowa law, additional cuts are not a reasonable solution. We only have a few months left in this fiscal year and any further cuts would cripple our schools, public safety, and many other essential services.

     The state will be dipping into the reserve funds to fill the budget gap for the rest of the fiscal year.

     As we move forward in crafting our budget for the next fiscal year, we want to continue looking at all aspects of government spending and how we will spend taxpayer dollars wisely. We want to look at tax credits and how we can streamline government services in our quest to put our state on better financial footing and responsible budgeting.

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