James Q. Lynch, CR Gazette –
A roundup of legislative and Capitol news items of interest for Tuesday, May 1, 2012:
GOPAC TAPS STRAWN: Former Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Matt Strawn will head up GOPAC’s Iowa campaign efforts, the political action committee’s chairman, Frank Donatelli announced.
GOPAC tapped Strawn, a 38-year-old Van Horne native, because of his “monumental work in rebuilding and revitalizing the Iowa GOP,” Donatelli said.
Many of GOPAC’s activities in Iowa will build on Strawn’s experience as its Iowa team will be heavily organizational in nature, including, but not limited to, candidate training, voter registration and issue identification efforts aimed at increasing the Republican ranks in the Iowa House and Senate and across Iowa’s county-level offices, Donatelli said.
Strawn indicated that a personal focus will be outreach to groups of Iowans who may not necessarily consider themselves Republicans.
Strawn is president of The Strawn Company, which holds interests in the Des Moines-based Iowa Barnstormers Arena Football League (AFL) franchise, a family-farm operation in Eastern Iowa, and a communications firm. Strawn and his wife, Erin, reside with their three small children in Ankeny.
GOPAC is an organization dedicated to educating and electing the next generation of Republican leaders to state and local office. In 2010, 84 percent of GOPAC-supported candidates were victorious.
PROTECTING VICTIMS: A statewide alert system to notify domestic violence victims when authorities have served a protective order is now fully operational, according to Attorney General Tom Miller.
The Iowa Protective Order Notification for Domestic Abuse Program – IPONDA – provides automatic notification by phone or email to registered victims when restraining orders or no-contact orders have been served. It also provides notification when the restraining order expires. Prior to IPONDA, victims had to call their local sheriff’s offices to ask whether the orders had been served.
Victims can register by calling (888) 742-8463 or online at www.registervpo.com.
The IPONDA start-up costs were covered with federal funds and the $160,000 annual operating costs will be paid for with criminal fines and fees, Miller said.
Last year, there were 26,000 domestic violence victims in Iowa, Miller said. Since January 2005, 233 Iowans have been killed in domestic abuse homicide. There were more than 15,000 protective and no-contact orders in 2011, said Jennifer Stimson, victim rights coordinator in the Attorney General’s Office.
Iowa is one of 12 states offering this service, according to Stimson, which has not been in use long enough to get a handle on the results of the notification system.
“In my opinion, the biggest success story is not hearing about the violence,” Stimson said. “So while we may never be able to put our finger on a direct number, not having violence occur is the best success story.”
SCHOOL REDISTRICTING: Secretary of State Matt Schultz reminded school districts the deadline is May 15 for those that must file director district plans.
After each federal census, school boards of districts divided into director districts must review the district boundaries to determine whether the current boundaries comply with existing Iowa laws pertaining to population and representation. Those school districts must file a director district map, a worksheet certifying the population of each district, and a board resolution adopting the director district boundaries with the Secretary of State’s office. The boundaries become effective July 1st, 2012.
School districts that elect all their directors at-large by the entire school district do not need to file any materials.
For more information, call (515) 281-0145 or visit sos.iowa.gov/elections/redistrictreprecinct/index.html.
APRIL REVENUES STRONG: Last month produced an unexpected spike of 34.6 percent growth in net state tax collections, but Legislative Services Agency officials say the growth may be followed by slumping numbers this month with some state income tax collections being processed before Monday’s filing deadline.
Even if May under-performs last year, Jeff Robinson of the Legislative Services Agency (LSA) said he believes the state will finish the fiscal year on June 30 with more growth that the 2.6 percent increase projected by the state Revenue Estimating Conference. Through April, state tax collections are running 4.5 percent ahead of the first 10 months of fiscal 2011 – which translates into a $205.8 million year-to-date increase.
“I would say it’s going to be hard for it to retreat to 2.6 percent going this strong,” he said. The biggest tax categories of personal income, sales/use, and corporate income taxes all posted double-digit increases in April, but Robinson said payroll withholding is hovering around 3 percent ahead of last year – which is not reflective of a strong economic rebound. But that’s the only negative, and Robinson said he expects the state to finish above the annualized rate of increase when the current fiscal year ends.
“It’s hard to paint any of the numbers as not being good news,” he said.
IOWA TRADE MISSION: Gov. Terry E. Branstad will lead a trade mission to Brazil and Chile this summer.
Branstad said the July 21-28 mission will aim to expand trade opportunities for Iowa companies and products in the South America nations. The Iowa Economic Development Authority’s (IEDA) International Trade Office will coordinate the trip, and Iowa companies in all industry sectors are invited to participate in this mission, according to the governor’s office.
Brazil is Iowa’s sixth-largest trading partner, with exports exceeding $527 million in 2011 – a nearly 50 percent increase over 2010. Chile is Iowa’s 19th-largest export destination, with exports of over $88 million in 2011, according to state officials.
The Iowa delegation’s itinerary will include visits to Sao Paulo and Porto Alegre in Brazil, and to Santiago, Chile. Highlights include meetings with government and industry association officials, briefings on each market, and “Growing Iowa’s Global Partnerships” events, according to a statement issued by Branstad’s office. Iowa companies will participate in meetings specific to their market entry or expansion needs. Companies interested in participating can learn more atwww.iowaeconomicdevelopment.com/intlevents/downloads/BrazilChile.pdf. The deadline to apply is May 15.
HEALTH CARE CENTER GRANTS: Iowa is in line to receive more than $7.5 million in federal grants from the new health care law for community health centers. Grants from the Affordable Care Act will help build and expand health centers, create jobs, and expand access to an additional 860,000 patients nationwide, according to Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Sebelius said the grants totaling $7,582,021 should help them serve about 7,537 new patients in Iowa. They include capital development money totaling $1.3 million for the Siouxland Community Health Center in Sioux City and $5 million for the River Hills Community Health Center in Ottumwa. Other grant awards for immediate facility improvements included $260,053 for the Crescent Community Health Center in Dubuque, $38,750 for Community Health Care Inc. in Davenport, and two other awards that totaled more than $983,000 in Leon and Urbandale.
For more information, visit http://bphc.hrsa.gov/. To find a health center in your area, visit http://findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov.
Quote of the Day: “Governor Appoints Doll Alcoholic Beverages Commissioner,” Headline on news release announcing Gov. Terry Branstad’s appointment of Tami Doll, vice president and co-owner of Doll Distributing LLC, in Council Bluffs, to a five-year term on the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Commission
