Legislative update from Rep. Todd Prichard

The following is a Legislative update from Rep. Todd Prichard of Charles City:

I have a personality flaw. I cry over spilled milk. I would attribute this to my mother’s sense of frugality. Wasted time, money, supplies — it all drives me crazy.

This week the legislature wasted an excellent opportunity to improve water quality in our state. On Tuesday, the House passed out SF512, a bill the Senate had introduced last session. While not horrible, it is not the comprehensive bill Iowans need to address water issues. I ultimately did vote in favor of it, but only as a starting point. SF512 could have (and should have) been so much better than what it was. It will make limited progress, but is by no means a solution.

Too many missed opportunities — or “spilled milk” — have impeded the passage of a comprehensive water quality bill over the past two years. In 2017, the House passed its own version of this legislation. That bill, while not perfect, included local input in identifying water quality projects. It encouraged local governments to work within the watershed. Most importantly, it had better oversight.

Unfortunately, a narrow majority of House Republicans voted to bypass a conference committee this week, opting to pass the Senate bill. There was no conversation or compromise. Had it gone to a conference committee, I am confident that a more extensive bill would have emerged. Instead, we missed another opportunity. We didn’t just spill the milk with this one, we knocked over the entire bulk tank and wasted a day of milking.

My fear today is that leaders in the House and the Governor’s office will claim victory on this issue and will no longer prioritize this legislation. We all know that more attention is needed to address water quality issues in Iowa. The passage of SF512 can be the first step, but it cannot be the last one we take this session.

Going forward, I will continue to advocate for a more comprehensive bill to clean up our waterways. I am glad there is now dedicated funding for water quality that will be available every year without having to be annually re-appropriated. That is, however, a small consolation.

Do not let anyone tell you differently – much more action is needed from the state legislature to make real progress on water quality.

News from the Statehouse

Lawmakers Push to End Medicaid Privatization

A group of Iowa lawmakers are pushing a new bill to end Iowa’s Medicaid privatization experiment. The move comes after another year of turmoil and confusion for Iowans on Medicaid.

Since it was privatized nearly two years ago, lawmakers have heard countless stories from Iowans who are still struggling to get the health care services they need from the out-of-state, for-profit companies now running Medicaid, called Managed Care Organizations (MCO). Last fall, a man from Northwest Iowa died after the care he received in his home for 20 years was cut off by one of the MCO’s and he was forced into a facility.

Many Iowans have also raised concerns about the high cost of Medicaid privatization. In addition to getting an additional $60 million this year from the Reynolds Administration, the for-profit MCO’s can keep up to 15% of taxpayer dollars to administer the program. Before privatization, just 4% of Medicaid dollars were spent on administration.

Just last week, lawmakers learned from an investigative report that over 200 Iowa families have been denied critical health care from the private companies and are stuck trying to get the care they need in a long appeals process. Privatization has also reduced care options for Iowans after one of the MCO’s left Iowa last fall and another stopped taking new patients.

Medicaid is a federal and state partnership that provides health care to 600,000 Iowans, including nursing homes. According to recent estimates, about 70% of Medicaid dollars are used for the elderly, severely disabled, and poor.

The bill to end Medicaid privatization, Senate File 2058, is currently in the Senate Human Resources Committee. Another bill ending Medicaid privatization, HF 2104, has also been introduced in the House.

Sign the Petition

In an effort to work together, Democratic lawmakers are calling on Iowans to sign a petition to join them in pushing Governor Kim Reynolds and Republican lawmakers to end Iowa’s failed Medicaid privatization.

Water Quality Bill Headed to Governor

Legislation that directs existing money to the state’s ongoing water quality efforts will be heading to the Governor.

First approved by the Iowa Senate last year, the bill creates a new water excise tax. The new excise tax diverts funds from the state’s general fund, which currently pays for expenses such as schools and Medicaid, into a new Water Quality Financial Assistance Fund. Additionally, $15 million from the state’s Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund will be used beginning in 2021.

Crafted behind closed doors last year without input from the Minority Party, many lawmakers believe the bill is inadequate. The bill does not provide enough resources, has no accountability of taxpayer dollars, and does not use a watershed approach that involves local communities. The bill also has no monitoring structure to measure if any progress is being made to improve water quality.

The money from the excise tax will flow to the Water Quality Assistance Fund and will help support drinking water and source water protection projects as well as create a new loan program designed to provide financial assistance to enhance surface and groundwater. Money will also be used for conservation practices such as terraces, grass waterways, buffer strips and cover crops.

The legislation passed the Iowa House 59-41 and now awaits the Governor’s signature.