From the Register editorial:
Statehouse Republicans are caterwauling about Democratic Gov. Chet Culver’s plan to borrow money for one-time projects to fix up public infrastructure.
Still it’s disappointing to see the party that gave us the transcontinental railroad (Abraham Lincoln) and the interstate highways (Dwight Eisenhower) object to infrastructure repairs. These projects create jobs and leave economic assets behind for future generations.
If anything, Culver’s not borrowing enough. According to Moody’s Investors Services, Iowa’s per-capita level of public debt this year is $98 per person. We rank 48th. You’d have to triple Iowa’s public debt to $294 per person to take the 47th place ranking from Tennessee, which has $221 of debt per person. Even then you’d still be behind 46th-ranked South Dakota, which has $302 per person.
Culver has proposed borrowing $700 million over the next few years to finance repairs and construction for various highways, bridges, public buildings and sewer and water plants.
The governor has correctly concluded Iowa should not be raising the gasoline tax on hard-pressed Iowans in the middle of a recession, despite the crying need we have for road work. Instead, to pay for some of it, he wants to borrow money and repay those loans with gambling revenues.
Gov. Chet Culver was recently quoted in the Register: “Any way that the state can generate revenue, I’m for.” Great idea. Prepare for tax increases. The 1.5% across the board spending cut was nothing more than window dressing to placate the public and provide cover for the coming tax increases. During difficult economic times, responsible families trim their budgets and live within their means. Not so at any level of government. Some Iowa cities are salivating at the idea of local income taxes.
Lawmakers are again considering a bill to cut alcohol limits for boaters.
The bill calls for lowering the blood-alcohol limit from .10 to .08, which is the limit for drivers on the road.
The bill was approved by the Senate Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday.
The House and Senate have both passed versions of the bill during the past two years, but lawmakers disagreed on various points, such as who is considered a boat “operator.”
Tags: iowa house, iowa senate
House Minority Leader Kraig Paulsen of Hiawatha said Democrats are limiting committees that scrutinize budget requests at a time when the recession has caused a $700 million or larger shortfall. He said voters need to know what choices will be made in tough financial times.
As they raise budget issues, Republicans have repeatedly argued that Democrats aggravated the shortfall by spending too much in previous years. On Wednesday, Paulsen submitted a list of questions he wants Democrats to answer, including how many new state workers have been added and how across-the-board spending cuts would be implemented.
Governors traditionally submit a proposed state budget to the Legislature as part of their annual report on the state’s condition. But Culver decided not to do that this year, saying he needs more time to assemble his spending plan and understand how much federal aid is headed to the state.
The governor is required to submit a proposed budget by Feb. 1, and Culver said he’s likely to do so next week. McCarthy argued that lawmakers traditionally use the governor’s proposed budget as a base to work from and it doesn’t mak
Tags: budget, culver
