State Auditor Releases Review of Governor’s Budget
This week State Auditor David Vaudt released his review of Governor Chet Culver’s Fiscal Year 2009 budget. Vaudt predicts some challenging years ahead. According to the Governor’s plan, the funds used over the past few years to balance the budget, such as the Senior Living Trust Fund, various tobacco related funds and the Property Tax Credit Fund, will be used up. The depletion of these funds in Fiscal Year 2009 creates a $361 million hole for Fiscal Year 2010.
In the Governor’s plan, one-time bond proceeds of $67 million would be used to balance the Fiscal Year 2009 operating budget, and Vaudt predicts taxpayers will end up paying for those services for years to come. He also noted that planned expenditure growth over the past two year period is outpacing anticipated revenue growth. Auditor Vaudt and Senate Republicans want to know how the Governor proposes to fill all the holes in his budget proposal.
There is currently $600 million in “Rainy Day” funds, and if the Governor’s proposed budget would pass, that fund could be wiped out in just one year. The Governor also proposes reallocating $90 million from long-term infrastructure spending by placing it into the General Fund.
It is clear that Iowans deserve a viable solution from their Governor when it comes to a balanced budget, and his current proposal would leave them high and dry, passing the buck to the next generation. Auditor Vaudt and the Senate Republicans propose longer-term planning so future generations will not be left with the spending problems of today.
Questions Raised About Anti-Smoking Ads
A letter received this week from the Iowa Department of Public Health Director, Thomas Newton, revealed that $596,000 has been spent on recent advertisements promoting smoke-free bars and restaurants.
The ads featured restaurant and bar workers talking about their work environments and how “everyone has the right to breathe smoke-free air.” The ads had no mention of the negative effects and consequences of smoking and were primarily run in the Des Moines Metro area. This comes as the issue of banning smoking throughout Iowa in all public places heats up and will be voted upon in the near future.
In his letter, Newton also stated that of the $596,000, “$126,000 is from the Healthcare Trust and $470,000 is from the General Fund.” These funds come directly from taxpayer money, and this issue has been pushed from the Governor’s office for months.
This is not an educational issue. People know that smoking is bad. This is a policy issue that Governor Culver is pushing Ð at the taxpayer’s expense. It’s the principal of the matter that taxpayer money is being used.
Senate Republicans see this as an inappropriate use of funds, yet Director Newton maintains that “the ‘Everyone has the right to breathe smoke-free air’ media campaign was [an] appropriate use of state funds.”
The issue on banning smoking in all public place in Iowa will, no doubt, remain a burning issue. At the end of the day, it is outrageous to think that taxpayers’ money is being spent to restrict Iowans’ freedoms.
If you have any questions or concerns involving the Iowa Legislature, please feel free to email me at james.seymour@legis.state.ia.us.