Government : From The State Capitol - Week 8 March 4-8, 2019

Week 8 March 4-8, 2019

Have I ever expressed that the Capitol can be one busy place? Well, this week is a classic example, due to it being funnel week. The Legislature’s first funnel was this week, which means our focus has been narrowed to bills that have a better chance of being debated on the floor and signed into law. What is a funnel? Funnel is a deadline when House bills are required to pass at least one House committee to remain eligible for discussion and vice versa for the Senate. If a bill fails to advance through a committee, it is considered “dead” for the session and is tabled. The funnel does not apply to Appropriations or Ways & Means committee bills. With this, there is a lot of information to give you, so this newsletter may be lengthier compared to others.

Senate Budget Targets – What are the Differences with the House?

Last week, Senate Republicans made public their Fiscal Year 2020 budget targets. They are proposing that state General Fund spending stay at the same level as the current fiscal year (FY 2019), with the state spending $7.6193 billion for the year. The Senate’s funding plan would allocate the dollars in the following manner:

Senate Targets  FY 2019Adjusted  FY 2020 Senate  Difference

Administration

& Regulation     $48,466,893         $55,576,149         $7,109,256

AG & Natural

Resources         $39,357,522         $39,961,522         $604,000

Economic

Development     $40,216,345          $41,628,345         $1,412,000

Education          $912,675,487        $946,955,971       $34,280,484

Health & Human

Services           $1,962,894,820    $1,928,358,285    -$34,536,535

Justice

Systems           $751,532,636        $763,240,901       $11,708,265

State Aid to schools & other standing Appropriations

                         $3,864,188,258     $3,843,610,788   -$20,577,470

General Fund

Total                 $7,619,331,961     $7,619,331,961           $0      

The Senate’s targets have significant differences from what the House proposed earlier in February. House Republicans plan to spend $7.6680 billion in FY 2020, which is an increase of just $48.6 million over the current year’s spending levels. Percentage wise, the Senate increase is 0%, the House increase is 0.63%.

The differences are:

Budget Targets      FY 2019            FY 2020                 FY 2020

                              Adjusted            House                    Senate

Administration

& Regulation        $48,466,893       $52,420,985         $55,576,149

AG & Natural

Resources           $39,357,522        $41,107,522        $39,961,522

Economic

Development       $40,216,345        $41,028,345        $41,628,345

Education            $912,675,487      $961,044,271     $946,955,971

Health & Human

Services        $1,962,894,820     $1,941,888,698   $1,928,358,285

Justice Systems  $751,532,636     $770,370,901     $763,240,901

State Aid to Schools and other Standing Appropriations

General Fund Total 

                      $7,619,331,961    $7,667,975,760    $7,619,331,961

House Environmental Protection Panel Passes DNR Administrative Procedures Updates and Modernization Measure

On Tuesday, March 5, 2019, the Iowa House Environmental Protection Committee passed House Study Bill 81 by a unanimous 19-aye vote (2-absent). The bill is comprised of two divisions. The first division addresses DNR issuance of an administrative order and timeframe for an appeal. Currently, the regulatory timeframe depends upon what type of entity seeks an appeal with some current Code provisions providing for a 30-day appeal; others 60-day appeal periods. This legislation specifies 60-days in a new Code section (455B.110); and specifies how entities are to be notified of an order and when the 60-day appeal process commences. The second part of the bill allows the DNR to exempt a class of waste disposal systems from permit requirements that do not discharge into water of the state.

The amendment adopted by the Committee additionally made several technical verbiage corrections to the bill and added some additional provisions. The amended language included DNR sought changes to the bill that replaced the term ‘entity’ with the term ‘person’ to clarify the terms of use in the DNR Code sections dealing with permitting. The term ‘a person’ is already defined in the DNR Code chapters and used in similar text in DNR Code provisions. The amendment included new language brought to the Subcommittee by rural water system stakeholders to remove an unnecessary regulatory burden when these systems are merely extending distribution lines, as long as a licensed engineer is involved and the system’s hydraulic modeling complies with standards for water supply systems adopted by the Environmental Protection Commission.

Recent Iowa Poll Validates House Republicans Priorities

The Des Moines Register recently released a new Iowa Poll that found that 74% of Iowa adults see opioid use, 65% see mental health, and 50% think Iowa’s Medicaid program is a crisis or a big problem. Over the last year, House Republicans have worked to pass significant reforms to improve all three areas.

Opioids

Last session, the legislature passed legislation to address the opioid epidemic, and since then, has seen significant improvements. House File 2377 passed unanimously through both chambers and specifically prevented doctor shopping for opioids, reduced overprescribing, and provided support to Iowans suffering from opioid addiction. There are currently 86% of prescribers registered with the Prescription Monitoring Program, which is a large increase since just this last July when there were only 58% of prescribers registered.

House Republicans continue to build upon the work from last year to find additional ways to treat individuals with opioid addiction. The House Human Resources Committee recently passed House File 623, a bill to require immediate treatment for those seeking help for opioid abuse. HF 623 specifically requires Iowa Medicaid to provide at least one form of medication-assisted treatment without prior authorization so when someone is ready for treatment, they can get the care they need right away.

Mental Health

Last session, with complete bipartisan support, the legislature passed a comprehensive mental health bill to fill gaps in Iowa’s adult mental health system. House File 2456 increased access to mental health services and created new services for urban and rural communities in Iowa. By removing the statewide sub-acute bed cap and adding new services to the core list required by Iowa’s 14 Mental Health and Disability Service (MHDS) Regions, this bill helps deescalate mental health patients before crisis and wrap services around them when they are prepared to return home.

Building off of last year’s comprehensive mental health bill for adults, the legislature is now focusing on building the foundation for a children’s mental health system. This week, the House Human Resources unanimously passed House Study Bill 206. This bill develops Iowa’s first coordinated children’s mental health system. This bill ensures that immediately there is local access and coordination to mental health services for children, and that parents have a place to turn when seeking treatment for their child.

Medicaid

Last session, based on feedback from constituents, House Republicans persuaded the governor to sign legislation related to holding managed care organizations accountable to providers and to members and passing even stronger oversight of the Medicaid system. Recently, the House Government Oversight Committee brought in the Director of the Department of Human Services and the CEOs of the two MCOs to ensure there has been progress since the oversight legislation was passed. The committee specifically focused on credentialing uniformity, prior authorization standardization, and payment accuracy. House Republicans are dedicated to assisting any Medicaid member or provider that is having issues navigating the managed care program. The MCOs are contractors for the state, and they should be held accountable if they are not fulfilling the obligations to the state and those it serves. Please contact me if I can assist in any way.

Future Ready Iowa Internship Pilot Program

The Future Ready Iowa Internship Pilot Program is a funding opportunity that targets organizations who can provide high school students with internship opportunities to allow them to explore and prepare for high-demand careers. The focused audiences are youth at risk for not graduating high school, from low-income households, and are underrepresented populations in Iowa's workforce, such as minorities and youth with disabilities.

How to apply:

Learn more about the Future Ready Iowa Internship Pilot Program and submit a plan on how your organization will effectively offer internships and possible employment services for at least a six-week period to a minimum of 10 youth. Programs must serve high school students who would otherwise face barriers to success and gainful employment, and focus on giving them experience in high-demand career fields. $250,000 is available and applications are due by March 20th.

Sports betting Passes House State Government Committee

Last week the Iowa House State Government Committee passed HSB 198 which allows Iowans to place wagers on collegiate, professional, and certain Olympic sports. The bill passed with a vote of 13-10 and received bipartisan support. HSB 198 authorizes the Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission to determine the scope of bets that may be placed on collegiate, professional, and certain Olympic sports. The Iowa House State Government ultimately allowed for sports wagering to be conducted by the casinos. The committee determined that it was not necessary for there to be an in-person registration to use a mobile application. This bill also allowed for Iowans to participate in Daily Fantasy Sports. The bill has been sent to Ways & Means Committee and may continue to evolve before it becomes law.

House Veterans Affairs Committee Passes Bill

The House Veterans Affairs committee met this past Wednesday to discuss HSB 229. This bill relates to the removal of county veterans service officers. It adds in a new section to the code which states that an executive director or administrator shall only be removed from office by the commission, subject to the approval of the board of supervisors. This mirrors the current appointment process for county veteran’s service officers and was well received in subcommittee. This bill passed out of committee (17-0).

Last Remarks

As always, feel free to give me a call or email if you have any concerns, questions, or just want to say hello! I hope all of you are staying warm and driving safe during these cold Iowa snowy days.