|
Governor
Proposes Turning to
Economic Emergency Fund
Governor
Vilsack recently made public his revised fiscal year 2002 budget,
in which he proposed to borrow $120 million from Iowa’s Economic
Emergency Fund. This
revised budget was a response to stagnant state revenue.
The
Governor’s proposal came despite arguments against tapping the
fund from Republicans in the Legislature and State Auditor Richard
Johnson. Many
Republicans share Auditor Johnson’s fear that taking from the
emergency fund could severely harm the state’s ability to make
school-aid payments, among other bills, on time.
“That [shortage of money] would be a huge problem,”
noted House Majority Leader Christopher Rants, “The Auditor is
right on the mark.”
Nevertheless,
Vilsack is urging the House and Senate to approve of his newly
revised budget-cutting plan.
The Governor’s plan includes approximately $144 million
in spending recommendations and $141 million in revenue
adjustments, in addition to the $120 million from the emergency
fund.
Despite
the Governor’s suggestions, Republican leaders remain
unconvinced that state spending has been sufficiently reduced.
Republicans also voiced their concern over the idea of
taking from the Economic Emergency Fund.
The fund was established nine years ago to help out in the
event of economic hardships.
While numerous legislators feel that this budget shortfall
is an important issue, they are questioning whether it should be
classified as a true ‘emergency.’
Republicans
agree that tapping the emergency fund should be avoided at all
costs, but rather should be replaced with deeper spending cuts
that would help to reform the budget, as well as assist in
planning for any future shortages.
State
law only allows for loans from the emergency fund if the money
allotted is used in the same year that it is approved.
Therefore, the Governor cannot legally borrow from the EEF
during FY 2002 if he is granted approval for the loan during FY
2001. In order to
legally make this option work, the Legislature would be required
to change Iowa law in order to allow this loan from the emergency
fund.
Republican
leaders announced Wednesday that the Governor’s proposal was not
a receiving much serious consideration as a solution to the FY
2002 budget problems. One of the main concerns that have been
voiced is that the proposal simply pushes the state budget
problems into the future, where more drastic measures may need to
be taken.
Alternative
Licensure Bill Moves To The Senate
This
past Monday, the House passed HF 670, the alternative teacher
licensure bill, on a vote of 51-46.
HF 670 outlines the procedures that are required to receive
a teaching or school administrator license through a
nontraditional route. The
Board
|
of
Educational Examiners currently has rules in place for alternative
licensure. Those rules require 30 hours of professional education
coursework as well as a 12-week student teaching requirement.
According
to HF 670, in order to earn a one-year non-renewable conditional
license as an administrator, a person must have a master’s degree
in administration or a bachelor’s degree and equivalent life
experience in a management field with 10 years of experience. For
practitioners to earn the non-renewable conditional license, they
must have a bachelor’s degree and have been employed for at least
five consecutive years in an area requiring knowledge and practical
application of their college background.
Both
administrators and practitioners will have to take two
12-semester-hour programs, with one-half of the course prior to
receiving a conditional license and the other half prior to
receiving their provisional license. Higher education institutions
would supervise the teachers during the conditional license year.
The program will be sunset after five years for legislative
evaluation of the new licensure system.
Teachers
with the conditional license will be able to teach only in the 9th-12th
grades. Alternative licensure for administrators will also be
limited. School districts with enrollments over 6,000 students would
be allowed to employ administrators with the conditional license.
According
to the National Center for Education Information, there has been a
rapid development of alternative routes for licensure.
In 1999, 36 states said they had programs targeted
specifically to bring individuals from careers other than education
-- the military, retirees, liberal arts graduates -- into the
teaching profession. The
Iowa Legislature’s overall hope is that the actions of HF 670 will
help to eliminate the looming teacher shortage and to give Iowa’s
children the education they deserve.
Ways
& Means Update
Bills
Assigned In The Ways & Means
Committee
This Week:
HF
704
An act establishing an agricultural sales tax advisory
council, and providing for the elimination of the council.
HSB
247
An act relating to a community renewal initiative by
establishing a community development program to provide tax credits
for income tax, franchise tax, and premiums tax for businesses
contributing to community development projects to aid certain
neighborhoods and communities or contributing to child care benefits
for employees.
HSB
248
An act establishing a renewable fuel initiative by providing
corporate and individual income tax credits for selling certain
ethanol blended gasoline.
|
Week
in Review Archives
