January 14, 1999

Governor-Elect Vilsack Unveils Education Initiatives

Governor-elect Tom Vilsack and Lt. Governor-elect Sally Pederson met with a bipartisan group of legislators on Wednesday to preview their plans to make Iowa schools #1 again. The meeting provided a glimpse of the goals and additional resources that Governor-elect Vilsack will be recommending to the Legislature later this month.

The Governor-elect’s initiatives will center around eight goals:

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2. Every child will begin school ready to learn.
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4. Every child will have a strong foundation in the basics.
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6. Every child will have a safe and secure environment in which to learn.
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8. Every Iowan will be provided with the skills necessary to succeed in the workforce.
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10. Every Iowan willing to study hard will have the opportunity for higher education.
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12. Continue to enhance the skill level of Iowa educators.
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14. Attract and retain the quality workforce necessary for Iowa’s future.
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16. Ensure Iowans access to top-quality library collections and services.

School Readiness

Every child will begin school ready to learn.

• Expand local community empowerment and early childhood programs. Recommends $5.2 million increase in funding for empowerment programs, double the current level.

• Institute statewide parent education efforts.
• Improve quality of, and access to, child care. Reallocate federal funds to eliminate waiting lists for child care assistance.

• Create citizens task force on child care issues to examine both training and access issues.

Strong Foundation in the basics

Every child will have a strong foundation in the basics.

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• Reduce K-3 class size over a 5-year period towards a goal of a maximum of 17:1. The recommendation, when combined with federal funds, will start at $20 million and build to $60 million over a five year period. The class size reduction will be a flexible goal for schools to attain.

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• Improve student achievement through standards, assessment and accountability.
• • Benchmarks for student achievement.
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  • Reading competency testing before third graders can enter fourth grade.

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• Regular reporting to communities of progress on student achievement and class-size reduction efforts will be required.

Safe and secure learning environment

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• Establish a "Rebuild Iowa Schools" fund and develop bond bank to reduce costs to districts. Starting with $10 million from state gambling revenues and building the level of funding to $150 million in five-years.

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• Extend existing technology commitment.

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• Prevent and correct disruptive student behavior with more juvenile court officers in schools. Increasing the number of school liaisons from 107 to 183.

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• Increase anti-meth efforts in schools.

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• Commit to 4.5% "allowable growth" to provide adequate funding for schools. A $66.5 million increase in state aid.

Workforce Skills

Every Iowan will be provided the skills necessary to succeed in the workforce.

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• Strengthen vocational-technical training.
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• Create an Iowa Skills Forecasting Council.
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• Establish a forgivable loan program for workers.
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• Pursue emerging opportunities to inventory employer needs and provide relevant training.

Opportunities for higher education

Every Iowan willing to study hard will have the opportunity for higher education.

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• Increased financial aid for students, families.
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• Provide additional funding for the State of Iowa Scholarships, Iowa Tuition Grants, Vocational-Technical Tuition Grants, National Guard Education Benefits, and Teacher Shortage Loans.
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• Promote use of new federal education credits.
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• Fully fund Community College finance formula by providing $6.2 million in state aid. This should reduce the need for tuition increases at the community colleges.

Continued enhancement of educator skills

The skill level of Iowa’s educators will continue to be enhanced.

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• Establish ongoing educator shortage forgivable loan program.
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• Improve teachers’ ability to assess achievement.
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• Implement beginning teacher induction program to improve readiness of new educators.

Quality workforce for Iowa’s future

The quality workforce necessary for Iowa’s future will be attracted and retained.

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• Create an Iowa Skills Forecasting Council to highlight workforce shortage areas and determine how to best address them.
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• Establish forgivable loan program for workers retraining in shortage areas.
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• Establish Teacher Shortage forgivable loans.

Outstanding libraries

All Iowans will have access to top quality library collections and services.

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• Establish and fund the "Enrich Iowa Libraries" initiative to promote high standards of service, technology development and resource sharing. Start with $1 million appropriation and phase-in to $3 million level in three years.

Efforts Transpiring to Help Small Pork Producers

United States Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman announced USDA’s program to provide $50 million in direct cash payments to struggling small hog producers. Approximately 100,000 hog producers will be paid up to $2,500 per operation.

Producers are eligible if they marketed fewer than 1,000 hogs during the last six months of 1998, and are still in operation today. Producers are not eligible for payments on hogs marketed under fixed-price or cost-plus contracts. No payments will be made to operations whose 1998 gross income exceeded $2.5 million, as is true for USDA’s crop disaster assistance programs.

Producers should apply for direct payments at their local Farm Service Agency office from February 1-12, 1999. Payments will be made about two to three weeks after the end of the sign up period.

House Committee Recommendations

A 13-member House committee met for the second time on Wednesday, January 6^th, to prepare a plan to help small independent pork producers. The committee recommended the following be done during the 1999 legislative session:

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2. Adopt a resolution urging the federal government to do the following:

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• Approve disaster assistance payments to small independent producers.

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• Obtain information regarding contracts executed between packers and producers, and that the USDA prepare a report regarding the information for publication.
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• Amend federal law to prohibit packers from executing contracts prohibiting confidentiality regarding the terms of the contracts.
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• Amend the federal law to require that the country of origin be contained on labels of all meat products sold to consumers.
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• Amend the federal Packers and Stockyards Act to address current market practices.
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• Require that copies of contracts executed between packers and producers be filed with every secretary of state office.

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2. Consider a bill that would do both of the following:

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• Prohibit provisions in contracts executed between packers and producers requiring producers to keep the terms of such contracts confidential.
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• Require that all contracts executed between packers and producers be filed with the secretary of state.

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2. Consider a bill that would amend the Linked Investment for Tomorrow program by increasing the money available to support the program, not to exceed the lesser of $150 million or 10 percent of the balance of the State Pooled Money fund, and that $82 million of that amount be used to assist small independent pork producers.

Commission Asks to Rearrange Misdemeanors

The Legislature’s Sentencing Commission, which met several times during the interim, recommended that a number of serious misdemeanors be reduced to simple misdemeanors with elevated fines, in an effort to cut the amount of red tape involved in processing relatively minor infractions, since many simple misdemeanors can be handled like citations.

During the past election, the voters approved a constitutional amendment to eliminate the $100 fine limit on simple misdemeanors, opening the door for steeper fines without having to charge a more serious criminal offense.

Even though the state Constitution was amended, the Code still limits the maximum fine for simple misdemeanors to $100 or else a 30 day jail term. To charge higher fines for simple misdemeanors will require a Code change.

The maximum penalty in statutes for a serious misdemeanor is one year imprisonment and $1,500 fine.

The Commission recommended the following offenses for some type of reorganization:

• Interference with official acts;
• Driving while license under suspension;
• Underage possession of alcohol, repeat offense;
• Use of fireworks in a state park;
• Simple theft, fraud, and criminal mischief;
• Computer theft or computer damage;
• Requiring a polygraph test as a condition of employment;
• Exhibiting a person without permission of the person or the person’s parent, if the person is a minor.

DNR Postpones Revisions to Threatened and

Endangered Species List

After reviewing public comments concerning proposed rule changes, the Department of Natural Resources will postpone making revisions to the state’s list of threatened and endangered species. The department said they want to build consensus before proceeding to final rules. They plan on holding a series of workshops to gather additional input from scientists and other interested persons.

In November, DNR proposed revisions employing a new method for evaluating the status of rare plants and animals in Iowa. The new method considered the status of species throughout their entire range rather than just within Iowa. As a result, many species presently listed as "endangered" would be reclassified as "threatened."

The department said that while the proposed rules would not have affected the level of protection afforded many species, it is important that Iowans understand and support the rationale for listing species. After further consultation with department scientists and other scientists over the next several months, the department will develop a new proposal that addresses the concerns raised during the public review.

Comments received by the department ranged from calls for increased protection to less protection. About a third of the responders disliked the proposed regional approach and favored listing species based only on their rarity within Iowa. A third of the comments recommended the criteria be refined to include more species, and another third called for fewer species to be listed out of concern for economic impacts of rare species protection.

Session Delay Imposed on Two Rules Regulating Gambling

Two rules adopted by the Racing and Gaming Commission and brought before the legislative Administrative Rules Review Committee during the interim have been referred to the General Assembly.

Credit though use of a credit card banned

On September 8, 1998, the Administrative Rules Review Committee voted to put a session delay on a rule that prohibited satellite terminals at gambling facilities regulated by the Commission that would give a patron credit through the use of a credit card. This provision was actually a compromise of a previously proposed rule that would have banned automatic teller machines from facilities regulated by the Commission. Discussion focused on whether this was an attempt to put failed legislation into rule form. The Rules Committee has never voluntarily allowed a rule to be adopted based on failed legislation.

Satellite debit terminals prohibited in gambling areas

A rule has since been adopted that requires that satellite debit terminals or any other device by which cash is dispensed to a customer be located in the non-gambling areas of the facility. This rule differs from the above rule because this type of terminal allows a patron to have access to their own cash. It would not allow issuance of credit or a loan.

Session delay approved

A session delay postpones the effective date of the rule. The General Assembly is given the opportunity to act by passing legislation dealing with the subject. If the General Assembly does not act during the 1999 legislative session, the rule becomes effective the last day of the 1999 legislative session.

Requirements prior to additional slot machines

The Racing and Gaming Commission adopted new rules outlining the criteria licensees must include in their requests to the Commission for additional gaming machines or gaming tables. This language was part of a larger rule that was designed to more closely regulate the gambling industry.

Must show how money will benefit Iowa

The Commission brought the rule before the Administrative Rules Review Committee in November. The Commission proposed two changes. The first change would require recipients of nonprofit distributions to explain how receipt this of money would benefit residents of Iowa. The second proposal required the qualified sponsoring organization, prior to funding a request, to consider how it would benefit residents of Iowa. Additionally, the rule would not allow the qualified sponsoring organization to distribute to an organization that has an employee, officer, or director who is a member of the Commission.

Session delay approved

Discussion centered on whether these two proposals provide an objective and uniform method for evaluating applications for slot machine expansion. After discussion, the Rules Committee voted to refer this portion of the proposed rule to the General Assembly. If the General Assembly fails to act on this rule during the 1999 legislative session, the rule becomes effective at the close of the 1999 session.

Consultant Provides Report on Future of ICN

The Legislative Oversight Committee hired Ultrapro International, Inc. to study options for the future of the Iowa Communications Network (ICN), the state-owned fiber optic network. The primary objective of the study was to review and evaluate various options for the ownership and management of the ICN.

The focus of the project was on the current and planned ICN, and the evaluation of various options for ownership and management of the network. The cost of the contract was $73,900. Ultrapro evaluated options, but did not make any specific recommendations.

Ultrapro provided the following observations:

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• Status Quo. The status quo of state ownership and management seemed acceptable to most industry and government representatives interviewed during the study. Ultrapro interviewed 63 people representing state government (policy makers, staff, and users) as well as from private industry.
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• Need Competition. Competition brings higher quality service, lower prices, new services and a higher rate of deployment of new technology. The availability of new technology provided in the context of a monopoly market does not guarantee users the price/feature benefits of a competitive marketplace.
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• Sale of the ICN. Sale of the network raises difficult issues such as valuation of the network. Unsuccessful bidders (or even private participants who do not bid) are likely to make consummation of the sale a protracted and difficult process. Without new competitors in the local telephone market, sale of the network to an incumbent provider could in fact lessen the amount of competition that currently exists. In addition, sale of the network raises issues noted in the 1995 report of the 461 Task Force relating to federal use of the ICN; lease; right-of-way and access considerations; as well as legal and IRS concerns.

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• Private-Public Ownership. The issue of ICN competing with private providers has been one of the most controversial issues surrounding the State-built network up to this point. Expanding use of these facilities, with the State as a partner, to uses that compete with current telecommunications providers for general business and consumer customers would likely be a controversial step. In all events, the ICN does not have a significant amount of marketable spare capacity, and a construction program would be necessary if additional traffic from new users were to exceed the capacity that has been built to support the needs of current authorized users.
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• Private Management. Retaining state ownership but contracting with a private company to manage the network would not expand use of the facilities to compete with current telecommunications providers for general business and consumer customers, and to that extent wouldn’t be as controversial as other options. All parties recognize that there have been issues between ICN management and the legislators, but there are differences of opinion on how to resolve them. Private management is not seen universally as the answer.
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• Training. Regardless of the ownership of ICN, it is important to provide training and support to the ICN users. Without full knowledge of the services of ICN and how to use them, users will not be fully productive. Full and effective training and customer support are key elements to the successful use of ICN, as important as the network itself; and, it needs to be provided regardless of the network owner.
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• Internet. Regardless of the ownership of the ICN, it is important to recognize the key role that the Internet plays in the future of education, libraries, and government. Whether the network is under government or private ownership, ICN authorized users need to have access to the Internet and receive training and support to gain full value from the Internet.

Bill Introduced to "Fix" Drug Testing Law Flaw

The Legislature passed a bill effecting drug testing in the work place last year. The law contains a flaw regarding testing using a breath sample. In an effort to prevent someone from testing positive from a flawed sample, the law requires the initial sample to be split into two equal parts. Thus, a second confirmatory test could be done, if necessary, to make sure someone has tested positive.

The Flaw: The law allows samples to be breath, urine or in some cases, blood. The problem is that currently there is no known way to divide breath. Opponents raised this point on the floor last year, and offered an amendment to only allow urine samples, but their amendment was rejected.

The Iowa Department of Public Health, to deal with this quandary, adopted rules to deal with the drug testing sample problem in enforcing the law. Their rule only allows samples to be urine, or in certain cases, blood.

The "Fix": House File 23 has been introduced by drug testing proponents. It would allow one breath test be preformed on an employee, and then confirmed, by the same device, fifteen minutes later. This type of system, as well as other possible drug tests, will be heavily evaluated during the current Legislative session.

Other Problems: House File 23 does not deal with any other technical problems with the bill, such as Employee Assistance Programs. Legislators may also try to deal with some of the other perceived inadequacies of the law such as:

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• The law only applying to private sector employees. Public employees, including legislators, are exempt from current drug testing law.

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• If an employee is fired for a false positive drug test, there is no provision to get their job back.

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• If there is no employee benefit plan, the law caps the amount that employers pay for rehabilitation at $2000. This could lead to large out of pocket expenses for employees for a possibly mandated rehabilitation program.

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• The reporting requirements by the Department of Public Health could better assess the drug testing law in Iowa.

16 Empowerment Grants Awarded In 2^nd Round

Sixteen empowerment areas, representing 21 counties, were approved for a total of $4.2 million in school ready funds, as well as $1.3 million in federal welfare block grant funds, when the state empowerment board met on January 8 to review the second round of grant applications.

$5.2 Million Total in School Ready Grants

Added to the first round of empowerment awards from last September, this brings the statewide total to 19 empowerment areas, encompassing 28 counties, with a total allocation of $5.2 million in school ready grant funds.

In addition, 13 grant applicants, representing 30 counties, were awarded empowerment area designation during the January 8 meeting, but with no money.

Moreover, eleven grant applicants, representing 22 counties, were awarded neither money nor empowerment status, but were designated as "empowerment development areas," and will be targeted for technical assistance to help them gain designation as quickly as possible, depending upon staff availability to provide technical assistance.

$1.6 Million in Federal Welfare Funds

The 1998 empowerment legislation specified that designated areas which were awarded school ready grant money are also eligible for federal welfare block grants, targeted broadly to enhance child care capacity or early childhood education for young children.

Including the first and second rounds of empowerment awards, a total of $1,601,000 in federal welfare funds were distributed among the 19 empowerment areas, using a legislatively-specified formula based upon each area’s welfare population as a proportion of the entire state welfare population