Published Friday | March 7, 2008
Democrats say top priorities survive

DES MOINES (AP) — Majority Democrats boasted Thursday that their top priorities had survived the first legislative deadline, but Republicans claimed that little was being accomplished at the Statehouse.

"We feel pretty good about the things that passed out (of committee) this week, and we're very optimistic that we'll be able to get most of these things done," said House Speaker Pat Murphy, D-Dubuque.

With solid majorities in the House and Senate, it was unlikely that any of the Democrats' top priorities wouldn't make it past the so-called funnel week, a deadline in which bills not approved by a committee in either chamber must be rejected.

Bills backed by Democrats that have moved forward include education reform, an effort to curb the hiring of illegal immigrants and a health care expansion.

"I believe this session will be remembered as one in which we kept our commitments and stood up for middle-class families in a fiscally responsible way," said Senate President Jack Kibbie, D-Emmetsburg.

Republicans said the Democrats were moving slowly, especially in writing a budget.

"We still don't know yet how much Democrats plan on spending or how much taxes they're raising," said House Minority Leader Chris Rants, R-Sioux City.

Rants did note, however, that there was some bipartisan cooperation in creating a House health care package. The effort would expand children's coverage through government plans and private insurance assistance, with a goal of having all children covered by 2010 and all adults by 2013. A Senate bill, which would mandate coverage for all kids by 2011, is likely to face heavy opposition from Republicans.

Here's the status of measures on other topics:

Education: A House committee approved a bill that would require students to stay in school through age 17. And the full Senate passed a measure that would require school districts to follow a state-mandated curriculum, which would change a long-held policy giving local school boards control of curriculum.

Smoking: The Senate passed a bill that bans smoking in most businesses and public places, including casinos and veterans halls. Those spots were exempt under a House version passed earlier in the session. The measure will return to the House for more debate and possibly more revisions.

Illegal immigrants: Under a House bill, employers who don't verify job applicants' identity with a valid photo ID would be subject to felony perjury charges, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $7,500 fine. Senate Minority Leader Ron Wieck, R-Sioux City, called the bill "pretty much a fluffy piece of legislation" and said Senate Democrats have done little to address illegal immigration.

Bottle bill: Gov. Chet Culver's proposal to expand Iowa's bottle deposit law to include water, tea, juice and sports drink containers remains alive, but Murphy said it faced tough opposition.

Teen drivers: A Senate bill approved by a committee this week would keep teen drivers from carrying any passengers other than siblings during the first six months with their intermediate driver's license. It would allow a young driver to carry passengers if a parent was in the car.

Veterans: This week, the House passed a bill creating new lottery games that would fund an endowment for the Veterans Trust Fund. Backers hope to increase the fund to $50 million to help pay for a variety of veterans' needs.

Other bills moving ahead that were praised by Democrats included measures to track pseudoephedrine sales, crack down on Internet predators and create new surface water protections.
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