Iowa House rejects GOP reorganization plan


Charlotte Eby | Posted: Friday, February 12, 2010 10:43 pm

DES MOINES - The Iowa House debated a wide-ranging state government reorganization plan Friday as lawmakers attempt to find savings in lean budget times.

Democrats say their plan will save roughly $124 million, but they defeated a plan Republicans say would have added to those savings.

Rep. Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City, offered a list of 14 ideas he said would save $290 million. Those ideas included such things as selling the state's vehicle fleet, eliminating taxpayer-funded lobbyists and selling or leasing the Iowa Communications Network.

One of the ideas that generated the most discussion was eliminating state benefits to adult illegal immigrants.

"Even if we don't have 50-60,000 adult illegals in the state of Iowa, the taxpayers of the state shouldn't be funding one of them," Rants said.

The amendment offered by Rants failed on 43-54 vote along party lines. Democrats blasted the claims of savings in the Republican plan.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, D-Des Moines, took special issue with a claim that that more than $92 million could be saved by ending state benefits to adult illegal immigrants.

"It's an arbitrary number," McCarthy said. "It's a political argument, but it's not worth a penny of savings."

The rejected proposal also would have eliminated the Iowa Power Fund, used to develop the state's renewable energy industry, and the Office of Energy Independence, which Republicans said could save $25 million in total.

"I think Iowans support what the Power Fund stands for, which is reducing our dependence on foreign oil, creating green jobs and trying to continue to be the renewable energy capital of the world," McCarthy said.

Democrats also defeated an amendment offered by Rep. Royd Chambers,

R-Sheldon, that would have limited tuition increases at the state's regent's universities to the Higher Education Price Index.

Debate on the bill scheduled to resume next week.

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