Budget woes dominate final days

Hundreds of bills got the boot this week at the end of the second funnel deadline, just three weeks before the proposed end of this year’s session of the Iowa Legislature.

Casualties include a proposal to allow betting on professional sports. A proposed ban on texting while driving survived. But most legislators agree that the budget will be the dominant issue of the rest of the session.

With that in mind, it’s hard to mourn the dead bills, said Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs.

“I’m sure there are things that went by the wayside that are important to some people,” said Gronstal. “The things we need to get done to finish this legislative session have been accomplished.”

Gronstal pointed to the state government reorganization bill, which has passed both the House and Senate and is expected to be signed by Gov. Chet Culver this week or next.

Gronstal estimates the savings accomplished by that bill to be about $265 million, putting the Legislature well on its way to closing a proposed budget gap that is expected to reach at least $400 million.

Not all leaders are convinced that the bill will achieve such savings, said Rep. Rod Roberts, R-Carroll.

Democratic leadership has been quiet about the details of its proposed budget, much of which won’t be settled until the main budget bill is debated, he said.

“To this point, we really don’t have a complete picture,” Roberts said.

The self-imposed funnel deadline requires bills to have passed either the full House or full Senate as well as a committee of the other chamber to survive. Dead bills can be revived late in the session by including them in appropriations bills, which aren’t subject to the funnel.

Contact the writer:

444-1310, elizabeth.ahlin@owh.com

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