Bleeding Heartland - smart growth

Events coming up this week

desmoinesdem — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 02:00:00 GMT

I couldn't keep up with posting weekly calendars at the height of campaign season, but I'm determined to get back on track.

Events that got lost in the shuffle include the 1000 Friends of Iowa annual meeting in late October, where the 2010 Best Development Awards were announced, and the grand opening of the Roshek Building in Dubuque on November 9. This historic building holds several local businesses and offices for about 1,300 IBM employees. The redevelopment project earned the city of Dubuque a U.S. Commerce Department award for economic development excellence.

I also wish I'd flagged the recent groundbreaking of West Union's Green Pilot Streetscape.

"Today is certainly a milestone, not only for the people of West Union and Fayette County, but for all Iowans and, in fact, much of the nation," David Yocca, senior partner of Conservation Design Forum, later agreed. "The reconstruction of a significant portion of the public realm of West Union as planned is one of, if not the most integrated, wholistic, forward-looking efforts that has been done on any street anywhere in this country."
He explained that the future West Union downtown district will represent an emerging example of green infrastructure, which will serve communities by creating safer, more comfortable, walkable and bikable streets; improve the health of local water, air, and soil;
Restore hydrology and the natural environment; provide long-term cost savings and value over convention infrastructure; support local businesses and job creation; and provide a more beautiful, authentic setting for outdoor use and enjoyment.

The improvements in downtown West Union will be fantastic. Unfortunately, Republican candidates all over Iowa misrepresented this project to spread lies about Democrats funding "heated sidewalks."

Details on some of this week's events around the state are after the jump. Pleast post a comment or e-mail me directly about other events worth noting.
Monday, November 15

David Cobb of the Move to Amend coalition, which opposes corporate personhood, kicks off an Iowa tour. He's speaking at the ISU Student Union sunroom (2229 Lincoln Way) in Ames on November 15 from 7 pm to 9 pm.

Tuesday, November 16

David Cobb will speak on the movement to end corporate personhood at noon in Fairfield (Revelations Cafe/Coffee Shop, 112 North Main Street). The same evening, he will speak from 7 pm to 9 pm in Cedar Rapids (Free Peoples Unitarian Universalist Church, 600 3rd Ave, SE).

The November Environmental Protection Commission meeting will be held at the DNR Air Quality Bureau, 7900 Hickman Road, in Des Moines, on Nov 16, beginning at 10 a.m. The meeting is open to the public, and the agenda is posted here: http://www.iowadnr.gov/epc/ind...

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has scheduled public input meetings around Iowa this week. The first two will take place on November 16, at 9 am in Clear Lake (Clear Lake Community Center, 15 N. Sixth St.) and at 2 pm in Spencer (Spencer Public Library ICN Room, 21 E. Third St). An Iowa DNR press release of November 1 provides background:

The DNR is looking for input on a statewide plan to provide new, accurate floodplain work maps for Iowa communities and counties by July 1, 2014.
Many local governments have long operated with outdated floodplain maps - or none at all. The DNR is working with the Iowa Flood Center, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other partners to create comprehensive floodplain work maps for Iowans.
The public is invited to attend any of six meetings across Iowa to discuss the plan and order of mapping.
The DNR and the Iowa Flood Center will use state-of-the-art technology to produce the work maps. As a result, the work maps will indicate the depth and extent of potential flooding accurate to within 7 or 8 inches of elevation - compared to historic flood maps that have 5- to 10-foot accuracy.
"This effort should not be confused with flood insurance maps, although the work maps will eventually be developed into FEMA-approved flood insurance rate maps" said Scott Ralston DNR's floodplain mapping coordinator.
"The benefit of the work maps is that communities can use them for planning efforts - helping to protect citizens and property practically as soon as they are developed," he said.
The precision of the work maps will help Iowans know if their property is at risk from flooding. The maps can also assist local officials to determine evacuation areas, establish zoning and flood-proof critical infrastructure.
Iowans can provide input and learn more about the four-year mapping plan at the following times and locations.
* Clear Lake: Nov. 16, 9 a.m., Clear Lake Community Center, 15 N. Sixth St.
* Spencer: Nov. 16, 2 p.m., Spencer Public Library (ICN Room), 21 E. Third St.
* Des Moines: Nov. 17, 9 a.m., Wallace State Office Building Auditorium, 502 E. Ninth St.
* Atlantic: Nov. 17, 2 p.m., Atlantic Municipal Utilities, 15 W. Third St.
* Washington: Nov. 18, 9 a.m., Washington Public Library, 115 West Washington
* Independence: Nov. 18, 2 p.m., Falcon Civic Center, 1305 Fifth Ave. NE
For more information, visit http://floodplain.iowadnr.gov
Or, contact Scott Ralston, DNR Floodplain Mapping Coordinator, at (515) 281-8121 or Scott.Ralston AT dnr.iowa.gov

Wednesday, November 17

DNR public input meetings on floodplain mapping are scheduled for 9 am in Des Moines (Wallace State Office Building Auditorium, 502 E. Ninth St.) and 2 pm in Atlantic (Atlantic Municipal Utilities, 15 W. Third St).

David Cobb speaks about ending corporate personhood in Iowa City from 7 pm to 9 pm (Iowa City Public Library, 123 South Linn Street).

Thursday, November 18

DNR public input meetings on floodplain mapping are scheduled for 9 am in Washington (Washington Public Library, 115 West Washington) and 2 pm in Independence (Falcon Civic Center, 1305 Fifth Ave. NE).

David Cobb speaks about ending corporate personhood in Davenport from 7 pm to 9 pm (St. Ambrose University, 518 West Locust Street).

A limited screening of the movie May I Be Frank runs from November 18 through November 20 at Fleur Cinema & Cafe, 4545 Fleur Drive in Des Moines.

The Des Moines area Green Drinks group meets at Mars Cafe, 2318 University Ave (Drake neighborhood) from 5:30-7:30 pm. Come purchase something to eat and/or drink and join others for conversation about the environment and renewable energy. Contact Shari at sharihrdina AT gmail.com. Click here to find other Iowa cities and towns with Green Drinks groups.

Friday, November 19

From the Iowa Environmental Council's e-mail bulletin:

The Inaugural Annual Meeting of the Iowa Food Systems Council will be Friday, November 19 from 9:30 am to 12:00 pm at the Urbandale Public Library, Conference Rooms A & B, 3520 86th Street, Urbandale. IFSC members will be electing the Board of Directors, listening to guest speakers and charting the course for an Iowa food system that advances the health of Iowans, communities, economies and the environment. Nomination packets and IFSC membership information can be accessed at www.IowaFoodSystemsCouncil.org

The Des Moines chapter of Women's International League for Peace and Freedom is holding its third annual "Strong Feisty Women Banquet" at the Holiday Inn on 6th Avenue in Des Moines. This year's honorees are Maggie Rawland and State Senator Pam Jochum. Singer Mary McAdams will perform, and David Cobb will give the keynote address on the need to abolish corporate personhood. Bleeding Heartland user Apple posted more details here. Contact wilpf.dsm AT gmail.com or (515) 210-7928.

Saturday, November 20

Cool Congregations, a project of Iowa Interfaith Power & Light, will hold a "how-to workshop" in Urbandale:

Join people of faith in the Des Moines area Saturday, Nov 20 to learn how to conduct the Cool Congregations program in your congregation. Cool Congregations is an earth stewardship program that encourages participants to work in small groups to reduce their impact on the earth. They do this by measuring their carbon footprint and taking simple steps to fulfill a faith-based pledge to cut their energy use, often saving money in the process. We'll meet at 9am-12 noon, St. Pius X Catholic Church, 3663 66th Street, Urbandale. Register online by clicking on the link for the workshop at http://www.iowaipl.org/cc_cale... or contact Bill Cox at billco2@q.com or 515-276-0527. Suggested donation: $20/person OR $50/team of 3 or more per congregation. Contact Sarah Webb at coolcongregations AT iowaipl.org

"Road diet" hasn't affected commute on major Des Moines artery

desmoinesdem — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 18:12:07 GMT

When the city of Des Moines put Ingersoll Avenue on a "road diet" last month, some locals warned the change would inconvenience drivers and hurt area businesses. I drive down Ingersoll several times a week and have noticed no change in the traffic flow. Now a new study shows commuters have hardly been affected:

In early May, Ingersoll was "re-striped" between Polk Boulevard and Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway, decreasing the number of vehicle lanes from four to three. There is one lane in each direction, a center left-turn lane and bicycle lanes on both sides of the street.
In the worst case, travel times increased roughly 20 seconds for westbound motorists traveling between Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and 42nd Street during the afternoon rush hour, said Gary Fox, the city's traffic engineer. There were essentially no changes overall and slight improvements in midday vehicle travel times, he added. [...]
The Ingersoll plan is part of a broader "complete streets" initiative that aims to make Des Moines streets more accessible to bicycles and pedestrians.

Giving people safe alternatives to driving is the main reason to adopt "complete streets" policies, but this re-striping also created about 50 additional on-street parking spaces, which helps Ingersoll business owners and their customers. Click here for more information on road diets and here to learn about complete streets. Like Des Moines, the small town of Cascade, Iowa City and the Johnson County Council of Governments have also adopted complete streets policies. Earlier this year, Dubuque received a federal grant to help residents of the historic Millwork District commute to work on foot, bike, or via public transit.

LATE UPDATE: On June 24 I had to drive west almost the whole length of Ingersoll just before 5 pm, which must be around the worst time for "rush hour" traffic. I didn't notice any problems, and hardly saw any congestion except for the stretch between 24th and 31st streets. Even that wasn't bad.

Massive Iowa Legislature linkfest (post-funnel edition)

desmoinesdem — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 13:56:41 GMT

The Iowa Legislature has been moving at an unusually fast pace during the shortened 2010 session. It's time to catch up on what's happened at the statehouse over the past three weeks. From here on out I will try to post a legislative roundup at the end of every week.

February 12 was the first "funnel" deadline. In order to have a chance of moving forward in 2010, all legislation except for tax and appropriations bills must have cleared at least one Iowa House or Senate committee by the end of last Friday.

After the jump I've included links on lots of bills that have passed or are still under consideration, as well as bills I took an interest in that failed to clear the funnel. I have grouped bills by subject area. This post is not an exhaustive list; way too many bills are under consideration for me to discuss them all. I recommend this funnel day roundup by Rod Boshart for the Mason City Globe-Gazette.

Note: the Iowa legislature's second funnel deadline is coming up on March 5. To remain alive after that point, all bills except tax and appropriations bills must have been approved by either the full House or Senate and by a committee in the opposite chamber. Many bills that cleared the first funnel week will die in the second.
BUDGET/GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION

Budget constraints are dominating this year's shortened session, and Iowa House and Senate leaders released their fiscal year 2011 budget targets on February 17. You can find a link to a pdf file with all the numbers here. Iowa House Appropriations Committee Chair Jo Oldson emphasized that lawmakers plan to spend "less from the general fund next year than we did this year." Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Bob Dvorsky said priorities will be helping middle-class Iowa families and small businesses "by helping create good-paying jobs across our state, expanding access to affordable health care and maintaining opportunities for a quality education for all Iowans."

It sounds like some state tax credits will be eliminated or curtailed, as the budget principles include "more accountability and oversight for tax breaks for corporations that do not create or keep jobs in Iowa." Democratic leaders insist they will not raise taxes on middle-class Iowans as a way to balance the budget.

A large government reorganization bill, Senate File 2088, will lay the groundwork for many of the spending reductions in the 2011 budget. The Iowa Senate passed this bill on February 1 with three Republicans joining the 32 Democrats in favor. In the Iowa House, floor debate stretched over two days before the chamber unanimously approved its version of the reorganization on February 15. The bill now goes back to the Senate. From the Iowa House speaker's office:

"The government reorganization effort approved today eliminates waste and saves millions of dollars for Iowa taxpayers. From cost-saving measures to making state government more efficient to improving the services that the state offers, our reorganization efforts so far this year total $272 million and makes our state stronger and more responsive," said State Representative Mary Mascher of Iowa City, who won approval of the bill.
The goal of Senate File 2088 is to create more accountability for taxpayer dollars and eliminate wasteful spending by consolidating agencies and delivering services to Iowans more efficiently. Last fall, Governor Culver used his executive authority to implement $88 million in cost saving measures and last week he signed an early retirement package for state employees into law that saved an additional $60 million. The massive reorganization plan approved today is estimated to save taxpayers an additional $124 million next year, bringing the total savings from reorganization efforts to $272 million.
The bill is one of the largest initiatives in state history at 350 pages and contains over 50 different ideas, both large and small. It eliminates 14 different boards and commissions, reduces energy costs, combines state purchasing, cuts down on middle management to keep front line workers in their jobs, and consolidates information technology.

Although all of the Iowa House Republicans voted for the reorganization bill in the end, some have continued to complain that their ideas for larger cost-savings were rejected. During the floor debate, State Representative Chris Rants again offered an amendment he proposed in committee, which he claims would produce an additional $290 million in savings. As I discussed here, his numbers about savings from denying services to undocumented immigrants aren't credible. Other savings would have cut too deeply into priority areas for Democrats, such as early childhood education and renewable energy investments through the Power Fund. Democratic State Representative Bruce Hunter disputed Rants' claim that selling the state's vehicle fleet would save money. The House rejected his amendment. Rants also tried unsuccessfully to include an amendment that would have allowed Iowa to opt out of any new services or programs required by a federal health care reform bill.

The reorganization bill supplements savings from an early retirement bill that both chambers approved with bipartisan support. Culver signed the early retirement bill into law on February 10:

The legislation, which passed the House of Representatives by a 98-1 margin and the Senate with a 41-6 vote, will qualify approximately 6,600 employees for early retirement incentives, including 2,300 who qualify to receive full benefits from IPERS. Key initiatives of SERIP include:
* $1,000 incentive pay for every year served between 10-25 years (maximum payout of $25,000). Employees serving more than 25 years would not be able to receive incentive pay beyond the maximum. Incentive pay will distributed over a five year period in equal amounts.
* $2,000 incentive to assist with payment of state portion for continuing health insurance coverage. Payment upon departure from state employment.
* Cash payout of accumulated vacation that will be added to the five-year incentive pay schedule.
To qualify for SERIP, individuals must be 55 years of age, be employed in the Executive Branch, have worked for at least 10 years and agree to never return to state employment. Those not eligible include those of the Legislative Branch, Regents institutional employees, elected officials or Executive Branch employees covered by SPOC.

The early retirement bill is expected to save between $57 million and $60 million, though only about half of the savings will come from the general fund. Rants cast the only vote against the early retirement package in the Iowa House on February 3 and explained his reasoning in a blog post at his gubernatorial campaign website. Among other things, he suggested it's hard to explain to constituents who got laid off that the state is paying people to retire. (As if private-sector employers don't provide early retirement incentives to avoid layoffs.) Rants also said "paying people to quit should be our last resort to balance the budget - not the first step out of the gate." I understand why Rants would have wanted to draw attention to himself before he dropped out of the governor's race, but it's amazing for him to say paying people to quit should be the "last resort." This from a guy who would happily balance the budget by cutting thousands of Iowa four-year-olds off from preschool opportunities.

Despite the significant savings from the government reorganization and early retirement bills, I can't see how the 2011 budget will be balanced without some revenue increases. Those are likely to come from eliminating certain tax credits. The Senate Economic Growth Committee has already approved a bill to suspend the state film tax credit until July 2011. But it will require tremendous political will to cut other tax credits. Companies and industries that benefit from the current tax credit structure have hired a small army of lobbyists at the capitol. Some Democrats are not happy with proposals to curb the very expensive research activities tax credit.

Although the government reorganization plan had bipartisan support, we aren't likely to see many bipartisan votes on 2011 budget provisions. I was surprised to learn earlier this month that Senate Republicans voted against a $1.8 million supplemental appropriation of unspent money from the 2009 budget, which was allocated to support mental health services at the county level. You would think that would be a no-brainer, since it didn't add a dime to the current-year budget, and counties face high demand for social services.

BUSINESS AND EMPLOYMENT ISSUES

This week the Progressive States Network held up Iowa as an example of how "a progressive state should act."

"In Iowa, legislators have kept the focus on helping families, especially middle class, working families who are struggling," said Nathan Newman, Executive Director of the Progressive States Network. "Iowa is leading the way on expanding health care coverage to all children, raising the minimum wage and giving working families a significant tax break."
The Progressive States Network is a network of state legislators and allied community, labor, and other non-profit organizations in all fifty states working to promote effective, progressive change state-by-state. The group serves as a clearinghouse for progressive legislation and ideas to encourage the rapid adoption of best practices across the nation. [...]
"This year's push in Iowa for increased transparency and accountability on corporate tax cuts is another innovation that we encourage other states and Congress to follow."
Newman also cited proposed legislation to require paid sick days and tougher wage enforcement laws as measures which benefit working families stressed by the national recession. And he cited Iowa's continued leadership on renewable energy and other measures to promote a greener economy.

A bill that would provide some paid sick leave is still alive but will reportedly require significant amendments in order to pass. According to the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women, Senate Study Bill 3176 "requires employers to provide a minimum number of days of paid time for employees per year (full and part-time, pro-rated) to be able to use to recover from their own illness, take care of an ill family member, or seek assistance, legal advice, or medical care related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and establishes a rate of accrual. The bill does not impact employers who already offer a package or alter any collective bargaining agreements."

The Senate Labor and Business Relations Committee unanimously approved Senate File 2270, which requires employers to allow breastfeeding employees to pump milk during their breaks, and to make a "reasonable effort" to provide a private place for expressing milk that is not a toilet stall. The full Senate approved the same bill on February 18, but on a 29-15 vote. All of the no votes were Republicans, including a few who had voted for it at the committee level. According to Jennifer Jacobs of the Des Moines Register, 23 other states have laws on workplace accommodation for breastfeeding.

Most of organized labor's legislative priorities are not going anywhere, but Democrats have offered a watered-down version of "fair share" legislation. The concept of House File 2420 is to require non-union public employees to pay some fee to compensate the union for bargaining services done on their behalf. Although this bill would not apply to the private sector, Republicans claim it would undermine Iowa's "Right to Work" law (which should be called the right to work for less law). On February 17 about 60 people spoke at a three-hour public hearing on the bill. WHO's Dave Price liveblogged the public hearing at the Price of Politics blog, and Jason Clayworth posted some quotes at the Des Moines Register's blog. I noticed that State Representative Geri Huser, one of the House Democratic "six-pack" who sank labor bills in 2009, was involved in crafting the latest version of "fair share," which may increase its odds of getting through the House.

A few bills deal with specific industries, including several relating to gambling: one would allow betting on sports, another would allow casinos to drop greyhound racing, and another would allow casinos to host large poker tournaments. However, legislators will not reintroduce "touchplay" gambling machines in bars.

The Senate State Government Committee approved Senate File 2091, which helps Iowa micro-breweries by allowing "the manufacture and sale of high-alcohol beer that contains 5 to 12 percent alcohol."

On February 17 the Iowa House approved a bill increasing inspections of puppy mills. From an Iowa House press release:

A key provision will increase the number of state inspectors to respond to animal health and safety complaints involving USDA licensed facilities.
"We are now on track to crack down on the bad actors in this industry and protect responsible breeders. This bill will ensure that all companion animals bred and raised in Iowa are healthy and safe," said State Representative Jim Lykam of Davenport, who won approval of the bill.
House File 2280, which passed on a 77-22 vote, increases penalties for unlicensed facilities and requires continuing education for breeders with violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act. It also increases enforcement of uncollected sales tax on the sale of dogs and cats. Many of Iowa's neighboring states already provide state inspection of USDA licensed breeders, including Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska.

I was surprised by the level of support for this bill, which livestock interests opposed. Some Democrats addressed those concerns during the floor debate:

Representative Mark Kuhn, a Democrat from Charles City, says there's nothing in the bill that would apply to cows, pigs, horses, sheep, goats, chickens or any other farm animals. "Let's just talk about what's in the bill and in the first two lines of the title it says, 'An act providing for the treatment of animals other than agricultural animals,'" Kuhn says. "(It's) the first thing the bill says." Kuhn says the bill applies only to businesses that raise "companion animals."
Representative Dolores Mertz, a Democrat from Ottosen, agrees. "I feel comfortable in voting for this bill today because I believe it does not affect livestock," Mertz says. "And if I find out that this bill does after we pass it, I'll tell you all 'H' is going to open up in this whole state of Iowa if I have anything to say about it."

Kuhn deserves a lot of credit for moving this bill forward. His wife rescues dogs from irresponsible breeders.

A few bills target fraudulent business practices. Senate File 2108, a consumer protection bill targeting deceptive automobile repair shops, passed both chambers of the legislature unanimously. Culver signed that bill into law on February 17. Senate File 2089 would prohibit musical acts that claim to be revivals of famous groups but don't have any original band members.

Probably the biggest disappointment in terms of business regulation was the failure of the payday lending reform bill. This proposal was one of the top priorities for key Democratic legislators before the session. The bill would have capped interest rates for payday loans at 36 percent. Current rates of up to 400 percent interest frequently trap borrowers in cycles of debt after just one loan. It seems to have had enough support to clear the House Commerce Committee, but unfortunately, Democratic State Representative Mike Reasoner was able to keep it stuck in subcommittee, so it never came up for a committee vote before the funnel deadline. Republican State Representative Thomas Sands absurdly claimed that the problem with payday loans isn't the interest rates, it's that some borrowers use them irresponsibly. But when the average payday borrower takes out 12 loans in a year, suggesting that the industry's business model depends on trapping customers in cycles of debt.

PUBLIC SAFETY AND CRIME

By a 20-1 vote, the House Transportation Committee approved a bill that would ban texting while driving:

Under House File 2021, motorists wouldn't be prohibited from reading text messages on cell phones, and the measure would prohibit other levels of government from enacting stricter laws.
If it becomes law, the measure would delay enforcement for a year, requiring officers to only hand out warnings at first. When it takes effect, violators would be fined a minimum of $65.
In cases where texting can be linked to crashes causing serious injury, the fine would climb to $500 and drivers could lose their licenses.

I support this bill, but cell phone use is much more prevalent among drivers than texting, and talking on a cell phone while driving has been shown to be as dangerous as drunk driving.

On February 18 the Senate approved a bill that restricts teenage driving between 11 pm and 5 am and increases from six months to 12 months the period during which a 16- or 17-year-old may drive only if a licensed adult is in the passenger seat. Senate File 2150 passed on a 47-1 vote.

On February 17 the Senate approved by 39 to 9 Senate File 2055, which requires everyone under 18 to wear seat belts in the back seats of cars as well as the front seats.

According to a report from Blank Children's Hospital, 1,823 injuries were reported in Iowa for unbelted kids under 18 between 2004 and 2007. Teens have a higher crash risk than all other drivers, yet studies show they are far less likely to wear seatbelts than older drivers.
When backseat passengers buckle up, their chance of dying in an accident is cut by 60 to 70 percent. In addition, statistics show that a driver is twice as likely to die in an accident when there is an unbelted passenger in the back seat.

A bicycle safety bill is still under consideration too. It would require motor vehicles to leave at least five feet clearance when passing bicyclists and would increase penalties for car vs. bicycle infractions.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved SF 2050, which was prompted by a high-profile murder:

Last year, high school football coach Ed Thomas of Parkersburg was shot and killed by a former student. The student had just been released from a hospital, where he was being treated for mental illness. The student was wanted by the police on other charges, but the law enforcement officials were unable to take him into custody because they didn't know he had been released from the hospital. Hours later, Coach Thomas was murdered.
The "Ed Thomas" bill, Senate File 2050, will allow magistrates to order a hospital or facility to notify law enforcement agencies prior to discharging a person who is wanted by law enforcement. [...] This bill opens up the lines of communication to help hospitals and law enforcement keep the public safe while protecting patients' rights.

Several bills aimed at reducing violence against women are still alive. The Iowa Commission on the Status of Women summarizes them:

· Enforcement of firearm prohibition for domestic abusers (SSB1033). The bill mirrors existing federal which prohibits anyone convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor or felony, or who is subject to a protective order, from owning a firearm. Eligible for Debate in Senate (note: unanimous passage in Committee).
· Domestic abuse strangulation (SSB1029). Makes strangulation or impeding an airway a class D felony. Eligible for Debate in Senate (note: unanimous passage in Committee).
· Repeal forced evictions for persons who request help from public safety agencies (SF2210). Exempts persons who call the police for help (esp. for domestic violence) from city and county "specified crimes" ordinances that require landlords to evict tenants for certain types of police calls. Eligible for Debate in Senate.
· Adds dating violence to domestic abuse statute (SF2249/HF2207). Adds dating relationships to qualifications for charges of domestic abuse (dating violence is currently eligible for protective orders, but not for domestic abuse assault). Eligible for Debate in Senate (note: unanimous passage in Committee).

One crime-related bill that didn't clear the funnel would have slightly increased the credit prison inmates can earn for "staying out of trouble and for participating in treatment and work programs." You probably can guess why this failed, but the Des Moines Register's William Petroski spells it out:

Rep. Rick Olson, D-Des Moines, said the bill won't move forward because of a lack of bipartisan support. Democrats don't want to pass a bill which would result in Republicans accusing them of being soft on crime during an election year.

I wonder how much money that bill could have saved.

A bill that would have legalized medical marijuana also failed to make the funnel. Perhaps the Iowa Board of Pharmacy's decision on February 17 to recommend reclassifying marijuana will give this bill some momentum during the 2011 legislative session. The latest Selzer and Co. statewide poll for the Des Moines Register indicated that 64 percent of respondents supported "allowing medical marijuana," while only 33 percent opposed the idea.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM

The Senate State Government Committee approved new limits on corporate campaign contributions in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Citizens United ruling. It will undergo further amendments, but key Democrats say these elements will be in the final version:

- Requiring additional reporting of receipts and independent expenditures by corporations engaged in independent campaign activities.
- Barring collusion by corporate donors and political candidates. This includes bans on using the same consultants, advertising firms and other campaign advisers.
- Requiring disclaimers on advertisements paid for by corporations.
- Requiring board, chief executive officer or stockholder approval before a corporation can use funds for independent expenditures.
- Prohibiting foreign-controlled companies from any role in Iowa elections.

Senators Jeff Danielson and Mike Gronstal explained the campaign finance law changes here. The goal is to "protect Iowa's voters from a flood of anonymous, negative advertisements funded by big corporations. Iowa voters deserve full disclosure." Senators worked closely with the office of the Iowa Campaign Ethics and Disclosure Board to draft this bill.

Another campaign finance reform bill that's still alive was inspired by the activities of the "Draft Branstad PAC" last fall. It would require committees seeking to draft a candidate to disclose fundraising information, as campaign committees already do in Iowa.

As usual, Democrats made no effort this session to limit individual contributions to candidates for state office.

HEALTH CARE

Shortly after the largest health insurance company in Iowa announced a huge rate hike, Democratic legislators announced on February 18 that they will "hold insurance companies accountable and provide more transparency for consumers on health insurance plans and premiums":

"Middle class families can't afford these outrageous insurance premium increases. At a minimum, Iowans deserve to know exactly what factors led to [Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield's] 18% rate increase. Our plan will bring more accountability to insurance companies by ensuring consumers have access to information on health insurance plans, premium rate increases, and health care cost information," said State Representative Janet Petersen of Des Moines, who chairs the House Commerce Committee.
The insurance company accountability plan outlined by leaders today will be added to Senate File 2201 in the House Commerce Committee. Enacted by the Iowa Insurance Commissioner, a new consumer guide on health insurance will be created for Iowans with health insurance or looking to purchase insurance.
"Greedy Wall Street executives used their power to enrich themselves and devastated our national economy in the process. Isn't Wellmark doing the same thing when it uses its control of the Iowa insurance market to hammer middle class families, small business owners and farmers?" said State Senator Becky Schmitz of Fairfield, a member of the Senate Commerce Committee. "As lawmakers, our job is to ensure insurance rate hikes are justified and that insurance companies aren't taking advantage of small businesses or families."
The accountability plan also calls for a detailed report from the Iowa Insurance Commissioner on health spending costs for insurance plans. The information must include rate increase data, health care expenditures, ranking factors that raise or lower costs in each insurance plan, and other data.

I'm guessing that bill will not go through without a big fight.

Not every health care bill has been controversial, though. On February 15 the Iowa Senate approved a bill on cancer patients in clinical trials: "People who are undergoing clinical trials for cancer treatment would be assured that routine medical care would still be paid for by health insurance companies. Insurers would not be required to pay for the clinical trials." The Iowa House unanimously approved this bill last month. "Peggy Huppert, a lobbyist for the American Cancer Society, said requiring the coverage would eliminate any doubt about an insurance company's legal responsibilities."

I learned from the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women that renewal of the Medicaid Family Planning Waiver (HF2281/SSB3086) is alive as well. "The bill renews the State's ability to draw down federal funds (with state matching funds) to pay for family planning services for low income women (and some men), and expands the age group covered to up to 55."

A bill to collect data to address Iowa's nursing shortage made it through the funnel too. The bill numbers for the Iowa Needs Nurses Now Initiative are HSB634 and SF2168.

Friends of Iowa Midwives have been working hard to convince legislators to pass House File 781 on licensing midwives who attend births outside a hospital setting. That bill was approved by the House State Government Committee but has not yet been scheduled for a vote on the House floor. Although I did not choose to have a home birth, I consider access to midwifery care a reproductive rights issue, so I hope this bill goes forward.

EDUCATION

The legislature passed some education bills during the first week of this session in order to meet a deadline for a federal grant proposal. I discussed those in this post.

Other important decisions relating to education will come when lawmakers debate the 2011 budget. The good news is that Democrats are holding the line on the early childhood education program expanded in 2007.

A comprehensive sex ed bill didn't make the funnel deadline:

The House Education Committee Thursday [February 11] decided not to take up a bill that would have expanded the state educational standards by adding age-appropriate, comprehensive sexuality education to be taught in kindergarten through grade 12 by public school districts and nonpublic accredited schools. Even with an "opt-out" provision for parents the measure was staunchly opposed by Catholic and private school interests.

House Republicans proposed Regents reform including limits to tuition increases, but that bill didn't go forward. Neither did a mean-spirited proposal to "remove protections for gay, lesbian and transgender students from an anti-bullying law passed in 2007".

ENVIRONMENT

So far it hasn't been an encouraging legislative session for environmental issues. Many of the Iowa Environmental Council's legislative priorities did not clear the funnel, including several related to renewable energy: a "feed-in tariff" program that would have forced utilities to pay a fair price for smaller-scale renewable sources of electricity, like wind, solar, and biomass; a "solar electric generation standard" to require public utilities to increase their use of solar power; a bill that would have increased financing for energy-efficiency improvements; a bill that would have required public utilities to disclose to customers how much electricity was generated from alternative and renewable sources; extending energy conservation requirements in the energy code.

A bill that would affect redevelopment in the 500-year flood plain is still alive, but I am not optimistic about its chances based on rumors I'm hearing. A separate measure that would have limited financing for development in the 500-year flood plain did not clear the funnel. We need better watershed management practices, but if the 2008 floods weren't enough to create the political will to pass a bill like this, it's never going to happen.

The House Agriculture Committee fast-tracked a terrible bill that would allow factory farms to avoid restrictions on spreading manure over frozen and snow-covered ground. There's a companion bill in the Iowa Senate, but it hasn't cleared a subcommittee yet. The latest rumor is that these bills are not going forward this session. I hope that's true as well for the comically awful House File 2206, which would give landowners until 2020 (!) to comply with regulations passed in 1997 to prevent water contamination from agricultural drainage wells.

As usual, a good bill that would have allowed "local control" (agricultural zoning at the county level) for large confinement livestock operations didn't go anywhere. Iowa Democrats missed a big opportunity by not pushing for this reform during the past four years. It would have been very popular with the general public, though not with some corporate interest groups.

On the plus side, the Senate Natural Resources Committee approved Senate Study Bill 3198, which outlines how the Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund will be managed if Iowa voters approve a ballot initiative on creating that fund this November.

In addition, the Iowa Senate approved a good land use bill on February 18. Senate File 2265 establishes smart planning principles and passed on a 39 to 7 vote (all the no votes were Republicans). It now goes to the House, where it will be considered in the Local Government Committee. It may be some work to get this bill through the lower chamber. When the House Rebuild Iowa Committee considered a similar bill (called House Study Bill 592) earlier in this session, amendments removed many provisions that would have promoted sustainable development.

Also, Democrats on the legislature's Administrative Rules Review Committee allowed "anti-degradation" rules protecting water quality to stand, despite efforts by Republicans to derail the new rules.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS

No proposed constitutional amendments survived the funnel this year. The highest-profile proposal would have restricted the definition of marriage to one man and one woman in Iowa. Republican efforts to sidestep committee votes and bring that amendment straight to the House and Senate floor failed on February 9. Republicans will use procedural maneuvers to try to revive the marriage amendment later this session, but they are unlikely to succeed. Only five Iowa Senate Democrats have signed a discharge petition to bring the marriage amendment to the floor, and the Republicans need at least eight Democrats to prevail.

Other failed constitutional amendments this session would have limited state spending, prohibited any requirement for workers to pay union dues, defined a "right to life" from conception, restored elections for the Iowa Supreme Court, allowed ballot initiative petitions, protected the right to keep and bear arms, and reduced the number of counties to 50 by July 2015.

CONFIRMATIONS

During the 2009 session, Iowa Senate Republicans blocked three of Governor Culver's appointees: Gene Gessow as head of the Department of Human Services, Shearon Elderkin as a member of the Environmental Protection Commission and Carrie La Seur as a board member of the Iowa Power Fund. So far this session, confirmations have not been contentious. On February 4 the Iowa Senate unanimously confirmed Bret Mills as head of the Iowa Department of Economic Development and Charlie Krogmeier as director of the Department of Human Services. Mills replaces interim IDED director Fred Hubbell, who took over after Mike Tramontina resigned in the wake of the film tax credit scandal. Culver appointed Krogmeier after Gessow's nomination failed last year. The Senate unanimously confirmed Joe O'Hern as head of the Iowa Finance Authority on February 15.

MILITARY AND VETERANS' ISSUES

House File 2110 would extend unemployment benefits to military spouses who relocate because of their spouse's job assignment. It cleared the Iowa House in late January on a party-line vote, which surprised Democratic State Representative McKinley Bailey:

"This bill has little effect in Iowa, since we don't have any military bases, which is why the visceral opposition to this bill is unfounded," Bailey told the Iowa Independent during a phone interview. [...]
Bailey said the impetus of the bill did not start at the state level. Rather it was a crafted in response to one of 10 priority issues identified by the Department of Defense as "having a strong impact on military families at the state level." Currently, 35 other states have adopted similar bills that expand unemployment benefits to trailing military spouses.
"In a state like Texas, which is Republican controlled and has hundreds of thousands of military members, they have this law," Bailey said. "I'm not trying to pick a partisan fight here; I just don't understand the opposition and why there was so much opposition here. It was really frustrating during the debate on the House floor, and I'm not blaming all the Republicans, but there were a few who dragged military families through the mud and said, for example, that these families would use this bill to try and milk the system."

Republicans thought HF 2110 would put too big a strain on Iowa's unemployment trust fund and/or wanted to limit it to spouses of service members who had been deployed.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Bob Krause, who heads the Iowa Democratic Veterans Caucus, had a strong statement about this bill:

"Republican collusion against Veterans' spouse unemployment compensation in the Iowa House is part of a Republican pattern of honoring the veteran with tinsel but refusing meaningful relief. In wartime, when the spouse quits to follow his or her service member, 'voluntary quit' often does not mean 'voluntary quit,'" Krause, a veteran and member of the American Legion added. "Instead it means something you do to keep the family afloat and together - especially on the relative low wages of some of the junior enlisted soldiers."
"So what did the House Republicans do to support our soldiers and their families in time of war? They opposed the bill as being too costly to employers," Krause said. "It seems strange to me that these sunshine soldiers and summertime patriots do not understand that businesses make money in our society because servicemembers protect their right to do it. This is one of the most shameful acts of economic tight-fistedness that I have seen in my long career of working with the military and national defense."

A bill to give veterans the day off on Veterans' Day proved less controversial, clearing the Iowa House on a 97-2 vote on February 10. It awaits action in the Senate.

On February 16 the Senate unanimously approved Senate File 2226, which would allow non-custodial parents facing military deployments to have a family member regularly visit their children while they are deployed. (Thousands of Iowans will be sent to Afghanistan this year.) Senator Steve Warnstadt explained the concept behind that bill here. It awaits action in the House.

SYMBOLIC MEASURES

During this shortened session, there wasn't time to waste on many bills of little substantive importance. Victims of the funnel included a bill offered by House Democrat Ray Zirkelbach that would have amended the official description of Iowa's seal, which refers to a citizen soldier with "a plow in his rear." Not surprisingly, House and Senate Republicans offered many symbolic measures that had no chance of going anywhere. Those included a "state sovereignty" bill, which Senate Minority Leader Paul McKinley tried to make an issue while he was exploring a gubernatorial campaign last year.

One symbolic bill that is still alive would put a statue of Nobel Laureate Normal Borlaug, who died last year, in the U.S. Capitol, replacing one of 19th-century Iowa politician Samuel Kirkwood.

Any comments about the current legislative session are welcome in this thread. Please let me know about important bills I forgot to mention.

Year in review: Iowa politics in 2009 (part 1)

desmoinesdem — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 14:08:56 GMT

I expected 2009 to be a relatively quiet year in Iowa politics, but was I ever wrong.

The governor's race heated up, state revenues melted down, key bills lived and died during the legislative session, and the Iowa Supreme Court's unanimous ruling in Varnum v Brien became one of this state's major events of the decade.

After the jump I've posted links to Bleeding Heartland's coverage of Iowa politics from January through June 2009. Any comments about the year that passed are welcome in this thread.

Although I wrote a lot of posts last year, there were many important stories I didn't manage to cover. I recommend reading Iowa Independent's compilation of "Iowa's most overlooked and under reported stories of 2009," as well as that blog's review of "stories that will continue to impact Iowa in 2010."
January 2009

In a Des Moines Register interview, Chet Culver evaluated his first two years in office and said he was aiming to be the best Iowa governor in history. His comments inspired this post on what kind of politicians make history, and what Culver would have to do to go down as one of the all-time greats.

The Iowa State Board of Education was considering new restrictions on junk food in schools.

I reflected on the Iowa caucuses on the one-year anniversary.

Jennifer O'Malley Dillon was named executive director for the Democratic National Committee. She had been John Edwards' Iowa campaign director before the 2008 caucuses and later served as director of battleground states strategy for Barack Obama's campaign.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources was wavering on new coal ash disposal rules.

Key investors pulled the plug on a proposed coal-fired power plant near Waterloo after a joint venture fell apart.

Bleeding Heartland user American007 offered nine predictions for 2009 and wasn't far off the mark.

I discussed the need to field a strong candidate against Chuck Grassley in 2010.

Hackers caused some big problems with Soapblox, the software that runs this blog.

Matt Strawn became the new chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa and vowed to improve the way the GOP communicates with voters. I argued that the Republicans' problem is what they say, not how they say it.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal and Senate President Jack Kibbie laid out their priorities on the opening day of the 2009 legislative session.

Governor Culver appointed Charlie Krogmeier as his new chief of staff after Patrick Dillon resigned from that position in order to move to Washington.

The Des Moines Register published a bizarre article claiming that Tom Vilsack had relatively few ties to agribusiness.

Bleeding Heartland user IowaVoter reported on problems with the audit logs of Diebold voting machines.

A state infrastructure bonding program was the highlight of Governor Culver's Condition of the State address to the Iowa House and Senate. I supported borrowing money for infrastructure, but only if money was spent on a "fix-it first" basis.

Guest poster Senate Guru wondered whether Chuck Grassley might retire, but Grassley's office quickly denied that he was considering retirement.

A bunch of well-connected Democrats expressed interest in the U.S. attorney position for Iowa's southern district.

Governor Culver's outgoing chief of staff, Patrick Dillon, was appointed White House deputy director of political affairs.

Mary Lundby, a former Republican Iowa Senate majority leader, passed away.

I considered whether Hillary Clinton or John Edwards could have won the Iowa caucuses, assuming Barack Obama ran the same outstanding campaign he ran. This was one of the longest posts I've ever written, and it got a mixed reaction on national blogs where I cross-posted it.

John Norris announced plans to leave the Iowa Utilities Board in order to serve as Tom Vilsack's chief of staff at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Norris was Vilsack's chief of staff during his first term as governor.

Selling the lottery would have been bad policy and disastrous politics. Fortunately, Culver's chief of staff announced that the proposal was going nowhere.

Former Des Moines City Council member Archie Brooks was sentenced for his role in the CIETC scandal, and I supported taking his name off the south-side community center.

Bleeding Heartland user IowaVoter explained the need for campaign finance reform.

Governor Culver endorsed significant spending cuts and no tax increases as he prepared to offer his 2010 budget proposal.

I took an early look at Chet Culver's re-election chances and concluded that he was in reasonably strong shape, but faced some danger signs including a declining economy.

Governor Culver recommended Michael Kiernan to be the new chair of the Iowa Democratic Party.

Swing State Project determined that Iowa's 2010 Senate contast was a "race to watch" but presumed safe for incumbent Chuck Grassley.

Iowa moved back up to second place in installed wind capacity.

Bleeding Heartland user cman (now a blogger for the Des Moines Register) warned Republicans that they had better adapt or die as a party.

The Des Moines Register announced the 2009 RAGBRAI route.

The Republican National Committee elected Michael Steele as new chairman. Iowa's RNC reps backed South Carolina Republican Party Chair Katon Dawson instead.

Jim Paprocki made a strong case for implementing instant-runoff voting in Iowa. It probably will never happen, but one can dream.

Bleeding Heartland user IowaVoter attended one of State Senate President Jack Kibbie's town-hall meetings and reported that Kibbie "showed his progressive side."

February 2009

I finally signed up for Twitter, but it took a few months for me to become well and truly addicted.

Michael Kiernan became the new chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party and said he would make it a priority to keep newly registered Democrats in the fold. I argued that he won't be able to do that unless the Democrats in charge of state government deliver real, lasting change that improves people's lives.

David Yepsen announced plans to step down as political columnist for the Des Moines Register in order to become director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University.

The City Council of Sioux City passed a resolution (with no legal force) declaring marriage to be between a man and a woman. I urged Bleeding Heartland readers to get ready to make the case for marriage equality if the Iowa Supreme Court handed down a favorable ruling.

State Senator Staci Appel was selected to serve as Iowa State Director for the non-partisan Women Legislators' Lobby.

The Iowa Utilities Board delivered a long-awaited ruling on "ratemaking principles" for the proposed coal-fired power plant near Marshalltown. The ruling was not what the utility had hoped for, increasing the chance that investors would abandon the project.

Iowa showed slight growth in the number of small farms, according to the latest USDA survey.

Democratic State Senator Dick Dearden was still obsessed with dove-hunting for some reason.

The Iowa Commission on the Status of Women posted a diary about their legislative priorities. I'd like to see more organizations posting this kind of information during the legislative session.

State Treasurer Mike Fitzgerald said the proposal on leasing the state lottery would be a very bad deal for the government.

The Iowa legislature wasn't considering any of the campaign finance reforms this state needs most.

The Iowa Family Policy Center warned that homosexuals were "co-opting" Valentine's Day.

As the House approved the stimulus bill (with Iowa's representatives split on party lines) and Tom Harkin said he wasn't a "happy camper" in light of compromises made, I looked at what the stimulus bill would mean for Iowa.

The Iowa Senate passed a bill banning wage discrimination based on age, race, religion, gender and the other protected classes cited in the Iowa Civil Rights Act.

President Obama signed the stimulus bill, and I linked to various pages with more details about what the package allocated to Iowa.

The Iowa House and Senate approved the Natural Resources Trust Fund constitutional amendment, which was backed by a large coalition of environmental groups. The amendment is now subject to a public vote in November 2010.

A top legislative priority for organized labor, the prevailing wage bill, stalled in the Iowa House. Leaders kept the vote open for a whole weekend, hoping to find a 51st vote. I saw the episode as the price of the Obama campaign's flawed GOTV program in 2008, which produced smaller down-ticket gains than expected.

The Culver family adopted a shelter dog.

I reflected on my biggest health scare and how much worse it might have been if I didn't have health insurance.

As the Iowa House failed to pass the prevailing wage bill, I discussed who was to blame for the fiasco and how Democrats should proceed on labor issues.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee decided to keep Leonard Boswell in its Frontline program for vulnerable incumbents.

The Iowa Senate's state government committee approved a bill that would assign Iowa's electoral votes to the presidential candidate who won the national popular vote.

Because the food-stamp program produces more economic stimulus than any other form of government spending (and much more stimulus than any kind of tax cut), I looked at how Iowa compared to other states in terms of food stamp participation rates.

State Auditor David Vaudt advocated rejecting some of the federal stimulus funds available to Iowa.

March 2009

The Iowa Citizen Action Network announced its 2009 award winners, including Representative Bruce Braley.

Rival colleges Wartburg and Luther channeled their competitive energy into a contest to see which campus could conserve more and reduce utility bills.

More details emerged on the highway funds allocated to Iowa under the stimulus bill.

Governor Culver and Secretary of State Mike Mauro spoke out against a bill that would award Iowa's electoral votes to the winner of the nationwide popular vote, but I warned that saving the electoral college would not necessarily keep Iowa relevant.

Environmental groups asked citizens to send public comments to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources on key water and air quality issues.

The nonprofit organization Plains Justice asked Iowans to contact state legislators about energy efficiency bills.

I urged state legislators to show engaged citizens some common courtesy when they care enough about a bill to contact lawmakers.

Interstate Power and Light pulled the plug on the Marshalltown coal-fired power plant.

Governor Culver named Rob Berntsen chairman of the Iowa Utilities Board, replacing John Norris.

Comments by Elizabeth Dole's former campaign manager reminded me that it helps for incumbents to have some record to run on.

I wondered whether it would be politically smart for Representative Tom Latham to cooperate with President Obama.

Guest poster Nathaniel90 created a 2012 Congressional map for Iowa, which sparked a blog skirmish between Bleeding Heartland and Republican blogger Krusty Konservative over alleged gerrymandering and compact districts.

Iowa Republicans let their hypocrisy show in the debate over a bill that would have allowed employees to select their own doctor in case of a workplace injury.

Survey USA released a pretty bad poll for Chet Culver, leading Bleeding Heartland user American007 to ask, Is the Big Lug in trouble?

Howard Learner, executive director of the Chicago-based Environmental Law & Policy Center, urged Iowa to "be a leader in the rapidly growing green economy."

President Obama proposed reforms to the Congressional earmarking process, and I gave background on the failure of Democratic leadership that led to Tom Harkin's $1.8 million earmark for studying odors from large hog confinements (CAFOs) in Iowa. That earmark that became a poster child for Republican outrage over wasteful spending.

Tom Latham took credit for getting earmarks to fund Iowa projects in the omnibus spending bill he voted against.

Chuck Grassley posted my all-time favorite tweet by him, indicating that Iowa Republican lawmakers felt ignored by business lobbyists.

Tom Harkin recommended Stephanie Rose and Nick Klinefeldt for the positions of U.S. attorney in Iowa's northern and southern districts.

Steve King took credit for stimulus funds that will help widen U.S. Highway 20 in rural northwest Iowa, even though he voted against the stimulus bill.

On my 40th birthday I posted a list of 40 good bloggers over 40, though it turned out a few of them were younger than I realized.

Bleeding Heartland user ragbrai08 posted an outstanding piece analyzing Iowa's 2001 redistricting process and evaluating three possible Iowa maps with four Congressional districts.

The Iowa Global Warming Campaign noted that "Iowa residents and businesses could save over $690 million on their utility bills if utility companies cut demand for electricity by 15 percent and natural gas by 10 percent by 2020."

Iowa Democratic Veterans Caucus chair Bob Krause announced plans to run against Chuck Grassley in 2010.

One of Iowa's largest employers, the Principal Financial Group, announced pay cuts to affect all employees in lieu of another mass layoff (which Principal had enacted in December 2008).

The Iowa Revenue Estimating Conference had more bad news about the economy.

A bill that would allow some early ballots to be counted before election day concerned me.

Organic dairy farmer Francis Thicke announced that he was considering a bid for Iowa secretary of agriculture in 2010.

The Iowa legislature pretended to care about money in politics, passing a bill to close the so-called "Fallon loophole."

The White House held a regional forum on health care reform in Des Moines.

Bleeding Heartland user Iowan said Iowans need the large increase in clean water funding in President Obama's budget proposal.

The cover story for the Atlantic Monthly promped me to make my case against Hanna Rosin's case against breastfeeding.

The Rebuild Iowa Office announced smart growth assistance for five Iowa communities needing to rebuild after tornadoes and floods in 2008.

Food Democracy Now founder Dave Murphy made the economic case for healthy food.

I urged statehouse Democrats to pass key bills that would benefit Iowa women.

The Iowa Global Warming Campaign made the case for expanding passenger rail in our state.

Bleeding Heartland user Sean Flaherty posted an action alert about election reforms that passed the Iowa House unanimously but stalled in the Iowa Senate.

David Yepsen published his last column for the Des Moines Register.

I pondered why Iowa leaders don't do more to protect the environment.

April 2009

I was a respondent for a detailed Republican poll on the 2010 governor's race and wrote up what I could remember from the survey. I later learned that a 527 organization involving Doug Gross commissioned the poll. It marked the beginning of the effort to recruit Terry Branstad to run for governor again.

A new report from the U.S. Geological Survey indicated that Iowa contains 42 of the 150 watersheds that create the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Iowa Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act. Advocates had expected that ruling but were surprised the seven judges acted unanimously. This post summarized early Democratic reaction to the court ruling, and this post summarized early Republican reaction.

Food Democracy Now advocated changes to current rules, which allow "large corporate farms to take advantage of [federal] subsidy loopholes that place independent family farmers at a serious competitive disadvantage."

I previewed the coming battle to amend the Iowa Constitution.

Opponents of marriage equality immediately funded robocalls to identify like-minded Iowans.

Bleeding Heartland user Elton Davis cross-posted Drake Law Professor Sally Frank's take on the Iowa Supreme Court ruling.

Four days after the Varnum v Brien decision was announced, Governor Culver said he would not seek to overturn the ruling, in part because it "reaffirmed that churches across Iowa will continue to have the right to recognize the sanctity of religious marriage in accordance with their own traditions and church doctrines."

Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal dared conservatives to push for a constitutional convention, saying "There's a lot of good, progressive issues that we could pursue: a woman's right to choose, guaranteed health care for all Iowa citizens, workers' rights - so if there are people that want to help us get to a constitutional convention, that's kind of my dream world."

A bar in West Burlington became the first business to lose its liquor license for failing to comply with the Iowa Smokefree Air Act.

Guest poster RDemocrat discussed child poverty in rural America.

Iowa House Speaker Pat Murphy blocked attempts by Republicans to bring a resolution to the floor on amending Iowa's constitution to ban gay marriage. Only two of the 56 Iowa House Democrats voted with Republicans on a key procedural motion.

Bleeding Heartland user sgarystewart wrote an open letter to his state senator about the real threat to Iowa marriages and his plans to marry his partner in Ringgold County.

Governor Culver confirmed that he is against passing a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, because "we have to be very respectful of the equal protection clause of the Iowa Constitution. This court in a unanimous decision has stated that it is discriminatory to deny people rights that they're given under the current Constitution."

Activists on the religious right confirmed that they will urge Iowans to vote against retaining the three Supreme Court judges who will be on the ballot in 2010.

Representative Steve King continued to speak out against same-sex marriage and recorded robocalls paid for by the National Organization for Marriage.

Chuck Grassley's public comments on same-sex marriage in Iowa enraged social conservatives, and I wished they would follow through on their threats to run a primary challenger against Grassley in 2010.

Guest poster The Electrical Worker wrote about efforts to help workers in the renewable energy manufacturing sector to join labor unions.

Democratic leaders kept trying to round up votes for the tax reform package that stalled in the Iowa House.

After Bob Vander Plaats and Bill Salier suggested defying the Iowa Supreme Court ruling, I wondered if any Republicans in this state understood the concept of judicial review.

My message to county recorders thinking about discriminating against same-sex couples: No one who applies for a marriage license needs your blessing.

On April 15 I posted some links related to the federal and Iowa tax systems as Mike Huckabee and Representative Steve King appeared at a "Fair Tax" rally in South Carolina.

With Iowa about to experience a wave of same-sex marriages, I posted some wedding planning advice here and here.

A harsh exchange of words between Ed Fallon and Governor Culver's staff prompted this post urging the governor to take his Democratic critics seriously.

Iowa House Democrats were unable to find enough votes to pass a tax-reform package, but the state bonding initiative remained alive.

Iowa Senate Republicans blocked the confirmation of three Culver appointees: Shearon Elderkin for the Environmental Protection Commission, Carrie La Seur for the Iowa Power Fund board, and Gene Gessow as head of the Department of Human Services.

I examined the best ways for interest groups to buy influence in the Iowa legislature.

Chuck Grassley's comments on how to address the Iowa Supreme Court ruling didn't please red-meat conservatives.

Iowa Republicans pushed legislation that would have allowed county recorders to refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Democratic leaders didn't let the idea go anywhere. The Iowa Attorney General's Office drafted a memo that the Iowa Department of Public Health sent out to all country recorders, confirming that "All county recorders in the state of Iowa are required to comply with the Varnum decision [...]."

I took another look at Chet Culver's re-election chances in light of the deepening recession and softening of his poll numbers. Several Bleeding Heartland commenters were more pessimistic about his prospects than I was.

State Senator Merlin Bartz used his official page on the Iowa Senate Republicans website to push a petition drive to pressure county recorders not to issue same-sex marriage licenses.

President Obama came to Newton for Earth Day.

One Iowa ran a pro-marriage equality tv ad in five Iowa markets.

Ed and Lynn Fallon filed an ethics complaint against State Senator Merlin Bartz, saying his actions violated the Senate Code of Ethics requirement for every legislator to "encourage respect for the law."

Visiting a friend in Pella, I was amused to find a flier from a national group opposing gay marriage. It compared Iowa Senate Republican leader Paul McKinley to a "chicken," because he "refuses to do what it takes to get a vote on the Iowa Marriage Amendment."

The Iowa legislature ended its 2009 session after several long days and late nights, and I recapped some of the most important bills that passed or failed to pass. Tax reform died, but the I-JOBS state bonding initiative survived.

I discussed the divisions among Iowa Republicans and concluded that the Iowa Supreme Court's ruling on same-sex marriage would make it even harder for moderates to reorient the party, downplaying social issues.

I posted links to my favorite online sources for Iowa news.

Governor Culver pulled a switcheroo by appointing Shearon Elderkin to the Power Fund and Carrie La Seur to the Environmental Protection Commission.

I discussed a few reasons to eat pork that's not factory-farmed.

Governor Culver named Charlie Krogmeier to head the Department of Human Services.

The Varnum v Brien ruling went into effect on April 27. There were protests outside county recorder offices in Des Moines and some other parts of the state, but I never heard of any couples being denied a marriage license.

Governor Culver said county recorders had a duty to comply with the court ruling, while Senator Tom Harkin predicted that one day marriage will be uncontroversial. Jefferson County supervisors led by Stephen Burgmeier passed a resolution demanding that state legislators take action to stop same-sex marriage. What seemed like pointless grandstanding (since the legislature had just adjourned until 2010) made more sense a few months later when Burgmeier became the Republican candidate in the Iowa House district 90 special election.

May 2009

The Iowa Democratic Party announced plans to induct former Governor Tom Vilsack, former First Lady Christie Vilsack and former Lt. Governor and IDP Chair Sally Pederson to the Hall of Fame.

Marshalltown considered banning non-biodegradable plastic bags.

The H1N1 flu continued to spread in Iowa. Marshalltown schools closed for several days.

I wrote about the joys of "sample Sunday" at three central Iowa farms.

The advance of marriage equality in Iowa and Vermont made it even more important to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

The long list of exemptions in a bill allowing individuals to sue businesses for fraud indicated the influence of lobbyists over the Iowa legislature.

I continued to wait for some Republican, any Republican, to explain the concept of judicial review to religious conservatives who refuse to accept the Iowa Supreme Court's ruling in Varnum v Brien.

Tom Harkin defended his decision to recommend Stephanie Rose for U.S. attorney in Iowa's northern district, even as the U.S. Supreme Court found that "federal prosecutors have inappropriately used aggravated identity theft laws to prosecute undocumented workers."

The USDA had some good news for organic and transitioning farmers.

Inspired by Woodbury County rural economic development director Rob Marqusee's "local food challenge," I suggested seven ways to eat more local food.

Terry Branstad ruled out running for governor again, and I said I doubted he would have a smooth ride in the GOP primary if he did run.

Survey USA found significant dips in the approval ratings of Chuck Grassley and Chet Culver during the month of April. I noted that Survey USA tends to find lower numbers for Culver than other pollsters.

Former Governor Terry Branstad and his onetime chief of staff Doug Gross went on record supporting the concepts of separation of powers and judicial review, even though they sometimes disagree with the Iowa Supreme Court's decisions. I took that as a sign that Branstad wasn't planning to run for governor again.

I wondered why Bruce Braley's Populist Caucus wasn't speaking up more on health care reform.

An Iowa Independent feature on carcinogens in coal ash made me thankful that two proposed coal plants in Iowa were shelved.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee kept Leonard Boswell in its "Frontline" program for vulnerable incumbents, but I argued that Boswell would not be vulnerable in 2010. (2012 is a different story.)

I posted links on the anniversary of the immigration raid in Postville.

A group of bar owners dropped their lawsuit against Iowa's public smoking ban, which went into effect in July 2008.

The Iowa Senate Ethics Committee voted unanimously to dismiss the ethics complaint against State Senator Merlin Bartz, who tried to pressure county recorders not to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Iowa Republicans pushed lots of misleading talking points about the I-JOBS bonding, and I tried to set the record straight.

On the anniversary of the immigration raid in Postville, Iowa, guest poster Frank Sharry profiled Steve King's extremist statements about the incident and immigration.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources considered lowering recreational use protections on 119 stream segments.

News emerged that the FBI infiltrated an Iowa City anti-war group in late 2007 and 2008.

Federal stimulus funds and revenues from the I-JOBS state bonding initiative will improve water quality in Iowa through sewer upgrades and other programs.

State Auditor David Vaudt ruled out running for governor in 2010.

Ed and Lynn Fallon blasted the "sham" hearing on their ethics complaint.

Several Iowa communities received stimulus money to remove lead from housing units.

Chuck Larson, a former state senator and U.S. ambassador to Latvia, said he didn't plan to run for governor in 2010.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey hired "high-profile staffers" in an apparent move toward exploring a gubernatorial campaign.

Yes, you can avoid mosquitoes without using DEET.

I advocated letting native plants take over your yard.

Appalling new details emerged about how mentally disabled workers were underpaid and exploited by a company with ties in Iowa and Texas.

The Des Moines Register profiled Iowan Dave Murphy, a founder of Food Democracy Now, and I liked his message about local foods strengthening rural economies.

When California's Supreme Court let Proposition 8 stand, I reminded Bleeding Heartland readers that Iowa recognizes all California marriages.

I took an early look at the 2010 Iowa Senate races and predicted at most three or four realistic pickup opportunities for Republicans.

There was good news for water quality in Culver's final bill signings, including an important line-item veto.

Howard Dean spoke in Des Moines about marriage equality and reflected on his experience after he signed a civil unions bill in Vermont.

Steve King recorded robocalls to identify and solicit donations from opponents of same-sex marriage rights. The National Organization for Marriage paid for the calls.

Governor Culver discussed gay marriage during an appearance on Iowa Public Television.

Iowa Workforce Development issued a huge fine against the company that allegedly exploited mentally disabled workers.

June 2009

I made the case for having Kate Gronstal, daughter of Iowa Senate Majority leader Mike Gronstal, on the I-JOBS board.

Grade A wingnut Bill Salier got into a public fight with Representative Steve King about the right way to oppose same-sex marriage.

I analyzed how the nursing home industry's political investments paid off, as the state legislature passed and Governor Culver signed a bill that will make it easier for nursing home owners to evade the law.

The I-JOBS board convened and adopted rules and a timeline for considering applications.

The Iowa Board of Pharmacy declined to reclassify marijuana in Iowa.

Iowan Jackie Norris departed as chief of staff to First Lady Michelle Obama to become a senior adviser to the Corporation for National and Community Service. Unnamed sources said she wanted out of the job.

Just for fun, guest poster possumtracker1991 wondered if it would be possible to gerrymander Iowa for four Democratic-leaning seats if we had politicized redistricting. Here's the map he came up with.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi came to Des Moines to raise money for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and Republicans responded with tired rhetoric and robocalls about taxes, Pelosi's liberal agenda and San Francisco values.

Former Iowa GOP chair Mike Mahaffey said he was considering running against Leonard Boswell in 2010. Boswell defeated Mahaffey in Iowa's third Congressional district in 1996.

The Republican Party of Iowa's revamped outreach strategy struck me as a new machine built to sell old ideas.

Chet Culver announced plans to crank up his political operation, saying, "I'm excited about it. I love campaigning."

A Supreme Court ruling related to a West Virginia Supreme Court judge made me grateful that Iowa did away with judicial elections in the 1960s.

Newsweek placed six Iowa schools on its list of the top 1,500 public high schools in the country. Bleeding Heartland readers pointed out some problems with Newsweek's methodology.

President Obama nominated John Norris to serve on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The Interfaith Alliance of Iowa created an online petition for Iowans of faith and goodwill who support marriage equality.

Iowa Republicans continued to demonstrate that they didn't understand the point of the stimulus bill. They criticized Governor Culver and statehouse Democrats for using federal funds to "backfill" the 2009 budget, even though that was the express purpose of the state transfer funds included in the stimulus package.

Ed and Lynn Fallon announced that I'M for Iowa would recruit primary challengers to certain unnamed Iowa House Democrats, leading me to speculate about which "six-pack" members might be targeted.

The Project on Government Oversight reviewed state websites, looking for resources for those who want to report fraud, waste and abuse in how federal stimulus funds are being used. Iowa's website on the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act scored well in the report but wasn't in the top tier of especially whistleblower-friendly websites.

Some Iowa legislators weren't happy with the State Board of Education's new nutrition standards, so the legislature's Administrative Rules Review Committee voted to let state lawmakers review the nutrition standards during the 2010 session.

Francis Thicke argued that organic farming can employ cutting-edge technology and won't take us back to obsolete practices.

Former Iowa Democratic Party chair Gordon Fischer announced that he was permanently retiring from politics.

I wasn't pleased by the changes Leonard Boswell advocated in the climate change bill.

The official website for the I-JOBS infrastructure bonding program launched. It includes lots of charts and a search engine to help people track spending.

Des Moines School district administrators recommended against extending a controversial contract with a firm that managed construction projects.

Inspired by Rob Marqusee's local food challenge, I posted links to help people find locally produced foods in Iowa.

The Iowa Democratic Party hired Dena Gleason to be field director during the 2009/2010 election cycle.

Health Care for America Now ran tv ads supporting the public option in 10 states, including Iowa.

This post contained constructive criticism of the Cash for Clunkers program, for which Representative Bruce Braley was a lead sponsor.

I wasn't convinced by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack's creative analogy comparing climate-change skeptics with opponents of genetically-modified foods.

The Des Moines City Council took Archie Brooks' name off the community center on the city's south side.

Ed Failor Jr., head of Iowans for Tax Relief, likened Democratic economic policies to events in Nazi Germany in 1933.

Survey USA's May and June findings on Chet Culver's approval rating prompted this post.

Haley Barbour headlined the Iowa GOP's "night of the rising stars" fundraiser. I was struck by how much modern-day Republicans have embraced Herbert Hoover's approach to economic policy.

The Des Moines Register named Kathie Obradovich as its new political columnist.

Bleeding Heartland user American007 put early odds on the Republican race for governor.

I had good news and bad news about the Iowa Democratic Party's Hall of Fame event.

At its first meeting, the I-JOBS Board approved eight flood recovery projects totaling $45.5 million.

Smart Growth America released a review on how wisely states were spending transportation money from the stimulus bill. Iowa got good marks.

Year in review: national politics in 2009 (part 1)

desmoinesdem — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 13:52:32 GMT

It took me a week longer than I anticipated, but I finally finished compiling links to Bleeding Heartland's coverage from last year. This post and part 2, coming later today, include stories on national politics, mostly relating to Congress and Barack Obama's administration. Diaries reviewing Iowa politics in 2009 will come soon.

One thing struck me while compiling this post: on all of the House bills I covered here during 2009, Democrats Leonard Boswell, Bruce Braley and Dave Loebsack voted the same way. That was a big change from 2007 and 2008, when Blue Dog Boswell voted with Republicans and against the majority of the Democratic caucus on many key bills.

No federal policy issue inspired more posts last year than health care reform. Rereading my earlier, guardedly hopeful pieces was depressing in light of the mess the health care reform bill has become. I was never optimistic about getting a strong public health insurance option through Congress, but I thought we had a chance to pass a very good bill. If I had anticipated the magnitude of the Democratic sellout on so many aspects of reform in addition to the public option, I wouldn't have spent so many hours writing about this issue. I can't say I wasn't warned (and warned), though.

Links to stories from January through June 2009 are after the jump. Any thoughts about last year's political events are welcome in this thread.
January 2009

Bill Richardson withdrew his name from consideration for Commerce secretary.

President Obama named Leon Panetta to head the CIA.

Bruce Braley became a vice chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

Bleeding Heartland user American007 offered nine predictions for 2009 and wasn't far off the mark.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee started the year with significant debts.

The House passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay act, and the Iowa delegation split on party lines.

Bleeding Heartland user IowaVoter reported on problems with the audit logs of Diebold voting machines.

A report by Democracy Corps showed how early voting helped Democrats in the 2008 election.

Guest poster Senate Guru wondered whether Chuck Grassley might retire, but Grassley's office quickly denied that he was considering retirement.

Tom Latham and Steve King voted against expanding the State Children's Health Insurance Program.

Tom Vilsack sailed through his confirmation hearing, and lots of important agriculture and food policy issues came up.

President-elect Obama signaled that he might not be fully committed to passing the Employee Free Choice Act.

Steve King refused to join the other six Iowans in Congress who co-hosted an inaugural reception in Washington.

Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th American president.

I am so grateful to Justice John Paul Stevens.

The Senate unanimously confirmed six Obama appointees: Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and White House Budget Office director Peter Orszag.

Chuck Grassley was one of four Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee to vote against confirming Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary.

The House passed a symbolic resolution opposing the release of more money for the Wall Street bailout. Republicans Tom Latham and Steve King voted for the resolution, but Bruce Braley, Dave Loebsack and Leonard Boswell voted no.

Noneed4thneed was excited about President Obama's plans to cut Pentagon spending. Unfortunately, it turned out that the administration only reduced the increase in defense spending.

The four Democratic governors who got to appoint new senators didn't handle the task very well. Senator Russ Feingold had a better idea, proposing a constitutional amendment to require elections to fill vacant Senate seats.

Tom Vilsack got to work at the USDA.

The Senate confirmed Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary, but both Tom Harkin and Chuck Grassley voted no. I stand by my prediction that Geithner will turn out to be one of Obama's worst appointments.

President Obama made too many concessions on the stimulus bill in a (misguided) effort to win Republican votes.

The House approved the stimulus bill without a single Republican vote in favor.

Bruce Braley signed a letter requesting more humanitarian assistance for Gaza.

Despite expressing concerns about Eric Holder during the confirmation hearings, Chuck Grassley voted on the Senate Judiciary Committee to confirm Holder as attorney general.

Tom Harkin expressed valid concerns that the stimulus bill being drafted was too small and too loaded with tax cuts unlikely to boost consumer spending.

Chuck Grassley voted against expanding the State Children's Health Insurance Program.

The Republican National Committee elected Michael Steele as new chairman. Iowa's RNC reps backed South Carolina Republican Party Chair Katon Dawson instead.

February 2009

Tax problems derailed Tom Daschle's nomination for secretary of Health and Human Services.

Many Republican governors supported the stimulus bill, even as Congressional Republicans criticized it.

Republicans bashed Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri because although she is personally wealthy, she advocated salary caps at Wall Street firms that took bailout money.

The Senate confirmed Eric Holder as attorney general. For reasons I still cannot fathom, President Obama was about to tap Republican Senator Judd Gregg to run the Commerce Department.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ran some radio ads against Tom Latham.

Mark Zandi, chief economist and co-founder of Moody's Economy.com, found that various types of government spending all delivered much more stimulus to the economy than tax cuts.

Chuck Grassley said what it would take to get his vote for the stimulus package.

Tom Harkin said Howard Dean would make a great secretary for Health and Human Services.

As new RNC Chairman Michael Steele axed plans for an in-house think tank, I argued that Republicans didn't need "new ideas" to come back to power. All they need is for Democrats to fail to deliver on their promises.

Noneed4thneed pointed out that so-called Senate "centrists" insisted on changes to the stimulus bill that reduced its potential to create jobs and threatened to bankrupt the states.

Senate Republicans failed to block the stimulus bill.

Guest poster Jill Richardson/OrangeClouds115 let Bleeding Heartland readers know what Tom Vilsack had been up to during his first weeks as secretary of agriculture.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was already looking like one of Obama's worst high-level appointments.

Bruce Braley got ready to roll out the House Populist Caucus and said it would advocate for "Buy American" language in the stimulus bill.

House and Senate negotiators made final changes to the stimulus bill.

Judd Gregg withdrew his name from consideration as Commerce Secretary (thank goodness).

Steve King bragged about research he did in high school, which allegedly proved that the New Deal prolonged the Great Depression.

The House approved the stimulus bill, and Iowa's representatives split on party lines. Tom Harkin said he wasn't a "happy camper" and that Democratic leaders had reduced valuable spending in order to spend more money on fixing the alternative minimum tax, which "has nothing to do with stimulus."

Guest poster JulianaW wrote about high-speed rail funding and the stimulus bill.

George W. Bush ranked 36th out of the 42 American presidents, in the collective opinion of 65 professional historians or observers of the presidency. I felt it was unfair for Bush to be ranked ahead of William Henry Harrison.

Guest poster Jill Richardson/OrangeClouds115 posted another update on Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack's activities.

Tom Harkin vowed to hold a Senate hearing on the mentally disabled workers exploited by a Texas-based company operating in Iowa.

Rush Limbaugh said he wanted everything President Obama did to fail.

New details emerged about the Justice Department investigation into the torture memos prepared during the Bush administration.

President Obama signed the stimulus bill, and I linked to various pages with more details about what the package allocated to Iowa.

House Republicans began taking credit for stimulus spending they voted against.

The Wall Street bailout still looked ill-conceived.

Representative Bruce Braley rolled out the House Populist Caucus.

Two years after Steve Gilliard stopped blogging, I still missed him.

Bleeding Heartland user Elise attended one of Chuck Grassley's town-hall meetings in eastern Iowa.

Progressive Punch added a new layer of analysis to its rankings of members of Congress by voting record in order to indicate how progressive representatives and senators are compared to the districts and states they represent.

A McDonald's employee who got shot helping a stranger while on the job was stuck with $300,000 in medical bills after the insurance agency representing McDonald's said he didn't qualify for Workers Compensation.

I reflected on my biggest health scare and how much worse it might have been if I didn't have health insurance.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee decided to keep Leonard Boswell in its Frontline program for vulnerable incumbents.

The Senate finally confirmed Hilda Solis as labor secretary.

A majority of Americans said sticking to the policies he campaigned on should be a higher priority for the president than working in a bipartisan way.

President Obama gave his first State of the Union address (technically a budget speech) to Congress.

Increasing food stamp participation rates would have been a good way to stimulate the economy.

President Obama sent his first budget request to Congress.

Progressive bloggers formed the Accountability Now PAC to "recruit, coordinate, and support primary challenges against vulnerable Congressional incumbents who have become more responsive to corporate America than to their constituents."

The Coen brothers directed a great ad ridiculing the idea of "clean coal."

We learned that Republican Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire made money off one of his own earmarks.

President Obama announced his plans for Iraq and promised "combat operations" would end by August 2010.

March 2009

I weighed the pros and cons of Kathleen Sebelius as Health and Human Services secretary. (With hindsight, I wish she had remained governor of Kansas to keep blocking new coal plants there.)

A national poll by Hart Research Associates found that "An overwhelming majority of Americans believe restoring existing roads and bridges and expanding transportation options should take precedence over building new roads [...]."

President Obama issued a memo to department heads on restricting no-bid contracts and canceling wasteful contracts.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack axed about $500,000 in USDA consulting contracts.

Republicans were full of phony outrage over earmarks in the omnibus spending bill.

Chuck Grassley and President Obama exchanged words over a public health insurance option at a White House event.

Leonard Boswell, who sits on the House Transportation Committee, advocated a feasibility study on extending Amtrak through central Iowa to Omaha.

Leading Republicans in Washington proposed a federal spending freeze, which is a great idea if you want to turn a severe recession into a depression.

Comments by Elizabeth Dole's former campaign manager reminded me that it helps for incumbents to have some record to run on.

Grim unemployment numbers prompted this post, with some ideas on finding a job.

I wondered whether it would be politically smart for Representative Tom Latham to cooperate with Obama.

Tom Latham took credit for getting earmarks to fund Iowa projects in the omnibus spending bill he voted against.

Chuck Grassley posted my all-time favorite tweet by him, indicating that Iowa Republican lawmakers felt ignored by business lobbyists.

Steve King took credit for stimulus funds that will help widen U.S. Highway 20 in rural northwest Iowa, even though he voted against the stimulus bill.

The Wall Street bailout didn't look any better to me several months after it was implemented.

On my 40th birthday I posted a list of 40 good bloggers over 40, though it turned out a few of them were younger than I realized.

Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana rolled out the "Moderate Dems Working Group."

Some important news flew under the radar: Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced "a new partnership to help American families gain better access to affordable housing, more transportation options, and lower transportation costs."

The House passed a bill that would levy a special tax on large bonuses awarded by financial institutions receiving bailout funds. Republican Tom Latham joined Iowa Democrats Bruce Braley, Dave Loebsack and Leonard Boswell in voting yes; Steve King voted no.

The Obamas announced plans for an organic garden on the White House lawn.

Chuck Grassley commented on AIG bonuses and medical marijuana, as Iowa Democratic Veterans Caucus chair Bob Krause announced plans to run against Grassley in 2010.

The White House held a regional forum on health care reform in Des Moines.

Bleeding Heartland user Iowan made the case for Congress to support the large increase in clean water funding in President Obama's budget proposal.

The cover story for the Atlantic Monthly promped me to make my case against Hanna Rosin's case against breastfeeding.

Representative Steve King promised to pay back property taxes he owed in the District of Columbia.

A group promoting the use of chemicals in agriculture got bent out of shape by First Lady Michelle Obama's plans for an organic White House garden.

Tom Harkin worked on compromise language to get the Employee Free Choice Act through the Senate.

April 2009

Chuck Grassley voted for the Wall Street bailout but didn't like the idea of the federal government bailing out U.S. automakers.

A new report from the U.S. Geological Survey indicated that Iowa contains 42 of the 150 watersheds that create the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico.

The House approved President Obama's budget, and the Iowa delegation split on party lines.

Leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus said they wouldn't settle for health care reform with no public health insurance option.

Guest poster RDemocrat wrote about child poverty in rural America.

Guest poster RDemocrat discussed prospects for punishing American companies that committed fraud in Iraq.

Guest poster The Electrical Worker wrote about efforts to help workers in the renewable energy manufacturing sector to join labor unions.

Soft-drink makers pitted public health advocates against "moderation moms" and "hard-working families."

On April 15 I posted some links related to the federal and Iowa tax systems as Mike Huckabee and Representative Steve King appeared at a "Fair Tax" rally in South Carolina.

News emerged that "The National Security Agency intercepted private e-mail messages and phone calls of Americans in recent months on a scale that went beyond the broad legal limits established by Congress last year [...]."

President Barack Obama and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood released a blueprint for a new national network of high-speed passenger rail lines.

Leonard Boswell advocated normalizing trade relations with Cuba.

Scientists isolated one cause of the "colony collapse disorder" affecting honeybees.

Norm Coleman's refusal to accept the result of the Minnesota election did lasting harm to Al Franken's seniority.

Chuck Grassley's comments on how to address the Iowa Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage didn't please red-meat conservatives.

El Tinklenberg, former Democratic candidate in Minnesota's sixth Congressional district, donated $250,000 in unspent campaign funds to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, prompting this post on the need for progressive activists to donate strategically, not emotionally.

President Obama came to Newton, Iowa, for Earth Day.

Bleeding Heartland user Elise wrote about Chuck Grassley's "then and now" position on using the filibuster to block presidential appointees.

I was on the receiving end of an unethical push-poll/fundraising call from Newt Gingrich's American Solutions organization and wrote up their pitch to small donors.

Senator Arlen Specter left the Republican caucus to become a Democrat and claimed that he would outrank Tom Harkin in the Democratic caucus.

Chuck Grassley voted no as the Senate finally confirmed Kathleen Sebelius as Health and Human Services secretary.

Arlen Specter's party switch created a chance for Chuck Grassley to become ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, but taking that chance would mean giving up the ranking member slot on the Finance Committee.

President Obama held a press conference to mark his 100th day in office. I liked how he said that bipartisanship isn't "simply being willing to accept certain theories of theirs that we tried for eight years and didn't work and the American people voted to change."

May 2009

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke reversed a Bush administration rule that undermined Endangered Species Act protections.

After Supreme Court Justice David Souter announced his retirement, I posted thoughts on criteria the president should use in choosing his replacement.

Tom Harkin and Representative Dave Loebsack spoke out in favor of a public health insurance option.

Bleeding Heartland user Elise wrote about Chuck Grassley's hypocrisy on the use of filibusters.

Mark Penn was wrong about why Hillary Clinton lost the Iowa caucuses.

The advance of marriage equality in Iowa and Vermont made it even more important to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Chuck Grassley decided to remain the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, but struck a deal allowing him to take that position on the Judiciary Committee in 2011.

Tom Harkin defended his decision to recommend Stephanie Rose for U.S. attorney in Iowa's northern district, even though the U.S. Supreme Court found that "federal prosecutors have inappropriately used aggravated identity theft laws to prosecute undocumented workers."

Survey USA found significant dips in the approval ratings of Chuck Grassley and Chet Culver during the month of April.

Tom Harkin introduced an important child nutrition bill and discussed possible grounds for compromise on the Employee Free Choice Act.

Chuck Grassley's so-called bipartisan message on health care reform raised a lot of red flags for me.

I wondered why Bruce Braley's Populist Caucus wasn't speaking up more on health care reform.

I laid out optimistic and pessimistic views of a reported White House deal on cost-saving measures with "the presidents of Pharma, Advamed (device manufacturers), the American Medical Association (doctors), the American Hospital Association, America's Health Insurance Plans, and SEIU's Health Care project."

Chuck Grassley said he was open to compromise on health care reform.

On the anniversary of the immigration raid in Postville, Iowa, guest poster Frank Sharry profiled Steve King's extremist statements about the incident and immigration generally.

Chuck Grassley started making the case against "government-run" health care.

Hospitals and insurance companies said President Obama had "substantially overstated their promise [...] to reduce the growth of health spending."

House Republican leader John Boehner asked why anyone would want a government-run health care plan to jeopardize "the greatest health-care delivery system in the world"? I provided ten answers to his question.

Opinion poll data on the young generation painted a grim picture for Republicans.

Members of Representative Bruce Braley's Populist Caucus were among 55 House members who took a stand against the Panama Free Trade Agreement.

I received an unethical fundraising call disguised as an opinion survey for David Bossie's group Citizens United.

Appalling new details emerged about how mentally disabled workers were underpaid and exploited by a company with ties in Iowa and Texas.

President Obama made more history by nominating Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court. Chuck Grassley promised not to be a "rubber stamp."

When California's Supreme Court let Proposition 8 stand, I reminded Bleeding Heartland readers that Iowa recognizes all California marriages.

Some Wall Street firms whined about labor unions questioning investment fund managers about their stance on the Employee Free Choice Act.

Howard Dean spoke in Des Moines about marriage equality and reflected on his experience after he signed a civil unions bill in Vermont.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack took a step toward undoing bad Bush administration policy on national forests.

Republican fantasies about Sonia Sotomayor didn't square with her judicial record.

Steve King recorded robocalls to identify and solicit donations from opponents of same-sex marriage rights. The National Organization for Marriage paid for the calls.

Dr. George Tiller was assassinated at a church in Wichita because he performed late-term abortions at his clinic.

June 2009

Senator John Ensign paid a high-profile visit to Iowa before anyone knew about the multiple scandals that will prevent him from running for president in 2012.

President Obama nominated longtime Representative Jim Leach, one of his high-profile Republican endorsers, to head the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Chuck Grassley said he couldn't recall or find any record explaining why he voted against confirming Sonia Sotomayor to the 2nd U.S. Court of Appeals in 1998. My hunch is that like other Republicans, he didn't want Sotomayor to be in line for the Supreme Court.

Chuck Grassley wasn't happy with President Obama's comments on health care reform and told the world about it on Twitter.

Leonard Boswell confirmed that he supported a public health insurance option without a "trigger."

All of Iowa's representatives in the House voted for the Cash for Clunkers bill.

A Supreme Court ruling related to a West Virginia Supreme Court judge prompted this post on the merits of scrapping judicial elections.

After a one-on-one meeting with Judge Sonia Sotomayor, Chuck Grassley said she wasn't as "aggressive" and "obnoxious" as he expected.

I wasn't pleased by the changes Leonard Boswell advocated in the climate change bill.

I warned about the dangers of a fake public health insurance option, such as regional co-ops. I also suggested ways activists could support the public option.

Health Care for America Now ran tv ads supporting the public option in 10 states, including Iowa.

National polling continued to show massive support for a real public health insurance option.

This post contained constructive criticism of the Cash for Clunkers program, for which Representative Bruce Braley was a lead sponsor.

I wasn't convinced by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack's "creative analogy" comparing climate-change skeptics with opponents of genetically-modified foods.

The House approved the American Clean Energy and Security Act (Waxman-Markey). I reviewed the strongest arguments for and against the climate change bill and concluded that it wasn't strong enough to be worth passing. Iowa's delegation split on party lines, with all three Democrats voting for it. Representative Dave Loebsack got an amendment into the bill "to the bill will amend the Retrofit for Energy and Environmental Performance (REEP) program so that building owners receiving disaster assistance can use the disaster assistance funds to leverage additional or matching funds to make energy efficient improvements to their homes and businesses."

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius issued reports detailing the problems with the "health care status quo" across the country.

Smart Growth America released a review on how wisely states were spending transportation money from the stimulus bill. Iowa got good marks.

Norm Coleman finally conceded to Al Franken.

Great things are happening in Dubuque

desmoinesdem — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 00:41:16 GMT

The Dubuque mayor and city council decided in 2006 to make the community "a Sustainable City." Last week federal officials recognized the progress made toward that goal. From an Environmental Protection Agency press release on September 17:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan and White House Director of Urban Affairs Adolfo Carrion kicked off their three-city Sustainable Communities Tour today. The officials, representing the administration's DOT-HUD-EPA Interagency Partnership for Sustainable Communities, announced proposals during stops in Chicago and Dubuque that will help communities to improve access to affordable housing, provide additional low-cost transportation options, and protect the local environment.

Also on September 17, the city of Dubuque and IBM

outlined their plans to partner in the development of new "smarter" technologies and implementation strategies to create an international model of sustainability for communities of 200,000 and under, where over 40 percent of the U.S. population resides. Dubuque, a city that is recognized as a national leader in sustainability with its forward-thinking public policy, together with IBM, will address the ever-increasing demands of cities to deliver vital services such as energy and water management, and transportation, all while reducing the community's impact on the environment.

More details about the recent events, along with some background, are after the jump.
A community task force helped develop 11 key principles and community values to guide development in Dubuque. Fortunately, these plans weren't left to collect dust like the fruit of many strategic planning sessions. Last year Dubuque hired a sustainable communities coordinator to focus on the city's "ability to meet the environmental, economic, and social equity needs of today without reducing the ability of future generations to meet their needs."

I learned about one example of this collaborative work at the annual meeting of 1000 Friends of Iowa in July. A panelist from Dubuque described how city and school district officials worked with parents and neighbors to redesign and rebuild a downtown school. Too many school districts have closed schools in older neighborhoods in order to build new structures on the edge of the suburban frontier, leaving empty shells downtown and more kids unable to walk to school. Dubuque stakeholders found a way to incorporate green building principles, more outdoor play space and natural lighting to enhance the atmosphere for students.

In part because Dubuque has kept its downtown relevant and vibrant, last year

The U.S. Conference of Mayors named Dubuque the 2008 "Most Livable Small City" in the nation -- for attributes that include historical architecture, diverse arts and cultural amenities, abundant natural beauty, a skilled and educated workforce, and numerous quality private and public institutions of higher learning.

In addition, this summer Dubuque won an Economic Development Administration Excellence in Economic Development Award for "excellence in historic preservation-led strategies."

Last month IBM opened a technology services delivery center, which employs several hundred people in downtown Dubuque's historic Roshek Building. This press release describes the first project of the "smart cities" program:

In addition to IBM and the City of Dubuque, the current partnership is planned to include local and regional private businesses, non-profit organizations, local and state government agencies, and several federal agencies. The first phase of the smart city partnership includes two projects to enhance the city's and its citizens' understanding of their energy consumption and water management, in order to reduce costs and the overall carbon footprint. To accomplish this, IBM will build a Platform for Real-time Integrated Sustainability Monitoring to provide the city with an integrated view of its energy management, including energy consumed by the electric grid, water system, and general city services.
The City is currently implementing a city-wide water meter replacement project and has worked with local manufacturer A.Y. McDonald to integrate a device called an Unmeasured Flow Reducer (UFR). This locally manufactured device is designed to augment the water meter in providing the most accurate measurement possible during low-flow use. The new system will allow consumers to identify waste and consider corrective measures which will translate into better water utilization and energy savings. Reduction in water use will reduce use of both energy and chemicals, resulting in significant savings. As the City of Dubuque enhances its water management system, IBM's technology will interface with the water systems to ingest water consumption data and give city staff real-time visibility into the overall city water consumption. IBM Research plans to also build new service systems integration, data management, and analytic technologies that will create new insights for consumers and city policymakers.
According to surveys, 30 percent of households have water leaks (leaky faucet, toilet, etc.). The new system will allow consumers and the City Water Department to identify waste and promote changed behavior which will translate into better water utilization and energy savings. As part of the water meter replacement project, the City of Dubuque is creating a rebate program for costs associated with repairing leaks identified by the new metering system. The City will budget $10,000 annually for matching funds to fix leaks and reduce costs for water customers.

The cabinet secretaries' recent visit to Dubuque grew out of the partnership aimed at creating sustainable communities that Housing and Urban Development Secretary Donovan and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood unveiled in March. The EPA joined this effort in June, with all three agencies embracing these "livability principles":

* Provide more transportation choices. Develop safe, reliable, and economical transportation choices to decrease household transportation costs, reduce our nation's dependence on foreign oil, improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and promote public health.
* Promote equitable, affordable housing. Expand location- and energy-efficient housing choices for people of all ages, incomes, races, and ethnicities to increase mobility and lower the combined cost of housing and transportation.
* Enhance economic competitiveness. Improve economic competitiveness through reliable and timely access to employment centers, educational opportunities, services and other basic needs by workers, as well as expanded business access to markets.
* Support existing communities. Target federal funding toward existing communities-through strategies like transit oriented, mixed-use development, and land recycling-to increase community revitalization and the efficiency of public works investments and safeguard rural landscapes.
* Coordinate and leverage federal policies and investment. Align federal policies and funding to remove barriers to collaboration, leverage funding, and increase the accountability and effectiveness of all levels of government to plan for future growth, including making smart energy choices such as locally generated renewable energy
* Value communities and neighborhoods. Enhance the unique characteristics of all communities by investing in healthy, safe, and walkable neighborhoods-rural, urban, or suburban.

While in Dubuque last Thursday, the cabinet officials toured

the historic Millwork District, which the city is transforming into a sustainable neighborhood with a focus on mixed income housing, multiple transportation options and minimized environmental impact. Local officials described their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas and other harmful emissions, cut transportation costs, and build more affordable homes near employment centers. The day concluded with a town hall meeting at the Grand River Center - a revitalized former brownfields site - where the officials discussed the city's sustainability efforts with Dubuque residents.
In Dubuque, Secretary Donovan announced new steps that HUD is taking toward achieving the goals of the Sustainable Communities Partnership. The secretary announced new HUD guidelines to make it easier to recycle land and develop multifamily housing in communities across the country, while ensuring the environmental health and safety of future residents. The new guidelines remove a policy barrier to development in towns and cities across the country, often in places near jobs and transportation infrastructure where affordable housing is badly needed.
"There are properties across the country with good access to affordable transportation and jobs that could be developed into affordable housing but aren't developed because of the federal red tape involved," said Secretary Donovan. "The new guidelines being announced today will cut the red tape and provide more opportunities to develop affordable housing in communities across America."

Click here to learn more about the Urban Waters initiative that EPA Administrator Jackson announced in Chicago on September 17. The next day in Denver, Secretary Donovan announced that HUD will award a combined $300 million from stimulus bill funds to 36 "green" public housing transformation projects. Also in Denver, Jackson announced plans to translate the EPA's "This Is Smart Growth" publication into Spanish and unveiled a new EPA tool "to help local governments identify specific zoning code and land use ordinance fixes that would improve access to affordable housing, provide additional low-cost transportation options, preserve community character, and protect the local environment."

Transportation Secretary LaHood didn't announce any new initiatives on this tour, but he has already done a lot to change the orientation of the DOT:

Secretary LaHood announced his commitment to sustainable communities shortly after his confirmation, charging the department's Policy Office with developing a Livable Communities Initiative that would foster livability measures ranging from bicycle and pedestrian facilities to congestion mitigation, traffic management and improving rural transit. The DOT has also required that states spend at least three percent of their recovery act funding allocation on the Transportation Enhancement Program, a primary source of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure funding. Going forward, Secretary LaHood has proposed to Congress that the next Surface Transportation Reauthorization include livability measures that would streamline transportation planning and increase interagency collaboration.

I can be a big Obamaskeptic, but I give full credit to the president for appointing Donovan, Jackson and LaHood. They are setting new and better priorities in housing, transportation and environmental protection. It's good to know that Dubuque is helping to lead the way and may become a model for other small and medium-sized American cities to follow.

Dubuque's not the only Iowa community with forward-thinking leaders. Iowa City adopted an outstanding Subdivision Code, incorporating smart growth principles, and is promoting light rail transit and redevelopment downtown. Both Iowa City and Des Moines have embraced the goal of "complete streets," which are safe for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and bus riders to travel along or across.

But Dubuque's comprehensive efforts are in a class by themselves in Iowa. Thanks to all who have contributed to this progress.

Events coming up this week

desmoinesdem — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT

It's been a week since same-sex marriage became legal in Iowa, and I'm happy to report that my hetero marriage has not yet collapsed under the strain of sharing rights with gays and lesbians.

Click "there's more" to read about events coming up this week. As always, post a comment or send me an e-mail (desmoinesdem AT yahoo.com) if you know of something I've left out.

Advance warning: May 11-15 is Bike to Work week.

Registration is FREE. Over 500 Bike to Work Socks have been ordered from the Sock Guy. This year's socks are green. Socks will be available at events throughout the week on a first come, first serve basis. (One pair per pre-registered rider.) Everyone who registers and takes the pledge is eligible for $1,000 in Bike Bucks for use in any sponsoring bike shop and many other prizes! Registration closes at Noon on Thursday May 14th. Questions? Check out Bike to Work Week events and businesses around Iowa at www.bikeiowa.com.

Monday, May 4:

From 1000 Friends of Iowa:

Public Radio International teamed with Iowa Public Radio's Rob Dillard and 1000 Friends' Craig and LaVon Griffieon as part of a series to document a year on the Griffieon Family Farm. The Five Farms documentary series will air on IPR's news-exclusive networks (WOI-AM, KTPR, KWOI, KOWI, KSUI) Monday May 4th through Friday May 8th at 7:00 PM, as well as five consecutive Sundays beginning May 3 through May 31st at 8:00 PM.
The Five Farms series offers listeners a unique glimpse into the lives and work of five farm families across the United States throughout one full cycle of seasons. From daily chores to debates on best farming practices, the documentaries allow a real inside look at life on a farm.
The families featured in this series include the Hager Brothers Farm in Massachusetts, the Wise Family Farm in North Carolina, the Griffieon Family Farm in Iowa, the HOPI farm in Arizona, and the Good Humus Farm in California. The Five Farms website has information about the project and the families, numerous pictures and photo essays, additional stories from the families, and web extras.
Visit the Five Farms website at www.fivefarms.org. Additional information can be found at www.pri.org and a teaser for the documentary series is available on YouTube. Click here to watch it, or visit YouTube and search for "Five Farms".
1000 Friends of Iowa is proud to sponsor the airing of this documentary. We encourage you to tune in and enjoy this educational and entertaining series. Pass this along to your friends across the U.S. and tell them to check local listings for broadcast dates and times on their local public radio station.

I am fortunate to know LaVon Griffieon, an inspiring woman, and I look forward to listening to the Five Farms series.

I'M for Iowa is bringing Alexander Robinson with the National Black Justice Coalition to Iowa this week, and he will attend a reception at the Des Moines Social Club, 1408 Locust, at 7 pm on May 4. I'M for Iowa provided this biographical information:

We are honored to host Alexander Robinson's visit to Iowa next week. As a gay African-American who heads the National Black Justice Coalition, Alexander will share his story and dialogue with Iowans about civil-marriage equality. With the help of a great list of coalition partners (see below), we've organized events for Alexander in Des Moines, Fort Dodge, Waterloo, Iowa City, Dubuque, Clinton, Davenport and Cedar Rapids. Complete details are in the EVENTS section of this update.
Alexander was a former CPA and corporate executive who also sports a long history as a public policy analyst and commentator. He spent three years as an independent political strategist and communications specialist serving a wide variety of public interest groups including the NAACP, National Council of LaRaza, National Urban League Policy Institute, and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.
Alexander's activism began in the late 197 0s. He served on the board of the Stonewall Democrats, was a member of the San Francisco Gay Pride Parade & Celebration Committee, served on the Host Committee for the 1984 Democratic National Convention, and helped with the March for Lesbian/Gay Rights. President Clinton appointed Alexander to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, where he chaired the Sub-committee of Prevention and Education.
He also worked with the Breakthrough Foundation's Youth-at-Risk Program, the Washington Area Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, and was a member of Obama for America's National LGBT Steering Committee. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including most recently the Andrew Goodman Freedom Prize.
A writer and political commentator, his coming out story is chronicled in the recently released book, Crisis: 40 Stories Revealing the Personal, Social, and Religious Pain and Trauma of Growing up Gay in America. Alexander's writings have appeared in The New York Times, Bilerico.com, BlackAmericanWeb.com, The Advocate, The Washington Blade and numerous other local and national journals.
Alexander and his partner Gregory Satorie were married in San Francisco in October of last year, and he has one son from his previous marriage. Alexander and Gregory make their home in Baltimore, Maryland.

Tuesday, May 5:

Alexander Robinson will continue to dialogue with Iowans about marriage equality:

Fort Dodge: 9:00 a.m., Citizens Central, Fort Dodge Senior Center, 617 Central Ave
Waterloo: 12:00, The Philanthropy Center, 425 Cedar St., 3rd Floor, U.S. Bank Building
Iowa City: 7:00 p.m., Plaza Conference Room of Hotel Vetro on the Ped Mall

The deranged Fred Phelps and his "God Hates Fags" church followers will be in Des Moines, having postponed a visit planned for April 27. They will protest outside Polk County offices in the morning, then denounce Jews in front of all three synagogues in Des Moines before picketing Lincoln High School, where a student will win the Matthew Shepard award. My advice is to avoid and ignore these people, rather than draw attention to them by staging any counter-protests.

Wednesday, May 6:

From the Iowa Environmental Council:

Volunteers Needed: Water Testing Event in Polk County
Please consider volunteering your time to help with the Spring Polk County Water Monitoring Snapshot on Wednesday May 6th. The Polk County Snapshot is sponsored by the Iowa Environmental Council and Des Moines Waterworks. Over the past 5 years, more than 150 volunteers have helped collect water samples from over 70 river, stream and lakes sites throughout Polk County. Volunteers will meet at 8:30 am at the Izaak Walton League Clubhouse at 4343 George Flagg Parkway to form teams and get equipment and sampling instructions, while enjoying a free continental breakfast. All sampling will be completed by 2:00 pm. So we can have packet and materials prepared for each volunteer, please contact Susan Heathcote at heathcote@iaenvironment.org or 515-244-1194 Ext. 205, by May 1st.

Author and Artist Claudia McGehee
Using her books A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet and A Woodlands Counting Book as a launching pad, Claudia will talk with Pre-K-3rd grade children at the Musser Public Library, 304 Iowa Avenue, Muscatine, on May 6 at 10:30 am and 6:30 pm. At these presentations, which are part of Muscatine's Annual Community Read for the Environment initiative, students will learn hands-on about plants in their environments by sample specimens Claudia will share. Through large interactive murals, the children will help "build" a prairie and woodland and learn important components of each. For information, call the Library Information Desk, 563-263-3065.

Alexander Robinson's schedule is as follows:

Dubuque: 9:00 a.m., Naughty Dog Coffee Bar and Deli, 1108 Locust Street
Clinton: 12:00, La Feria Mexican Restaurant, 116 5th Avenue S, Clinton Street
Davenport: 2:00, Metropolitan Community Church of the Quad Cities, 3019 N. Harrison
Cedar Rapids: 7:00 p.m., Faith United Methodist Church, 1000 30th St. NE

Thursday, May 7:

Beginning at 7 am, the 24th Annual Smart Economic Development Conference will take place at the Polk County Convention Complex, Fifth and Grand, Des Moines, Iowa. Registration is $60. Visit www.iowasmartconf.com for registration information, directions and to view the agenda for this conference.

Alexander Robinson will participate in a panel discussion at 7:00 p.m. at Polk County Central Senior Center, 2008 Forest Avenue, Des Moines. Panelists include Des Moines-area African American leaders Tim Tutt, Yvonne Jones and Kittie Knauer. Light refreshments will be served after the event.

Tulip time begins in Pella and runs through Saturday, May 9. I like to go down the week after the festival; the tulips are still pretty, and the main square is not crowded.

From the Iowa Environmental Council:

Aldo Leopold: Writing from his Burlington Roots
Please join us for a free presentation by Steve Brower at the Burlington Public Library 210 Court Street, on Thursday, May 7, at 7 p.m. (and repeated at the Fairfield Public Library 104 W. Adams, on Thursday, May 14 at 7:30 p.m.) Steve will share new research and photographs developed with grant support from Humanities Iowa through the Leopold Heritage Group of Burlington. He will explore the influence Aldo Leopold's formative years in Iowa had on his mature writings as a renowned conservationist, and the importance of Iowa in the development of Leopold's land ethic.

Friday, May 8:

The Iowa Commission for the Status of Women is having a Lunch and Learn discussion regarding Iowa women and unemployment. Presenters will be Paula Nissen, Deb Ostrem, and Donna Burkett, all with Iowa Workforce Development. 12 noon - 1 p.m., State Capitol, Legislative Dining Room. Free and open to the public. Bring your lunch and join us!

The Polk County Democrats are having their annual spring dinner fundraiser and auction:

"Growing the Democratic Party in Polk County"
With U.S. Senator Tom Harkin and Congressman Leonard Boswell
Program includes speakers honoring the late former State Representative John Connors including:
Des Moines Fire Chief, John Tekippe
State Rep. Bruce Hunter and
Secretary of State Michael Mauro
Friday, May 8, 2009
Doors - 5:30pm Dinner - 6:00pm Program - 6:30pm
Steelworker's Local #310, 125 NW Broadway, Des Moines
Tickets are $25 and include dinner and a beverage
Reserved tables of 8 can be purchased for $200
Feature Auction item: 2008 Presidential Candidate poster in full color with personal autographs from Biden, Clinton, Dodd, Edwards, Kucinich, Obama, Richardson and Vilsack.
Also: A hat and hat pin from Former Iowa First Lady Christie Vilsack
Oversized, numbered Obama print, framed and more.
For more information, to reserve tickets or buy using your Visa or Mastercard, call 515-285-1800

Saturday, May 9:

The National MS Society is organizing MS Walks in lots of cities to raise money for research on multiple sclerosis. There are six MS Walks scheduled in Iowa, in Cedar Falls/Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Mason City, Quad Cities and Sioux City. Click the link for event details.

From the Iowa Environmental Council:

International Migratory Bird Day Celebration
This year we will celebrate International Migratory Bird Day on Saturday, May 9th at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge located 30 miles east of Des Moines in Prairie City. With events ranging from bird hikes to making bird crafts at our crafts station, it is a great way to kick off spring and celebrate the warmer months to come. This year's theme is "Celebrating Birds in Culture." Birds have always been important to native people. They are found in storytelling, art, music, dance, spirituality, food, and much more. For example, birds are found in some of the earliest cave art, feathers have been used to add beauty and meaning in the creation of ceremonial objects, and certain native people believed birds carried messages to the spirits. For more information or other questions about the event contact Hallie Rasmussen at 515-994-3400 or hallie_rasmussen@fws.gov.
* * * * * * * * * *

Five Iowa communities will receive "smart growth" assistance on rebuilding

desmoinesdem — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:12:17 GMT

A friend alerted me to this news release from the Rebuild Iowa Office. I've posted the whole release after the jump, but here is an excerpt:

Five Iowa communities affected by the tornadoes and floods of 2008 will receive assistance in recovering stronger and smarter through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Smart Growth Implementation Assistance (SGIA) program.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Rebuild Iowa Office (RIO) and the Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) recently announced that New Hartford, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Coralville and Iowa City have been chosen to receive expert technical assistance to help with growth and redevelopment.

This is good news, because rebuilding with smart growth principles in mind will bring economic and environmental benefits to those cities.

March 24, 2009
FIVE IOWA COMMUNITIES SELECTED FOR SMART GROWTH ASSISTANCE
State & Federal Agencies Team Up to Help Disaster-Impacted Communities Better Plan for Rebuilding
(DES MOINES) - Five Iowa communities affected by the tornadoes and floods of 2008 will receive assistance in recovering stronger and smarter through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Smart Growth Implementation Assistance (SGIA) program.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Rebuild Iowa Office (RIO) and the Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) recently announced that New Hartford, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Coralville and Iowa City have been chosen to receive expert technical assistance to help with growth and redevelopment.
This assistance is typically awarded through a competitive application process. No Iowa cities have been chosen in the past. However, FEMA and EPA worked together to make sure federal resources would be available to Iowa after last summer's level of devastation and to build on the progress with which FEMA has already helped. For this application, ten cities in Iowa were eligible for the program. Eight cities applied and five were chosen.
"We are grateful to have the opportunity to tap into some outside expertise," said Bob Miklo, senior planner for Iowa City. "Bringing in a consultant from the EPA and a consultant who has worked with other cities will bring us some input we wouldn't have thought of locally."
Under a federal contract that supports EPA's Smart Growth assistance program, each selected community will receive direct technical assistance from a team of national experts organized by EPA and other partners to work on redevelopment plans with local leaders. Team members will have expertise in disciplines relevant to each community's unique needs.
"This is an excellent example of how partnerships between various state and federal agencies ;benefit the communities most severely affected by a disaster," said FEMA ESF #14 Long-Term Community Recovery Branch Director Steve Castaner.
Aaron Todd, a community planning specialist with the Rebuild Iowa Office, helped coordinate the application process, and will continue to work with the EPA and other agency partners to provide assistance. Coordinating recovery and redevelopment of Iowa's communities in a sustainable manner is a priority outlined in the Rebuild Iowa Advisory Commission's 120-day Report.
"Incorporating sustainable redevelopment policies in Iowa's recovery not only reduces our impact on the environment, but also fosters economic growth and helps to reduce the potential damage of future natural disasters," he said.
Special Projects Coordinator Stephanie Weisenbach with the Community Development Division of IDED, is also collaborating with the communities and various agencies on the Smart Growth program.
"Cities are still faced with complex challenges about how and where to rebuild after last year's natural disasters," she said. "Expert help on sustainable redevelopment choices can help overcome these challenges and create more vibrant places for businesses and families."
The selected communities have a unique opportunity to redevelop in ways that can help revitalize their economies, protect environmental resources and public health, and enhance quality of life for their citizens. Community officials are also interested in putting into place development approaches that will help the community become more resilient to future flooding.
Cedar Falls Mayor Jon Crews said city officials are appreciative of the technical assistance, adding that city staff found out about the SGIA program shortly after returning from a Smart Growth conference in New Mexico.
"It was perfect timing. Hopefully this will help us grow well and thoughtfully, taking into account transportation, land use issues, flood plain management and planning more green development."
Initial visits to each of the communities by the technical assistance teams and representatives from the various agencies involved will take place between March 24 and 26.
The community projects are:
* Cedar Falls will receive assistance in expanding home ownership and rental choices in portions of the city deemed most appropriate for new growth and infill development. The city also wants to identify strategies for implementing green infrastructure approaches in flood-prone areas.
* Cedar Rapids will receive assistance in identifying existing or potential barriers to more sustainable development in current development policies and codes.
* Coralville will receive assistance with creating a vision and ensuring that codes and ordinances can help accommodate future growth through infill redevelopment and dedication of well-designed open space in flood prone areas.
* Iowa City will receive assistance in redeveloping the South Gilbert Street Commercial Corridor. EPA will help identify strategies for accommodating future growth in this corridor and for increasing green infrastructure and open space areas that could help mitigate future flood events.
* New Hartford will receive assistance with its storm water management and prevention of future flooding. EPA assistance will be used to organize a workshop outlining green infrastructure strategies New Hartford could adopt to address its storm water and flooding challenges.
###

The best news you didn't hear about yesterday

desmoinesdem — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 13:10:08 GMT

A House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing featuring two low-profile cabinet members won't make a splash even on a slow-news day, and certainly not when a juicy story like the AIG outrage has so many angles to explore.

But take my word for it: big news came out of yesterday's Congressional testimony by Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan and Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Ray LaHood. The cabinet secretaries announced

a new partnership to help American families gain better access to affordable housing, more transportation options, and lower transportation costs. The average working American family spends nearly 60 percent of its budget on housing and transportation costs, making these two areas the largest expenses for American families. Donovan and LaHood want to seek ways to cut these costs by focusing their efforts on creating affordable, sustainable communities.

I explain why this is important and welcome news after the jump.
"Sustainability" means many things to many people, but a news release available at the HUD and DOT sites explains what the joint task force will be working on:

"One of my highest priorities is to help promote more livable communities through sustainable surface transportation programs," said Secretary LaHood.
"This partnership will help expand every American family's choices for affordable housing and transportation," said Secretary Donovan. "HUD's central mission - ensuring that every American has access to decent, affordable housing - can be achieved only in context of the housing, transportation, and energy costs and choices that American families experience each day."
DOT and HUD have created a high-level interagency task force to better coordinate federal transportation and housing investments and identify strategies to give American families:
• More choices for affordable housing near employment opportunities;
• More transportation options, to lower transportation costs, shorten travel times, and improve the environment;
• Mhe ability to combine several errands into one trip through better coordination of transportation and land uses; and
• Safe, livable, healthy communities.

The release then highlights some specific priorities for the task force, such as:

Enhance integrated regional housing, transportation, and land use planning and investment. The task force will set a goal to have every major metropolitan area in the country conduct integrated housing, transportation, and land use planning and investment in the next four years. [...] DOT will encourage MPOs to conduct this integrated planning as a part of their next long range transportation plan update and will provide technical assistance on scenario planning, a tool for assessing future growth alternatives that better coordinate land use and transportation planning.

Allow me to translate: Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) are charged with long-range transportation planning. Too often, this planning consists of throwing together all the new roads and interchanges on every suburb's wish list, with no regard for land use considerations (like preserving farmland and natural areas, keeping neighborhoods compact, or promoting "mixed-use" developments where cars are not the only transportation option for residents).

LaHood is saying that the federal DOT, which periodically reviews and certifies the work of the MPOs, will prod them to integrate land use and transportation planning.

Further down the press release, we read:

• Redefine affordability and make it transparent. The task force will develop Federal housing affordability measures that include housing, and transportation costs and other costs that affect location choices. Although transportation costs now approach or exceed housing costs for many working families, Federal definitions of housing affordability don't recognize the strain of soaring transportation costs on homeowners and renters who live in areas isolated from work opportunities and transportation choices.
• The task force will redefine affordability to reflect those interdependent costs. The task force will also continue to ensure that the costs of living in certain geographic areas are transparent- using an online tool that calculates the combined housing and transportation costs families face when choosing a new home.

Here is one online tool developed by the Brookings Institution's Urban Markets Initiative in order to factor in transportation costs when measuring "the true affordability of housing." I can't say whether DOT and HUD plan to use this specific tool, but you get the general idea. In the past, the federal government failed to acknowledge the high hidden costs of sprawling suburban developments. Donovan and LaHood will start to change that.

The DOT and HUD press release also promises to

• Develop livability measures. The task force will research, evaluate and recommend measures that indicate the livability of communities, neighborhoods and metropolitan areas. These measures could be adopted in subsequent integrated planning efforts to benchmark existing conditions and identify progress toward achieving community visions. The task force will develop incentives to encourage communities to implement, use and publicize the measures.

A couple of weeks ago I attended a public meeting in Des Moines featuring federal transportation officials. They mentioned that in LaHood's first address to DOT employees, he said his top two priorities would be safety and "livable communities," prompting audible gasps in the room. Creating "livable communities" is a key goal of the "smart growth" movement and is quite different from the traditional DOT focus on funding new road construction.

LaHood's joint announcement with Donovan yesterday indicates that he is serious about changing the focus of federal transportation planning. I sincerely hope Congress will follow his lead when the highway bill comes up for reauthorization later this year.

One mark of a "livable community" is mixed-use development, which has both economic and environmental advantages over sprawling development in car-dependent neighborhoods. Here is a good summary of the economic benefits, which include "walkable design leading to higher property values, increased private investment, [and] tourism". Click here for a detailed report on why reducing car-dependent development is an essential part of a strategy to combat global warming. The main point:

Meeting the growing demand for conveniently located homes in walkable neighborhoods could significantly reduce the growth in the number of miles Americans drive, shrinking the nation's carbon footprint while giving people more housing choices, according to a team of leading urban planning researchers.
In a comprehensive review of dozens of studies, published by the Urban Land Institute, the researchers conclude that urban development is both a key contributor to climate change and an essential factor in combating it.
They warn that if sprawling development continues to fuel growth in driving, the projected 48 percent increase in the total miles driven between 2005 and 2030 will overwhelm expected gains from vehicle efficiency and low-carbon fuels. Even if the most stringent fuel-efficiency proposals under consideration are enacted, notes co-author Steve Winkelman, "vehicle emissions still would be 34 percent above 1990 levels in 2030 - entirely off-track from reductions of 60-80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050 required for climate protection."

I hadn't heard of Donovan before President Barack Obama picked him to run HUD. Even though I follow transportation policy closely, I didn't know what to think about LaHood's appointment when it was first announced. Time will tell whether the joint HUD and DOT task force accomplishes the goals set for it. But judging from the vision Donovan and LaHood laid out yesterday, they may turn out to be among Obama's best appointments.

Events coming up during the next two weeks

desmoinesdem — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 01:33:57 GMT

Send me an e-mail (desmoinesdem AT yahoo.com) or post a comment if you know of another event that should be added to this calendar.

Sunday, January 18:

From Blog for Iowa (click the link for more details):

On Sunday, January 18, the Iowa City Environmental Film Festival and Sierra Club will sponsor a screening of Fighting Goliath: Texas Coal Wars. The film portrays how Texans formed unlikely coalitions to fight the construction of nineteen coal-fired power plants being fast-tracked by the state's governor, Rick Perry. The film, narrated by Robert Redford, has received numerous awards.
Representatives from two groups instrumental in challenging the construction of the two plants in Iowa will lead a discussion following the film. Mike Carberry, Sierra Club, will be joined by Carrie LeSeur, founder and Executive Director of Plains Justice, to talk about what is being done and what Iowans can do to stop construction of the coal-fired power plants. Plains Justice, a public interest law center, was founded in 2006 in part in response to the Waterloo, Iowa Coal Plant Proposal, which has now been withdrawn.
[...] Sunday, January 18th at the Iowa City Public Library, 123 S. Linn St., Room A at 3:00 PM.
The screening is free and open to the public.

Monday, January 19:

From Polk County Democrats:

From Vern Naffier
Come to the Pre-Inauguration Celebration
Friends: Join me Monday night at 7 pm at the State Historical Building for an inspiring event celebrating Martin Luther King's Birthday, Barack Obama's inauguration, and the beginning of an era of peace, reconciliation, and social justice throughout the world. See announcement below.
RENEWING AMERICA'S PROMISE
Rebirthing King - Rebirthing America
A pre-inauguration celebration
State Historical Building
600 East Locust
Des Moines
January 19, 2009
7-8 pm
Come join the effort to reclaim the dream of America free from racism, militarism, and materialism. Come join the candlelight march for Martin's memory and Barack's beginning.
The Iowa Obama Presidential Inauguration Committee invites you to bring items for the DMARC Food Pantry.
Sponsored by the King Birthday Celebration Planning Committee

Tuesday, January 20:

George W. Bush's presidency will finally end as Barack Obama takes the oath of office. What are you doing to celebrate? There must be many parties going on all over this state.

Urban Dreams Presents
Brown, Black & The Blues People's Ball
Celebrating the Inauguration of
President Barack Obama
Together through the diversity of our community
Jnauary 20, 2009
8:00 PM until...
Hotel Fort Des Moines
1000 Walnut Street
Des Moines, IA 50309
$25 / person
Dress to Impress
Featuring Musica Latina, Soul and the Blues
A nonpartisan event open to the whole community
for more information please call 515-288-4742
The Brown, Black & The Blues People's Ball is brought to you by
Project V.O.T.E. (Voting Opportunities Through Education).
PLease call Hotel Fort Des Moines at 515-243-1181 if interested in room reservations.

From 1000 Friends of Iowa:

There will be a Des Moines Area Metropolitan Planning Organization Public Input Meeting in the DMAMPO Meeting Room, Merle Hay Center, 6200 Aurora Avenue, Suite 300W, Urbandale, IA. Click here for more details about what's on the agenda and why you should care.

Friday, January 23:

For bicycling advocates and enthusiasts:

Iowa Bicycle Summit
January 23-24, Des Moines
Iowa Bicycle Summit will be held in Des Moines at the Holiday Inn, Downtown, from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Friday's session features Steve Durrant from Portland, Oregon, a registered landscape architect and planner with over 30 years experience helping communities become better places to live. A Friday Bike Night fundraiser will feature a presentation by mountain-biking legend Gary Fisher at a dinner and silent auction. Saturday is geared for grassroots bicyclists who want to better their communities. Sessions include Safe Routes to Schools, Bike to Work Week, legislative issues and more. Primary sponsors are the Iowa Department of Transportation and the Iowa Bicycle Coalition. Participation is limited. Find out more or register at the Iowa Bicycle Summit webpage, http://www.iowabicyclecoalitio...

From the Iowa Environmental Council newsletter:

Winter Solstice Workshop: No Child Left Inside
January 23-25, Honey Creek State Park
The Iowa Conservation Education Coalition's annual Environmental Education Workshop, Winter Solstice, will be held on January 23-25, 2009. The workshop title is No Child Left Inside. Winter Solstice will be held at the Honey Creek State Park Resort on Lake Rathbun. This new resort features motel rooms, a restaurant, an indoor water park, and most important for ICEC, a wonderful conference center. Our keynote speakers include: Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder; Connie Mutel, author of The Emerald Horizon: The History of Nature in Iowa; and Jim Pease and Susan O'Brien author of Environmental Literacy in Iowa. For questions about the workshop, please contact Gail Barels at gail.barels@linncounty.org or Heather Niec at adminicec@hotmail.com.

Saturday, January 24:

For those who enjoy public art:

Design a Dragonfly on Ice at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory
January 24, West Lake Okoboji
Filmmaker Chad Branham will design this year's Artslive's People Project on Saturday, January 24, on the ice in Miller's Bay, beginning at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory. This ephemeral art project will line people up on the ice on West Lake Okoboji, in the shape of a giant 100 foot dragonfly. This design will take over 225 people to complete. Once everyone is in place the dragonfly will be photographed from an airplane by Judy Hemphill. Due to limited parking at Lakeside, participants are asked to gather at Peace Corner, at the corner of Highways 9 and 86, at 12:30 pm, and take a shuttle bus to the project site at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory. People are encouraged to dress warmly and, if possible, in bright primary colors. To sign up to participate, or for more information about participating in this year's ArtsLive People's Project, contact Jen Johnson at (712)332-6502 or jen@activeokoboji.org, or visit artslive.com.

Tuesday, January 27:

From Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement:

Jan. 27, 2009
BIG Rally & Lobby Day
Mark your calendars and plan to be at our Rally & Lobby Day at the State Capitol Tuesday, Jan. 27. We need you there to show our legislators that thousands of Iowans will be holding them accountable this legislative session to issues like local control, clean elections, homeowner protections and the rights of all workers.
Decisions made at the Statehouse impact us every day. This is our chance to put our issues at the top of the legislative agenda. Join with us today - click here for more information and REGISTER TODAY!

Friday, January 30:

From Polk County Democrats:

The Ankeny Area Democrats and The Polk County Democrats Present An Inauguration Celebration Dinner At The Iowa State Historical Building
Friday, January 30, 2009
Catered by Baratta's Restaurant
Social Hour begins at 6:00 PM
Dinner at 7:00 PM
Live music through the Musician's Union
Tickets $25 per person
Tickets include chicken / pasta dinner and sides, soft drinks, coffee, iced tea or water
Semi-formal attire encouraged, but not required
Tickets available by calling Tamyra at 515-285-1800 or Mary Oliver at 515-964-1227
Email polkdems@gmail.com or Ankenyareadems@msn.com

Older Americans want alternatives to driving

desmoinesdem — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:01:47 GMT

A nationwide survey of Americans over age 50, commissioned by the AARP in July, found that

while many Americans ages 50+ are trying to move away from car transportation as a result of high gas prices, their attempt to go "green" is challenged by inadequate sidewalks and bike lanes, as well as insufficient public transportation options. [...]
Almost one of every three people (29%) polled say they are now walking as a way to avoid high gas prices. But as those people set out to walk, almost 40% of the 50+ population say they do not have adequate sidewalks in their neighborhoods. Additionally, 44% say they do not have nearby public transportation that is accessible. Almost half (47%) of poll responders say they cannot cross the main roads safely - 4 in 10 pedestrian fatalities are over the age of 50.

The AARP is one of the organizations supporting "Complete Streets" legislation:

"Complete streets enable pedestrians, bicyclists and public transit riders to share the road safely with automobiles," said Elinor Ginzler, AARP's Senior Vice President for Livable Communities. "More cities and states are adopting policies requiring their transportation agencies to ensure that roads are routinely designed or redesigned for all modes of travel. And instituting these new standards makes it safer for residents of all ages," she stated.
"Some cities like Sacramento, California and Kirkland, Washington are ahead of the curve," said Ginzler. "They have extra-wide sidewalks, flowered medians and flashing lights embedded in crosswalks at busy intersections. Bike lanes and bus stops line even some of the town's busiest streets. These amenities allow residents to be safer pedestrians and commuters and even help the flow of vehicle traffic."
At the national level, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), led efforts in the U.S. Senate to develop safer, comprehensively designed streets. Harkin introduced the bipartisan Complete Streets Act of 2008 (S. 2686) this spring. Senate cosponsors include Senators Thomas Carper (D-DE) and Norm Coleman (R-MN). Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA) took a significant step for safer streets in May by introducing the Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2008 (H.R. 5951) in the U.S. House of Representatives. Representative Christopher Shays (R-CT) cosponsors the bipartisan bill. The bills would ensure that roads built and improved with federal funds safely serve everyone using the roadway -- including pedestrians, people on bicycles or those catching the bus, as well as those with disabilities. This is the first time that comprehensive complete streets bills have been introduced in the House and Senate.

Even if there were no economic or environmental reasons to try to reduce gasoline consumption, Iowa's aging population will increasingly need alternatives to driving in order to get around cities and towns.

So far only Iowa City and Johnson County have taken significant steps toward providing "complete streets" in Iowa.

More information on gas prices and complete streets can be found in this pdf file.

Senator McCoy wants your input on public transit in Iowa

desmoinesdem — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 03:40:31 GMT

A friend forwarded to me the latest issue of Senator Matt McCoy's electronic newsletter. It includes the following passage:

With the rapid rise in gas prices, it is clearer than ever that Iowans need more choices when it comes to transportation.
Over the next several months, I'll be working with a Mass Transit Study Committee to review ways mass transit might be used to improve public transportation among Iowa communities. We'll hear from policy experts and citizens who are concerned with improving transportation alternatives.
I hope you'll contact me with your ideas on how to address this difficult problem.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: To fight global warming, we also need to rethink transportation policy.

Whether or not you live in Senate district 31, I hope you will contact Senator McCoy if you have input for this committee.

Remember that public transit doesn't have to be restricted to larger towns and cities. A small town can have express bus service or vanpools taking people to jobs, shops or other facilities in other communities. That can save users a lot of money while reducing gasoline consumption and congestion on roads used by commuters.

There is still time to nominate "Best Development" projects

desmoinesdem — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 06:46:26 GMT

Last month I wrote about 1000 Friends of Iowa taking nominations for their annual Best Development Awards.

The original deadline for nominations was June 25, but because flooding caused disruption in many communities that may have worthy projects, 1000 Friends of Iowa has extended the deadline for submitting a nomination to July 25.

Read my earlier post, or go here on the 1000 Friends of Iowa site, to find more information about the Best Development Awards, how to nominate a project, and the criteria used to judge nominees.

U.S. House approves major new investment in public transportation

desmoinesdem — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 15:01:43 GMT

It's a tiny sum of money compared to what we appropriate for building new roads, but I'll take it:

Immediate Release: June 26, 2008
Contact: John Krieger - (614) 214 9888
Phineas Baxandall - (617) 747-4351
House addresses high gas prices by investing close to $2 billion in public transportation
Responding to record-high gas prices and the rising use of public transportation, the House of Representatives today passed HR 6052, the Saving Energy through Public Transportation Act, by a vote of 322 to 98 which authorizes 1.7 billion dollars to transit agencies across America to expand services and reduce fares.
This investment is part of a long-term solution that gives Americans affordable and convenient alternatives to driving and allows transit agencies to keep up with drastic increases in ridership brought on by high gas prices.
"We applaud this legislation for its rare combination of practicality and vision," said US PIRG staff attorney John Krieger, "The House recognized today that we cannot kick our oil addiction without driving less, and we cannot drive less without better transportation alternatives."
According to analysis released this week by US PIRG, American families are spending close to 100 dollars a week on gasoline. That spending has increased almost 40 percent in the last five months, and household spending on transportation is now the second highest expense for the average family - more than food, clothing, even healthcare.
Americans have responded to higher gas costs by taking public transportation at record rates in areas where it is available, and American drivers traveled fewer miles last year for the first time in almost thirty years.
Analysis by U.S. PIRG shows that public transportation created net oil savings of 3.4 billion gallons in 2006. That is enough to fuel almost 6 million cars for an entire year and saves consumers about $13.6 billion in gasoline at today's prices.
"Rising gas prices are getting people out of their cars in record numbers," said Krieger, "Investments like this give them a better and cheaper way to go."
# # #
U.S. PIRG is the federation of state Public Interest Research Groups. State PIRGs are non-profit, non-partisan public interest advocacy organizations.

Here's hoping the U.S. Senate approves this bill with a clear bipartisan majority as well.

We also need the leadership of the Iowa House and Senate, as well as Iowa Department of Transportation officials, to understand the need for greater investment in public transit options.

Unfortunately, the TIME-21 transportation plan adopted in Iowa this spring doesn't require any additional funding to go toward public transit.

It's possible that every one of the $4 billion likely to be raised through TIME-21 over the next two decades will be spent on roads. The legislature didn't even impose a "fix-it first" requirement to make sure maintaining existing infrastructure would take priority over building new roads.

Like I've written before, it's hard to drive less if no alternatives to driving are available.

Action: Give us more transportation choices

desmoinesdem — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 23:43:16 GMT

I received this action alert today from Smart Growth America:

Dear [desmoinesdem],
Can you believe the impact rising gas prices are having across the country?
Here in D.C., people are abandoning their cars and taking the Metro in record numbers. But most Americans don't have options like Metro for relief -- they don't have access to convienient public transportation or live in walkable, connected neighborhoods. For years, our leaders have underinvested in these solutions, and now we're paying the price as fuel prices rise by the day.
We need to demand better transportation choices that can help us get where we need to go -- while saving money, conserving oil, and fighting global warming. Urge your Congressional member to support more funding for transit, biking, and smart growth by clicking on the button below to send them a message.
Congressional members Earl Blumenauer and Ellen Tauscher are leading an effort to invest in transit and smart growth -- please ask your Representative to join them!
Thanks for your support.
Steve Davis
Smart Growth America
Please feel free to forward this to any of your friends and colleagues who might be interested in taking action or receiving alerts like this one in the future. If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for news and alerts here.
Keep track of SGA's current advocacy work and get valuable resources to bolster your own efforts on our action page.

You can click here to

write and tell your representative to sign onto a letter from Reps. Earl Blumenauer and Ellen Tauscher urging Congress to increase funding for public transit, biking, public transportation, and walkable neighborhoods in federal climate legislation. Note: you can edit or personalize the text of the email below, which will help strengthen your message. Feel free to personalize it or add a story of your own from your legislator's district.

Two pieces worth reading on transportation policy

desmoinesdem — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 13:10:23 GMT

At Daily Kos, Devilstower offers five Good Ideas that are Bad Politics. They are:

A five year moratorium on new highway construction
End to single-purpose zoning
Bus Rapid Transit with Dedicated Lanes
Relaxing automotive safety laws
Fifty-five Mile an Hour Speed Limit

Click the link to read the case he makes for each of those. I agree with all of them except relaxing the safety rules. He makes some intriguing points, but I don't think that change would produce the effect he'd like to see.

Yesterday, Daily Kos user bink wrote this diary: Amtrak Has Too Few Usable Train Cars Left. The gist is that demand for passenger rail is skyrocketing because of high gasoline prices, but Amtrak has a limited ability to lay on more trains because it has been starved of adequate funding for so long.

This should concern anyone who wants to see more passenger rail options available to Iowans.

By the way, Barack Obama wants to invest more in rail transportation, while John McCain has opposed funding for Amtrak for many years.

1000 Friends of Iowa taking nominations for Best Development Awards

desmoinesdem — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:54:55 GMT

The non-profit organization 1000 Friends of Iowa gives out Best Development Awards every year to recognize "quality development and redevelopment projects in Iowa and leadership that upholds our mission."

Here is the organization's mission statement:

1000 Friends of Iowa promotes responsible development that
* Conserves and protects our agricultural and natural resources
* Revitalizes our neighborhoods, towns, and cities; and
* Improves the quality of life for future generations

The awards are given in six categories:

* New Residential
* Renovated Residential
* Renovated Commercial/Civic
* New Commercial/Civic
* Mixed Use
* Leadership

After the jump you can find more information about how to nominate a project, as well as the criteria used to judge nominees. That information can also be found here.

To see photos and read about the 2007 award-winners, click here.

The 2006 winners of the Best Development Awards can be seen on this page.

Click here to see which projects won in 2005.

The deadline for nominations is coming right up on June 25, so spread the word and act quickly if you know of a worthy project.

More details about the Best Development Awards are after the jump.

Nominations for the 2008 Best Development Awards are now being accepted! The deadline for entries is June 25, 2008.
Further details on the date, time and location of the awards ceremony will be posted in the coming weeks.
The Best Development Awards program recognizes quality development and redevelopment projects in Iowa and leadership that upholds our mission. The nomination process is user friendly, and is a great opportunity to reward cities, companies, and individuals implementing 1000 Friends' ideals to make Iowa a better state.
Best Development Awards are given in six categories:
* New Residential
* Renovated Residential
* Renovated Commercial/Civic
* New Commercial/Civic
* Mixed Use
* Leadership
To submit a nomination in any of the above categories, please mail or email as much of the following information as you know to the Des Moines office or kfoi@1000friendsofiowa.org.This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
* Name of the development
* Location
* Owner and/or architect
* Contact information for you and a representative of the project, and
* Brief summary of how the project meets KFOI's mission and the Smart Growth criteria (listed below) If available, pictures are encouraged as they truly are worth a thousand words.
Best Development Award Criteria
Projects will be reviewed and awards granted based upon the project fulfilling the objectives of Smart Growth as defined below.
Smart growth is the efficient use of our resources to develop sustainable communities that provide a high quality of life.
Smart growth efficiently utilizes our tax dollars and private investments through. . .
* Reinvesting in existing communities that have experienced decline. This includes rehabilitation and reuse of older buildings and in-fill development.
* Focusing new development around walkable, mixed-use town centers with a balance of housing and jobs.
* Coordinating the provision of utilities and public services amongst local jurisdictions in a metropolitan region.
Smart growth is sustainable because it. . .
* Distributes affordable housing throughout the region to improve access to employment opportunities and avoid concentrations of poverty.
* Utilizes green building practices to conserve energy.
* Attracts new business and industry, which increasingly consider quality of life factors when selecting communities in which to locate or expand.
* Balances urban expansion with the protection of agricultural land and natural areas.
* Empowers citizens to take responsibility for their community and become actively involved in the planning process.
* Recognizes the interdependence of the social, natural and built environments.
* Considers the impact of development on future generations.
Smart growth provides a high quality of life by . . .
* Creating a framework to build community and establish a sense of place.
* Providing walkable, mixed-use community centers that include civic, commercial and residential uses.
* Offering residents a variety of choices in housing options and transportation modes.
* Establishing urban green spaces and protecting environmentally sensitive areas from inappropriate development.
* Engaging residents in a more active, healthy lifestyle.
* Reducing health threats from air and water pollution.
Recipients receive a plaque, publicity during the announcement of 2008 winners, and recognition in 1000 Friends of Iowa's education materials and website.

"Driving Toward Disaster" and other links on transportation policy

desmoinesdem — Mon, 26 May 2008 05:40:42 GMT

Time for another post on transportation policy. Today I'll go over reasons to give Americans more alternatives to driving, as well as ways individuals can reduce their own vehicle-miles traveled.

One way of looking at the issue is to assess the cost of not changing our transportation policy. James Howard Kunstler sounds the alarm in a Washington Post editorial published on Sunday. His piece, called "Driving Toward Disaster," addresses

the desperate wish to keep our "Happy Motoring" utopia running by means other than oil and its byproducts. But the truth is that no combination of solar, wind and nuclear power, ethanol, biodiesel, tar sands and used French-fry oil will allow us to power Wal-Mart, Disney World and the interstate highway system -- or even a fraction of these things -- in the future. We have to make other arrangements.
[...]
And that's the worst part of our quandary: the American public's narrow focus on keeping all our cars running at any cost. Even the environmental community is hung up on this. The Rocky Mountain Institute has been pushing for the development of a "Hypercar" for years -- inadvertently promoting the idea that we really don't need to change.
Years ago, U.S. negotiators at a U.N. environmental conference told their interlocutors that the American lifestyle is "not up for negotiation." This stance is, unfortunately, related to two pernicious beliefs that have become common in the United States in recent decades. The first is the idea that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true. (Oprah Winfrey advanced this notion last year with her promotion of a pop book called "The Secret," which said, in effect, that if you wish hard enough for something, it will come to you.) One of the basic differences between a child and an adult is the ability to know the difference between wishing for things and actually making them happen through earnest effort.
[...]
Fixing the U.S. passenger railroad system is probably the one project we could undertake right away that would have the greatest impact on the country's oil consumption. The fact that we're not talking about it -- especially in the presidential campaign -- shows how confused we are. The airline industry is disintegrating under the enormous pressure of fuel costs. Airlines cannot fire any more employees and have already offloaded their pension obligations and outsourced their repairs. At least five small airlines have filed for bankruptcy protection in the past two months. If we don't get the passenger trains running again, Americans will be going nowhere five years from now.

Though many Americans may still be in denial about the need to improve other modes of travel, the message is becoming more mainstream every day.

A case in point is this long column by Rox Laird on the front page of the Sunday Des Moines Register's opinion section: Mapping our future: Look to past for city life without cars. Laird made an excellent case for developing better alternatives to driving in the Des Moines metropolitan area. I recommend reading the whole column.

As a companion piece, the Des Moines Register's editorial board published a call to change our transportation agenda:

The Des Moines MPO is beginning work on a plan that will set the transportation agenda for the next 30 years. The process - which begins with a public hearing this week (see accompanying box for details) - is an opportunity for local leaders to reconsider the traditional focus on accommodating automobiles and to focus more on better accommodating alternatives, such as buses, ride-sharing, vanpooling, bicycling and walking.
The reality is that in a Midwestern city like Des Moines, the automobile for at least the foreseeable future will remain the dominant mode of transportation. For better or worse, we have designed our cities around cars, and driving our own personal vehicle is the preferred means of transportation for most.
Still, it is time for transportation planning to include more opportunities for people to park the car and walk, cycle, roller-skate or catch a bus or a trolley for many short trips. That could be possible even with modest changes in the plans for residential and commercial districts. These small changes could have a significant impact on fuel consumption, greenhouse-gas emissions and personal fitness.

It will take time to rebuild our passenger rail system and improve public transit, walking and bicycling options within cities.

If you want to take immediate action to reduce the vehicle miles you travel by car, a fast and effective way is to start carpooling. This feature article from Cityview profiles Ann Pashek, who estimates that she saves about $4,500 on gas alone by using the Des Moines Area Regional Transit's rideshare program to commute to her downtown Des Moines job from her home in Winterset. She also saves money on parking and vehicle maintenance.

My brother-in-law carpools to work most days in Washington, DC, and saves a lot of money as well. An added incentive in the Washington area is the high-occupancy vehicle lane on the beltway. Making one of the lanes on I-235 a high-occupancy vehicle lane would quickly increase the number of commuters carpooling to work.

Click on that feature article from Cityview to read about four other ways you can get around while dramatically reducing your gas usage.

On a related note, Markos put up a post this weekend about Walk Score, a site that evaluates your home's location in terms of the ability to reach various kinds of amenities on foot. Markos noted that his home in the Bay Area scored an 88 (out of a possible 100), while George W. Bush's Prairie Chapel ranch scored a zero.

My house in Windsor Heights (an inner-ring suburb of Des Moines) scored 48, although I noticed that the list of walkable amenities the site drew up did not include the Windsor Heights Hy-Vee under the grocery section. So your Walk Score might not be completely accurate. Still, it should give you an idea of how good your neighborhood is for pedestrians.

Another very useful web-based tool is the Housing + Transportation Affordability Index, developed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology and the Center for Transit Oriented Development.

The concept is simple:

Planners, lenders, and most consumers traditionally measure housing affordability as 30 percent or less of income. The Housing + Transportation Affordability Index, in contrast, takes into account not just the cost of housing, but also the intrinsic value of place, as quantified through transportation costs.

By clicking this link, you can check statistics for 52 different metro areas in the U.S. (unfortunately, no Iowa cities made the cut). It's easy to see how certain parts of a big metropolitan area look more affordable if you are only considering housing costs, but are relatively more expensive once you factor in transportation costs as well.

But what if you don't like walking, carpooling, bicycling or taking the bus, and you're wealthy enough that you don't feel the pinch when you fill up your tank?

Remember that a smart transportation policy, which reduces vehicle-miles traveled, is an essential part of any comprehensive strategy to combat global warming.

Smart Growth America has tons of information on this at their website, including a link to the report "Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change."

The number of vehicle miles traveled per capita in the U.S. has increased at three times the rate of population growth in recent decades. Continued increases in vehicle miles traveled threaten to wipe out any reduction in carbon-dioxide emissions we could achieve by improving mileage or using cleaner fuels.

Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Tom Carper (D-DE) have introduced the Complete Streets Act of 2008 in the Senate. Norm Coleman (R-MN) is also a co-sponsor. Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA) has introduced a companion bill in the House called the Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2008. Please urge your representatives in Congress to co-sponsor this important legislation.

Final note: I read in March that George W. Bush's proposed budget for fiscal year 2009 would cover a projected shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund by taking money away from public transportation projects.

I have to ask, is there any policy this president doesn't get wrong?

We already devote way too little funding to public transit compared to road-building. Here's hoping that rising gas prices will prompt the Democratic-controlled Congress to put more money, not less, into public transportation projects.

Braley promoting passenger rail options for Iowans

desmoinesdem — Tue, 13 May 2008 02:44:30 GMT

Not long ago Amtrak released the results of a feasibility study on a passenger rail link between Iowa City, the Quad Cities, and Chicago. (Later this year the next phase of the study will examine extending passenger rail to Des Moines as well.)

A few days ago, Congressman Bruce Braley (IA-01) introduced the 2008 Amtrak Reauthorization Bill, which (according to a press release from Braley's office)

includes language to create a new, $500 million per year "State Capital Grant Program." The program would award federal grants to states to pay for the construction of new passenger rail service between US cities.
Projects that could apply for funding under this program include proposed passenger rail service between Chicago and the Quad Cities, the Quad Cities and Des Moines via Iowa City, and Chicago and Dubuque.
The bill also includes a Braley-sponsored provision mandating a Federal Railroad Administration study into the viability of the widespread use of biolubricants in freight and passenger rail as an alternative to petroleum-based lubricants. The University of Northern Iowa's National Ag-Based Lubricant Center (NABL) is located in Iowa's First District.

The full text of the press release is after the jump.

I appreciate Braley's leadership on this issue and wonder why my own Congressman Leonard Boswell hasn't made passenger rail service between Chicago and Des Moines more of a priority in his work on the House Transportation Committee. My family would love to be able to take a train to Chicago. It would be much easier for us than traveling by car or plane with two small children.

Expanding passenger rail will also help us reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, and will be more cost-effective as the price of oil continues to rise in the long term.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 8, 2008
Contact: Jeff Giertz, Communications Director
jeff.giertz@mail.house.gov
(202) 226-4026 (office)
(202) 297-6745 (cell)
Braley Introduces Bill Boosting Prospects of Rail Connections Between Dubuque, Quad Cities and Chicago
Braley Cosponsor of Amtrak Reauthorization Act with Transportation Committee Leaders
Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) today introduced the 2008 Amtrak Reauthorization Bill with House Transportation Committee Chairman Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.) and other members of the Transportation Committee.
Braley is an original cosponsor of the bill, which includes language to create a new, $500 million per year "State Capital Grant Program." The program would award federal grants to states to pay for the construction of new passenger rail service between US cities. Projects that could
apply for funding under this program include proposed passenger rail service between Chicago and the Quad Cities, the Quad Cities and Des
Moines via Iowa City, and Chicago and Dubuque.
The bill also includes a Braley-sponsored provision mandating a Federal Railroad Administration study into the viability of the widespread use of biolubricants in freight and passenger rail as an alternative to petroleum-based lubricants. The University of Northern Iowa's National Ag-Based Lubricant Center (NABL) is located in Iowa's First District.
"With gas prices approaching four dollars per gallon, we need to invest in transportation alternatives that give people alternatives to
driving," Braley said. "Passenger rail has the potential to be a viable alternative in many places, including the Chicago region. The Amtrak
bill will help make frequent, efficient passenger rail service between Dubuque and the Quad Cities to Chicago a reality. The bill will also help advance emerging biotechnology like biolubricants."

People can't switch to public transit if there is no public transit

desmoinesdem — Sun, 11 May 2008 05:24:20 GMT

Marc Hansen's latest column goes over the hidden benefits of rising gas prices. For instance, people may reduce driving speeds on the highway to improve mileage, which will save gas and save lives.

His piece also mentions that higher prices at the pump have increased the number of people using various forms of public transit in a lot of cities.

The New York Times published a similar article on Saturday: Gas Prices Send Surge of Riders to Mass Transit. That piece gives examples of growing demand for public transit all over the country, not only in cities with historically strong systems such as New York and Boston, but also in Denver, Minneapolis, Seattle, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Francisco, Houston, Nashville, Salt Lake City, and Charlotte, NC.

This isn't rocket science. If the price of gas keeps going up, count on more people to be looking for alternatives to driving.

Trouble is, the Iowa legislature just adopted (and Governor Culver signed) the TIME-21 transportation plan, which does not require any of the increased transportation funding to be spent on public transit.

People can't switch to the bus if there is no bus line running through their neighborhood and going somewhere they need to go, and they can't take the train if there is no commuter rail in their metro area.

We've spent hundreds of millions of dollars on rebuilding and expanding I-235 through Des Moines and the suburbs, yet we didn't even put in a high-occupancy vehicle lane to encourage carpooling. (A high-occupancy vehicle lane can only be used by vehicles carrying at least two licensed drivers.)

Our elected and appointed officials need to be more forward-thinking when it comes to transportation and economic development generally.

It's great that Amtrak is talking about adding passenger rail service to link Iowa City and the Quad Cities to Chicago, but we also need more alternatives to driving that Iowans can use on a daily basis.

For much more on what a smart transportation policy would look like, check out this page at the Smart Growth America website.