American 4th of July - Urbandale Style

 

July 4th is a great day - especially in Urbandale.  For our family and close friends the 4th of July has become a tradition of celebrating the birth of our country and enjoying the blessings of living in Urbandale.

I think Urbandale is the quintessential all-American community.  A small town feel in a vibrant metropolitan area - and the 4th of July brings out the best of Urbandale.  Hundreds of volunteers, a community block party and street dance, carnival, parade with over 150 entries, and the finest display of fireworks in the upper-Midwest - all witnessed by over 50,000 people - in a community of just over 36,000.

       

Each year we participate in the parade with a group of wonderful family and friends - the Raecker Backers.  We have people from as young as 3 to folks in their 70's who have helped us out as we annually distribute 10,000 small American Flags and over 40,000 tootsie-rolls to people along the parade route.

I know my friend State Senator Brad Zaun agrees with me that Urbandale is a great community to serve - and we are both honored with the opportunity and privilege to do so.

 

The start of the Urbandale Parade is highlighted by a Black Hawk helicopter fly-over from the Iowa National Guard.  Col. Russ Perry from Urbandale is in charge of all National Guard helicopter operations in Iowa and helped land the Black Hawk at the end of the parade route.  I ran over to thank Col. Perry for his service and also say hi to two of his boys, Tyler (left) and Travis (right).

 

One of the highlights of the parade is that the route is lined with friends and neighbors.  It was great to see Chad and Amy Smit with their children Noah and Avery as we made our way down the street.

 

God Bless America!

Final Results in on Legislative Session Finances

The Biggest Budget in State History
New Debt of $1.7 Billion
Budget Gap of nearly $1 Billion for FY 2011

The numbers are starting to settle out from the two marathon overnight closing legislative days when late night / early morning budget deals were crafted by the Majority Party Democrats and Governor Chet Culver.  Despite all of the rhetoric about being fiscally responsible and cutting budgets, the Democrats approved (and the Governor will soon sign) the two largest budgets in the state’s history.

According to the Legislative Services Agency (LSA), the FY 2009 budget (general fund plus federal stimulus funds for general fund operations) is $6.110 billion.  The FY 2010 budget (general fund plus federal stimulus funds for general fund operations) is $6.297 billion.  These are the only two budgets to top FY 2008, which spent $5.898 billion in the general fund.

In addition, the Democrats approved the Governor’s I-Jobs Program, which spends $830 million on a plethora of infrastructure, roads and technology projects.  This number includes $765 million in bonds, which will cost $1.664 billion when fully repaid in FY 2034.  Here is the breakdown, by bill number:

 

• SF 474 (Regents, $100 million for University of Iowa, $15 million for Iowa State University) - Principle of $115 million -- Interest & Costs are $137.5 million -- Total is $252.5 million

• SF 376 (I-Jobs plus disaster relief, storm sewer and wastewater treatment, broadband technology) - Principle of $545 million -- Interest & Costs are $653 million -- Total is $1.198 billion

• SF 477 (Vertical Infrastructure and Alternative Energy Revolving Loans)  - Principle of $105 million -- Interest & Costs are $108 million -- Total is $213 million

• Total – Principle: $765 million -- Interest & Costs:  $899 million – Total: $1.664 billion

Note: This does not include $131 million in prison infrastructure fund bonds for the maximum security prison in Ft. Madison that were approved during the 2008 session.

 

In addition, the Governor counts $65 million of cash from several other sources to reach the $830 million figure.  This includes $5.55 million federal stimulus for local roads (HF 820), $39.45 million from the RIIF (FY 10 and FY 11) for local roads (HF 822), $10 million multi-modal transportation (in FY 2010 from RIIF in HF 822), and $10 million unused RISE DOT money.

 

Also, the Democrats used $56 million from the EEF for flood recovery and $145 million from the Cash Reserve Fund to balance the budget.  That leaves $441 million in the cash reserves ($342 million in the CRF, $99 million in the EEF), which is $145 million short of the 10 percent goal.

 

Finally, according to LSA, the FY 2011 budget has a gaping hole due to the use of one-time money in FY 2010.  It appears that at this point the spending gap is over $950 million.  And that is only if the revenue meets the REC estimates.

Governor Releases Information on H1N1 Influenza

DES MOINES - Governor Chet Culver and the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported two probable cases of H1N1 influenza in the state. The initial testing, performed by the University of Iowa Hygienic Laboratory, is expected to be confirmed tomorrow by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The first case, an adult California resident, came to Iowa late last week. The individual traveled through Scott and Clinton counties. The second case, a southeast Iowa adult female, became ill last week after returning from Mexico. She traveled through Johnson, Des Moines and Muscatine counties.

"I have instructed Director Tom Newton to take the necessary steps to declare a public health disaster in Iowa if these cases are in fact confirmed," said Governor Culver. "I want to be clear: this is a reasonable, precautionary measure with one goal in mind -keeping Iowans safe."

A public health disaster declaration gives the state additional flexibility that may be needed to carry out the work of protecting the health of Iowans by allowing for several provisions, including:

·        The purchase, storage and distribution of additional antivirals and other medical supplies.

·        The deployment of public health response teams to supplement and support overburdened local medical and public health personnel, hospitals and resources.

·        The adoption of reasonable measures, as necessary, to prevent the transmission of infectious disease and to ensure that all identified cases are properly controlled and treated.

·        Possible isolation of individuals or groups of individuals if necessary.

In addition to preparing a public health disaster declaration, Governor Culver and the Iowa Department of Public Health have taken a number of actions in response to these latest developments:

·        The department's emergency coordination center in the Lucas Building has been activated.  If necessary, Governor Culver has given clearance to activating the State Emergency Operations Center.

·        IDPH is sharing information regularly with local public health officials, health care providers, other state agencies, and private partners.

·        IDPH has received a shipment of federal assets, which included anti-viral medications and personal protective equipment.

"The Iowa Department of Public Health has been working round the clock since last Friday, when the potential for the spread of influenza began to become apparent," said Tom Newton, director of the Iowa Department of Public Health. "Now that we have two probable cases of swine flu in Iowa, it's especially important to remind Iowans of those prevention messages to help contain the spread of the illness."

"It's important to note that both of these cases had recently visited areas where outbreaks of swine flu are occurring," said IDPH Medical Director, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk. "However, now that the virus has been introduced in the state, it's even more important for Iowans to help prevent the spread of the disease." There are important actions Iowans can take to protect the health of themselves and their family:

·        Wash your hands frequently, and always wash your hands after coughing or sneezing.

·        Cough or sneeze into a tissue, or your sleeve or elbow.

·        If you feel ill, even if you think you could 'tough it out' at work, stay home! Don't send your children to school if they feel ill.

·        If you have an illness in which your temperature rises above 100 F, along with other symptoms, including a cough, sore throat, and extreme tiredness, contact your health care provider to be seen and tested in a way that will not endanger the health of others.

An influenza hotline - 1-800-447-1985 - has been established to answer public questions about the disease. A separate hotline for health care providers is available at 1-866-282-5815. More information on swine influenza is also available at www.governor.iowa.gov <http://www.governor.iowa.gov/>  and www.idph.state.ia.us <http://www.idph.state.ia.us/> .