Sine Die

The 83^rd General Assembly adjourned in the daylight on Tuesday, March 30. After spending all day on Saturday, March 27, in caucus, the legislature came back to work on Monday and Tuesday and finished up. The Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund (RIIF) bill and the Standing Appropriations bill contain the final agreements that were necessary for adjournment.

Standings: HF 2531, the Standings bill, delays the decision on MH/DD allowed growth for FY 2012 until January when the next session convenes. Since the pre-designated amount for the past two years has not been appropriated, this change shouldn’t have much impact on counties for budgeting purposes.

Property Tax Credits were funded at the same level as 2010 after the 10% across-the-board cut by the Governor. The total is $97.2 million, with the breakdown as follows:  Homestead, $87.7 million; Family Farm and Ag Land, $32.3 million; Elderly and Disabled, $23.4 million; and Military, $2.4 million. 

RIIF bill: SF 2389 appropriates:

·  $30 million from the newly established Revenue Bonds Capitals II Fund to the I-Jobs Board for competitive grants for cities and counties that apply to the new smart planning principals and local comprehensive planning and development guidelines.

· $30.9 million from the RBC II Fund to the I-Jobs Board for targeted disaster relief and rebuilding, flood mitigation, and construction projects.  Of this amount, $4.4 million is allocated to Linn County for FY 2011 for renovation and expansion of the administrative office building.  This is a deferred disaster relief project.

The road funding that was appropriated in last year’s infrastructure and bonding bills remains available.  Last year’s infrastructure bill (HF 822) appropriated $14.7 million for FY 2010 and $24.7 million for FY 2011 to cities and counties for rebuilding or repairing local roads.  Last year’s bonding bill (HF 820) appropriated $5.5 million from the Federal Recovery and Reinvestment Fund for FY 2010 for rebuilding and repairing roads.  Funding from both bills is to be allocated 50% to the city street fund and 50% to the secondary road fund, and expended within two years.  Total revenue deposited in the secondary road fund in FY 2010 and FY 2011 from HF 820 and HF 822 is $22.5 million.

Division VII of the bill includes smart planning provisions:

· Establishes 10 smart planning principles that State, local, and other public entities are required to consider and may apply the principles during all appropriate planning and zoning decisions.

·  Specifies that no principles are to be construed to expand eminent domain authority beyond that which is authorized under current law. 

·  Creates a task force consisting of 29 voting members, which include the ISAC Executive Director and three county officials appointed by the Governor, which will report to the General Assembly by November 15, 2010.