The stalemate at the Iowa Statehouse took on a new tone Tuesday, as Senate Democrats began taking their show on the road with a statewide tour to get the public involved.

"It's time for Iowans to get involved," said state Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal (D-Council Bluffs). "We have people in this building that will not listen. The only way you're going to break this impasse isn't amongst the players up here. We're in the 130th day, almost, of the session. It's not going to be broken inside this building. It's going to be broken by Iowans stepping up to the plate and calling the governor and telling him [that] zero [funding growth] for local schools is unacceptable."

Governor Terry Branstad on Tuesday announced his own tour of the state. He and Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds will next week hold a series of town-hall meetings in New Hampton, Cresco, Waukon, Elkader, Oelwein, and Independence.

The Iowa House on Tuesday night voted 58-40 along party lines for a sweeping property-tax-relief plan that could cost as much as $1 billion, despite repeated warnings from Democrats that the bill would give tax breaks to businesses while increasing taxes for Iowa homeowners and farmers.

"Do you really believe we should raise taxes on our parents, our children, our farmers in order to give a 40-percent tax cut to Wal-Mart?" asked state Representative Jerry Kearns, D-Keokuk, who also is a staff representative for the United Steelworkers Union. "I don't believe so."

Senate File 522, as approved by the House, includes a rollback on commercial and industrial property taxes from 100 percent to 60 percent of valuation over five years. To make up the lost revenue, the state eventually would provide $250 million a year to local governments. The bill limits residential and agricultural property-tax increases to 2 percent, rather than the current 4 percent. It also increases state aid to schools at a cost of up to $555 million by Fiscal Year 2019.

In two distinct moves toward adjournment of the Iowa legislature despite a lack of agreement, Statehouse Republicans on Tuesday decided upon the size of the budget pie while the Democratic-led Senate pushed ahead with what's usually the final bill of the year before adjourning for the week.

"This starts our movement to hopefully adjourn the session," said Senate Appropriations Chair Bob Dvorsky (D-Coralville). "We don't have any more bills to do anything with."

Iowa's state general-fund budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 will be less than $6 billion, according to an agreement reached Tuesday by Republicans in the Iowa House and Senate and Governor Terry Branstad.

The move represents one step toward agreement and eventual adjournment of the 2011 legislative session. However, no Democrats were at the table in determining the size of the budget pie, and they control the Iowa Senate.

It was the first bill called up in the morning on the first day lawmakers were eligible to vote on a new map of congressional and legislative districts.

After it was taken up, the Iowa House took only a few minutes to approve the map on a 91-7 vote.

The Senate quickly followed suit, swiftly approving House File 682 on a 48-1 vote and sending it to Governor Terry Branstad.

The new map will have sweeping implications on Iowa's political landscape for the next decade. Some incumbents will be pitted against one another, others will move, some will hang it up, and newcomers will see an opportunity to run for political office.