Governor Chet Culver received a standing ovation at the Iowa State Building & Construction Trades Council convention and shook the hand of almost everyone in the room after signing an executive order that presumes state agencies will use project labor agreements (PLAs) whenever possible.
"It adds stability and structure to a job site that could be chaotic," said Bill Gerhard, president of the Iowa State Building & Construction Trades Council.
"There's a thousand people working big jobs, 17 different unions, all have different work rules, all have contracts that expire at different times," Gerhard said. "It sort of ensures that there's going to be some stability that people, if they go on strike on their contract, they'll keep working on the project. ... The state should have this tool in their toolbox to use."
PLAs spell out project wages and working conditions in advance and require all contractors and subcontractors to sign on. Such agreements can favor labor unions because they are often involved in negotiating the conditions.
The move drew immediate criticism from Republicans and nonunion construction companies.
"The only thing a PLA is going to do is cost taxpayers more money," said Dave Petersen, board vice chair for the Associated Builders & Contractors of Iowa, pointing to a study showing that the project labor agreement used with the Iowa Events Center didn't save the taxpayers any money.
Executive Order 22 requires all state departments and agencies to consider using project labor agreements on large-scale construction projects. Culver described it as a "bold step in support of good wages" that will change the way state government looks at construction projects, and will presume that the state uses project labor agreements whenever possible.
"We're going as far as we can in terms of my executive authority," Culver said. "This has not been done before. This is a big step. We're sending a clear message about how much we value these hardworking families, and I'm using the power of the executive branch to go as far as I possibly can on this."
Petersen asserted that the only reason Culver signed the executive order is to avoid legislative action because he hasn't helped the labor unions that helped get him elected. Attempts at passing four bills that are priorities for labor unions -- choice of doctor, prevailing wage, fair share, and an expansion of collective bargaining -- have been unsuccessful.
Republican Party of Iowa Chair Matt Strawn also called the signing of the executive order an "election-year photo op" that attempts "to pacify the big-labor bosses that fund his campaign."
Strawn said the action would not create jobs.
"PLAs do not bring a project in on-time or on-budget," Strawn said. "Just look at the Iowa Events Center as an example. The reality is that PLAs discourage competition from nonunion contractors, thereby driving up costs for taxpayers. Open competition is fair to both union and nonunion workers, providing taxpayers with safe, on-time, and low-cost construction."
University Tuition to Increase 6 Percent; Student Surcharge to Be Rescinded
Tuition will increase by 6 percent at Iowa's three state universities next school year, but students will likely get back the $100 special surcharge they paid this semester.
The Iowa Board of Regents voted 7-2 Thursday to approve a base annual tuition increase of 6 percent in 2010-11 for resident undergraduate and graduate students at Iowa State University, the University of Iowa, and the University of Northern Iowa.
Regents Michael Gartner and Ruth Harkin voted against the increase. Gartner said Iowa is about to deprive some men and women the opportunity to get a higher education. Those who attend will be burdened with debt, he said.
"The cost of education -- room, board, and tuition at the University of Iowa -- is within $200 of $20,000 a year," Gartner said. "That's an enormous amount of money. We're talking about a burden of $20,000 to go to the University of Iowa."
The total cost of tuition and mandatory fees will increase anywhere from 3 percent to 12.2 percent depending on whether a student is a resident or nonresident, graduate or undergraduate, and which school they're in.
Regents President David Miles was among the seven voting for the tuition increase. He pointed out that the state's public universities will begin Fiscal Year 2011 with $132 million less in state appropriations than in Fiscal Year 2009, even if the governor's recommendation for a supplemental is approved.
"That's very real," Miles said. "I believe we're holding the line as much as we possibly can at 6 percent. I don't think it's anything we want to do. I am very concerned that if we do not do what I believe is the minimum of 6 percent, we will harm the institutions."
Just minutes after the vote to increase tuition, the regents then voted unanimously to rescind the $100 surcharge that students paid this semester, if Culver's proposed $30.4-million supplemental for the universities this fiscal year is approved by the legislature.
The proposal was offered by Miles, who noted that the surcharge was approved reluctantly to generate $5.9 million of the $60 million lost to Iowa's public universities with the 10-percent across-the-board reduction in October.
Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal (D-Council Bluffs) said the legislature will likely approve the supplemental funding for the Board of Regents that will allow it to rescind the student surcharge. He said money would come from the state's ending balance this year.
But House Minority Leader Kraig Paulsen (R-Hiawatha) said he didn't think Republicans would support the supplemental spending for the Board of Regents. "It's simply more spending," he said.
Thursday's actions came as university students held a student government "Day on the Hill" at the Capitol.
Reorganization Bill Moves to House Floor
The House State Government Committee on Thursday night approved the government-reorganization bill on a 20-1 vote after making a number of amendments; the bill was then approved by the House Appropriations Committee on a 25-0 vote.
The lone "no" vote came from Representative Christopher Rants (R-Sioux City), who said the amendments the committee made -- estimated to save roughly $4 million more than the Senate version for a total of $75.5 million -- were not enough.
"We're not even halfway there," Rants said. "While I appreciate this is progress, the gap didn't get any smaller. I'm going to vote against the bill. I may be the only one who votes against the bill, but the gap is too big. When the committee turns down the savings that I think are frankly tough to explain to our constituents, like continuing to provide services to adult illegal aliens in the state, I don't know how we can consider our work done."
Earlier in the week Representative Mary Mascher (D-Iowa City) said it was working to cast a wide net on reorganization ideas.
"To be honest with you, some of these are really delicate negotiations," said Mascher, chair of the State Government committee. "And obviously, we are trying to work with all the partners to get there before we roll it out and get opposition. One of the things we find is the more we include people, the more buy-in we get."
A public hearing on state-government reorganization will be held at 10 a.m. Monday in the old Supreme Court chamber of the Capitol, and the bill will likely be debated by the full House on Wednesday or Thursday.
House Minority Leader Kraig Paulsen (R-Hiawatha) said the bill doesn't go far enough to save money. He also questioned why the public hearing was scheduled at a time not convenient for people to attend, and in the Supreme Court chamber instead of the larger House chamber.
The House State Government Committee approved more than a dozen amendments on the bill, but rejected Republicans' proposals for an additional $290 million in savings.
"It seems fairly apparent that the bill is headed toward a conference committee," Paulsen said. "My concern is obviously that the whole plan is to get into conference committee and then hammer out a plan behind closed doors -- much like was done with the budget last year -- and that Republicans just end up being window dressing."
Culver to Sign Early-Retirement Bill
Culver next week will sign into law an early-retirement package for state workers, which he calls a "vital step to reforming state government, finding cost-savings, and moving Iowa forward."
Culver's announcement came quickly after the Iowa Senate gave final legislative approval Thursday to the bill aimed at saving the state $60 million. Senators approved Senate File 2062 on a 41-6 vote.
Gronstal said that once the bill is signed into law, the legislature will then look at expanding early retirement to employees in the legislative branch.
The bill aims at enticing an estimated 2,261 eligible state employees to take early retirement. Participating employees that have worked for the state for at least 10 years would receive $1,000 for each year of employment up to 25 years. They would also receive unused vacation funds and monthly health-care-premium costs over a five-year period beginning this September.
Senator Staci Appel (D-Ackworth) told senators Thursday that the House only made one small change to the bill: The exit date for employees taking early retirement would be June 24, rather than May 28, to give state agencies a little more time to plan for the workers' departure.
Braley Finishes 2009 with Biggest Bankroll
U.S. Representative Bruce Braley (D-Waterloo) finished 2009 with the biggest bankroll of anyone in Iowa's House delegation, with $538,008 cash on hand.
The second biggest bankroll belonged to U.S. Representative Tom Latham (R-Ames), who ended the year with $477,265 in cash after raising $97,625 in the fourth quarter.
Braley also raised the most of any incumbent, with his $172,670 in contributions just outpacing U.S. Representative Leonard Boswell's $169,377.
But the biggest fundraiser for the quarter wasn't an incumbent: Republican Jim Gibbons of Des Moines, one of seven GOP candidates vying for the right to challenge Boswell, raised $207,310 from October 1 through December 31. Gibbons is a former Iowa State University wrestling coach.
But despite Gibbons' successful fourth-quarter fundraising, Boswell had more than twice the amount of cash on hand left at the end of the reporting period -- $462,193 compared with $205,069. No one else in the GOP primary reported more than $55,000 in cash on hand.
Boswell is serving his seventh term in the U.S. House and has often been targeted by Republicans; he's thought to be vulnerable and mentioned as someone who might retire. However, Boswell told IowaPolitics.com that he is definitely seeking re-election this year.
Meanwhile in the Second District, U.S. Representative Dave Loebsack (D-Mount Vernon) raised $94,479 and reported $336,311 in cash.
In that district's Republican primary, Steve Rathje of Cedar Rapids raised nearly three times as much as Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Ottumwa.
Rathje raised $59,130 in the fourth quarter compared to Miller-Meeks' $20,660. Rathje also had more than twice the amount of money left at the end of the fundraising period: $46,242 compared with $20,621. Miller-Meeks was the Second District's Republican nominee in 2008.
This weekly summary comes from IowaPolitics.com, an online government and politics news service. Reporter Andrew Duffelmeyer and other correspondents contributed to this report.
