GOP budget asks workers to share insurance cost
Comments (...)DES MOINES (AP) — Republican lawmakers unveiled a proposed budget Thursday that would force state workers to pay $200 a month toward their health care coverage, drawing immediate pushback from unions that would have to agree to the change.
The plan calls for spending almost $6.1 billion for the fiscal year beginning July 1, up from the current year’s budget of just less than $6 billion. The budget calls for no tax increases and is about $182 million less than what Republican Gov. Terry Branstad proposed last month, but legislative GOP leaders and the governor seem confident they’ll be able to resolve their differences.
House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, R-Hiawatha, said the new health care cost seemed reasonable and was “still less than the national average, less than the state average.” About 80 percent of state employees currently don’t pay anything toward their health care insurance. The provision wasn’t in either Branstad’s plan or Democrats’ proposed budget, which was released last week.
Republicans noted that the change also applies to lawmakers.
“Asking all employees, including state legislators, to contribute at least $200 towards their own health care is the right thing to do,” Paulsen said.
But he conceded that the contract the state has with its unions would have to be modified, and that unions have been asked to be open to the change and re-open contract negotiations.
“I have no intention of reopening that contract,” said Danny Homan, president of Council 61 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the largest union representing state workers.
Homan said the contact is binding on both sides until the summer of 2013, and “that is not up for discussion.”
Senate Republican Leader Jerry Behn, R-Boone, said GOP lawmakers worked closely with Branstad in hammering out details of their budget plan and said he didn’t believe there were issues that couldn’t be resolved. Branstad spokesman Tim Albrecht wouldn’t comment on the health-care provision, but said the governor’s team was looking forward to reviewing the budget targets details in GOP lawmakers’ plan.
The proposed spending plan includes no tax increases, and Paulsen said Iowa needs to send a message to businesses that the state’s budget and business climate are stable.
“It’s also an important part of growing Iowa’s economy,” Paulsen said. “It’s important to send a signal to employers that we have our act together and they are not going to have to be concerned about a looming tax increase.”
However, the proposal does not include $25 million that Branstad wanted to add to the economic development budget to target “high-quality” jobs, such as information technology jobs.
Paulsen said there are signs that the state’s economy is beginning to recover, but that the recovery is fragile and growth in state tax collection is equally weak.
The proposed budget projects a $192 million surplus at the end of the year, and Paulsen said Republicans intend to save the money in a reserve fund in case of downed economic times in the future.
“We continue to have tough budget times, especially with not knowing what’s going to happen with the federal government,” said Paulsen.
The GOP budget calls for $20 million in budget cuts, but doesn’t specify where those cuts should be. Paulsen said those decision would be left to budget committees over the next few months.
He described the 1 percent increase in state spending as “modest and conservative” and said Republicans would spend only 97 percent of what the state collects in taxes.
The Republican budget plan is only the opening shot in what will be a months-long debate in a deeply divided Legislature. Democrats control the Senate by a 26-24 edge, while Republicans run the House by a 60-40 margin.
Senate Democrats last week unveiled a proposed state budget of $6.2, which they argue is $25 million less than the governor is proposing.
“Jobs and student achievement are the top Democratic priorities and I know many Republicans share those priorities,” said Sen. Bob Dvorsky, D-Coralville, who heads the Senate Appropriations Committee. “We will consider any idea, regardless of who suggests it, that will help the Iowa economy grow.”
The Democratic budget plan includes a commercial property tax cut aimed at small business, as well as boosting the earned income tax credit, a break that is aimed at low-income workers.
Both Republicans and Democrats have ruled out an election-year tax increase as they assemble their budgets.
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