Workforce development must be an Iowa priority, according to the Iowa Business Council’s 2016 report. To fill an expected 612,000 job openings by 2025, we need to attract and retain more workers.
That’s a challenge for Iowa, which has a relatively low unemployment rate of 3.7 percent and the slowest population growth in the country. The Business Council’s report indicates that Iowa is the only state whose total population did not grow at least 50 percent between 1900 and 2010. Our growth rate during that time was 36.5 percent. From 2010 to 2015, America’s population grew by 4 percent, while Iowa’s increased by only 2.5 percent.
Senate File 2280 is designed to spur Iowa's economy by attracting more visitors and tourism, as well as more families to live, work and make their home here. It would provide resources to programs that enhance Iowa's economic development, create recreational and cultural opportunities, and invest in natural resources.
The bill creates an Enhance Iowa Board, an Enhance Iowa Fund, a Sports Tourism program and fund, and provides additional resources to existing recreational, cultural and natural resources programs. Each fiscal year that the state has a surplus of more than $100 million, $25 million will go to these “Enhance Iowa” efforts. The money will be used for state and county parks, watershed protection, recreational trails, community attractions and tourism projects, and sporting events that attract visitors to the area.
SF 2280 has been approved by the Appropriations Committee and is ready for debate in the full Senate.
Preventing drug overdose deaths
Prescription overdoses kill more Americans each year than all other drugs combined. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 44 people die from a prescription painkiller overdose every day.
Though Iowa ranks 45th in the nation for overdose fatalities, the number of Iowa drug deaths--a majority of which are related to prescription medications--has more than quadrupled in recent years, increasing from 12 in 2005 to 52 in 2014. Between 2009 and 2014, 646 Iowans lost their lives to opioids.
SF 2218, which has passed the House and Senate, would provide better access to a life-saving emergency drug that counteracts the effects of an opioid overdose. First responders, emergency medical service providers, police, firefighters and licensed health care professionals could maintain a supply of the opioid antagonist and administer it in cases of an overdose. A "person in a position to assist," including a family member, friend, caregiver, substance abuse facility employee and others, could also administer the emergency drug.
The Iowa Department of Public Health will establish standards and procedures for prescribing, distributing, storing and maintaining a supply of the antagonist, as well as for the training and authorizing people to administer it.
First responders, EMS providers, law enforcement, fire departments and prescribers will be immune from legal liability for administering the antagonist as long as they act in good faith. The opioid antagonist will not harm a person if it turns out they were not overdosing.
SF 2218 has been sent to the Governor for his signature.
Preserving resources is an investment in our future
We’re always looking for ways to make Iowa a better place to live, work and raise a family. Our natural and cultural resources are an important part of that effort. The foundation of Iowa’s economy and way of life is rooted in our rich soils, plentiful water and natural areas, which have given us a strong agriculture or manufacturing economy, and spur recreation and tourism.
To ensure wise use of these resources, the Legislature created the Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) program in 1989 to improve land and wildlife habitat, maintain parks, enhance soil and water quality, and preserve Iowa’s history and culture for future generations. Since its inception, REAP has supported thousands of projects in Iowa’s 99 counties. The state has invested more than $300 million, which has leveraged two to three times as much in private, local and federal money to improve our state.
REAP funding goes toward projects in these seven categories: State Open Spaces, City Parks & Opens Spaces, Soil & Water Conservation, County Conservation, Land Management, Historic Resources and Roadside Vegetation. REAP money is divvied up according to a formula that has the approval of a wide range of interest groups.
For more than 25 years, REAP has been a successful, nationally recognized program. As we finalize the state budget, funding for REAP and similar efforts will continue doing good things for Iowa’s economy and quality of life.