John Forbes: Deep Into Committee Work

We are now well into the legislative session, and deep into committee work.

So I thought I would take a few moments to share with you a few observations about committee work, and what I have been working on.

I serve on four committees: Commerce, Transportation, Ways and Means and Local Government.  I also serve on the Health and Human Services Budget Subcommittee.   The Commerce Committee has to do with business-related legislation.  Ways and Means handles all tax issues.  The Transportation Committee handles all legislation related to our roads, bridges, airports, rail, and public transportation, and the Local Government Committee considers laws affecting cities, counties and special districts.

The Health and Human Services Appropriations Budget Subcommittee handles spending legislation for health care and human service agencies.

Bills are assigned to the committees by the House leadership.  All of my committees have been meeting at least twice a week.

My colleagues and I have been doing a lot of listening these first three weeks. State department heads and a few elected officials have been appearing before us, introducing us to their agencies and their funding needs going forward, with the goal of providing services to Iowans in the most efficient way. 

This information will be used to make intelligent budget decisions.  For example, we learned this week in the Health and Human Services Budget Subcommittee meeting that an expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act will save Iowa an estimated $30 million dollars in the first year. 

I’ve heard from many folks regarding the expansion of Medicaid, which is the state-federal health care initiative that helps seniors stay in their homes longer or live in a nursing home, provides care for Iowans with disabilities, makes sure children have access to health care, and provides assistance to hardworking families who don’t have private health insurance.

A variety of groups like the American Cancer Society, Iowa hospitals, and Iowa Catholic Conference gathered at the Capitol this week to encourage lawmakers and the Governor to support an expansion of Medicaid.  They talked about the hidden tax paid by Iowans with health insurance because hospitals spend about $600 million every year on “charity care” for those who don’t have insurance at all and end up in the emergency room or hospital because they couldn’t get treatment soon enough. 

My general observation about committee work at this stage is that there is lot of information to absorb, but we are working to do what’s best for our State.  It is a big responsibility and as always I appreciate your input.