Saturday, April 28, 2007
Statement From Governor Culver On The Legislative Session Wrap-up
(Des Moines) Below is a statement from Governor Chet Culver commending the Iowa Legislature for their hard work during this historic legislative session:
STATEMENT FROM GOVERNOR CHET CULVER:
This has been a historic legislative session we can all be proud of. We have taken significant steps to improve our quality of life, invest in education at every level, strengthen our economy, create new jobs, and put our fiscal house in order. The Lt. Governor and I commend the legislators and their leaders, both Democrat and Republican, for their many accomplishments.
In January, upon taking office, the Culver-Judge Administration made a number of promises to the people of Iowa. We laid out a detailed plan to lead Iowa forward and committed to create One Iowa in an effort to tap our state’s unlimited potential.
We promised to increase the minimum wage for 250,000 hardworking Iowans, expand health care to Iowa children and families, provide income tax relief for those who need it most, and to lift the ban on stem cell research in an effort to find cures for debilitating diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
We also promised to increase civil rights protections, expand early childhood education statewide, and make our schools safer.
We said we would keep our promise to Iowa's teachers by providing the biggest increase in teacher pay in our state’s history. This would give them the pay increase they deserve and raise Iowa teacher pay to 25th in the nation.
And finally, we said we would keep Iowa a world leader in this new energy economy with the creation of a new, $100 million Iowa Power Fund. This will grow our bioeconomy, create new jobs, and help make Iowa the renewable energy capital of the world.
Well, I’m happy to report that the promises that were made in January were promises kept.
But, perhaps most importantly, during my budget address I made it very clear I wanted to work with the Legislature to pass a budget that was fiscally sound and without gimmicks. My goal is to become the best managed state in the nation.
This final budget is balanced and fiscally sound. The state’s finances are in their best shape in nearly a decade. There is now almost $600 million in our reserves – more funding in our reserves than at anytime in the history of our state.
Again, I'd like to thank the Legislature and their leadership for their long hours and willingness to work together to keep the promises we made to the people of Iowa."