I appreciate the comments everyone has made so far and while some of the points made in Larry's message have been addressed, others have not. Why bring up economics ? The budget cuts the state has endured has hit environmental programs disproportionatly is the answer. A bit one sided ? Yes, it was a memo from a Democrat. I often post press releases and that was the thought behind this posting. I think the information given was very straight forward and the tone of the Democrats regarding working with the Republicans was very positive. So, I decided to post it because of the information and the tone of the memo. I have seen memos from the Democrats that were very combative and confrontational and I will not post those. There are many viewpoints to the issues that face our society and specifically the environment. I have one view point and there are others on this list serve that don't share that viewpoint. I hope posting what I considered a news release from the Democrats is just one of many viewpoints we can read about on this list serve. "Lubinus, Larry" wrote: > Debbie, > > I am a relatively new member of the Sierra Club and have enjoyed reading the > newsletter and articles involving environmental issues and protecting our > natural resources. I appreciate you and your team's efforts in gathering > this information and getting these articles to us via email. > > This article is a bit of surprise. There is little if any information on > Sierra type issues and it seems a bit one sided. Will you be presenting the > Republican viewpoint in a subsequent article? You see I am probably a rare > breed for you as I am a strong Republican that is a strong believer in > protecting our environment as a member of the Sierra club. Many of the > points outlined in this political agenda are helpful to our state, but there > is an opposite side to any coin. I was just curious to see if we are going > to present that other side of coin viewpoint. > > Thank you for your time, > Larry Lubinus > > -----Original Message----- > From: Debbie Neustadt [mailto:[log in to unmask]] > Sent: Monday, January 06, 2003 6:43 AM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: The Democrats Economice Agenda in the Iowa Legislature > > Legis.News -- Inside the Iowa Legislature, January 3, 2003 > By House Democratic Leader Dick Myers > > MORE TOUGH DECISIONS AWAIT 2003 SESSION > > The 2003 legislative session will kickoff on Monday, January 13. Once > again, due to the > sluggish economy, the state budget will be extremely tight. Budget > issues will no doubt > command most of the headlines from now until adjournment in April. > > This will make the third consecutive year of very tough budgeting. In > the past two years, > we have slashed state spending significantly. Today, state government in > Iowa is spending > LESS than it did four years ago. > > At the same time, thanks to Governor Vilsack's leadership, we have been > able to improve > public schools by reducing class sizes and improving teacher pay. It is > a matter of > establishing priorities and sticking by them. > > In difficult budget times, it is crucial to maintain focus on > priorities. In 2003, House > Democrats will continue to concentrate on three major areas: > > Managing and balancing the state budget. > Improving the economic security of Iowans today. > Modernizing Iowa and providing economic growth for our children's > future. > > We cannot let ourselves be sidetracked from these goals. Any diversion > from these > priorities would be a waste of our time and taxpayers' money. > > I am pleased to hear the public declarations of cooperation coming from > the Governor and > Republican leaders. We serve the public well when we work collectively, > and this year will > require our best efforts. > > ************************************************************* > THE DEMOCRATIC AGENDA FOR 2003 > > Democrats will introduce specific legislation this year to further our > plan to protect > Iowans' economic security and foster modernization and growth for the > future. > > Our Democratic agenda includes: > > * Making income tax rates more competitive and simplifying tax forms. > * Taking commercial advantage of university research. > * Lowering prescription drug costs for seniors. > * Incorporating character education into all public school curricula. > * Continuing class-size reductions in elementary grades. > * Proving insurance parity for mentally illness. > * Raising the state's minimum wage. > * Protecting the privacy of Iowans' medical and financial records. > > Democrats intend to work from day one to develop and enact this agenda. > We look forward to > working with Governor Vilsack and majority Republicans to that end. > > ************************************************************* > CONTACT INFORMATION > > For more information and news from the Iowa House of Representatives, > visit our website at > <www.iowahouse.org> or call (515) 281-3521. > > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: > [log in to unmask] > > This communication is for use by the intended recipient and contains > information that may be privileged, confidential or copyrighted under > applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby > formally notified that any use, copying or distribution of this e-mail, > in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited. Please notify the sender > by return e-mail and delete this e-mail from your system. Unless > explicitly and conspicuously designated as "E-Contract Intended", > this e-mail does not constitute a contract offer, a contract amendment, > or an acceptance of a contract offer. This e-mail does not constitute > a consent to the use of sender's contact information for direct marketing > purposes or for transfers of data to third parties. > > Francais Deutsch Italiano Espanol Portugues Japanese Chinese Korean > > http://www.DuPont.com/corp/email_disclaimer.html > > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: > [log in to unmask] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: [log in to unmask]