As you may already be aware of, House Republicans have begun the process of marking up/considering/debating
HSB 1 - the "Taxpayers First Act". This bill includes a number of elements related to taxation and appropriations, but the piece of most interest to Iowa's Water & Land Legacy is a section related to DNR land acquisition.
Sec. 21. DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES —— REAL PROPERTY ACQUISITION CURTAILED.
1. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, for the period beginning on the effective date of this section through the close of the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2011, the department of natural resources shall not enter into a new arrangement to acquire or otherwise control real property.
2. For the purposes of this section, “new arrangement” means an obligation entered into on or after the effective date of this section. An obligation includes but is not limited to an agreement, contract, lease-purchase arrangement, or any other instrument leading to state ownership or control of real property that was not previously owned or controlled by the state. “New arrangement” does not include a real property acquisition or control project for which an appropriation to 6 the department was encumbered prior to the effective date of this section. 3. This section, being deemed of immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment.
We are encouraging our members to contact legislators on the House Appropriations committee to express their support for REAP and other DNR public lands programs. There are a number of technical issues with the language in the bill, but we want our members to focus on:
- How natural resource programs in Iowa generate over $2 billion in economic activity in the state on a yearly basis.
- How hunting, fishing, wildlife watching and other forms of outdoor recreation (supported by public lands) support over 27,000 jobs in Iowa
- How 63% of Iowans voted in November to support a long-term commitment to Iowa's outdoors - in particular because of benefits to water quality, our farm economy, and economic development
We want contacts to come from CONSTITUENTS and not just our "paid advocates/staff". So, please distribute this information to your regional directors and affiliates and encourage them to contact their
legislators. Contact information for each member is below.