Senate Journal: Page 39: Tuesday, January 14, 2003
Lieutenant Governor Sally J. Pederson was escorted into the
House chamber.
Mrs. Christie Vilsack, wife of the Governor, was escorted into the
House chamber.
The committee waited upon Governor Thomas J. Vilsack and
escorted him to the Speaker’s station.
President Kramer presented Governor Thomas J. Vilsack, who
delivered the following Condition of the State Address:
Thank you, Madam President. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, members of the General
Assembly and our Supreme Court, distinguished guests, and my fellow Iowans.
We are blessed, in troubled times and in a troubled world, to live in a special place.
A special place of shared values—a place where we celebrate family and community,
where we cherish learning and good health, value hard work and self-reliance, and love
our land, our air and our water. To remain that special place, we must nurture hope
and opportunity. For if we remain content with the Iowa of today, we will surely
compromise the Iowa of tomorrow.
With our strong values, no Iowan should be satisfied if bright Iowans leave
believing there is no meaningful opportunity here, if Iowans can’t find or afford
healthcare services, or if Iowans are prevented from enjoying the outdoors because our
rivers and streams are polluted. Sadly, this is happening in our state today.
But my fellow Iowans, we should and we must do better. Iowans must respond to
the challenge by embracing and directing change. I am confident we are up to the
challenge, but state government should not approach this challenge alone.
The primary responsibility for effecting change will rightfully be with the private
and nonprofit sectors. State government’s role is to act as a catalyst for change and
remove barriers to progress. To fulfill that responsibility, we must act now and we
must act boldly.
The state budget complicates our task. The work begun two years ago to align
revenues with expenditures must continue. Our law requires a balanced budget and
we will have a balanced budget. But while complicated, the task is not impossible.
I want to acknowledge the hard work of the previous legislature. Tough unpopular
choices had to be made, but those choices create options today that most states do not
enjoy. Few states enjoyed surpluses last year or will this year. Fewer still were able to
reduce the size of government while increasing the commitment to K-12, expanding
access to healthcare for children and seniors, and starting a new venture capital fund.
These achievements, and many others, share more than being accomplished during
tough times; they also share, more importantly, having been accomplished in a
bipartisan effort.
© 2003 Cornell College and
League of Women Voters of Iowa
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Last update: Wed Sep 10 11:05:01 CDT 2003
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