May 19, 2000

The Honorable Chester Culver
Secretary of State
State Capitol
L O C A L

Dear Mr. Secretary:

I hereby transmit House File 2545, an act relating to and making appropriations to certain state departments, agencies, funds, and certain other entities, providing for regulatory authority, and other properly related matters.

Iowans expect and deserve government that is accountable. The administration and regulation appropriations bill provides funding for the agencies and offices that keep the rest of government running as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

The state departments included in this bill include the Department of Management, the Department of Personnel, the Department of General Services, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Inspections and Appeals including the State Foster Care Review Board and the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission and the Department of Revenue and Finance. State offices included in this bill include the Office of the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor, the Auditor of State, the Secretary of State, the Treasurer of State, and the Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board.

There are many services that aid government efficiency and provide important services to Iowans in this bill. Among these are inspections for nursing homes ensure that residents receive good care, and inspections for grocery stores and restaurants give us confidence that Iowans can enjoy a safe food supply. The Secretary of State's Iowa Student Political Awareness Club serves a vital purpose because it educates young people about democracy and the political process, and I sincerely hope we can build on this in the future. The Secretary of State's money back guarantee for corporate filings demonstrates our confidence that we provide Iowa's businesses with a high quality of services.

My recommended budget centered on making sound investments to promote an accountable government. I am therefore disappointed that the Legislature failed to fund the Medicaid fraud investigator in my recommended budget, since this would have saved the State of Iowa several hundred thousand dollars through recoveries and prevented Medicaid fraud at a cost to the State of only $16,033.

House File 2545 is, therefore, approved on this date with the following exceptions, which I hereby disapprove.

I am unable to approve Section 9, subsection 6, unnumbered paragraph 2 in its entirety. This is language that prohibits certain state agencies from spending appropriated funds to construct or repair employee smoking shelters. The Department of General Services began this pilot project in an attempt to solve some of the problems associated with employees and visitors who are required to go outside in order to smoke. These shelters ensure that building entrances are cleaner, are less cluttered and remain free of second hand smoke. The Department reports that employee acceptance of the shelters is encouraging.

I am unable to approve Section 11 in its entirety. This language calls for the Governor to identify and recommend at least $10 million in General Fund savings each year for four years beginning in FY 2001 and ending in FY 2004. During the 2000 legislative session, I recommended, and the legislature approved, a fiscal year 2000 General Fund budget savings proposal totaling $19 million. For FY 2001, I recommended nearly $27 million in budget reductions in addition to $20 million in budget reallocations. I support the Legislature's intent in this language of generating at least $10 million in General Fund savings annually for four years. However, we disagree on the statutory limits placed into this language.

I am unable to approve Section 27, unnumbered paragraph 5 in its entirety. This language prohibits the Department of Personnel from requesting a General Fund appropriation for FY 2002 to pay premiums for workers' compensation claims. While I applaud the Legislature's efforts to return some control over workers' compensation claims back to all state agencies, I believe this prohibition against the Department of Personnel unfairly handicaps the agency from reacting to potential unforeseen increases in workers' compensation claim costs. The Department will still provide a centralized workers' compensation management and oversight function. In this capacity, they are better suited to request and distribute additional workers' compensation funding, if needed, when compared to the alternative which would involve piecemeal appropriations on an agency by agency basis.

I am unable to approve Section 34 in its entirety. I am concerned that the language in Section 34 would create a different standard for the departments and agencies funded in this bill than others in state government. While I share the Legislature's concern with vacant unfunded positions in state government, I believe that we must develop an enterprise-wide approach to this issue.

I am unable to approve Section 38 in its entirety. The Health and Human Rights appropriation bill, Senate File 2545, which I signed into law on May 8, 2000 contained amendments to Chapter 232.190, which removed the reference to Chapter 8A among other operations. My approval of corresponding provisions in Senate File 2429 render this change proposed in Section 38 duplicative and therefore unnecessary.

For the above reasons, I hereby respectfully approve House File 2545 with the exceptions noted above.

Sincerely,

Thomas J. Vilsack
Governor

TJV:jmc

cc: Secretary of the Senate
   Chief Clerk of the House

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Last update: MON May 22 2000
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