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Locals Lobby in D.C.
Locals lobby in D.C.
Great River Region delegation talks with Grassley, Harkin.
Iowa's U.S. senators stress the importance of hearing from constituents, but effective communication is a two-way street.
The Great River Region delegation made the case for its top priorities to Sens. Charles Grassley and Tom Harkin on Monday during the first day of the group's annual lobbying trip to the nation's Capitol.
But the members also received some insight about the realities in Congress right now.
"I think we had a pretty productive day," said Jason Hutcheson of the Greater Burlington Partnership, a member of the regional delegation. "We had some good discussion, and we're pretty pleased with that."
The Great River Region delegation made the case for its top priorities to Sens. Charles Grassley and Tom Harkin on Monday during the first day of the group's annual lobbying trip to the nation's Capitol.
But the members also received some insight about the realities in Congress right now.
"I think we had a pretty productive day," said Jason Hutcheson of the Greater Burlington Partnership, a member of the regional delegation. "We had some good discussion, and we're pretty pleased with that."
He said a delegation of about a dozen spent about 45 minutes with Grassley, longer than the scheduled time, and a half-hour with Harkin.
"We didn't get through everything, even with that amount of time," Hutcheson said. "As we dived into detail, we didn't get through everything, but we spent quite a bit of time on transportation with them and reinforcing that we believe that the infrastructure is an essential government service.
"We talked a little bit about the need for a long-term transportation plan for the nation. Right now, they've just kind of been passing that in pieces and really haven't put together a long-term plan. Unfortunately, it sounds as though they don't have an intention of doing so until after the fall election."
The delegation also asked for some clarity regarding business regulations and health care reform. Grassley, though, said they'll have to wait, especially on the latter.
"Well, for sure, nothing is going to be done until the Supreme Court gets done," he said.
The Republican said justices could declare the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional in full, or in parts, or leave it intact. If the latter is the case, he said it then will depend on the outcome of the presidential election later this year.
Hutcheson said the group did make some impact - and has hope for action - on its concerns about waste, fraud and abuse of some governmental assistance programs.
"We caught the attention of both Sen. Grassley and Sen. Harkin on (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development housing voucher program) Section 8, in particular and the utilization of that program," Hutcheson said. "I think we received some interest on the part of the senators to have their staff members work with us to investigate those issues a little bit more."
The group also focused on its support for alternative energy tax credits and its concern about the rising cost of electricity, due in part to regulations.
Although earmarks continue to be a dirty word in Washington, the senators heard again about the importance of projects in southeast Iowa.
The transportation and infrastructure priorities include expanding U.S. 61 and U.S. 34, improving locks and dams and flood-control efforts, and the importance of the Essential Air Service subsidy for the Southeast Iowa Regional Airport.
Harkin and Grassley focused on the regional delegation's emphasis on the last issue.
Grassley said since a long-term Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization law was passed, the local delegation can rest a little easier for four years.
"I don't think that's in jeopardy at this particular point," he said.
Through meetings with Grassley and Harkin and the National Waterways Conference, Hutcheson said the group knows its lawmakers and others are aware of and working on river issues. But the group doesn't believe there has been movement on the complex issues in the past year.
"We think we're still being represented well, but we're not getting that objective completed at this point," Hutcheson said.
Even without earmarks, Congress isn't spending less; it's just spending differently. On transportation issues, for example, Grassley said individual projects are being built into funding formulas for states.
Grassley said locks and dams shouldn't be considered earmark-type projects since they help the overall Mississippi River system, even if they're located in a particular community or district.
Overall, Grassley said it's important to hear from local groups so lawmakers can continue to know what their priorities are.
"Today, I enjoyed meeting with members of the Southeast Iowa Great River Region group," Harkin said in a statement. "This regional group is doing great things, and I look forward to working with them in the future."
The group will meet with U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, today, and Hutcheson said they will continue to focus on top policy priorities.
"We didn't get through everything, even with that amount of time," Hutcheson said. "As we dived into detail, we didn't get through everything, but we spent quite a bit of time on transportation with them and reinforcing that we believe that the infrastructure is an essential government service.
"We talked a little bit about the need for a long-term transportation plan for the nation. Right now, they've just kind of been passing that in pieces and really haven't put together a long-term plan. Unfortunately, it sounds as though they don't have an intention of doing so until after the fall election."
The delegation also asked for some clarity regarding business regulations and health care reform. Grassley, though, said they'll have to wait, especially on the latter.
"Well, for sure, nothing is going to be done until the Supreme Court gets done," he said.
The Republican said justices could declare the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional in full, or in parts, or leave it intact. If the latter is the case, he said it then will depend on the outcome of the presidential election later this year.
Hutcheson said the group did make some impact - and has hope for action - on its concerns about waste, fraud and abuse of some governmental assistance programs.
"We caught the attention of both Sen. Grassley and Sen. Harkin on (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development housing voucher program) Section 8, in particular and the utilization of that program," Hutcheson said. "I think we received some interest on the part of the senators to have their staff members work with us to investigate those issues a little bit more."
The group also focused on its support for alternative energy tax credits and its concern about the rising cost of electricity, due in part to regulations.
Although earmarks continue to be a dirty word in Washington, the senators heard again about the importance of projects in southeast Iowa.
The transportation and infrastructure priorities include expanding U.S. 61 and U.S. 34, improving locks and dams and flood-control efforts, and the importance of the Essential Air Service subsidy for the Southeast Iowa Regional Airport.
Harkin and Grassley focused on the regional delegation's emphasis on the last issue.
Grassley said since a long-term Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization law was passed, the local delegation can rest a little easier for four years.
"I don't think that's in jeopardy at this particular point," he said.
Through meetings with Grassley and Harkin and the National Waterways Conference, Hutcheson said the group knows its lawmakers and others are aware of and working on river issues. But the group doesn't believe there has been movement on the complex issues in the past year.
"We think we're still being represented well, but we're not getting that objective completed at this point," Hutcheson said.
Even without earmarks, Congress isn't spending less; it's just spending differently. On transportation issues, for example, Grassley said individual projects are being built into funding formulas for states.
Grassley said locks and dams shouldn't be considered earmark-type projects since they help the overall Mississippi River system, even if they're located in a particular community or district.
Overall, Grassley said it's important to hear from local groups so lawmakers can continue to know what their priorities are.
"Today, I enjoyed meeting with members of the Southeast Iowa Great River Region group," Harkin said in a statement. "This regional group is doing great things, and I look forward to working with them in the future."
The group will meet with U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, today, and Hutcheson said they will continue to focus on top policy priorities.
