Ron Corbett, Mayor of Cedar Rapids and founder of Iowa’s first conservative think tank, Engage Iowa, was in Carroll this week to speak to the Carroll Rotary about reform of Iowa’s income tax as well as the water quality and quantity issues that are faced by the state.
Most of these cases, Corbett said, will be appealed, and appealed and appealed again. Iowa has a long history of being a strong state from a farm lobby standpoint, but that power, he warns, won’t stop the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and their regulations if they are to get involved.
This is why Corbett is promoting the Engage Iowa initiatives to solve the water issues as a state. He says eastern Iowa is concerned with the quantity of water after recent flooding while Des Moines is worried about quality. The Engage Iowa approach is to work directly with farmers and landowners, and Corbett said their proposal really deals with the funding side of things. The Nutrient Reduction Strategy, introduced by Iowa Ag Secretary, Bill Northey, is very comprehensive and everyone agrees with it, he said, but the voluntary aspect places all of the burden on the farmer. Funding, therefore, is not sustainable because of Ag market fluctuations and it lacks a cost-share with farmers.
This will help eliminate a seesaw funding effect, but Corbett said this is not just a taxpayer solution. Part of the effort is to provide a local match where the private sector steps up and matches what the state and producers are providing; creating a public/private partnership. Corbett said we need to coalesce as a state with both urban and rural areas working together to keep judges and the heavy hand of the EPA from mandating how we correct the issues. To learn more about the Engage Iowa water quality initiative, log on to www.engageiowa.org, or contact Corbett directly at ron@engageiowa.org.
