Iowa

New Legislation will insure an additional 12,380 Iowa children

May 19, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver took another step forward in his efforts to cover every Iowa child by signing Senate File 389 into law today at Broadlawns Medical Center in Des Moines. The legislation provides $5.7 million for the state’s Medicaid and HAWK-I programs, which will help provide an additional 12,380 children access to quality, affordable health care.    » read more »

Governors receive advisory group recommendations

May 14, 2009 -- A 42 person advisory group representing utilities, power generators, oil companies, manufacturers, labor, and environmental groups agreed yesterday to a set of Final Draft Recommendations that governors from six Midwestern states and the premier of Manitoba will use to develop a regional plan to cap and reduce global warming emissions.

The group advising the Midwestern Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord (MGGRA) members—Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin and Manitoba—indicated a strong preference for Congress to enact a federal level program to address climate change.    » read more »

Governor Culver signs I-JOBS bills into law with $100 million for UI disaster efforts

May 14, 2009 -- IOWA CITY – Nearly one year after record floods destroyed many landmark buildings on campus, Iowa Governor Chet Culver today traveled to the University of Iowa, where he signed Senate File 474, which provides $100 million for the University’s disaster recovery efforts as part of the Governor’s $830 million I-JOBS Program.    » read more »

Governor Culver signs I-JOBS bills into law

May 14, 2009 -- MARSHALLTOWN – After four months of work to develop a program that will create new jobs and rebuild Iowa’s infrastructure, Iowa Governor Chet Culver signed his signature economic development and disaster recovery plan – I-JOBS – into law today during a special ceremony at the Iowa Veterans Home.    » read more »

Bill Gives Communities Flexible Financing Options in Recovering from the 2008 Disasters

May 12, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today signed into law Senate File 457, a bill which gives cities and counties facing disaster-recovery efforts additional financing options.

"Today, we take another step forward in our state's disaster recovery efforts," said Governor Culver. "With so many communities still working to recover from last year's historic natural disasters, now communities have a new tool to meet our ongoing challenges. As Governor, I will continue to do everything I can to rebuild our communities, and I look forward to working with all Iowans to build a stronger, safer future."    » read more »

Waterloo, Sioux Center Receive New Street Funding, Investments Made in Freight Rail

May 12, 2009 -- AMES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today announced that the Iowa Transportation Commission has approved funding to aid in the completion of several key infrastructure projects across the state. Up to $402,887 was approved through the state’s Revitalize Iowa’s Sound Economy (RISE) program for Waterloo and Sioux Center, while four freight rail improvement projects totaling $5 million were approved.    » read more »

May 8, 2009 -- DES MOINES – During a ceremony today at the State Capitol, Iowa Governor Chet Culver signed legislation extending new health benefits to both firefighters and police officers.

“As Governor, I am deeply concerned that our first responders face higher than normal rates of certain diseases, including cancer,” said Governor Culver. “This bill is one important way that we can ensure that we meet the needs of our fire fighters and police officers. They risk their lives, and they are there for us, every day when we need them. I’m proud to sign this legislation on behalf of the men and women who literally keep our streets safe, and who save lives – our police officers and firefighters.”    » read more »

May 7, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today sent the following letter to China’s Ambassador to the United States Zhou Wenzhong calling on Chinese Officials to allow for the importation of Iowa pork. The letter comes one day after China announced that it would no longer accept pork exports from Iowa over concerns of H1N1 influenza, though health officials both in the United States and across the globe have repeatedly said that eating pork is safe, and that one cannot contract the H1N1 virus from meat.

Below is the text of the letter sent to Ambassador Zhou:

Dear Ambassador Zhou,    » read more »

Midwestern Governors push for Renewable Energy Standard at American Wind Energy Association annual meeting

May 5, 2009 -- CHICAGO – Chairing a panel discussion of Midwestern governors at the American Wind Energy Association’s WINDPOWER 2009 conference, Iowa Governor Chet Culver called on Congress and the Obama-Biden administration to pass a “Renewable Energy Standard” in order to open markets for Midwestern wind energy projects and to ensure the long-term growth of the wind industry nationwide. Governor Culver was joined by Governors Jennifer Granholm (D-MI), Ted Strickland (D-OH) and Jim Doyle (D-WI).    » read more »

Projects funded in total or part with federal recovery dollars

May 5, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today announced 27 city street and county road projects valued at more than $31 million were let by the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) as part of the second round of local projects funded in total or part through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Acceptance of low-bid proposals and the awarding of contracts are subject to local governmental approval. The low bids for all 27 projects totaled $31,020,909.47. Of that amount, $21,193,965.37 in funds from the Recovery Act have been authorized for the projects. The remaining $9,826,944.10 in project costs will be paid for with other funds.    » read more »

April 28, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today signed Senate File 137, a bill that mandates pay equity in Iowa’s workplaces. During the ceremony, the Governor also signed a proclamation declaring Equal Pay Day in Iowa to highlight the need for greater fairness in our state.

“Our state has a long history of identifying, and protecting the rights of individuals, not just in the workplace, but in every field,” said Governor Culver. “Wage discrimination is wrong. From this day forward, discrimination of this nature is, plain and simple, illegal. By doing so, we are living up to our progressive history, and moving Iowa forward – toward our common goal of equality under the law.”    » read more »

April 27, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver and Lt. Governor Patty Judge joined with state health and agriculture officials to provide an update on steps the state is taking to prevent an outbreak of swine flu.

“This is not a time for alarm; rather, this is a time for prevention, and for caution,” said Governor Culver. “I want to be very clear: there are no confirmed cases of swine flu in Iowa. On the state level, we continue to monitor the situation, and take every step to prevent an outbreak from occurring within our borders. Even though there are no confirmed cases in Iowa, we take this very seriously, and we will continue to do so, until the issue is resolved.”    » read more »

Signs two bills to promote wind energy growth in Iowa

April 23, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today signed two bills designed to expand Iowa’s wind energy industry. Senate File 456 utilizes unused tax credits to promote small wind energy projects across the state. House File 817 provides economic incentives for wind component manufacturers who are looking at building or expanding in Iowa.    » read more »

April 22, 2009 -- Washington, D.C.--As President Obama heads off to Iowa to visit a wind turbine factory, the House Energy & Commerce Committee begins its second day of hearings on its clean energy jobs plan, the America Clean Energy and Security Act. Hearings began yesterday with opening statements from Members. Today's hearing will feature three panels:

* Administration Officials: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, Energy Steven Chu, and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
* U.S. Climate Action Partnership: Corporate officials from Duke Energy, NRG, ConocoPhillips, Alcoa, and DuPont, as well as Frances Beinecke, President of the Natural Resources Defense Council.    » read more »

April 21, 2009 -- Washington, D.C--President Obama will celebrate Earth Day tomorrow with a trip to Newton, Iowa where he will meet with workers at Trinity Structural Towers, a manufacturing company that makes towers for wind turbines. The facility is located in a factory that was previously shuttered when Maytag closed its corporate headquarters and factory after being purchased by another company, throwing more than a thousand people out of work and devastating the local economy. Now many of those workers have been put back to work building the clean energy economy.

Statement of Carl Pope, Sierra Club Executive Director    » read more »