Iowans can anticipate their interactions with authorities businesses to look completely different beginning in July. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed her company reorganization plan into legislation Tuesday.
The governor stated Iowa’s system of businesses and departments will start working by means of the processes of restructuring and consolidation within the months earlier than the official enactment of Senate File 514 on July 1. Whereas there could also be a “bumps” alongside the best way, Reynolds stated, she hopes to have a lot of the mergers prepared by the enactment date.
“For essentially the most half, we must always have issues the place we want, so you understand, we’ll be working from that perspective,” Reynolds stated. “So there may be some stragglers however … that’s the objective proper now and the intent, and we ought to be shut.”
The almost 1,600-page invoice was one in every of Reynolds’ highest priorities for the 2023 legislative session, and made it by means of each chambers with minimal adjustments. Now enacted, the invoice begins the method of compressing Iowa’s present 37 executive-level cupboard businesses right down to 16, in addition to altering among the powers of the governor and legal professional normal.
Democrats proposed amendments for among the issues Iowans raised about adjustments like making the Workplace of the Consumer Advocate a division below the legal professional normal’s workplace and shifting the Iowa Little one Advocacy Board to the Division of Well being and Human Providers, adjustments which opponents stated will removes the independence needed for these entities to function in the very best curiosity of Iowans. The one adjustments to the invoice permitted have been technical language fixes by the Senate.
Senate Democratic Chief Zach Wahls criticized the invoice signing, calling it an influence seize that takes away checks and balances from authorities workplaces and provides the governor the flexibility to nominate and set salaries for “mates and cronies.”
“Home and Senate Republicans refused to totally vet this invoice or train any oversight on the governor’s workplace,” Wahls stated in an announcement Tuesday. “Now it’s legislation, and Iowans shall be residing with the implications for many years to come back.”
State company administrators and lawmakers joined Reynolds for the invoice signing, the place she praised the work performed from the plan’s creation to the end line. The governor labored with the Virginia-based consulting agency Guidehouse LLP , utilizing almost $1 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act federal in creating the reorganization plan.
Rep. Amy Nielsen, the rating Democrat on the Home State Authorities Committee, stated the invoice prioritizes particular pursuits over Iowans who voiced their issues with the adjustments.
“Far too most of the payments like this one have been authored by out of state consultants or particular curiosity teams with out actual enter from Iowans,” Nielsen stated. “It’s an influence seize and one of many causes individuals are so pissed off with politics today.”
Reynolds stated the invoice will save taxpayers cash, citing the governor’s workplace discovering the greater than $214 million in financial savings over 4 years. Reorganization will even make Iowans’ interactions with the federal government simpler, she stated.
“Builders now should work throughout 4 separate businesses to get the licenses and inspections required of them, and that actually slows down the method, however that’s not going to be the case anymore,” she stated.
Transferring ahead, she stated most of the departmental adjustments will observe the instance of Iowa’s former departments of Public Well being and Human Providers, which formally merged in August 2022. The state additionally consolidated administrative legislation judges in Iowa Workforce Growth and the Division of Inspections and Appeals.
That stated, Reynolds stated Iowans mustn’t anticipate these adjustments to occur in a single day.
“I’m not saying there gained’t be bumps,” the governor stated. “I imply, it is a big enterprise, however we’re going to do it proper, we’re going to get it proper. And if we have to decelerate any, you understand, any of the alignments to guarantee that we’re taking all of that into consideration, we’ll try this.”