This legislative session was one for the history books. When the session began in January, we had high hopes for the Governor’s Invest in Iowa Act, which would have funded the Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some priorities shifted, and it was put on hold until next year. When session started back up earlier this month, Iowa Rivers … Read more
We are now over one week into the condensed legislative session for 2020. The RIIF – Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund Bill (HF 2642) passed out of House Committee yesterday. It includes the following appropriations for FY 2021: Water Quality Initiative- $5.2M DNR Lake Restoration & Water Quality- $8M Dam Mitigation & Water Trails- $250,000 The $250,000 for Dam Mitigation and Water Trails is only HALF … Read more
As the Legislature prepares to return on June 3rd to wrap up the 2020 session and pass their budget, now is the time to remind legislators of river funding priorities. The Governor is expected to release her revised budget recommendations sometime in the near future and we expect the Legislature will take that into consideration as they prepare their budget. The Governor initially included funding for Dam Mitigation … Read more