Iowa State Sen. Janet Petersen has released the following statement regarding the March release of the Revenue Estimating Conference.
“It’s time to put the brakes on Republicans’ runaway voucher spending,” Sen. Janet Petersen (D-Des Moines) said. “Today’s REC projections confirm that, for the foreseeable future, Iowa will spend more money than it takes in and dip into the state’s reserves to cover the difference.”
“The majority party’s budgeting isn’t working for Iowans,” Sen. Petersen said. “It’s not working for the children whose public schools are underfunded, it’s not working for thousands of workers being laid off, it’s not working for the families trying to cover the cost of childcare, and now we’re set to see more of the same as the governor continues her misguided budgeting into the next five years.”
Following a Freedom of Information Act request, the Department of Management provided a glimpse into the Reynolds Administration’s five-year budget projections. (The materials are included in full with this release.)
“After weeks of delays, we finally got a peak at the Reynolds Administration’s five-year projections and the numbers are startling,” Sen. Petersen said. “It’s not just a one-time dip into our reserve accounts to pay for private school vouchers and Iowa’s lack of real revenue growth. Billions of dollars will be pulled from Iowa’s reserves in the next few years to balance the budget.”
“Republicans are breaking their own rule of using one-time funds for ongoing expenses, and Iowa taxpayers are footing the bill.”
Sen. Petersen is the Ranking Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee.
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