June 20, 2013

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“Choose Life” specialty license plates now available in Iowa

June 13, 2013 By

Choose-LifeA new specialty license plate that features a “Choose Life” message is now available for Iowans who oppose abortion.

Iowa Right to Life executive director Jennifer Bowen has sent in the extra $25 required with her specialty plate application, but she doesn’t have the plates on her car yet.

“I’m waiting,” Bowen told Radio Iowa, with a laugh. “I’ve got some board members and others in other parts of the state — in rural parts of the state — that have received their letter and gone and picked up their plates. Living in Jasper County, I have not yet received my notice.”

Iowa now joins 28 other states in offering a specialty license plate that features the words “Choose Life” and a logo featuring the smiling faces of a boy and a girl.

“The image on the specialty plate is actually part of the ‘Choose Life America’ organization,” Bowen said.

Bowen and other activists have been lobbying for a “pro-life” Iowa license plate for more than a decade, but were never able to get a bill through the legislature to authorize its creation. According to Bowen, the Branstad Administration indicated the plate could be created through executive action if her group gathered enough signatures from Iowans who wanted to get one of the plates.

“It took us just about one year to collect a little over 500 signatures,” Bowen said.

According to the Iowa DOT’s website, there are now 65 different specialty license plates available, ranging from plates that tout breast cancer awareness to plates that feature both the names and mascots Iowa colleges and universities.

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Governor likely to approve new review of taxpayer funding for abortions

June 7, 2013 By

Governor Terry Branstad is likely to become the only governor in the country to have what amounts to veto power over using tax dollars to pay for abortions for low-income women on Medicaid.

“As I understand it, the decision is not whether there’s an abortion or not, the decision is whether the state is going to approve funding, which is a decision that’s made after the fact,” Branstad says. “So I’m not really going to have any say in whether this procedure occurs or not — I would discourage it, wherever possible — but then I’ll have to make a decision about whether it’s appropriate under the circumstances and the guidelines that we have.”

Legislators inserted language in a budget bill that calls for the governor’s approval of taxpayer-financed abortions for Medicaid patients in cases of rape or incest, to save the life of the mother or in cases of severe fetal abnormality.

“Iowa law is very restrictive on the use of taxpayer dollars to pay for abortions. Very few of them are funded and I would like to see even less funded,” Brantad says. “We’re going to carefully look at this situation and if I approve it — and I think it’s likely that I will — it will be done on a case-by-case basis.”

Branstad says this is not the first time he, as governor, has had to make decisions about what medical procedures qualify for state funding.

“I was governor back in the 1980s when organ transplanting just started and I had to make the decisions and approve whether we were going to do those things,” Branstad says. “Those are very important decisions and they need to be done in a very thoughtful way.”

Officials in the Department of Human Services have been deciding which abortions — in those four limited circumstances — qualify for taxpayer funding, and Branstad suggests legislators have “kicked” that decision “upstairs” to the governor.

“I think this is a compromise that was worked out in the legislative process and this has been a very sticky issue,” Branstad says. “You may recall they were not able to come to agreement on this last year and so I feel as the chief executive it’s my responsibility to try to make things work and to work with both parties in both houses of the legislature on this and to work with the people in the Department of Human Services as well.”

Branstad says when he was a state representative in the 1970s he was “an advocate” of a “stricter view” that few abortions should qualify for taxpayer funding.  The abortions for Medicaid patients seeking an abortion under the limited circunstances of rape, incest, to save the life of the mother or because of severe fetal abnormality are performed at the University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City.

Branstad made his comments this morning  during taping of the “Iowa Press” program that airs tonight at 7:30 on Iowa Public Television.

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Iowan testifies about IRS treatment of her nonprofit group

June 5, 2013 By
Sue Martinek

Sue Martinek

The head of a Cedar Rapids-based pro-life organization testified before a congressional committee Tuesday on how the IRS treated the group when it sought tax-exempt status.

Sue Martinek, president of the Coalition for Life of Iowa, spoke to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee.

“I speak today so that what happened to us — the IRS’s demonstrated harassment, improper questions and intolerance toward our message — may not happen to others. The IRS’s questions centered on our education and potential political activities, our prayer groups and our signage,” Martinek said.

She testified that the group was formed in 2004 to provide “prayer and related activities about the sanctity of life.” In 2008 the group sought tax-empt status. Martinek said in May of 2009 an IRS agent she called Ms. Richards sent her a letter asking if the groups activities were religious in nature, and the group replied they were not and had said so in their application.

That prompted a phone call that sought a promise regarding an abortion provider. “In June of 2009 Ms. Richards told me verbally that we needed to send in a letter with the entire board’s signatures that under perjury of law we would not picket, protest or organize, picket and protest outside of Planned Parenthood. Upon receiving such a letter, she indicated the IRS would allow our application to go through,” Martinek said.

Coalition for Life then sent a letter in reply to the IRS asking them where it said in the law they could not picket or protest. Martinek said the IRS did not answer that letter, but instead followed with another written request for more information.

“Please explain how all of your activities — including the prayer meetings held outside Planned Parenthood — are considered educational as defined under 5-0-1-C-3. Organizations exempt under 5-0-1-C-3 may present opinions with scientific or medical facts,” Martinek read.

“Please explain in detail the activities at prayer meetings. Also, please provide the percentage that your organization

spends on prayer groups as compared to the other activities of the organization.” Martinek told the members of the committee that some boardmembers believed they should not sign or send the letter and should contact a lawyer who worked with such issues.

The coalition contacted such a lawyer. “With their help, and after we submitted a lengthy letter detailing the law and our constitutional rights, the IRS granted us tax-exmpt status,” Martinek said. She says the approval of the tax-exempt status came just one week after the lawyer’s letter was sent to the IRS.

The hearing is one of many looking into the actions of the IRS where they admittedly targeted conservative and religious groups for extra scrutiny. The acting commissioner of the IRS was forced to step down last month as more information on the targeting of the groups was released.

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House adjourns; 2013 legislative session concludes

May 23, 2013 By

CapitolThe end of the 2013 legislative session was complicated by a group of 11 Republicans who had hoped to ban all taxpayer-funded abortions in the Medicaid program, including abortions for poor women who are the victims of rape and incest, but just after 11 o’clock this morning.

Democrats in the Iowa House joined with Republicans to take the final votes that concluded action for the year. The Senate had concluded its work early this morning at 12:01.

Top lawmakers say the legislature made “historic” accomplishments on education reform, tax relief, and environmental protection this year. Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs also cited new investments in the state’s community colleges, to help Iowa workers improve their skills.

“We really accomplished great things. We are not Washington, D.C. We are not gridlock. We are people of good faith that worked together and solved problems,” Gronstal told reporters Wednesday evening. “…None of these bills are what we would write if we were doing it alone or if we were doing it with people of our own choosing, but the voters gave us a set of people to deal with and we decided it was better to govern than to play politics.”

House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, a Republican from Hiawatha, called this was a “remarkable session” that met the “high expectations” of Iowans.

“We are not Washington, D.C. We do not offer ultimatums, push things off until they are nearing a cliff or wait for a crisis to react. We’re Iowans and I believe once again this General Assembly…has proved that we have come together to accomplish serious and meaningful work,” Paulsen said during a House speech this morning. “…If Washington operated more like Iowa, America would be much better off.”

Senate President Pam Jochum, a Democrat from Dubuque, cited the health care reform compromise as the legislature’s landmark achievement.

“It’s amazing what happens when you talk to one another instead of over one another,” Jochum said last night. “And that’s how we finally reached agreement on a lot of issues that a lot of people thought we would not be able to achieve this year.”

House Republican Leader Linda Upmeyer of Clear Lake said legislators took a “common sense” approach to problem-solving.

“Washington, D.C.’s divisive politics have no place here,” Upmeyer said during a speech in the House this morning. “This session we have shown that there is a better way. Working together toward a common goal means we can achieve truly great things.”

Senate Republican Leader Bill Dix of Shell Rock said the commercial property tax reduction legislators approved this week is “historic.”

“It’s a bill that holds good promise to see new investment in our state, higher paying jobs, new career opportunities for Iowans and allows Iowans to keep more of their hard-earned money,” Dix told reporters last night.

House Democratic Leader Kevin McCarthy of Des Moines said “more often than not,” the two parties worked together.

“Unlike the gridlock that has paralyzed Washington, D.C., the unwillingness to compromise…we chose to behave like adults,” McCarthy said during a speech in the House this morning, “to find common ground and to govern.”

Current policy regarding abortions for Medicaid patients will be preserved, so taxpayer financing will still be available for abortions in cases of rape, incest, to save the life of the mother or because the fetus is deformed and would not survive outside the womb. However, legislators did include language in a budget bill that forces the governor to approve any taxpayer-funded abortions sought under those circumstances.

An 11th hour deal means Iowa will accept federal money to extend health care coverage to as many as 150,000 Iowans, but it will be a sort of stipend for insurance premiums, but managed through the state.

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House GOP endorses tough new abortion restrictions

May 1, 2013 By

Republicans in the Iowa House have voted for one of the strongest anti-abortion restrictions in the country, but critics warn the language may also prevent hospitals from following the wishes of patients who have do-not-resuscitate orders.

The proposal forbids taxpayer-funding for all abortions, including abortions for Medicaid patients who are rape or incest victims or whose life is in danger because of their pregnancy. For the past three years Republican Representative Matt Windschitl of Missouri Valley has been leading efforts to accomplish that goal.

“We are trying to follow the will of our constituents, of the taxpayers who sent us down here,” Windschitl said. “We are trying to do what they ask us to do.”

Representative Vicki Lensing, a Democrat from Iowa City, opposed the bill.

“The words that concern me the most are ‘willfull termination of human life,’” Lensing said. “It seems to me that this language also impacts end-of-life decisions that individuals and families may have to make in a hospital, a nursing home or a hospice.”

Representative Mary Mascher, a Democrat from Iowa City, called the bill “extremist.”

“It does not reflect the views of the majority of Iowans,” she said. “It is part of a right-wing agenda. We all know that and it will put thousands of Iowans at risk.”

Windschitl countered that the alternative Democrats proposed would “open the door” to taxpayer-funding for all abortions for Medicaid patients, not just for cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.

“And I think that is unconscionable to a lot of people throughout the state,” Windschitl said.

The abortion issue was one of several hot-button topics in House debate of a bill that outlines spending for a number of state agencies, including the Department of Human Services. Representative Dave Heaton, a Republican from Mount Pleasant, was last to speak during today’s debate.

“It’s obvious that people have strong feelings about what’s in this bill and we spent an afternoon and an early evening speaking about the advocacy for different parts of our bill,” Heaton said.

House Republicans rejected other proposals from Democrats, like a call to send two-million dollars in state tax dollars to support the work of private food banks in Iowa. A group of 10 legislators will soon be assembled to try to bridge the differences between the version of the bill House Republicans favor and the one Senate Democrats voted for last week.

Senate Democrats voted down a similar abortion restriction proposed by Senate Republicans. Republicans in the House and Senate also are seeking to forbid taxpayer funding for all services Planned Parenthood may provide to Medicaid patients, including birth control and cancer screenings.

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The Family Leader lobbies to end taxpayer-funded abortions (AUDIO)

April 23, 2013 By
Bob Vander Plaats speaks at the Family Leader rally.

Bob Vander Plaats speaks at the Family Leader rally.

The Family Leader held a midday rally at the statehouse today, urging supporters to lobby lawmakers to pass new abortion restrictions.

Danny Carroll, a former Republican legislator who lobbies full-time at the statehouse for The Family Leader, coached the crowd.

“Contact your legislator or a legislator and let them know that while they may not be able to overturn Roe v. Wade and they may not be able to protect human life from the moment of conception today or this year, they can at least keep your tax money from going to organizations who do provide abortions,” Carroll said.

The group is pressing for a change in state policy that would forbid state tax dollars from being used to perform abortions on Medicaid patients who are rape or incest victims, or who are carrying a fetus with severe abnormalities.

The proposal also forbids state tax dollars from going to Planned Parenthood to cover birth control for low-income women.

“The Bible does not say that the wicked shall rule or that the righteous shall rule,” said Chuck Hurley, another former GOP legislator who is The Family Leader’s vice president. “The Bible says the diligent shall rule and the sad fact is that for the last few decades the pro-abortionists and the homosexuals and the socialists have been more diligent than we have been on public engagement.”

Bob Vander Plaats — a three-time Republican candidate for governor who is The Family Leader’s president and CEO — was the rally’s opening speaker.

“We believe government exists to promote what is good and what is righteous — so if it’s good and righteous, we’re for it,” Vander Plaats told the crowd. “If it is bad and it is against God’s heart, then we’re against it.”

Vander Plaats said his group “honors every gift of life.”

“From conception to natural death — with no exceptions,” Vander Plaats said, to applause from the crowd.

Dan Becker, national field director for Personhood USA, was the keynote speaker for today’s rally.

“Remove the judges, intimidate the court? That’s not an option,” Becker said. “I’ll tell you what is: a state constitutional amendment that finds a right to life.”

The Family Leader was heavily involved in campaigns to defeat Iowa Supreme Court justices who joined the court’s 2009 opinion that legalized same-sex marriage. The issue was raised by speakers at the rally, but a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage was not The Family Leader’s lobbying objective today.

AUDIO of today’s rally 50:00

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Iowa Senate narrowly rejects new abortion restrictions (AUDIO)

April 18, 2013 By
Amy Sinclair

Amy Sinclair

The Iowa Senate has narrowly rejected a bid to forbid taxpayer-funded abortions for low-income Iowa women who are the victims of rape or incest.

“As a taxpayer in the state of Iowa, as a woman in the state of Iowa, as a mother — I don’t believe that I or anyone else feels that taxpayers ought to be funding abortion,” said Senator Amy Sinclair, a Republican from Allerton.

Senator Jack Hatch, a Democrat from Des Moines, said it’s a “tough issue.”

“If a woman is raped, she has to have the baby…That’s unfair to women just because they’re poor,” Hatch said.

AUDIO of Senate debate of SF446 ; 44:00 (debate of abortion issue begins just before 9:00-mark.)

Seven taxpayer-funded abortions were performed at the University of Iowa Hospitals in the last half of 2012 for low-income women on Medicaid who were carrying a fetus with a fetal abnormality. Under Sinclair’s proposal, that would change.

“What this does is removes the requirement for every taxpayer to support it,” Sinclair said.

Senator Joe Bolkcom, a Democrat from Iowa City, said low income women who have pregnancies that go “tragically wrong” should get taxpayer support for an abortion.

“We’re talking about fetal deformity,” Bolkcom said. “We’re talking about…that newborn baby’s inability to be viable and live outside of the womb.”

The proposal also would have banned taxpayer funding for birth control or prenatal care offered by Planned Parenthood, a move Senator Sinclair supports.

“I do believe that women need access to family planning and prenatal care…through their primary health care providers,” Sinclair said.

Twenty-three senators voted for the new abortion restrictions, but 24 voted against it. Senator Kent Sorenson, a Republican from Milo, said the tide is turning on abortion.

“This is a dead issue for you guys,” Sorenson said to Democrats. “This is something that we’re seeing society move in our direction. We have a country that is becoming more pro-life. We have a state that is becoming more pro-life.”

In other statehouse news, there is a development in the ethics complaint filed earlier this year against Sorenson. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports Michele Bachmann’s former chief of staff plans to tell the Iowa Senate Ethics Committee that Bachmann staff funneled money from her campaign to a consulting firm that paid Sorenson $7500 a month in 2011.

Sorenson was Bachmann’s Iowa campaign chairman until just before the Caucuses, when he quit and endorsed Ron Paul. Senate rules forbid senators from being paid to work on presidential campaigns. Sorenson has said the allegations are “totally baseless.”

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