Iowa’s Governor today attended a groundbreaking ceremony for a Wells Fargo expansion in West Des Moines that’s bankrolled, in part, with a state grant from the Iowa Values Fund that was voided this week by the Iowa Supreme Court. The Court nullified the bill that created the Iowa Values Fund, but Governor Tom Vilsack says Wells Fargo and the 35 other businesses that have been promised money aren’t worried about the court ruling. Vilsack says the businesses “were reassured” by his comments and the comments of lawmakers who’ve pledged to maintain the commitments made through the Iowa Values Fund. Vilsack and a Wells Fargo executive climbed aboard bulldozers for this morning’s groundbreaking. Vilsack says Wells Fargo “is moving dirt” because the company’s executives have confidence in Iowa because “when you give your word, your word is your bond.” The court ruled Vilsack did not have the authority to “item veto” tax cuts out of the bill that created the Values Fund. Republicans say they’ll press the same issues before Vilsack if there is a special session to address the problems caused by this week’s court ruling, but Vilsack says he’s not willing to accept the regulatory reforms or tax cuts the G-O-P wants. Vilsack says he’s already signed two pieces of business reform legislation that lawmakers wanted. As for tax cuts, Vilsack says it’s pretty clear they can’t do anything until the state’s economy gets a little more robust or tax cuts would cause huge cuts in state spending. Vilsack will meet with legislators again Monday to continue talks to figure out a way to reinstate the Iowa Values Fund. Vilsack says there’s no set time frame, but the sooner it happens the better. Vilsack says he’s committed to getting a fix passed so state economic development officials can move forward and build on the momentum of this past year. Vilsack says they will continue seeking new development opportunities while they work to fix the Iowa Values Fund. Vilsack says new commitments are more difficult because the Values Fund can’t be used, but officials have other economic development initiatives to entice businesses to expand in the state. Vilsack says the court ruling has created some worries, but he says the problems with the Iowa Values Fund aren’t insurmountable. He says he and republican lawmakers were going to have a debate about the future of the Values Fund anyway since lawmakers had provided just two years of financing for the program, which was sketched out to continue for a total of seven years. A key republican lawmaker who’s also a lawyer says the Legislature will have to meet in special session soon to establish some legal footing for the state’s “Iowa Values Fund.” Senate President Jeff Lamberti, a republican from Ankeny who’s a lawyer, says he “doesn’t see any way to avoid” having a special session because the state has made legal commitments to provide money to 36 companies, but because of the court ruling, the Values Fund doesn’t exist.Lamberti made his comments during taping of the Iowa Public Television program, “Iowa Press.”
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