Q: What is FEMA?
A: An independent agency of the federal government, the Federal Emergency Management Agency marked its 22nd anniversary in the same month that the river towns in eastern Iowa were battling rising flood waters from the mighty Mississippi. Organized in 1979 to serve as the official liaison within the Federal government to guide, lead,...
Americans are breathing a sigh of relief that another tax season is behind us. All of the good cheer from the New Year evaporates as the calendar moves closer to Tax Day. Getting one’s financial affairs and tax documents in order eat up a lot of time and resources. Plus, more and more taxpayers spend a pretty penny on tax preparation fees to let the experts...
I’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is, hard-working taxpayers in Iowa are inching ever closer to Tax Freedom Day. The bad news is, Iowans needed to work 117 days for the government this year before they began working for themselves. According to the non-partisan Tax Foundation, Iowans — on average — will need to work from January 1 to April 27...
Q: What is a brownfield?
A: The term applies to neglected industrial areas or commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment of the site is hindered by actual or perceived environmental contamination. Abandoned commercial properties and idled industrial factories are an eye-sore for any community and when left unattended can accelerate a downhill...
I’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is, hard-working taxpayers in Iowa are inching ever closer to Tax Freedom Day. The bad news is, Iowans needed to work 117 days for the government this year before they began working for themselves. According to the non-partisan Tax Foundation, Iowans — on average — will need to work from January 1 to April 27...
Lots of people 'inside the Beltway' in the nation’s capital get twisted into knots over the annual budget process. This year received extra close scrutiny from the media, interest groups and lawmakers because it was the first budget submitted by our newly elected president. Plus, for the first time in a half-century, the nation’s budget blueprint was...
Q: What is your take on the recent stand-off between the United States and China?
A: First and foremost, I am relieved that 24 service men and women returned home safely after a contemptible experience, where they were held in captivity for 11 days. Their detention in China following the April 1 collision involving a U.S. aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet...
For as much as the IRS may elicit marginal feelings of good-will by the American public, especially during the height of tax filing season, tax cheats and their conspirators warrant down right ill-will by their taxpaying counterparts.
Perhaps no one deserves the ire of taxpaying Americans more than the tax cheats who may be sheltering as much as $3 trillion...
Q: Why is it so important for the U.S. to seek more open borders with our trading partners?
A: Many busy Americans don't realize the instrumental role that trade plays on the U.S. economy and how it enhances the standard of living for American citizens. Surveys suggest that Americans have limited interest or knowledge in matters involving global trade...
For as much as the IRS may elicit marginal feelings of good-will by the American public, especially during the height of tax filing season, tax cheats and their conspirators warrant down right ill-will by their taxpaying counterparts.
Perhaps no one deserves the ire of taxpaying Americans more than the tax cheats who may be sheltering as much as $3 trillion...
With 100 members, the United States Senates has been described as the more deliberative body in Congress. George Washington referred to it as the saucer that cooled the spill-over from the House of Representatives. For two decades I have had the privilege to represent Iowa in the U.S. Senate. My most recent assignments on the budget, agriculture, finance,...
As the nation at large keeps a collective eye upon falling stock prices on Wall Street, merchants on Main Street are taking stock of consumer confidence and spending behavior. As Iowa’s senior U.S. senator, I make it my job to keep tabs on the public’s pulse as closely as I watch over the public’s purse in Washington. Financial analysts and economic...
Q: How do you propose to mobilize more Americans to prepare for their long-term care needs?
A: Unless you have faced a family situation where a loved one requires hands-on care around-the-clock, it’s more than likely you have not given long-term care a second thought. And if you’re under age 30 or married with young children, chances are pretty good that...
Iowa farmers looking to diversify their crop acres are finding it’s a breeze to squeeze more value out of their farmland. Sitting smack dab in the middle of America’s breadbasket, Iowa’s fertile fields and abundant grain harvests have helped feed the world and allowed generations of farm families to earn a living off the land. But in recent years, a new crop...
Q: How many audits are conducted each year by the IRS?
A: According to statistics reported by the Internal Revenue Service, the federal tax collection agency conducted 715,000 service center audits and 366,000 face-to-face audits in 1999. A February announcement by the IRS Commissioner regarding the agency's declining audits created headlines right at the...
Q: What is foot and mouth disease?
A: A highly contagious virus that affects cloven-hooved animals, including swine, cattle, goats, sheep, and deer, the disease impairs livestock’s ability to grow, develop and produce milk. Although usually not fatal, an outbreak of foot and mouth disease bears enormous economic consequences to individual farmers and an...
They say all is fair in love and war. The same apparently goes for the politics of taxes and the nation's entitlement systems for retired Americans. As with any legislative proposal, it's normal for public policymaking to fall under the political microscope, dissected by liberal, conservative and regional points of view. But too often, the art of debate...
Q: How many Medicare dollars a year are chalked up to errors or waste, fraud and abuse?
A: The annual audit of Medicare’s finances showed the Department of Health and Human Services has made substantial progress to keep better track of the tax dollars used to pay for the health care services of 39 million older and disabled Americans. Just a few years ago,...
Spring fever is in the air. It seems you aren't engaged in a conversation for very long before the discussion turns to someone's anxiety to get the long, harsh winter behind us. Iowans are ready for Mother Nature to freshen up the landscape with her colorful palette of pastels.
From spring cleaning to Spring Break, March madness is teasing young and old...
Q: What do you make of the recent closure of central Iowa’s home-grown airline?
A: I’m sorry the fledgling airline was forced to call it quits. Despite strong support from civic, business and political leaders, the airline struggled mightily to raise capital, attract passengers and compete with more established carriers. The airline’s failure to cement a...
