S-N Editorial

Fifteen years is a long time to ignore the will of the people. In Iowa, lawmakers aren't batting an eye about it.

The Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund was established by popular demand in 2010. Back then, 62 percent of Iowa voters agreed this constitutionally-protected fund was needed to generate additional revenue for natural resources and conservation projects. Several lawmakers over the years have proposed using the hypothetical revenue to fund new water quality initiatives that help fix Iowa's horribly polluted lakes, streams and rivers. Unfortunately, the Republican majority in Des Moines has refused to budge and it remains penniless to this day.

The Legislature's failure to fund the trust has been extremely curious. While it's true that Iowa has become come more conservative over the past 15 years, the trust wasn't approved during a period of "purple" politics. The overwhelming support it received in 2010 came during the same year Terry Branstad won back his old job from incumbent Democratic Gov. Chet Culver, Republicans took back the Iowa House of Representatives, and other statewide offices like secretary of state and auditor flipped back to the GOP. Nationwide, the Tea Party Movement rallied conservatives and took back control of the U.S. House of Representatives. Simply put, it wasn't liberals' best year by any stretch of the imagination.

Support for the trust hasn't waivered – among those who remember it still exists, anyway. A statewide poll conducted in late 2018 by Iowa's Land & Water Legacy showed 69 percent of likely voters endorsed funding it, while a survey conducted the previous year by the Des Moines Register showed 56 percent of Iowans wanted the same thing. Those numbers are significant and shouldn't be ignored. People want this and the benefits it could have on the quality of life in Iowa are clear.

A recent state study prepared by Kim Reynolds' administration said the economic benefits from outdoor recreation are great, generating several billion dollars in consumer spending, employing 44,000 Iowans, contributing over $2 billion in wages and hundreds of millions in in-state and local tax revenue. Usage of state parks and other outdoor resources has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to hold steady.

As noted above, state-managed parks aren't the only thing that could benefit from the trust. The current situation afflicting Iowa's ailing waters demands the courage of lawmakers to fund something a super-majority of Iowans already approved. Experts have said more than $4 billion needs to be invested in infrastructure improvements, conservation efforts and other means if Iowa wants to reduce the amount of phosphorus and nitrates it contributes to the Gulf of Mexico via the Mississippi River. The Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund is a clear and obvious way to pay for that in some form.

The biggest hurdle to sustainable state parks and natural resources funding lies with legislative priorities of the Republican majorities in the governor's office, Iowa House and Iowa Senate. They've ignored it for 15 years, and if you skim headlines, you'll find bills dealing with school vouchers, gender politics, book bans and other Culture War nonsense have ruled the day for years. Their priorities are questionable at best, as most of these policies seem driven by inflamed social media outrage and unhinged media outlets. Meanwhile, the actual will of the people is being wholly ignored, if not totally forgotten.

The trust should have been funded 15 years ago, but lawmakers have only sat on their hands and wasted time. It's imperative they pull their heads out of the weeds and do something to benefit the state instead of proposing do-nothing bills that only generate headlines to rally the extreme fringes of their bases. Sure, the Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund isn't flashy, but it certainly has the potential to benefit Iowans for generations to come. God forbid Iowa's lawmakers look down the road instead of gorging themselves on the low-hanging fruit of today's vitriolic identity politics.

Imagine what we could have accomplished in the 15 years since the trust was approved in 2010. It's time lawmakers follow the will of the people and do something positive in the Hawkeye State. Better late than never.