Mental health reform among issues discussed at legislative forum

CEDAR RAPIDS - Mental health reform was a hot topic Saturday as more than 100 residents greeted state legislators, less than two weeks into this year's session.

The 11 area lawmakers at the League of Women Voters Cedar Rapids/Marion Legislative Forum at Mercy Medical Center, 701 10th St. SE, fielded written questions about mental health services, in addition to education reform and property tax reform.

Jackie Smith Duggan was one of the attendees wearing bright blue T-shirts that said “Changing minds one step at a time” in support of NAMI Linn County, the local affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

“Our biggest concern is making sure the [mental health] redesign is funded and that the individuals NAMI advocates for ... are taken care of and not forgotten,” said Duggan, a NAMI Linn County board member.

According to Rep. Renee Schulte, R-Cedar Rapids, who is working on the mental health reform bill, Gov. Terry Branstad's budget proposal offers $20 million in new money to fund mental health services, $17 million of which is state money.

The Department of Human Services has already countered with a proposal of $30 million - the extra $10 million would come from federal funds if Iowa were to balance the number of mentally ill individuals in nursing homes with those in home-based care.

Schulte said the bill's main points include securing clinical assessments before a judge commits someone to care, improving transportation for those committed, increasing the choices families have for mental health care, and creating equal access to mental health services across the state.

“This is about families,” Schulte said. “This is about what needs to be done and making sure families have choice.”

Some attendees were not satisfied with the legislators' responses.

Art Staed, a NAMI Linn County supporter and former Iowa House Representative, said Branstad's $20 million proposal isn't nearly enough.

“If [the state] is going to take more of the power, they have to give more of the funding,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, spoke out against the governor's education reform proposal, saying that more testing and task forces are nothing but busy work. Instead, Hogg said, public schools need more resources such as after-school programs and initiatives for at-risk students.

Rep. Nate Willems, D-Lisbon, said he has heard positive feedback about the education bill's plan to increase the use of competency-based learning, such as requiring reading comprehension before a child passes third grade.

“Other than that, I'm not hearing from educators that they are particularly impressed that the plan has many game-changing positive aspects to it,” Willems said.

The legislators also discussed property tax reform and the competing plans to balance the difference between commercial property taxed at 100 percent of its value and residential property taxed at roughly 50 percent of its value.

“We didn't get into this problem overnight, we won't get out of it overnight,” Hogg said about the ongoing debate.

The League of Women Voters of Cedar Rapids and Marion will host more legislative forums on Feb. 18, March 17, and April 21.