LEGISLATORS WHITTLE DOWN BILLS LIST

A proposed law that would have dealt severe penalties to people who
torture animals is one of several ideas that has died for the year in
the Iowa Legislature.

One month before they are set to adjourn, lawmakers on Thursday
whittled down a lengthy list of bills, officially killing proposals to
bring competition to the electric industry, outlaw laser pointers and
test high school athletes for drugs.

But other issues -including a bill to protect banks from lawsuits
stemming from the Y2K computer bug -were kept alive Thursday and are
expected to be debated before the end of April.

Lawmakers worked throughout the week to meet a self-imposed deadline,
referred to as "the funnel." It requires bills to be passed by at
least one house and by a committee in the opposite chamber. Tax and
budget proposals are exempt from the deadline. And legislative leaders
are allowed to introduce their own ideas in the final weeks.

The Legislature already has approved two major priorities:
methamphetamine and education. Next week, Gov. Tom Vilsack is
scheduled to sign bills into law that would create tougher sentences
for drug dealers and shrink the size of elementary classes to boost
reading scores.

Several issues beat the clock Thursday, including a bill to ban open
or unsealed alcoholic beverage containers in motor vehicles. Both the
driver and passengers would be subject to the ban, but some exemptions
would be made for limousines and large vans.

A proposal to outlaw Spam -computer lingo for unwanted e-mail
solicitations - received approval in the Senate. A proposal to make
English Iowa's official language remains alive. The plan already has
passed the Senate and awaits debate by the full House.

But one of Vilsack's priorities, an early retirement program for state
employees, failed to emerge from the State Government Committee in the
Senate.

Sen. Sheldon Rittmer, a DeWitt Republican who leads the committee,
said lawmakers simply had too many questions about the proposal,
including the savings that the early retirement plan would achieve.
Other bills that died Thursday would have:

* Required children to wear bicycle helmets.

* Established a more stringent intoxication standard for drivers. The
current limit, a blood alcohol concentration of .10 percent, would
have been lowered to .08 percent.

* Changed the closing time for precinct polling places in general or
primary elections. Under the dead bill, polls would close at 8 p.m.
instead of 9 p.m.

* Eliminated welfare for convicted drug dealers.

* Changed the way Iowans can vote, by eliminating straight-ticket
ballots.

Many of the issues that did not make the cut this year are eligible
for debate next session. Over the summer, lawmakers will keep working
on proposals to deregulate the electric industry and allow high
schools to test student athletes for drug use.

Reporter Jeff Zeleny can be reached at (515) 284-8048 or
zelenyj@news.dmreg.com

Reporter Jonathan Roos can be reached at (515) 284-8443 or
roosj@news.dmreg.com