Branstad vetoes mental health institutes, school funding

 Last week, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad vetoed parts of eight bills, including one to keep the Clarinda and Mt. Pleasant Mental Health Institutions open. 

The closing of the two MHIs has been a major issue among the legislature for the past few months. At the close of the 2015 legislative session, representatives and senators compromised to keep the facilities open. 

In the governor’s veto message, he said, “In the 1800s, Iowa opened four mental health institutions. At their peak, they served more than 6,600 people on any given day combined. However, modern mental health care has come a long way and best practices rightfully no longer include the warehousing of mental health patients.”

Rep. David Sieck (R-Glenwood) said he believes it is a part of Branstad’s healthcare plan. He said the governor plans to move healthcare toward a provider-based system. If this is the case, MHIs could become obsolete. 

Sieck said he is not surprised by the veto, saying he thought the closing was the plan all along. 

“I supported the MHIs the whole way,” Sieck said. “Even when other people voted against [them], I voted for them.”

Sieck also said he was “scared to lose services in southwest Iowa.”

Iowa will have two MHIs that remain open in Independence and Cherokee. 

“We can keep moving forward and serve Iowans with two mental health institutions rather than four,” Branstad wrote. “Therefore, in keeping with modern best practices and the utilization of our system, it is not in the best interests of our patients, the taxpayers or the mental health system to continue operating an aging, antiquated mental health institution lacking key clinical staff, particularly a psychiatrist.”

Sieck believes one of the main reasons for closing the MHIs is funding. 

“It may cut costs, but how bad is it going to cut services [for patients]?” Sieck said. 

The Glenwood representative said he doesn’t know if legislators will head back to Des Moines in an attempt to override the governor’s vetoes or what the next step will be. 

Another part of a bill Branstad vetoed was school funding. 

In a compromise for school funding, legislators agreed to grant an additional one-time grant to schools along with the 1.25 percent of supplemental state aid they would receive. 

The governor vetoed the spending of over $3 billion to schools in the state saying that “with any budget, it is important to look at the entire picture.”

Branstad said he proposed a two-year budget on the second day of the legislative session, which would include an increase in supplemental state aid each year. He said he believes with the one-time funding, the legislature could make school districts face uncertainty in future years. 

“By using one-time money and not providing supplemental state aid for the second fiscal year, the legislature compounded the uncertainty that school districts faced this entire legislative session,” Branstad said.

Red Oak School District Superintendent Tom Messinger said administrators are unsure how the veto will affect the district’s funding. 

The district is waiting to hear from state officials how  supplemental state aid will operate for Red Oak schools.