“It is ironic that just two weeks ago the state enacted legislation which memorializes Iowa cities’ right to collect up to 5 percent gas and electric franchise fees,” he said. “Franchise fees have been collected by some cities in Iowa for over 100 years.”

Des Moines has collected a utility franchise fee for more than 40 years, but for most of that period it bounced between 1 percent and 2 percent of customers’ utility bills. When the Iowa Legislature phased out its 5 percent statewide utility tax, Des Moines and a number of other Iowa cities raised theirs. In Des Moines, it went to 3 percent in 2004 and 5 percent in 2005.

Judge Joel Novak ruled that the city could only justify charging a 1 percent fee on gas and electric bills, and that the rest would have to be refunded. Just last week, Gov. Chet Culver signed into law a bill allowing cities to charge up to 5 percent. However, that legislation won’t affect the ruling.

“The cost imposed upon the city and its citizens by the existence of a franchise for gas and electric utilities has been significantly underestimated by the Court,” Cownie said. “We will follow the next legal steps to reach a final determination in this issue, which may include an appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court.”

If the ruling is allowed to stand, the city could see “an increase in the tax rate, a reduction in services, a reduction in capital improvements or a combination of all three,” Cownie said.

“The effect upon our taxpayers could be significant,” he said.

This map from FEMA shows which Iowa counties will be impacted by a project to modernize flood maps. The map also shows 16 Iowa counties that are slated for inclusion in a FEMA pilot mapping program happening this year. Click on the graphic above to download a full PDF version with a legend and additional information.

ELY — It was a cold February day when Pat and Cindy Nulty learned that their home in this town southeast of Cedar Rapids, untouched by last June’s massive flooding, was unexpectedly identified as being in a flood zone by federal authorities.

“It goes without saying that I was stunned,” Pat Nulty said. “We’ve never had any flooding problems and, as far as I know, none of our neighbors have had any either.”

The Nulty family and 50 additional property owners were notified of the Federal Emergency Management Agency flood map change by a letter from Aaron Anderson, Ely’s city administrator.

“I first learned of the change in December 2008,” Anderson explained. “I didn’t alert the residents right away, because I didn’t fully understand what the notice from FEMA meant to the residents and the town. I spent about two months trying to get more information, so that I could help the residents figure out what to do next.”

The Flood Map Modernization Program

Since 1978, FEMA has been charged with producing maps that detail geographic areas at risk for flooding. The maps, which identify areas at highest risk for flood, indicate which property owners should be required to carry flood insurance and also where communities should locate key facilities such as schools, hospitals and emergency services for disaster planning purposes.

FEMA, which is now under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, came under scrutiny by the department’s inspector general for not maintaining and updating maps. The report, filed in 2005, stated that “70 percent of the maps” were “more than 10 years old” and “hand-drawn” and “difficult to update.” Because the maps have not kept up with construction developments and local improvements, the inspector general summarized that the maps have “generally [been] rendered inaccurate and obsolete.”

The highly critical report was filed two years after FEMA embarked on a six-year program to modernize and digitize its flood mapping program. The program, which nearly all agencies and lawmakers agree is needed, is hampered by severe underfunding. The budget of $1.5 billion is less than half of what the Association of State Flood Plain Managers estimated in August 2005 was needed.

While the program has been criticized for poor management, oversight and contractor performance, most of those woes can be traced back to FEMA embarking on an unprecedented program without an adequate budget. As a consequence, the agency has used “best available” data to make flood zone designations. Unfortunately, the “best available” data is often old, out-dated and without precise topographical details.

To add to the confusion, the rules regarding what constitutes a flood zone have changed. Previously only waterways that had at least two-square-mile watershed were considered. Currently FEMA looks at waterways with a one-square-mile (640 acres) or larger watershed to make a flood zone designation.

Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Despite the use of questionable data to create new flood maps, the preliminary FEMA designation is considered valid unless local authorities or residents band together to disprove it.

“I understand what FEMA is attempting to do,” said Pat Nulty. “I can’t disagree with its importance, but I think they should be using the most accurate and up-to-date information possible to draw these new maps.”

Inaccurate flood maps may cause property owners to be mistakenly identified, which places significant current and future regulatory restrictions on property. In addition, property owners and local facilities erroneously omitted from flood maps could be in unknowing risk.

Once a preliminary FEMA designation has been made, local authorities have a short period of time to appeal it. Homeowners have no appeal process, but can band together to pay for a survey that could change the flood boundaries. FEMA’s technical review fee is $4,800, but homeowners would also need to have a flood study done by a licensed engineer, which typically costs several thousand dollars.

Believing that a mistake had been made in Ely, Nulty worked with the other residents in his Southbrook subdivison, city officials and the subdivision developer to present FEMA with accurate information. Developer Keith Schulte submitted a three-page bulleted list to the agency, outlining the history and surveying of Southbrook. The list included details of “significant channel improvements” that had been made to Southbrook Creek between 2000 and 2001, evidence of out-dated topographic maps showing 5-foot increments, and information on storm water easements.

“I would not have believed this could happen in this country,” Schulte wrote in correspondence with FEMA. “As a federal agency, FEMA’s emphasis should be more about accurate mapping and advising homeowners of realistic flooding potential than about generating maximum low risk flood insurance premium dollars by publishing ‘estimated’ flood maps that they know are statistically flawed.”

While Schulte’s comments on generating flood insurance premiums might seem far-fetched, the National Flood Insurance Program has been stretched thin. The 2005 claims resulting from hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma alone far surpassed the total of roughly $15 billion in claims that had been paid during the entire history of the program. One way for the government to recoup losses is to generate a larger insurance premium base.

For their part, Ely property owners met and began pooling money to fund their own engineering survey, but, before that process was complete, FEMA agreed a mistake had been made.

“Based on results of … re-evaluation of the contributing watershed drainage area, combined with discussions with a local developer pertaining to more accurate and recent topographical data, it has been decided that the new Zone A along an unnamed tributary to Hoosier Creek in the City of Ely will be removed from the preliminary map,” wrote Rick Nusz, an engineer with FEMA.

Not An Isolated Incident

FEMA is in the process of modernizing flood maps in roughly 56 Iowa counties, with 15 counties already completed. Currently, the city of Atkins, near Cedar Rapids, is investigating a new flood designation that has impacted roughly 40 property owners. In nearby Belle Plain, at least two property owners have discovered they have been placed in a flood plain.

“Benton and Linn aren’t the only counties that have been getting new flood maps — and they aren’t the only counties that will be given new maps before this process is over,” said Bill Cappuccio with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Flood Plain Development Program.

“In the case of Ely and Atkins, they were presented with flood zones that had never existed prior to the map updates. That was because the criteria changed for drainage, for when FEMA would and would not map a stream. But in other places we have people questioning how the flood plain became so large, or how it expanded into a certain area. In those cases, it most often has to do with the approximate nature of the maps.”

Communities that have detailed ground surveys completed will likely see few surprises in the re-mapping process so long as FEMA is given access to that information, according to Cappuccio.

“Right now the state of Iowa is trying to collect 2-foot interval contour maps for the entire state,” he said. “That’s being done by using light detection and ranging methods, with the end goal of having two-foot topographical maps for the state.”

Most Iowa counties, even the larger ones, don’t have topographical maps that are accurate to that degree. The Linn County maps used to make preliminary flood maps in Ely, for example, were likely 5-foot intervals or greater. The Benton County maps were at least 10-foot intervals, likely a decade or older U.S. Geological Survey maps.

“The better your topography, the better your approximation,” Cappuccio explained. “In the case of Iowa, much of the approximation that’s been done to this point was done using 1960s- and 1970s-era [U.S. Geological Survey], 10- and 20-foot interval, contour maps. … But, where there is updated information, FEMA is using it.”

While there is little counties and communities can do before FEMA releases new preliminary maps, Cappuccio encourages any individuals with questions regarding new flood designations to contact him and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

“It’s not like every community that’s going to be mapped by FEMA is saying, ‘Oh no. We are going to be mapped by FEMA and we know it’s going to be bad.’ So, you don’t want to over-react on the belief that you’re going to be subject to a map that isn’t based in reality,” he said. “There are communities that have gone through this process and realize that the maps created showed areas that have historically flooded.

“That being said, if a community believes that they have a map that is not accurate, then they need to do everything they can to come up with data that shows the inaccuracies in terms of topography and in terms of surveys and studies.”

These shortcomings have not gone unnoticed by one Iowa congressman

In the wake of the House’s approval of the National Defense Authorization Act recently, Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, who serves on the House Armed Service Committee, met with Iowa National Guard officers at the Iowa City Readiness Center May 24 to assess the readiness levels of the Guard. Because of the continued presence in Iraq, National Guard units, on average, have only 63 percent of their required equipment.The bill authorizes nearly $2 billion for unfunded readiness initiatives and authorizes $800 million to provide the National Guard and Reserve with critically needed equipment. Additionally, it protects our troops in harm’s way by authorizing $2.6 billion for additional Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, $947 million for additional Up-Armored Humvees, and $783 million for the continued procurement and enhancement of personal body armor.

“Clearly, there is a shortfall and we are trying to remedy this situation. The idea is to get up to 75 percent of what the Guard needs over the course of the next two years,” Loebsack said. “Our National Guard is doing a fantastic job. We’ve seen a change in operations as far as the mission with the Guard is concerned, and they are really picking up the slack and doing great things overseas.”

Shifting the role of the Guard

Brig. Gens. Mark Zirkelbach of the Army National Guard and Doug Pierce of the Iowa Air National Guard cited the Guard’s shift of operation as the biggest challenge threatening readiness.

“The Guard has changed since the Global War on Terror began,” Zirkelbach (pictured left) said. “We’ve moved from what we called a strategic reserve, which would deploy only once, until the draft kicked in and help proved the adequate manpower needed to be fully operational.

“This is how we died it in WW II, Korea, and Vietnam,” Zirkelbach said. “Today, we have an all-volunteer force, which is an operational force, meaning, instead of relying on a draft, Guard members will serve multiple deployments to help replenish manpower.”

Echoing Zirkelbach’s assessment, Pierce (pictured right) said: “We are matching and doing the same mission at the same rate as the active-duty members. We have good equipment; it’s just that we are using it more often and wearing it out at a faster rate.

“The problem has come to the surface now because of our continued rotations,” Pierce said. “We’ve been going overseas since 1996, but recent deployments have put more of a strain on our equipment and personnel.”

Moreover, Pierce said, one of the biggest challenges the Guard faces is keeping pace with the operation’s tempo and subsequent wear-and-tear on the equipment. “We are using more equipment and using equipment more often, so it tends to wear out faster,” Pierce said. “We need recapitalization and new acquisition of the airplanes and equipment we already possess.”

Taking care of the troops

Another aspect facing the Guard’s readiness is the impact the current wars have had and will have on the troops, their families, their employers and recruitment of new members. “We also need to have more people in the Guard, too,” Loebsack said. “They’re doing a great job recruiting, but beyond that we need to be concerned with the troops’ physical and mental health as well.”

Regarding enlistment, Zirkelbach said: “We will enlist more people this month than will separate from the service. The Iowa Guard will grow this month.”

Sharing equipment

The recently passed appropriations won’t go into effect until next year, so in the meantime, the Guards will have to use alternative means to procure equipment for their deployment needs.

“The shortages in the Air Guard aren’t as prevalent as they are in the Army Guard,” Pierce said. “However, I do foresee future issues regarding our current F-16s in Des Moines. They are older models, and because we are using them more frequently, I can see them wearing out much sooner.

“One way to address concern is by sharing equipment and planes with other units in Madison, Wis., and Great Falls, Mont.,” Pierce said. “We’ve been doing this long enough, so we have a pretty good checklist of what equipment impacts the unit the least when sent over to help the troops in the theater.”

Moreover, Zirkelbach said that units that have been alerted for deployment are receiving equipment through procurement and that if the procurements aren’t sufficient enough, then states are cross-leveling equipment to these units. “For example, we are moving some of our weapon systems, night-vision equipment and some vehicles to help other states satisfy their equipment needs,” Zirkelbach said.

Vehicles parked in the motor pool of the 109th Medical Batallion in Iowa City await next deployment orders

Zirkelbach, however, is concerned that units don’t have the proper equipment to train with before deployment, nor do they have enough full-time support to keep day-to-day operations functioning effectively and efficiently. “In order to generate readiness, we really need the equipment now in order to prepare, train and support our troops for the mission they will be conducting,” Zirkelbach said. “Our full-time manning is currently less than what is required, thus creating additional work loads in providing readiness in Iowa and helping provide other states with what they need for deployment.”

Minding the home front

Given the number of weather-related disasters Iowa has faced in recent years, namely flooding and tornadoes, concerns have mounted as to whether the Guard will be prepared to adequately and efficiently handle these situations when they arise.

“We need vehicles for support and communication equipment to help speed up our response time,” Zirkelbach said. “We’ve had up to 50 percent of the Guard deployed over the last five years and we’ve managed to respond to every significant weather-related event. It has not been an issue during this time and we don’t perceive this will be a problem in the immediate future.”

According to the AP: "White House hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday defended her vote against an Iraq war funding bill, saying she believes President Bush will begin withdrawing troops from Iraq soon." Clinton said Bush's mentioning of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group report was "a big signal that starting in the fall and toward the end of the year we're going to start seeing troops withdrawn from Iraq."

Atrios hits the nail on the head. "Not going to happen," he writes. "Please stop the fantasy about Bush ending this."

He's right. George Bush is not going to let the war end on his watch. That would be a defeat for him. This statement by Clinton means that she is either sorely lacking in political skills or she's incredibly foolish and still does not understand this president.

I'm guessing the former. Clinton is smart; she cannot honestly believe that Bush intends to end this war anytime soon. But she's still having trouble with the political issue of Iraq. Clinton placed third in the latest Des Moines Register poll of likely Democratic caucus goers. In a recent interview, Register columnist David Yepsen said that “Clinton’s got problems,” because Iowa Democrats "are not happy with her handling of the war in Iraq. They want her to apologize for her vote.”

I documented this nearly four months ago – and obviously I'm not the only one — but it says something that the story still hasn't changed. If Clinton continues to fumble like this on Iraq, it's clear that she is going to do very poorly in the Iowa Caucuses.