If you earned $50,000 or less in 2011, you can receive free tax preparation. You also may be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Child Tax Credit and e-Filing. Meet with an IRS-certified tax preparer at a United Way tax site near you. Call 2-1-1 to make an appointment, or to find out more about this service.

Through April 6, individual Iowans, businesses and organizations may apply for the state’s Environmental Excellence Awards. These awards recognize leadership and innovation in protecting and conserving our natural resources and environment. For complete details and an application, go to www.iowadnr.gov/Environment/IowaEnvironmentalAwards.aspx.

A $25 billion federal-state accord has been reached over mortgage foreclosure abuses, fraud and unacceptable mortgage practices.

The proposed agreement provides an estimated $40 million in direct relief to Iowa homeowners and addresses future mortgage loan servicing practices. Highlights of the agreement include:

• Iowa borrowers will receive an estimated $5,899,449 in benefits from loan term changes.
• Iowa borrowers who lost their home to foreclosure from January 1, 2008, through December 31, 2011, and encountered servicing abuse would qualify for $7,402,512 in payments to borrowers.
• The value of refinanced loans to Iowa’s underwater borrowers would be an estimated $11,602,880.
• The state will receive a direct payment of $15,330,480, which will be used for the Iowa Mortgage Help Hotline, housing counseling, Iowa Legal Aid, future enforcement, and agreement implementation and monitoring.
• The settlement does not grant any immunity from criminal offenses and will not affect criminal prosecutions or prevent homeowners or investors from pursuing individual, institutional or class-action civil cases.

More information will be made available as the settlement is implemented. To find out what kind of help you may be eligible for, go to www.nationalforeclosuresettlement.com/help or call the Iowa Mortgage Helpline at 1-877-622-4866. For further details on the proposed agreement, visit www.IowaAttorneyGeneral.gov.

Governor Branstad has signed into law legislation that the Senate unanimously approved last year. Senate File 93 toughens the penalty for domestic abuse that includes strangulation or choking.

Choking is one of the most common forms of domestic abuse. It’s an intentional act, and often indicates more deadly domestic assaults in the future. That’s why states are cracking down on choking.

Under current Iowa law, abusers often get just a slap on the wrist, spending little or no time in jail. With this legislation, we’re sending a message to abusers: you will be punished and held accountable.

To continue Iowa’s recovery from the national recession, we must invest in our workforce and economy. Our state is known for quality education and a highly skilled works, but we can’t afford to move backward when the jobs of tomorrow require more training than ever.

As we hammer out the state budget, education is the biggest area of difference between the Iowa House and the Senate. The budget proposed by House Republicans will shut down worker training programs, eliminate economic growth initiatives, and price Iowa’s middle-class families out of a college education.

House Republicans seek to cut $31 million from our state universities. To keep college affordable for middle-class Iowa students, I support a $27 million increase for the University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State and the University of Iowa. Our nationally recognized universities not only educate our future workers and business leaders, but they are economic engines in their own right.

In the Senate, we’ve unanimously approved a bill to give more than 260,000 Iowa households a boost in their state tax return, including the families of 37 percent of Iowa’s children.

Boosting the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) supports working families, places value on raising children and puts money into local economies. That’s why we made raising Iowa’s EITC our first priority for tax reform this year.

Senate File 2161 is a $54 million tax cut that increases Iowa’s EITC from 7 percent of the federal EITC to 13 percent in the 2012 tax year, 15 percent in 2013 and to 20 percent in 2014.

Republican and Democratic legislators and many experts agree that Earned Income Tax Credit is one of the best anti-poverty programs in the nation. Iowa is one of only six states that taxes families earning less than poverty-level wages, which is one reason the United Way of Iowa has made increasing the state EITC a high priority.

State government is a partner with our public universities in promoting excellence in teaching, research and services to Iowans. Part of that job means keeping a watchful eye to ensure our public universities are accountable and good stewards of taxpayer dollars.

Unfortunately, over the last three decades, there has been a steady decline in state funding for higher education. Today, the state provides less than 36 percent of general education funding. Tuition has risen to the point where students pick up 58 percent of the cost. To keep college affordable, we need to reverse this trend.

This week, Iowa’s university presidents asked for a $20 million increase in funding, an amount that would still put university funding below 2010 levels. Community college funding is also in the doldrums, according to a report by the Iowa Fiscal Partnership (http://tinyurl.com/6pe6q9m).

If new legislation becomes law, more than 260,000 Iowa households could see an increase in their state tax return, including the families of 37 percent of Iowa’s children.

The Senate Ways & Means Committee has approved Senate Study Bill 3116 to increase Iowa’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from 7 percent of the federal EITC to 13 percent.

Last year, the Iowa Legislature twice approved a similar tax cut for Iowa’s working families, once by unanimous votes in the Iowa Senate and the Iowa House. Governor Branstad, however, vetoed the legislation twice.

This week in the Senate, we approved a 4 percent increase in basic state support for local schools for the 2013-2014 school year. These funds are used for textbooks, heating bills, technology and other necessities required for students and teachers to be successful.

For years, the Legislature has set state support for local schools well in advance. The practice helps school districts plan wisely, and, to echo Governor Branstad, helps make budgeting more predictable, stable and sustainable.

Iowa’s state budget has recovered from the national recession to the point that we have a billion dollars in the bank. After several tough years, it is time to ensure our local schools recover as well.

This year, the state budget must help Iowa workers and businesses recovering from the national recession. That means doing all we can to encourage new jobs.

The plan we’re working on in the Senate balances the state budget without raising taxes. It includes:

• A commercial property tax cut that is especially helpful to Iowa’s small businesses and communities.
• New workforce training opportunities to help Iowans fill skilled job openings.
• Strengthening our commitment to student achievement through increased support for local schools.
• A pro-family, pro-work tax cut that also boosts local economies.

These ideas will help create jobs, expand educational opportunity and make Iowa a more attractive place to do business. Do you have ideas for growing the Iowa economy? Please send them my way!

The Iowa Transportation Commission has approved funding for projects from Iowa’s Clean Air attainment program. The program was created to reduce transportation-related congestion and air pollution. Projects in my Senate district include:

• The City of Des Moines: $240,000 for the first phase of the Downtown Bicycle Plan program implementation.
• The City of Des Moines: T $200,000 for a traffic observation camera system.
• The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority: $250,434 for Route #7 service improvements and $63,617 for Route #11 service improvements.
• West Des Moines: $306,400 for a traffic adaptive signal control system.

The Iowa Economic Development Authority has announced that Des Moines will receive $50,000 in a grant to restore the 6th Avenue Corridor. This “Challenge Grant” is funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This project will be valuable for economic development and historic preservation in West Branch.

Congratulations to Gordon Neumann from Des Moines on his recent appointment to the Iowa Capital Investment Board and to Kristine Hennings from Des Moines on her appointment to the Vocational Rehabilitation Council. Iowa’s boards and commissions help advise the Legislature and Governor on issues of statewide importance.

This week the Iowa Senate approved $8.5 million in additional funding for the Iowa Department of Corrections. The money will address urgent needs at prisons and community-based corrections facilities across the state. At issue are staff shortages that could threaten public safety, as well as the safety of prisoners and correction officers.

Help for my district from Senate File 2071 includes additional resources of $310,675 for Community-Based Corrections in the Fifth Judicial District. The legislation now goes to the Iowa House.

The first bill passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor this year will help our National Guard soldiers get the college tuition assistance they were promised.

When we learned that the dollars available for the Iowa National Guard tuition assistance program would fall short because of increased demand among returning soldiers, we invested an additional $1.3 million. The benefit to soldiers at Iowa’s universities will be up to $1,300 per semester in additional aid.

Helping Iowa’s returning soldiers attend college and improve their skills makes a lot of sense. We want these young people qualify for good jobs at good wages and help build a stronger Iowa economy.