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Iowa Legislature checks off boxes needed for adjournment

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March 27th, 2016 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Legislature has checked off several boxes that are needed to agree on a state budget and reach adjournment this session.The completed tasks include deals on taxes, K-12 education and what’s actually available to spend for the fiscal year that begins in July. Lawmakers could adjourn the session on schedule in April, a stark contrast to last year when they extended it into June amid disagreement over education funding.

Lawmakers appear to agree there’s about $7.35 billion available for the next budget, and about $176 million in new dollars. Legislative leaders agree most of that new money will go to K-12 education, but they haven’t released information about where the rest should go. Issues like Medicaid oversight, funding for water quality initiatives and medical marijuana remain in limbo.