DES MOINES -- Iowa Gov. Chet Culver on Friday said the Legislature could make some key changes during a special legislative session late this summer to help Iowans with storm rebuilding efforts.

"We can do some very practical things quickly," Culver said during a taping of Iowa Public Television's "Iowa Press."

Culver said the Legislature could allow storm victims hundreds more dollars each in assistance by adjusting the state individual assistance program.

The income-based program allowed disaster victims up to $3,300 prior to July 1, but starting on that date, the program could award victims as much as $4,000, he said.

Culver said the Legislature could adjust the program to retroactively grant the $4,000 maximum to citizens who took storm damage as early as May 25, the date of the storm that produced deadly tornadoes that devastated Parkersburg and other northeast Iowa communities.

The legislature also could waive requirements that cities match the funding it receives from government agencies for recovery, he said.

Culver said Thursday that he likely won't call the Legislature back into session until after the Rebuild Iowa Commission assesses the damage and makes recommendations on how to proceed in a report due Sept. 2.

Culver said the commission's report also will influence whether the state will dip into its emergency reserves to cover the costs of recovery.

He said the reserves now contain $620 million, which leaves the state in a stronger financial position than in 1993 when the state experienced similar flooding but had only $48 million in its cash reserves.

He insisted that the costs of rebuilding won't force him to abandon some of the spending priorities he's pursued since his election in 2006, such as alternative energy, higher teacher pay and early childhood education.

"Our fiscal house is in order," he said. "We'll be able to both protect and fund our priorities and honor our commitments that we made - and have sufficient resources to deal with the challenges related to the flooding."

Culver will depart on a trip to Washington, D.C., Tuesday to meet with federal and Congressional officials about funding for flood relief programs.

He said the response he gets from Washington will help determine if the state will buy devastated property to keep citizens from building on that land in case of future flooding.

Contact Fred Love at (515) 243-0138 or fred.love@lee.net.