DES MOINES – An Iowa Senator on Monday lashed out at Governor Terry Branstad for refusing to back a solution to school funding in this year’s budget despite a law the Governor signed himself mandating that school funding be determined a year in advance.
Letter to the Governor from Senator Brian Schoenjahn of Arlington:
Dear Governor Branstad,
Governor, when it comes to our local schools, you have a big decision to make. Will you be a lawmaker or a lawbreaker?
You can’t be both.
As Iowa’s longest serving Governor, you have signed thousands of pieces of legislation into law. As our state’s chief executive, you are responsible for seeing that Iowa’s laws are enforced.
As we all know, Iowans don’t like it when the people they elect pick and choose the laws they themselves will obey.
The Iowa law you are helping violate is Section 257.8 of the Iowa Code, which you personally signed in 1995.
This law requires local school funding to be decided first when writing the state budget. The Legislature is required to act on local school funding for the next fiscal year within 30 days after the Governor’s budget statement.
This year, Governor, you made no recommendation on allowable growth in your January 14th budget statement. While the Iowa Senate has voted for a 6 percent increase in local school funding, the Republican-controlled Iowa House has failed to act.
Refusing to follow the law shows contempt for Iowa’s laws and for ordinary Iowans. Ordinary Iowans can’t pick and choose which laws they will obey. Ordinary Iowans must follow the law until the law is repealed or changed.
Governor, you’ve tried to defend yourself by saying Democrats did the same thing in 2010 during the depths of the Great Recession. That claim is false, Governor, you know it is false, and Iowa reporters should not let you repeat this falsehood.
Here’s what actually happened when the economy started to collapse in the final months of the Bush Administration. I know because I was then a member of the Senate Education Committee. With the active support of school administrators, school boards and educators across the state, I helped pass a one year suspension of Iowa’s advance school funding law.
That one year suspension was unanimously approved by the Senate, unanimously approved by the House, and then signed by Governor Culver (SF 2045 & SF 2046).
Unlike what you and House Republicans are doing now, we did not break the law.
Recently the Republican leadership of the Iowa House passed legislation to change the law they are currently violating. That’s well and good, but we both know proposed legislation means nothing until is it approved by both chambers and signed by the Governor.
Since returning to office in 2010, Governor, you and House Republicans have repeatedly refused to follow the law on advance school funding. By doing so, you have caused grievous harm to Iowans in two ways.
First, you have harmed the effectiveness of Iowa’s local schools by creating financial uncertainty and failing to invest in education. Under your watch, Iowa has fallen to 37th in the nation in terms of school funding. Iowa’s schoolchildren are being shortchanged even though Iowa’s economy is growing and the state’s reserve funds have never been larger.
Second, you are undermining the rule of law and respect in government by claiming Iowa laws don’t apply to Iowa lawmakers.
Governor, I call on you to uphold your oath of office by demanding that Republican lawmakers obey the law and put Iowa education first.
Sincerely,
Senator Brian Schoenjahn
Arlington
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SF 460 enacted during the 1995 Legislative Session changed to requirement of the establishment of the allowable growth rate.
CHAPTER 11
SCHOOL FINANCE – STATE PERCENT OF GROWTH FOR 1996-1997 AND FUTURE BUDGET YEARS
AN ACT relating to the establishment of the state percent of growth for purposes of the state school foundation program and providing an effective and applicability date provision.
Be It Enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Iowa:
Section 1
11 Section 1. Section 257.8, subsection 1, Code 1995, is amended to read as follows:
1. STATE PERCENT OF GROWTH. The state percent of growth for the budget year beginning July 1, 1996, is three and three-tenths percent. The state percent of growth for each subsequent budget year shall be established by statute which shall be enacted within thirty days of the submission the year preceding the base year of the governor’s budget under section 8.21. The establishment of the state percent of growth for a budget year shall be the only subject matter of the bill which enacts the state percent of growth for a budget year.
Sec. 2
11Sec. 2. Notwithstanding the subject matter restriction in section 257.8, subsection 1, it is the intent of the general assembly that with enactment of this Act that the technology/school improvement program will be in existence and funds will be appropriated for the program for school districts and area education agencies for the school budget year beginning July 1, 1996.
Sec. 3
11Sec. 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 1996, for school budget years beginning after that date.
Approved March 28, 1995
