From Rep. Sharon Steckman –
The pages and the clerks are going home, but the legislators will continue to meet.
Much remains to be done. The primary function of the Iowa Legislative body is to set the budget for the coming fiscal year. Not only have we not agreed on allowable growth for school funding, we have yet to see the budget bills for Administration and Regulation, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Economic Development, Health and Human Services, and the Justice System.
It is my assumption that we will remain on call over the next few month to return to the Capitol in order to vote on these issues at such time as the majority party is ready to bring them to the floor.
Meanwhile, today was the last day for schools to issue pink slips. As of Monday of this week, over 1000 teaching positions will either not be filled or the current teacher was given a pink slip. Sad day!
Other points concerning the current House budget for Education:
• The House majority party released more details of their budget this week and the news is not good for students at Iowa’s K-12 schools, community colleges, or state universities. Their plan for education will shortchange our kids from the early years through higher education.
• While still refusing to end the school funding crisis, their budget plans for K-12 schools will roll back efforts to catch kids falling behind on reading in the early years. They also want to delay support for schools with a high number of kids in poverty and even eliminate funding for a teacher mentoring initiative they passed just a few years ago.
• The Majority Party is also putting higher education out of reach for many working families. Even though Iowa already has some of the highest community college tuition rates in the country, their plan offers zero new dollars next year, which will raise tuition for students.
• They’ve also talked a good game all year about another tuition freeze at Iowa’s three state universities but refuse to provide any additional investment from the state to get the job done. They have even cut back support for low-income students to be able to attend college and be successful.
• The House budget for Education is $44.9 million below even the Governor’s and $48.3 million below the Senate.
Other news in a nutshell:
• Iowa became the first state in the nation to pass a bill that allows adult children to see their parents, even if they are not the legal guardian.
• A new poll out this week found Iowans are solidly opposed to Governor Branstad’s plan to privatize management of Iowa’s Medicaid health insurance program and close two state mental health institutes.
• House Majority leaders refused to bring up the bi-partisan anti-bullying bill again this week.
• The state’s watchdog is raising new questions about Governor Branstad’s plan to privatize management of Medicaid. Currently, the Iowa Ombudsman’s Office investigates complaints from Iowans, but it does not have the authority to conduct investigations into a private firm.
• After approval by the Iowa Senate, House Speaker Kraig Paulsen said he will not allow the medical cannabis bill to come up for a vote. The bill is designed to help Iowans suffering from chronic diseases like epilepsy or cancer.
