The Iowa Senate passed a measure Tuesday providing a 1.75% increase in per-pupil funding for K-12 schools, a move Democrats and education advocates said will force schools to cut more staff and programs.
The Senate passed Senate File 2201 in a 28-20 vote. Three Republicans, Sens. Charlie McClintock, Jeff Taylor and Cherielynn Westrich, joined all Democrats in voting against the measure.
In addition to the settling the State Supplemental Aid (SSA) rate at 1.75% — lower than the governor’s proposal of 2% — the bill provides an additional $5 per pupil to the rate. According to a fiscal note from the Legislative Services Agency, this would raise Iowa’s per-pupil funding from $7,988 in the current fiscal year to $8,133 in FY 2027.
While Senate Republicans said the proposal gave a boost to K-12 education funding, Democrats said it critically underfunds school districts, and will worsen staff shortages and program cuts happening in public school districts across the state. Sen. Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames, pointed to the Boone Community School District’s decision in January to end its 100-year-old orchestra program, which school board officials attributed to declining enrollment and state funding.
Quirmbach also shared comments from school officials and teachers who had contacted him with stories about how budget cuts have resulted in staff reductions, larger class sizes and fewer educational support staff for students with special needs.
“We can talk about the dollars a lot — and the monies that have been diverted to private schools, that’s a very serious concern — but our focus needs to be on the welfare of the children,” Quirmbach said. “Because that’s what education is all about, is educating kids, giving them the knowledge, giving them the skills, so that when they graduate, they can go on to further education, or they can go into the workforce … They need that education to put them in that position. But they’re not getting it. They’re not going to get it with this bill. And it’s not just the students who are being shortchanged, it’s all of Iowa.”
Senators spar over ESA effect
Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-West Des Moines, also highlighted the cuts in Boone schools, telling families in the district, “you are getting your orchestra program cut because the majority party wants to ensure that the richest Iowans can send their kids to elite private schools on your tax dollar and then take another European vacation.”
Sen. Jesse Green, R-Harcourt, whose district includes the Boone schools, disputed Democrats’ characterizations of the cuts, saying the district also made staff cuts during periods when Democrats were in control of the Legislature. He said currently, much of the cuts come as the district sees dropping enrollment, including a net 150 students choosing to open enroll outside the district.
“They’ve seen a huge enrollment drop,” Green said. “But you look underneath the surface of that, you look at the per-pupil expenditures, they’re spending — let’s be real — they’re spending $21,896 per student. If that’s not enough, Sen. Quirmbach, then what is? Please, just tell me.”
Both Trone Garriott and Quirmbach, alongside many other Democratic speakers, made references to Iowa’s Education Savings Account (ESA) program that provides public funds for private school tuition and associated costs, as state funding being diverted from public to private education. The minority party members said the ESA program was using funding that could be going to public schools, and specifically criticized the program for not including income restrictions, which were phased out beginning in the 2025-26 school year.
“Going into a second year of more than a $1 billion budget deficit, our public schools, health care for kids with disabilities, IPERS — it is all on the table for cuts,” Trone Garriott, who is running in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, said. “But the one thing, the one thing that the majority party and our governor are going to protect at all costs, is private school vouchers, and it’s coming at the cost of our Iowa kids. And the majority party is OK with that, but I’m not.”
Taylor, who voted against the bill, spoke against Trone Garriott’s comments on the ESA program, saying the families using ESA dollars were not ultra wealthy. He said the majority are middle-class Iowans who choose to send their children to schools that align with their religious beliefs. He said the SSA funding proposal was a separate discussion from the private school scholarship program.
“It isn’t a zero-sum game, and it’s really unfair, in my opinion, to take this divisive role of slandering the parents and the kids who end up getting ESAs to go to Christian schools or other private schools, and blaming them for the way that we choose to fund or educate the kids in the public setting,” Taylor said. “So it may be good politics, but I don’t think it’s honest.”
Sen. Mike Bousselot, R-Ankeny, asked Democrats to file an amendment to increase school funding if they desired, saying, “What we don’t see today from the other side of the aisle … who complained about what they see as a problem is anything close to resembling a solution.” Democratic senators disputed this point, saying that an amendment from the minority party would not have enough votes to pass the chamber where Republicans hold a 33-17 majority.
Teachers’ union seeks 5% hike
Education advocate groups like the Iowa State Education Association have called for a minimum 5% SSA funding increase. In a statement Tuesday, ISEA President Joshua Brown said the Senate’s vote to pass a 1.75% SSA rate “is a functional cut that jeopardizes student opportunities and forces districts to make impossible choices.”
“State aid has consistently failed to keep pace with inflation and the actual cost of operating a school over the past decade,” Brown said. “While our public districts are starving for basic operational funds, the state is siphoning millions from the general fund to bankroll unaccountable private school vouchers. This is general fund money that could have filled the gaps in our public classrooms.”
In Iowa, school districts that do not receive enough state funding to meet their obligations are placed on budget guarantee, increasing local property taxes in order to gain the needed finances. As lawmakers aim to reduce property taxes this session, the SSA bill includes language to provide school districts on budget guarantee with funding from the state general fund in fiscal year 2027 to avoid increasing property taxes.
Though education advocates told lawmakers during the subcommittee meeting they were grateful for this financial support, the $47.7 million in funding for the 208 school districts is a one-time provision, that would not necessarily stop property tax costs from rising in future years. The bill additionally makes changes to the definitions and timelines for calculating enrollment.
The measure moves to the House for further consideration. House Republicans have not yet put forward their education funding proposal for the year, though lawmakers are fast approaching their self-imposed deadline to pass a SSA bill within 30 days of the release of the governor’s budget, this year on Feb. 12.
House Speaker Pat Grassley told reporters Thursday that House Republicans are considering an SSA rate proposal of 2% or higher — more in line with Gov. Kim Reynolds’ proposal than the Senate Republicans.
He said House Republicans are aiming this week to “be in a position where we can start taking action on that.”
