Advocating for Benton Community Schools and Public Schools Across Iowa

On Wednesday I will be joining superintendents from across the State of Iowa at the State Capitol in an effort to advocate for PK-12 public schools in Iowa.  The legislative session has entered its fourth week and the first funnel date for bills is set for Friday, February 16th.  This is the final date for Senate bills to be reported out of Senate Committees and House bills out of House Committees.

As patrons of the school district, I believe it is important that you are aware of the legislative priorities that have been set by the Benton Community Board of Education as well as the Iowa Association of School Boards.  Below are the legislative priorities for this 2018 session:


1. Supports continued progress in the development of rigorous content standards and benchmarks that reflect the real-world knowledge and skills students need to graduate from high school prepared for college or to enter the workforce.

2. Supports increased statewide access to and funding for mental health services for children.

3. Supporting predictable and timely state funding to serve students receiving special education services at a level that reflects the actual costs including educational programming and health care costs.

4. Supports a school foundation formula that:

• Provides sufficient and timely funding to meet education goals; 
• Equalizes per pupil funding; and 
• Provides a funding mechanism for transportation costs that reduces the pressure on the general fund and addresses inequities between school districts. This is particularly significant for the Benton Community School District. 

5. Supports setting supplemental state aid for FY 2019, by January 31, 2018; and for FY 2020 and future budget years, at least 14 months prior to the certification of the school’s district budgets; and at a rate that sufficiently supports local districts’ efforts to plan, create and sustain world-class schools

6. Supports repeal of the December 31, 2029 sunset on the statewide penny sales tax for school infrastructure.