DES MOINES, Iowa — Weeks after the governor’s education bill was released and two weeks since she teased AEA changes, lawmakers and families are still waiting to see the final proposal from Gov. Kim Reynolds.
The governor tweeted out on Monday a chart of the changes she is making to the bill. There is not an official amendment filed on the House or Senate version of the bill. But there are subcommittees on the legislation taking place on Wednesday in both chambers.
“Listen, we’re going to let the legislative process work out. I’ve done my own homework on this, I believe, in the last few months prepared for this discussion,” said Iowa State Senator Ken Rozenboom, (R) District 19, Oskaloosa. “I continue to believe and I’m convinced the governor was on track in the sense that the process, the system, which is 50-years-old, is administratively heavy and performance light. That’s been the premise I’ve worked from and I think we’re largely in agreement with the governor on that.”
Rozenboom said he is ready to see the amendment and continue his work on the education committee. He also said that at a school board meeting he attended in his home district, a lot of people were speaking and begging for AEA special education funding to not be taken away. Rozenboom reiterated that those funds will not or have not ever been an option to take away.