Des Moines, Iowa — House Speaker Pat Grassley says Republicans are having productive conversations and he’s predicting the governor’s school choice bill has the votes to pass the Iowa House.
Governor Kim Reynolds has proposed less expansive plans in the past two years, but each failed to secure enough support among House Republicans to pass.
Her new plan would let low-income parents get state funds to cover expenses if they enroll a child in a private school and starting in 2025, any private school parent could apply. Grassley says the goal now is to take a vote on the governor’s bill next week.
Republicans on the Senate Appropriations Committee advanced the bill yesterday (Thursday), so it’s eligible for debate next week in the Senate, too.
Democrats say legislators should at least wait for the non-partisan Legislative Services Agency to complete its analysis of the bill’s fiscal impact. Senator Claire Celsi, a Democrat from Des Moines, says she doubts the governor’s estimate the plan will cost about 900 million dollars over the next four years.
Other Democrats say the bill doesn’t have enough oversight of the private company that will be hired to distribute the state money to private school parents.
