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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa lawmakers compromised Tuesday on increasing K-12 education spending by 2.25 percent for the upcoming fiscal year, a deal some educators quickly described as insufficient to preventing financial hardship for school districts around the state.
Members of a special committee representing the Democratic-controlled Senate and the Republican-majority House said the deal was the best option, given the limited new dollars available for the upcoming budget.
Rep. Ron Jorgenson, a Sioux City Republican who is co-chair of the designated Conference Committee, said the financial commitment "shows that education funding does remain a priority in Iowa."
Some Democratic lawmakers offered sharp criticism to that assessment, with Sen. Herman Quirmbach, of Ames, saying that the state's several years of tax revenue cuts have slowly diminished available funds.
"The budgetary constraints are a self-inflected wound," said Quirmbach, who chairs the Senate Education Committee.
The state spends about $3 billion total on K-12 education. House Republicans estimate the state will spend about $153 million more than in the current budget, including money for teacher leadership training mandated by state law. Senate Democrats and Gov. Terry Branstad's office later released an estimate closer to about $138.8 million.
Education groups say the proposed funding will not be enough to prevent overcrowded classrooms and potential staffing cuts. The proposal "will continue to starve our schools and force them to make choices that will negatively impact students," Tammy Wawro, president of the Iowa State Education Association, said in a statement.
The legislation will require formal approval in both chambers before Branstad can review it. His spokesman, Ben Hammes, said via email that the compromise "is a step forward for students and schools statewide."
Lawmakers in the split Legislature disagree often over how much money should be set aside for it, in part because they typically calculate available funds differently. The issue was a sticking point last session, and lawmakers worked several weeks past the scheduled adjournment to reach a deal.
At the beginning of this year's session, lawmakers again didn't agree on how much more money should go toward schools — Democrats pushed for 4 percent growth and Republicans sought 2 percent growth. But a panel of state budget experts released data that showed Iowa had lower-than-expected revenue, which helped form a new calculation of legally available funds for the upcoming fiscal year.
That new estimate —roughly $7.5 billion — appeared to help negotiations enter a new phase.
Tom Narak, government relations director for School Administrators of Iowa, said his organization is appreciative that lawmakers didn't drag the issue into summer, but he anticipated schools will be forced to make reductions.
"Obviously it's inadequate," he said. "We really wish the number could have been much higher. We think they could have afforded more money."
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