(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds is calling for another reduction in Iowa’s personal income tax and a 50 percent increase in the salary for first-time teachers. Reynolds delivered the annual “Condition of the State” address last (Tuesday) night and outlined her priorities for legislators. The governor proposes a 50-thousand dollar starting salary for Iowa’s rookie teachers.

“We want younger Iowans to see the teaching profession as something to aspire to. It’s one of the highest callings one can have,” Reynolds said. “so let’s make sure that teacher pay sends that message.” The governor says state law should require a minimum salary of 62-thousand dollars for teachers with at least a dozen years of experience. “These investments will put Iowa in the top five states for starting pay and help recruit more of the best and brightest to join the teaching profession,” she said. Reynolds is proposing two tax cuts. Businesses would pay half as much per employee into the state fund that finances unemployment benefits.

“Instead of paying money into the government these businesses can create more jobs, increase salaries or reinvest into their communities,” Reynolds said. And Reynolds proposes deeper cuts in the state’s personal income tax — a retroactive cut to January 1st of this year and lowering the rate to three-and-a-half percent in 2025.

View from the House balcony of Governor Reynolds delivering the 2024 Condition of the State Address. (RI photo)

“You know it wouldn’t be a Condition of the State address without me talking about your money or, as the government calls it, taxes,” Reynolds said near the end of her speech. “…Let’s not hestitate. Let’s stick to the approach we established in 2018 and allow Iowans to keep more of their money.” The governor is proposing a major overhaul of the nine Area Education Agencies.

“While some of our AEAs are doing great work, others are underperforming,” she said. Iowa spends more than the national average to educate students with disabilities, but their test scores are below average.  “No system, however long-standing, is above reform,” Reynolds said. She proposes ending training and other education services from the A-E-As and making special education their only focus. School districts would no longer have to forward special education funding to the A-E-As and could choose to hire their own staff, contract with a private firm or pay the A-E-A for special ed services.

“We’re not reducing special education funding by one dime,” Reynolds said. “We are simply giving control of the funding to those who work directly with your child on a daily basis and taking special education off autopilot.”

The governor covered a number of other topics in last (Tuesday) night’s speech. Reynolds is asking lawmakers to tighten rules that forbid foreign ownership of more than 320 acres of farmland, to force disclosure if foreign interests are part of companies that own farmland. She’s also renewed her request that lawmakers extend Medicaid coverage for new moms for a full year. The limit for post-pregnancy check-ups is currently 60 days for women who qualify for government-paid insurance.

(Radio Iowa) G-O-P leaders in the legislature say cutting taxes is a goal they share with Governor Reynolds, but it’s unclear if the tax plan she outlined in her annual address to lawmakers will sail through the House and Senate. House Speaker Pat Grassley says his first impression is the governor has made reasonable recommendations, but he says House Republicans will examine the full impact over the next two years.

“I like the agenda she laid out when it comes to tax policy,” Grassley says, “and we look forward to fully engaging as we see what those out years look like.” Last year, Senate Republicans proposed a bill to eliminate the state income tax by the end of this decade, but Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver says the governor’s plan for a three-and-a-half percent flat income tax rate by 2025 may be an interim step.

“The goal is to get to zero in the state of Iowa,” Whitver says. “Whether we get here in year one (or) year 10, we don’t know, but taking another step forward is certainly progress that we appreciate.” House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst  says about half a million Iowans do not owe any income taxes to the state — and the proposed cuts don’t help them. “We didn’t hear anything tonight about affordable housing, about child care, about utilities,” Konfrst said. “Costs are more about income taxes.”

House Speaker Pat Grassley says there’s interest in both parties in the governor’s plan to raise teacher salaries. “The governor’s been very clear over the last several months that was going to be something she wanted to look at as we came into the legislative session,” Grassley says. “I think you’re going to see a lot of interest in wanting to do something when it comes to getting us into those higher levels.” Konfrst says Democrats have for years supported raising teacher salaries, but they need more details.

“We have a lot of questions, of course,” Konfrst says. “We want to know about the paraprofessionals and other professionals in the school, some of whom are earning less than $10 an hour.” Whitver says Senate Republicans are interested in setting a higher minimum salary for beginning teachers and they’ll see how the governor’s proposal fits in the overall state budget. Reynolds says her teacher pay plan has a 96 million dollar price tag.

MARSHALLTOWN – The Iowa Dept. of Corrections reports Justin Richard Stauffer, who was convicted of Burglary 1st Degree and Interference with Official Acts in Cerro Gordo County, failed to report back to the Marshalltown Residential Center as required yesterday (Monday).

Justin Richard Stauffer

Stauffer is a 37-year-old Hispanic male, height 6’1″, and weighs 221 pounds. He was admitted to the work release facility on November 28, 2023.

Persons with information on Stauffer’s whereabouts should contact local police.

The following is a Press Release from the Fort Dodge (IA) Police Department:

(Radio Iowa) – Following the deadly shootings at Perry High School, U-S Senator Chuck Grassley is renewing an appeal to his colleagues to pass a bill which he says would help to make schools nationwide safer. Grassley says his “heart goes out” to everyone who’s been impacted by last week’s gun violence.  “I’m joining Iowans across the state grieving such devastating loss of life,” Grassley says. “I also wish principal Dan Marburger a full recovery. He heroically put his life on the line to protect staff and students.”

Grassley says he introduced legislation following the Valentine’s Day shootings in 2018 at a high school in Parkland, Florida, that left 17 people dead, another 17 injured. “The EAGLES Act would expand the Secret Service’s threat assessment program to schools,” Grassley says. “For decades, this framework has enabled the Secret Service to recognize signs that individuals may be at risk of harming themselves and others.”

The bill is named after the Parkland school mascot. Grassley says accurate behavioral threat assessments and early interventions are key to maintaining a safe environment in schools. He adds, the Secret Service is uniquely equipped to help evaluate such threats, and the bill would enable them to share their tools and expertise with schools across the country.

“Schools threat assessment training could help address the mental health issues impacting people nationwide,” Grassley says. “It would improve preparedness and strengthen intervention capabilities. Intervention is so important.”

The shootings last Thursday at Perry High left an 11-year-old dead and seven other people wounded. Authorities say the 17-year-old gunman took his own life.