I hope everyone had a great time at Hudson Days last weekend! If you had a chance to see the parade, all the politicians and representatives from the two political parties were probably a great reminder that another election is upon us. As if you didn't need any further reminders, the Republican National Convention is this week in Cleveland and the Democratic National Convention will be next week in Philadelphia. The political ads have started and will only intensify as we get closer to election day. It seems as if even the most novice of political 'junkies' have started to tune in to what has become a very entertaining election cycle. My hope is that as we get closer to election day and passions begin to flair everyone remains calm. Unfortunately we already have too many examples around the country where this hasn't been the case. Nevertheless I am optimistically certain of one point: As has been the case the last two hundred forty years we will have a peaceful transition of power come January. It is the American way!
Our collective attention right now is focused on what is happening with the presidential election. Iowa has always played a special part in the process with our first in the nation caucuses. Adding to the Iowa drama, the last couple of weeks we learned that Senator Joni Ernst was being considered as a vice-presidential candidate for Donald Trump (I believe she took herself out of the running), and now the rumors are circulating that Tom Vilsack is being vetted for a spot on Hillary Clinton's ticket. Senator Ernst didn't get a spot on the ticket, but she did earn a prime time slot for her speech at the convention. While what is happening on the national stage tends to suck all the oxygen out of the room, I don't want anyone to forget the down-ballot races. In my opinion, those who represent us in Des Moines have a far greater likelihood of impacting our daily lives than those in Washington, D. C.
On Monday evening, the Board of Directors completed the annual exercise of selecting what legislative priorities we have for the General Assembly that will begin in January. Those legislative priorities will likely become part of the platform for our advocacy efforts when the delegate assembly meets at the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB) convention in November. Over the next few weeks, I will be discussing these priorities, why they are important to our school, and to ask for your help in our advocacy efforts. There is no mistake, these issues impact your school in a significant way! Further, you have an opportunity to decide how these issues are addressed with your vote in November.
In the coming weeks, you should notice a common theme woven throughout the priorities and narrative that we have identified: adequate financing for our schools. I have written extensively about this topic here, and unfortunately year after year we continue to be the recipients of unpredictable and inadequate basic state aid. Another legislative session has ended in violation of Iowa Code, which requires that supplemental state aid be set within 30 days of the governor releasing his budget. We do not yet know what state aid will be for the fiscal year that begins on July 1, 2017, and if our recent history is any indication it will be deep into the legislative session before that very important question is answered. State aid for the year that just started a mere 20 days ago was decided late as well, and when it finally was resolved it was not enough for some schools to fund their operations. Many of which ended up making some pretty significant budget cuts. This of course comes after the prior legislative session reached a deal late in the calendar, only to have it vetoed after the FY 2016 budget year began.
One oft heard argument during the annual debate over school aid is that we want to ensure schools have both predictable and sustainable school funding. Yet our funding has been anything but predictable the last six years. Truth be told, the only thing predictable about our funding the last half-decade is that it has been late. When our aid does come (to the tune of 1.25% in FY 2016 and 2.25% in FY 2017), it is woefully inadequate. Again, just look around the area at schools that have had to make cuts. Nevertheless, we are reminded that the funding needs to be sustainable. I suppose one could argue that if the bar is set low enough, then it makes it relatively easy to claim victory in the name of sustainability. It is generally at this point where funding models are trotted out that illustrate how revenue isn't meeting expectations.
So then, if you haven't met the candidates yet you probably will. When they come knocking on your door, I encourage you to ask them a couple of questions. What can they do to ensure state aid is settled on time? And even more important: Why do they think revenue isn't meeting expectations.
Then make sure you vote in November--all the way down the ballot.
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