Education

signed · Iowa · House May 6, 2026

HF 703: A bill for an act concerning information regarding certain state and federal student loan programs.

HF 703, the "Increasing Student Financial Aid Awareness Act," requires Iowa's Student Loan Liquidity Corporation to provide the Bureau of Iowa College Aid with annual estimates of federal direct PLUS loan interest rates and comparisons between state and federal loan terms. The Bureau must analyze this data to determine if Iowa's college family or partnership loans offer lower interest rates than federal PLUS loans. If they do, the Bureau must publish a clear online statement explaining this difference and require all Iowa colleges to include this information in financial aid offers to students. This bill directly affects Iowa students, families, and higher education institutions by improving transparency around loan options and ensuring they receive standardized comparisons of state and federal student loan rates.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationPromotes educational access by informing students of lower-cost state loan options, reducing financial barriers to higher education85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

passed · Iowa · House May 2, 2026

HF 2791: A bill for an act permitting an exchange of the cash reserve levy for another local levy within the school budget for certain school districts to correct for an extreme circumstance and including effective date provisions.

This bill allows certain Iowa school districts to temporarily exceed their usual cash reserve tax limits for the 2026-2027 school year if a single property tax correction caused their taxable value to drop by at least $100 million. To do this, the districts must offset the extra money raised for reserves by reducing other local property taxes, such as the management levy, ensuring the total tax amount remains within legal limits. The process requires the district to notify the Department of Management, which will then adjust the official tax rates to reflect these changes. This measure is designed to help districts maintain financial stability after a significant administrative error in property valuation.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill allows school districts to correct extreme tax valuation drops by temporarily increasing reserve levies, ensuring fiscal stability and protecting school budgets.85% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill allows districts to exceed reserve limits to correct tax drops, ensuring financial stability and protecting school budgets.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Apr 28, 2026

HF 2764: A bill for an act relating to school district budgeting by modifying provisions relating to proposed property tax amounts.

This bill modifies Iowa school district budgeting rules to address timing issues with property tax proposals. It establishes a specific public hearing date no earlier than March 20 of the preceding year, ensuring residents have time to provide testimony before tax amounts are finalized. Under new provisions, if state growth percentages are not set by March 5, school districts must limit their proposed budget growth to match the previous year's rate. Additionally, while most local governments can only lower proposed tax amounts after a public hearing, school districts are granted the ability to increase them if enrollment data or new laws require it. These changes aim to provide clearer timelines and flexibility for school districts during the budget process.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill strengthens school district budgeting by ensuring timely public hearings and preventing arbitrary budget cuts due to delayed state growth percentages, thereby protecting school funding stability.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 30, 2026

HF 2725: A bill for an act relating to education reporting, including the sharing of unit-level wage data for secondary and postsecondary program evaluation, the establishment of the condition of education report, consolidating certain required reports, modifying responsibilities for the future ready Iowa last-dollar scholarship report, modifying Iowa workforce development data-sharing provisions, and creating a return on investment reporting system to be overseen by the Iowa student aid commission.

HF 2725 requires Iowa's Department of Workforce Development to share unit-level wage data (like job titles, earnings, and locations) with the Department of Education for evaluating secondary and postsecondary education programs. It establishes an annual "condition of education report" due April 1 each year, consolidating multiple existing reports, and creates a statewide return on investment (ROI) reporting system overseen by the Iowa Student Aid Commission. Public colleges and universities must submit program-level data - including costs, completion rates, graduate earnings, and job placement - to the Commission for public publication. Institutions failing to comply may lose eligibility for state financial aid programs, though federal aid remains unaffected. The bill directly affects public colleges, students seeking program transparency, and state agencies managing education data.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationEstablishes data-driven reporting systems (condition of education report, ROI tracking) to evaluate program effectiveness and inform education funding decisions, strengthening accountability and outcomes.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 26, 2026

HF 2538: A bill for an act relating to education, including by modifying provisions related to the duties of the department of education, the discipline of students enrolled in school districts, charter schools, and innovation zone schools who exhibit disorderly conduct in the classroom, the responsibilities and powers of the department of education, school district teachers, and other educational staff related to students who have individualized education programs or plans under section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act, and school district professional development plans, and authorizing teachers to request a meeting of a student’s individualized education program team.

HF 2538 modifies Iowa's school performance grading system and student discipline rules. It requires schools to calculate performance grades using metrics like safety efforts (including suspending students for "disorderly conduct" like threats or classroom disruptions), academic growth, attendance, and parental engagement. The bill authorizes teachers to immediately exclude disruptive students from their classrooms and request principal involvement, with specific rules for repeat offenses (e.g., three exclusions in 30 days triggering suspension). It also mandates that charter and innovation zone schools follow the same discipline procedures as traditional school districts and allows teachers to request Individualized Education Program (IEP) team meetings for students with behavioral issues.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationBill mandates suspensions for 'disorderly conduct' and ties school grades to safety metrics, restricting student behavior rather than advancing educational support.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 26, 2026

HF 175: A bill for an act relating to in-state residency for purposes of undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees at regents institutions and community colleges for certain military personnel and family members.

HF 175 changes Iowa's tuition rules to allow certain military families to qualify for in-state tuition rates at public colleges. It directly affects active-duty military members stationed in Iowa, their spouses and children, veterans eligible for Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, and survivors of deceased veterans. The bill creates new definitions that let these groups be classified as Iowa residents for tuition purposes if they meet specific criteria, such as having the military member stationed in Iowa, filing Iowa taxes, or claiming dependents on tax returns. Spouses and children can maintain in-state status even if the military member is transferred, as long as they stay enrolled continuously. This policy change aims to reduce tuition costs for military-connected students without altering residency requirements for other students.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationExpands higher education access for military families by enabling in-state tuition rates at public colleges, directly increasing affordability and access to postsecondary education.95% confidence ✓ VeteransSupports VeteransBill grants in-state tuition benefits to veterans eligible for Post-9/11 GI Bill, directly expanding educational benefits for veterans as part of its core provisions.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 19, 2026

HF 2492: A bill for an act providing for supplementary weighting for school districts that share career and technical education instructors.

HF 2492 adds career and technical education (CTE) instructors to the list of positions eligible for shared operational functions that qualify for extra school district funding. School districts sharing CTE instructors (defined as licensed teachers with specific endorsements in grades 5-12) with other districts or political subdivisions for at least 20% of the school year will receive a supplementary funding boost of three pupils per shared function. This change expands existing funding rules, which previously covered roles like counselors and special education directors, to specifically include CTE instructors. The bill aims to redirect resources toward student programming by incentivizing shared staffing arrangements.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill expands school finance by adding supplementary funding for districts sharing CTE instructors, directly increasing state appropriations for public education.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill provides supplementary funding (3 pupils per shared function) for districts sharing CTE instructors, expanding school finance support for career education programs and teacher collaboration.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 19, 2026

HF 2361: A bill for an act relating to general education requirements, core curricula, other functions of regents institutions, and including applicability provisions.

HF 2361 requires Iowa's regents institutions (like the University of Iowa, Iowa State, and UNI) to mandate that undergraduate students complete introductory survey courses in American history and American government as part of their general education requirements. Each course must be at least three semester hours and fulfill social sciences or humanities requirements, with institutions granting equivalent credit for similar prior coursework. The policy applies to students starting in academic years beginning July 1, 2028, and excludes three-year degree programs. Additionally, three university centers must establish lecture series promoting civil dialogue on American republic issues and submit annual reports to state leaders.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationMandates American history/government courses for undergrads, strengthening civic education core curriculum requirements at regents institutions.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 19, 2026

HF 2362: A bill for an act relating to tuition charged to resident undergraduate students enrolled at regents institutions.

HF 2362 requires Iowa's regents institutions to establish a policy preventing tuition increases for resident undergraduate students during their subsequent years of enrollment after the first year, starting with enrollments beginning in 2027 or later. It directly affects in-state undergraduate students who begin their first academic year at a regents institution in 2027 or later, freezing tuition for up to three additional years. Key exceptions include students who transfer to a higher-tuition institution (allowing the new school to charge more) or those who complete their degree in fewer than four years using transfer credits. The policy does not apply to any academic years beyond three consecutive years after the student's first year.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationFreezes tuition for in-state undergrads at regents institutions, reducing financial barriers and enhancing access to higher education.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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passed · Iowa · House Mar 18, 2026

HF 2649: A bill for an act establishing a pilot program that authorizes eligible community colleges to offer baccalaureate degrees.

HF 2649, the "REACH Act," creates a pilot program allowing eligible Iowa community colleges to offer bachelor's degrees in specific high-demand fields like nursing, IT, and education. To qualify, colleges must be at least 50 miles from existing bachelor's programs and limit offerings to three degrees per institution, with upper-level courses taught on campus (not online). The bill requires annual reporting on enrollment, student outcomes, and workforce alignment to the state education department and legislature. It directly affects community colleges in rural or underserved areas seeking to expand local higher education options without replacing university programs.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationExpands access to bachelor's degrees in high-demand fields through community colleges, aligning with workforce needs and increasing educational opportunities.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill enables community colleges to offer nursing degrees (a healthcare field), expanding workforce pipeline for healthcare services.85% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill creates workforce-aligned degree pathways in high-demand fields (nursing, IT, education), directly advancing employment standards through education-to-career pipeline development.85% confidence ✓ TechnologySupports TechnologyBill explicitly authorizes community colleges to offer IT bachelor's degrees as a high-demand field, directly advancing technology workforce development through education.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Education

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