Summary of Bill SF 199: Repealing the Education Savings Account Program
Bill Information:
- Bill Number: SF 199
- Title: A bill for an act repealing the education savings account program.
- Status: Currently in subcommittee (Members: Rozenboom, Donahue, and Kraayenbrink)
- Introduced: February 4, 2025
- Classification: Bill
- Subject Areas: Education, Private Education, Private Education Student Accounts, School Finance, Schools, Students, Tuition
Purpose and Intent
The primary purpose of Bill SF 199 is to repeal the existing education savings account (ESA) program. This program currently allows families to use state funds for educational expenses outside of the traditional public school system, including private school tuition and other educational services. The bill aims to eliminate this program, thereby reverting to a more traditional funding model for public education.
Key Provisions
The bill includes several amendments to existing sections of the Iowa Code, specifically targeting the financial calculations related to teacher salary supplements and other district costs. The key provisions include:
Repeal of Subsection 66: The bill proposes to strike subsection 66 from Section 256.9 of the Code, which pertains to the education savings account program.
Amendments to Financial Calculations:
- Teacher Salary Supplement: Adjustments to how the unadjusted teacher salary supplement district cost is calculated, removing references to students who received ESA payments.
- Professional Development Supplement: Similar amendments to the professional development supplement, ensuring that ESA recipients are no longer included in the budget enrollment calculations.
- Early Intervention and Teacher Leadership Supplements: Changes to the calculations for early intervention and teacher leadership supplements, again excluding ESA recipients from the district cost calculations.
These amendments aim to streamline funding calculations for public schools by removing the financial implications of the ESA program.
Affected Parties
The repeal of the education savings account program would primarily affect:
- Families: Families currently utilizing ESAs for educational expenses would lose access to these funds.
- Private Schools: Institutions that benefit from ESA funding may see a decrease in enrollment and financial support.
- Public School Districts: The changes in funding calculations may impact how public schools receive state funding, potentially altering budget allocations.
Procedural Aspects
- Subcommittee Review: The bill was introduced on February 4, 2025, and is currently under review by a subcommittee as of February 10, 2025. Further discussions and potential amendments may occur during this review process before it is brought to a full legislative vote.
In summary, Bill SF 199 seeks to repeal the education savings account program, affecting funding structures for both private and public educational institutions in Iowa. The proposed changes aim to clarify and simplify the financial calculations related to public school funding.
