Governor Branstad, Lt. Governor Reynolds and legislative Republicans promised to focus on economic prosperity, fiscal responsibility and public schools.
Republican Broken Promises & Wrong Priorities
- Shortchanging public schools again this year with the third-lowest increase in basic school funding in the state’s history. This will force more consolidations of smaller school districts and lead to bigger classes, teacher layoffs and fewer learning opportunities (SF 166).
- Gutting the collective bargaining rights of 180,000 public workers in Iowa (HF 291). This bill is government overreach that attacks Iowa workers and their families.
- Weakening the voting rights of thousands of Iowans with a big voter suppression bill (HSB 93 & SSB 1163).
- Outlawing most forms of birth control and prohibiting abortions in cases of rape/incest/health of mother (SF253/HF297).
- Lowering wages for 65,000 hard-working Iowans and preventing local governments from having strong civil rights enforcement (HF295).
- Lowering wages for construction workers and allowing Chinese steel to be used on Iowa road projects (HF203).
- Imposing deep, mid-year budget cuts that led to job losses, higher tuition at community colleges, scholarship cuts, and endangers public safety. The cuts could have been avoided if Republicans hadn’t focused all their energy on giving huge tax breaks to corporations (SF 130).
- Defunding Planned Parenthood (SF 2) and reducing access to cancer screenings, birth control and other health care services for thousands of Iowans, especially in rural areas.
Democrats believe we should work together to make progress for working families again
- Investing in K-12 schools and preventing more school closures
- Rejecting mid-year budget cuts
- Raising the minimum wage for 200,000 Iowans
- Taking a serious look at reducing or eliminating tax breaks for big, out-of-state corporations that put the state budget in the red and don’t create jobs in Iowa
- Keeping health care affordable and accessible for all Iowans
- Guarantee every Iowan can exercise their right to vote
- Keeping down the cost of college & job training
- Make child care more affordable for working parents and those training for better jobs
- End wage theft so that workers are paid what they’re owed
- Making sure women receive equal pay for equal work
- Coupling with changes in the federal tax code so that teachers, homeowners, college students, and other hard-working taxpayers will get a break