City, school elections are vital

Early voting for local elections starts Wednesday, Oct. 15.

Local elections for city councils and school boards are of vital importance. If you care about property taxes, you need to vote. If you care about your local school, you need to vote.

Because voter turnout is so low in these elections, your vote is incredibly influential.

For example, in my precinct, roughly 2.5 times as many people vote in a Presidential election as they do in local elections. So if you vote in this year’s local elections, your vote will be more than twice as powerful as your vote in a “big” election.

You want to have an impact? Vote in local elections.

Williamsburg City Council election

A problem arose in seven counties this year — candidates for local office submitted the proper documentation to get on the ballot, but their paperwork did not make it to its final destination on time. In my district, this happened to the candidates for Williamsburg City Council.

This was not due to any fault of the candidates.

As a result of the miscues, these candidates will not appear on the ballot. This is unfortunate, because these candidates did everything they were supposed to do. Any vote you make for Williamsburg City Council will have to be a write-in vote.

So I want to draw your attention to the candidates who should have been on the ballot but will not be. They are all incumbents:

•Adam Grier, Mayor

•Jeff Steinkamp, Councilor

•Jake Tornholm, Councilor

I will send out a reminder newsletter about this issue shortly before election day.

Williamsburg school bond

Voters in the Williamsburg school district will also vote on a bond proposal in this election.

The Williamsburg Community School District is asking voters to approve a general obligation bond of up to nearly $8 million. The district has created a website regarding the proposal here which explains how it plans to spend the funds on things like career and technical education. A comprehensive description is on the website.

As a reminder, school bonds are a form of debt. The school borrows money. The bonds are paid for with increased property taxes. (As another reminder: in the legislature, we are trying to lower property taxes.)

The district’s website states that if the assessed value of your home is $100,000, your annual property taxes would increase by a bit less than $50. Similarly, if your home’s assessed value is $500,000, your taxes would increase by around $250.

This is the only school bond on the ballot in my district this year. Whether you are for or against it, remember that your vote carries greater weight in these elections.

Education developments

While we’re on the topic of education, I thought I’d share some of the changes made during the 2025 legislative session.

School funding

Every year, the Legislature sets the Supplemental State Aid increase for public schools. Since Iowans put Republicans in control of the Iowa House in the 2010 election, school funding has steadily risen — despite what you may hear from the minority party. This graph illustrates just how much funding has increased for public schools over that time.

This year, we increased SSA by 2%. The Legislature also provided an additional $5 per student to address the school funding equity issue that has existed since the implementation of the school funding formula in the 1970s. These increases have raised the state’s funding level for each student — known as state cost per pupil — to $7,988 for this school year. This is an increase of $162 over the previous year’s level.

Teacher salary increase

This year also brings phase two of the teacher salary increase, which includes almost $35 million additional dollars for public schools. The minimum starting teacher salary is now $50,000, while teachers with 12 years of experience or more can make no less than $62,000.

New cellphone policy

The biggest change that our students have probably noticed this year relates to cellphones. We passed a law this year banning the use of cellphones during instructional time. Schools can implement a more stringent policy, but this is the minimum standard.

School policy must also contain exemptions for medical reasons that students may need access to their phones and must outline methods for parents to communicate with students during emergencies.

This will ensure that the classroom remains a place where students can be free from the distraction of their phones and can focus on learning. Iowa schools that previously restricted cellphone usage have reported that they are seeing better grades and fewer suspensions.

Improving math instruction

Math proficiency is a big indicator of future success in the classroom and the workforce. Iowa’s math scores have been dropping in state rankings since 2019. Our fourth graders have dropped from 7th to 30th, and our eighth graders have dropped from 15th to 23rd.

We passed a law this year that aims to reverse this trend by ensuring that children struggling in math are identified and receive the personalized help they need. Schools are required to assess students in math three times a year from Kindergarten to 6th grade. If a student is identified as persistently at risk in math, schools must implement personalized mathematics plans and interventions. The law also strengthens math instruction by equipping teachers with evidence-based professional development and high-quality teacher prep training.