Iowa 2025-2026 Regular Session

Iowa Senate Bill SSB1076

Introduced
1/30/25  

Caption

A bill for an act relating to incentives for whole grade sharing and school district reorganization or dissolution.(See SF 444.)

Impact

By providing a reduced uniform levy for districts that reorganize before the new deadline, SSB1076 seeks to facilitate the merging of smaller districts, which could enhance resource sharing and improve educational services. The supplementary weighting system encourages districts to consider collaborative educational arrangements and gives them financial incentives to do so. This could lead to significant changes in how educational resources are allocated across the state, potentially benefiting students in areas with limited educational offerings.

Summary

Senate Study Bill 1076 (SSB1076) focuses on extending certain incentives for school districts in Iowa that engage in whole grade sharing and those looking to reorganize or dissolve. The bill proposes to extend the timeframe for eligibility from July 1, 2024, to July 1, 2030, allowing districts additional time to implement these changes. It emphasizes the importance of cooperative actions among school boards and highlights potential funding benefits for those who participate in either whole grade sharing agreements or those that undergo reorganization.

Conclusion

Overall, SSB1076 introduces a structured approach to encourage inter-district collaboration in Iowa, aiming for efficiency in educational delivery while attempting to address funding inequities. The long-term implications of this bill could lead to transformative changes in the structure of school districts and their operational dynamics.

Contention

While supporters argue that SSB1076 will improve educational opportunities by encouraging districts to reorganize, critics may raise concerns about ensuring that larger districts do not lose significant local control or resources at the expense of smaller communities. There could be debates regarding the effectiveness of supplementary weighting in genuinely enhancing educational outcomes, as districts navigate the balance between financial incentives and the quality of education provided to students.

Companion Bills

IA SF444

Replaced by A bill for an act relating to incentives for whole grade sharing and school district reorganization or dissolution.(Formerly SSB 1076.)

Previously Filed As

IA SSB1076

A bill for an act relating to education, including modifying provisions related to comprehensive school improvement plans, teacher librarians and guidance counselors, required days or hours of instruction in elementary and secondary schools, agreements between school districts and community colleges to teach certain courses, required courses in school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, and shared operational functions, and authorizing school districts to offer sequential units in one classroom.(See SF 391.)

IA HF327

A bill for an act relating to education, including modifying provisions related to comprehensive school improvement plans, teacher librarians and guidance counselors, required days or hours of instruction in elementary and secondary schools, agreements between school districts and community colleges to teach certain courses, required courses in school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, and shared operational functions, and authorizing school districts to offer sequential units in one classroom.(Formerly HSB 119.)

IA HSB119

A bill for an act relating to education, including modifying provisions related to comprehensive school improvement plans, teacher librarians and guidance counselors, required days or hours of instruction in elementary and secondary schools, agreements between school districts and community colleges to teach certain courses, required courses in school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, and shared operational functions, and authorizing school districts to offer sequential units in one classroom.(See HF 327.)

IA SSB3073

A bill for an act relating to education, including modifying provisions related to the number of area education agencies in this state, the duties and powers of area education agencies, area education agency boards of directors, the department of administrative services, the director of the department of education, the division of special education within the department of education, the services provided by area education agencies, area education agency funding, the calculation of the teacher salary supplement district cost per pupil, and minimum teacher salaries, and including transition, effective date, and applicability provisions.(See SF 2386.)

IA HF2347

A bill for an act relating to education, including by requiring community colleges and certain private institutions of higher education to publish information related to the average income and student debt of graduates, requiring school districts to provide students enrolled in grades eleven and twelve with information related to the average income and student debt of graduates of postsecondary institutions in the state, and modifying provisions related to supplementary weighting.(See HF 2615.)

IA HF2615

A bill for an act relating to education, including by requiring community colleges to publish information related to graduates, requiring school districts to provide students enrolled in grades eleven and twelve with information related to graduates of community colleges and the average income and student debt of graduates of institutions of higher education governed by the state board of regents, and modifying provisions related to supplementary weighting. (Formerly HF 2347.) Effective date: 07/01/2024.

IA SSB3157

A bill for an act relating to education by establishing a right of first refusal for charter schools to purchase or lease school district property and modifying charter school and open enrollment funding, charter school board member requirements, and the school start date.(See SF 2368.)

IA HSB542

A bill for an act relating to education, including modifying provisions related to the number of area education agencies in this state, the duties and powers of area education agencies, area education agency boards of directors, the department of administrative services, the director of the department of education, the division of special education within the department of education, the services provided by area education agencies, area education agency funding, the calculation of the teacher salary supplement district cost per pupil, and minimum teacher salaries, and including transition, effective date, and applicability provisions.

IA SF391

A bill for an act relating to education, including modifying provisions related to comprehensive school improvement plans, teacher librarians and guidance counselors, required days or hours of instruction in elementary and secondary schools, agreements between school districts and community colleges to teach certain courses, and required courses in school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, and authorizing school districts to offer sequential units in one classroom. (Formerly SSB 1076.) Effective date: 07/01/2023.

IA HF370

A bill for an act relating to entities supported in whole or in part by public moneys, including the sale of public bonds, the duties and responsibilities of the directors and officers of school boards, school districts, the department of education, the department of health and human services, accredited nonpublic schools, charter schools, community colleges, institutions under the control of the state board of regents, area education agencies, and election commissioners, and the membership and voting units of county and city conference boards. (Formerly HSB 118.)

Similar Bills

IA SF444

A bill for an act relating to incentives for whole grade sharing and school district reorganization or dissolution.(Formerly SSB 1076.)

LA HB415

Provides for the creation of tourism recovery and improvement districts (EN SEE FISC NOTE LF EX See Note)

OR HB2548

Relating to the authority of a political subdivision to impose income tax; prescribing an effective date.

OR HB2110

Relating to the authority of a political subdivision to impose income tax; prescribing an effective date.

TX SB1056

Relating to the directors and administration of the Hidalgo County Water Improvement District No. 3.

RI H7724

Tourism Improvement Districts

RI S2773

Tourism Improvement Districts

CT SB00264

An Act Concerning The Bonding Authority Of The Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority, The Reporting Of Material Financial Obligations By State Agencies, Tax-exempt Proceeds Fund References And The Notification Of The Sale Or Lease Of Projects Financed With Bond Proceeds.