Iowa Republicans take parting shot at schools

The Iowa Legislature finally adjourned just before midnight Wednesday, but not until it took another swipe at two of majority Republicans’ favorite targets — pandemic safety and local decision-making.

Lawmakers approved an amendment to an education funding bill that bans schools, counties and cities from enacting mask mandates. And they were in such a hurry to make it law, they rushed the bill to Gov. Kim Reynolds who signed it in an unusual late-night ceremony. The attorney general previously opined that cities and counties don’t have mask mandate authority, but this seals the deal.

It was a last slap at pandemic safety protocols in a Legislature where mask use was not required. And it was particularly aimed at school districts who have opted to keep mask rules in place through the end of the school year, following CDC guidelines. Even with the academic year about to end, Republicans couldn’t wait to issue one more edict yanking power away from local districts.

Vaccines, of course, are allowing mask use to diminish and are the best route out of the pandemic. The governor has encouraged vaccinations while at the same time signing legislation that bans businesses and governments from requiring them, even though none have tried. The mixed messages have come as Iowa’s vaccination rate has slowed.

In the face of a virus that has killed 6,000 Iowans, our GOP Statehouse leaders tried time and again to appease skeptics and deniers. It was an abdication of responsible leadership at a critical moment.

Instead of heeding lessons from a pandemic that revealed the tenuous economic situation endured by so many Iowans, GOP lawmakers passed legislation protecting landlords who refuse to rent to low-income tenants using housing vouchers. The governor yanked away federal unemployment benefits.

Instead of building on the progress lawmakers made on police reforms last year, this Legislature passed a series of “back the blue” measures, including tougher penalties for protesters. The bill is squarely aimed at social justice protesters who marched calling for an end to systemic racism in the justice system. Now, that system is worse.

Instead of celebrating record turnout and a well-run election in 2020, GOP lawmakers passed another series of measures making it harder to vote and pulling authority away from county auditors and election workers, who could be prosecuted.

Although they chafed at mask mandates as an affront to personal freedom, GOP lawmakers advanced a constitutional amendment declaring the constitution does not protect women’s abortion rights.

There was some good news in the final hours. Lawmakers did not heed Reynolds’ call, on a Fox News forum, for a measure banning transgender girls and women from playing girls sports. But the fact that several bills targeting transgender kids were considered this year, though not passed, did plenty of damage to the state’s reputation as a welcoming place.

(319) 398-8262; editorial@thegazette.com