Capitol Notebook: Public health advocacy coalition pushing for higher tobacco taxes in Iowa

DES MOINES — Cigarette taxes in Iowa would increase by $1.50 per pack, and all other tobacco products, including vapes, would be taxed similarly under a proposal introduced by a state lawmaker and supported by a coalition of public health organizations.

The coalition discussed its “Iowa Health Initiative,” aimed at reducing tobacco use in Iowa, during a press conference Tuesday at the Iowa Capitol.

The groups propose raising the state’s tobacco tax to dissuade more people — especially young Iowans — from smoking and using other tobacco and vape products.

The coalition also proposes ending Iowa casinos’ exemption to the state’s public smoking ban and continued funding of state tobacco cessation and prevention programs.

“Of all the questions we have and the unknowns, one thing we do know is that tobacco taxes effectively reduce youth initiation, which means they keep young people from starting to smoke, they help adults to quit, and they are a good, reliable source of revenue to help offset the burden of tobacco on our state,” Traci Kennedy, the Midwest states strategist for Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights, one of the coalition members, said during Tuesday’s press conference.

Advocates noted that Iowa’s cigarette tax has not increased in nearly two decades, and that the state’s $1.36-per-pack rate is in the bottom third of U.S. states.

A $1.50-per-pack increase would make Iowa’s rate of $2.86 higher than neighboring states South Dakota, Nebraska, Missouri and Wisconsin, but lower than Minnesota and Illinois, according to national data compiled by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Iowa Rep. Brett Barker, R-Nevada, said he is introducing legislation that would increase the state tobacco tax by $1.50 per pack and include vapes.

“While lawmakers, including myself, don’t like raising taxes, we have a responsibility to have this conversation when this specific tax is a proven way to protect our families,” Barker, who is a pharmacist, said during the press conference. “This will protect our kids and prevent them from ever picking up a cigarette, a vape or a nicotine pouch, protecting them from a lifetime of nicotine addiction.”

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Separate legislation that would end casinos’ exemption to the state’s public smoking ban has been considered by state lawmakers, but has not earned sufficient support to pass into law.

Iowa has the second-highest cancer rate in the U.S. and is the only state where the cancer rate is rising.

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of disease and death in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. Roughly 480,000 people die from cigarette smoking each year, many of whom die from cancer, according to the group.

Smoking also causes other diseases and can damage the heart, lungs, blood vessels, reproductive organs, mouth, skin, eyes and bones, according to the American Cancer Society.

Iowa bill would create statewide school dress code

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Iowa public, charter and innovation schools would be required to adopt a statewide, uniform school dress code policy under legislation that advanced Tuesday at the Iowa Capitol.

House Study Bill 681 cleared a House education subcommittee along party lines, moving to the full House Education Committee for further consideration as Republican lawmakers said they want to continue the discussion and hear from more stakeholders as the bill moves forward.

The bill would require school districts to adopt dress code policies for students in kindergarten through 12th grade that meet minimum statewide standards. Those standards include requiring clothing to be clean and in good repair, prohibiting attire that promotes illegal activity or exposes undergarments or midriffs, mandating footwear, and allowing districts to ban gang-related or disruptive attire. Policies would apply during the school day, extracurricular activities and school-sponsored events, with required accommodations for religious or medical needs.

Rep. Samantha Fett, R-Carlisle, said the bill is intended to establish baseline expectations across districts, similar to legislation signed into law last year restricting the use of cellphones in the classroom.

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“We’re trying to set minimum standards here … to promote cleanliness, modesty and making sure that all school districts are implementing those consistently,” Fett said.

Rep. Wendy Larson, R-Odebolt, who chaired the subcommittee, said the proposal largely reflects language already common in district handbooks but provides clearer statewide guardrails, particularly around illegal activity, gang-related attire and clothing that exposes undergarments.

Democratic Rep. Angel Ramirez, of Cedar Rapids, opposed advancing the bill, raising concerns that references to hygiene, neatness and modesty could be applied subjectively or disproportionately affect low-income students.

Ramirez, who works in a middle school, said some students arrive in worn or unwashed clothing due to family financial hardship, and she worries disciplinary consequences could become punitive rather than supportive. She also questioned how the modesty standard would be interpreted across cultures and whether athletic uniforms could conflict with the proposed requirements.

Ramirez argued existing law already allows districts to regulate student attire and said she views the additional legislation as unnecessary.

Fett and Larson signed off on moving the bill forward, and said they expect continued stakeholder feedback to shape possible revisions before the proposal receives further committee consideration.

Senate Republicans pass 1.75% K-12 funding increase

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General funding for K-12 schools would increase 1.75 percent under legislation approved by Senate Republicans.

In what has become an annual education funding debate in the Legislature, Democrats argued the proposal is insufficient and will force school districts to lay off teachers, increase class sizes, cut programs including extracurriculars, or consider consolidation — and noted that some already have done so. Many criticized the state-funded program that provides scholarships for private school students.

“A 1.75 percent increase in school funding is not responsible. It is not adequate. And it is not honest about the realities facing Iowa’s public schools,” Sen. Molly Donahue, D-Cedar Rapids, said during floor debate on the proposal. “This bill does not maintain our system; it actively weakens it.”

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Republicans argued that schools are struggling because of declining enrollment, not state funding, and that their proposal is responsible and sustainable within the state’s budget.

“It’s not always about how much you spend. But it’s what you do with the money you have, the resources you have, and developing good, sound educational policy,” said Sen. Lynn Evans, R-Aurelia, a former superintendent.

In her budget proposal, published early last month, Gov. Kim Reynolds proposed a 2 percent increase in general K-12 school funding. House Republicans have not yet proposed a funding level.

From 1973, when the current public school funding formula was created, until 2010, general state funding to K-12 public schools increased by an annual average of 5 percent. Since Republicans regained at least partial control of the state lawmaking process in 2011, that annual increase has averaged 2.1 percent.

Last year, the funding increased 3 percent.

Senate Republicans’ proposal, Senate File 2201, also proposes a state allocation of $47.7 million to backfill any local property tax increases that would result from schools being eligible for the state’s budget guarantee, which guarantees school districts receive at least 101 percent of their previous year’s funding and is funded by local property taxes. It also contains a measure that would calculate a district’s enrollment by averaging enrollment at the start of the school year and a second, adjusted enrollment counted in mid-January.

The bill passed on a 28-20 vote, with Republicans Charlie McClintock of Alburnett, Jeff Taylor of Sioux Center and Cherielynn Westrich of Ottumwa joining all Democrats in voting against the proposal.

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