Over 35 people attended the first Meet Your Legislators event of the 2026 Legislative Session in Jefferson on Saturday at the Welcome Center with Thomas Jefferson Gardens.

After District 24 Senator Jesse Green and House District 47 Representative Carter Nordman gave a short introduction, the two answered submitted questions from attendees that were read by the moderator, Rick Morain.

The first topic was about the State Supplemental Aid (SSA) rate for k-12 public education, for new money for the next school year. Senator Green defended the Senate’s initial proposal of 1.75 percent but to also free up additional money for other programs, and when adding money from transportation equity and the paraeducator program, the total is closer to the rate of inflation.

Green talked about one area that he sympathizes with public schools, revolving around the increasing cost of health insurance.

“And it’s outside of their control. So it goes up eight to ten percent a year and that’s usually (what) drives this conversation of we need more SSA because insurance is going up so much. And it’s like, ‘Well if that’s constantly the problem, I think the state needs to split that out and create somehow a state program to self-insure our buildings or be looking into a healthcare pool. I will try to spearhead that conversation more in the future.”    

Representative Nordman said while the governor and the Senate have issued their SSA proposals, the House is set to release their percentage this week. However, Nordman pointed out that even with a two percent SSA increase, public education would receive a total of $9.1 billion for the 2027 fiscal year, which breaks down to $19,235 per student, and the state dedicates 40-50 percent of its budget to public schools. 

Representative Nordman touched on the enrollment problem in the state with there being currently 10,000 fewer students in kindergarten through third grade than in 9th-12th. 

“Your Waukees, your Johnstons, your Valleys, your Iowa City, they’re all going to be fine with enrollment decreases, they’re able to absorb that. Our rural schools are not. So we’re going to have to have a real conversation on how we fund education in this state.”

Nordman also noted that the last time public education saw a decrease in funding was when the Democrats held control in the House, Senate and the governor’s office. He reminded the crowd that since Republicans have had the majority, they have increased public education every year. 

Other topics the legislators covered included the bill that makes all abortions illegal, with some exceptions; public libraries and schools, increasing state legislator salaries, cancer rates and eminent domain with underground carbon dioxide pipelines, among other topics. You can listen to more coverage from Senator Green and Representative Nordman every week during the session on Raccoon Valley Radio.