Hunter
05/03/25
The Iowa legislature is heading into overtime after failing to finalize the state budget in the allotted 100 days of the 2025 session.
Senate Republicans’ plan would set the state budget at $9.417 billion, while House Republicans have proposed a budget $36 million higher. According to Democratic Senator Janice Weiner, one of the largest differences between the two sets of budget numbers comes in the education funding targets. House Republicans have proposed to spend $10.8 million more than Senate Republicans. The Senate version fails to increase funding for Iowa’s community colleges, Regents universities, or the Iowa Tuition Grant.
If the Senate gets their way, the budget would be $910 million over projected revenues. Governor Kim Reynolds says they’ll use money from the surplus fund to make up the difference.
In a statement, Reynolds said about the budget battle, “ As Governor of this state, it is my responsibility to ensure we land on a final budget compromise that reflects our record of fiscal responsibility and puts taxpayers first. I look forward to continuing to work with the House and Senate to do just that.”