Iowa's 4th District U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra, a Republican running for governor, said private schools should accept all students who want to attend, as Iowa continues providing state funding to help Iowans pay for private school tuition.
He took questions Wednesday from members of the Westside Conservative Club, a group of Republicans in the Des Moines metro that hosts GOP candidates and officials.
A member of the audience asked Feenstra for his thoughts on Iowa’s education savings account (ESA) program.
Feenstra said parents should decide where they want their kids to be educated, and he said competition between public and private schools will improve the quality of education in Iowa.
“I am supportive of the idea of ESAs,” he said. “I just will say this, that every school has to make sure they take every child, right? If we have to compete on a level playing field, the playing field has to be level all the way. That’s so important.”
Private schools can reject applicants and do not have to provide all services that public schools do, like special education. Feenstra said he wants to make sure the ESA program is successful for all kids.
“When we start looking at raising all boats, we have to make sure that all schools can take all kids,” he said. “If you have a child that has an IEP, and you’re a parent, the parent should decide, ‘Hey, I want my child to go to that school,' and the school should accommodate.”
An IEP, or Individualized Education Program, is a legal document for each child with a disability that specifies the special education and other services a school must provide.
When asked by reporters, Feenstra did not provide details about how he would expand who is accepted at private schools if elected governor.
State Auditor Rob Sand, the only Democrat running for governor, has criticized the ESA program and called for some changes. They include annual audits of the program, limiting eligibility for the program based on a family’s income, and limiting private school tuition increases.
Feenstra said in addition to competition between public and private schools, the state should “get rid of the bureaucracy” and reduce regulations to improve education in Iowa. Teachers have too much paperwork, he said, and they should be spending more time teaching fundamentals, like math, reading, science and “the correct history.”
“But I’ll say this also, God is in control, right?” Feenstra said. “We have to always remember who is in control of this great country, this great world, and it’s our God, right? Kids have to understand that.”
When asked about that comment, Feenstra said the question was “misrepresenting” what he said.
“I’m just simply saying that parents should decide where they want to go to school, private or public,” he said. “And it’s whatever a parent’s faith believes, they should be able to send their child to the school that they want that child to go to.”
Aside from improving Iowa’s education system, Feenstra said he wants to lower and freeze property taxes, lower health insurance premiums, keep young people from leaving the state and make Iowa “the most business and ag-friendly state in the country.”
Feenstra talks eminent domain and more
Feenstra also addressed audience questions about eminent domain, vaccines and pesticides.
He said he has “always been against eminent domain.”
“If they say, ‘Hey I don’t want that pipeline to go through my property,’ that should be between the private landowner and the company. That’s always been my stance,” Feenstra said. “Now, agriculture is so important to this great state, it’s the backbone of our economy. But you cannot take land or property if they don’t want to.”
Republicans in the Iowa Legislature have disagreed on how to address a proposed carbon capture pipeline. The House passed a bill to ban eminent domain for carbon pipelines, and the Senate majority leader has proposed giving pipeline companies more flexibility to go around unwilling landowners.
Feenstra did not say which approach he would favor, but he said he will make sure something is passed if he is elected governor.
He was asked if he’d call for COVID-19 vaccines to be banned and if he would reject donations from pharmaceutical companies.
“I believe, when it comes to vaccines, every parent has to decide for their child of what’s best for them,” Feenstra responded.
He was also asked about his thoughts on legal protections for pesticide manufacturers and improving water quality. He said any action should be based on science and data, and he emphasized that agriculture is the backbone of the state.
“But I love to work with our ag community and say, ‘What can we do? What solutions do we have when it comes to promoting and creating better water, different chemicals, all this stuff, right?’” Feenstra said. “But it’s a collaboration with our farming community to get this done.”
Feenstra also said he “can’t wait” to debate Sand if he wins the Republican primary for governor.
The other GOP candidates are state Rep. Eddie Andrews, businessman and farmer Zach Lahn, former state Rep. Brad Sherman and former Iowa Department of Administrative Services Director Adam Steen. The primary election is June 2.
