The Iowa Firearms Coalition (IFC) welcomes the introduction of the “Students First Safety Act,” HSB675, a bill that creates a pathway for Iowa school districts to arm trained staff.
The bill will be brought before the Public Safety subcommittee on Monday.
“If you see a fire starting in your home, do you grab the fire extinguisher and put it out, or just dial 911 and wait for the fire department to arrive after it’s totally engulfed?” said IFC President and Des Moines area police officer, Dave Funk. “IFC is grateful to the legislature for bringing this bill forward, addressing issues of critical importance.”
While IFC is encouraged legislators are taking steps to protect Iowa’s children in the classroom, the existing proposed legislation leaves room for improvement. IFC looks forward to working with lawmakers to refine the bill to include:
- Protection for all Iowa school districts, not just the largest and wealthiest in the state.
- A training program for all willing educators.
- Closing the insurance discrimination loophole, which has allowed insurance companies to hold the safety of Iowa children hostage at the expense of woke corporate policies.
Two school districts in northwest Iowa had planned on implementing armed staff as soon as the 2024 school year but withdrew their plans once Des Moines-based EMC insurance notified the districts that their insurance policies would not be renewed if the plan went into effect.
“We’ve had meetings with the schools, we’ve had meetings with the insurance companies. I’m working with the Senate to make sure we have a collaborative bill we can do something with,” said Rep. John Wills (Dickinson County).
IFC further recommends legislators use “Time and Math” when debating the bill and to look beyond School Resource Officers (SROs) as the only solution to protecting students. While IFC acknowledges the important role of SROs in Iowa schools, in particular how they provide mentorship to students, it is unrealistic to think that a single peace officer is always going to be at the right place at just the right time when evil strikes.
IFC has been working with retired Army Officer and schoolteacher Ed Monk to bring a fact-based approach to the Capitol in the wake of the tragedy at Perry High School. Monk was further part of a team of experts that led the Iowa Educators Academy, an intensive IFC program that taught more than a dozen school administrators and staff members on how best to respond to a crisis, last year.
“If you don’t stop a threat within thirty seconds to one minute, you often see double-digit victim counts,” Monk said. “You want the lowest possible victim count and that means an immediate response. You can’t argue against Time and Math.”
IFC is calling on Iowans to contact their local representatives and senators and demand they find a solution to ensure school districts understand the reality of Time and Math.
The proposed bill can be found here: Iowa Legislature – BillBook
The Iowa Firearms Coalition, Iowa’s official NRA State Association, is a 501(c4) nonprofit and is Iowa’s only effective pro-Second Amendment rights organization.
