Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley provided some thoughts to the media Tuesday night after the Condition of the State Address delivered by Gov. Kim Reynolds.
He started out by thanking the “handful of Democrats” who showed up to be part of the event.
Grassley said he believes Reynolds brought up many shared priorities between her office and the House Republicans.
“Obviously childcare is a huge issue,” he said. “It sounds like the governor has some aggressive plans to bring forward.”
Broadband is another issue the House is focused on attacking.
“The governor made a big splash (Tuesday) night with the program she laid out,” Grassley said.
He noted that Reynolds laid out “aggressive, forward-thinking” proposals that are made possible by the fiscal decisions the legislature has made.
Parental choice in education and involvement in education was also highlighted by Grassley.
“Parental choice can mean a lot of different things, but there are several things that the governor touched on that I know we want to be a part of those conversations throughout the legislative session,” he said.
He was also asked about the racial justice legislation Reynolds talked about, noting it is too soon to tell whether it will be done in pieces or as one large piece. He did say, though, that the Iowa House would like to be part of those conversations.
Finding ways to allow kids to return to school if they want to, Grassley said, is something that is “incumbent” upon the legislature.
He did not sound as eager about removing the triggers Reynolds called for removing when it comes to slashing income taxes. Grassley noted those triggers were put in place because of the Iowa House and was something “very important” to the House Republican caucus.
