DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa Senate passed a bill Wednesday that has seen heavy debate all session, as it would allow school staff to be armed on school grounds.
House File 2586 would also give qualified immunity to any employee or district that chooses to allow staff members to be armed, meaning that employees could not be held accountable in any situation where "reasonable force" was used.
Senators debated for over an hour Wednesday on the Senate floor over this legislation, which ultimately passed with a 30-14 vote. Every Senate Democrat and Sen. Charlie McClintock, R-Alburnett, voted against the bill.
"There is no way to reduce the number of seconds that a murderer is doing whatever evil they're doing, than to have someone in the building that can physically stop that individual," Sen. Jason Schultz, R-Crawford, told Local 5. "That firearm is the most efficient way to do that."
The Republican-backed legislation has raised concerns about how schools will maintain the proper liability insurance coverage if school staff are armed. Two rural districts in Iowa have already faced this problem as their provider, EMC Insurance, previously declined to cover them if any staff were armed.
In a statement to Local 5, EMC says they will "continue to insure schools that provide on-site armed security utilizing trained law enforcement or school resource officers."
Senate Democrats expressed strong opposition to the legislation and cited other steps schools could take to ensure safety, like placing safety film on school windows, funding additional mental health support for students and implementing universal background checks.
"There are a lot of measures that we can take short of arming teachers and other non-law enforcement school personnel that will keep our schools safe and our kids safe and our teachers safe," said Sen. Janice Weiner, D-Johnson County.
Under the bill, school districts would still have full choice. Staff would not be required to carry a firearm, but could opt in if they so choose.
The Senate amended the legislation, so now it will go back to the House for final consideration. If the House does pass the bill, it would then be sent to Gov. Kim Reynolds' desk.