Oppose Iowa SF 178. Protect school board members!

I’m writing to express my strong opposition to SF 178, allowing individuals to sue school board members and superintendents over policy decisions that allegedly violate state law. On the surface, it sounds like accountability, but this is government overreach disguised as a solution. As a conservative, I believe in limited government, local control, and personal responsibility. SF 178 undermines all three. It strips authority from locally elected school boards—the people we’ve chosen to represent our communities—and hands it over to courts and opportunistic lawsuits. This does not make our schools better; it’s just going to bury them in red tape and fear. School board members are already accountable to voters. If they make poor decisions, we have the power to vote them out. That’s democracy in action. But this bill invites frivolous lawsuits from anyone with an axe to grind, draining taxpayer resources and distracting educators from what really matters—teaching our kids. We don’t need more lawsuits. We need leaders who trust local communities to manage their own affairs without constant interference from Capitol. Please vote NO on SF 178. Let’s stick to our principles and keep government out of places it doesn’t belong.