Issues & Platform
Where Mike Stands
Mike Bergman entered this race because he believes Iowa families deserve a representative who will fight for their schools, their water, and their right to govern themselves locally.
Issue 01
Public Education Funding
Every Iowa child deserves a great education in their community.
- Opposes education savings accounts (ESAs) and private school voucher programs
- Supports full, equitable state funding for public schools
- Demands accountability for any public education dollars spent
- Believes every child — regardless of zip code — deserves a quality public school
Mike is a fierce defender of Iowa's public schools. He believes that public education is the foundation of a strong community and a thriving economy — and that it must be protected from policies that divert resources away from the students who need them most.
He believes the education savings accounts (ESAs) is the worst legislation ever passed in Iowa due to its negative impact on small public schools such as those in District 83. The voucher program lacks means testing, allowing Iowa's wealthiest families to receive taxpayer funds to pay for their kids to go to private schools. In addition, private schools have no obligation to accept students with disabilities or special needs, unlike our public schools, which must accept everyone and are now faced with the impossible task of providing our most vulnerable students with a quality education with even fewer resources.
Mike will fight to restore full, equitable funding to Iowa's public schools and repeal voucher programs that undermine the public education system District 83 families depend on.
Issue 02
Water Quality
Clean water is not a partisan issue — it's a survival issue.
- Supports funding water quality sensor systems to monitor nitrate levels
- Advocates for data-driven environmental policy
- Committed to protecting Iowa's rivers, lakes, and drinking water
- Believes conservation and agriculture can and must coexist
As a farmer who owns 330 acres of Linn County land — including ground he has planted to native prairie — Mike understands firsthand the relationship between agriculture and water quality. He knows that protecting Iowa's waterways is not just an environmental issue; it's an economic and public health imperative.
Mike is deeply critical of the Iowa legislature's recent refusal to fund a popular, low-cost $300,000 water quality sensor system. This program would have collected critical data on nitrate levels in Iowa's water — data that farmers, municipalities, and families need to make informed decisions.
You cannot manage what you do not measure. Mike will push for investment in water quality monitoring and support policies that protect Iowa's rivers, lakes, and drinking water for future generations.
Issue 03
Local Control
Iowa communities should set their own economic policies.
- Opposes state preemption of local minimum wage laws
- Supports local governments' right to set wages above the federal minimum
- Believes working families deserve wages that reflect their cost of living
- Committed to protecting local decision-making authority
Mike believes in the power of local government. Communities know their own needs better than legislators in Des Moines — and they should have the authority to act on them.
He strongly opposes one-size-fits-all laws coming from Des Moines. Two examples include state legislation that prevents local municipalities from setting minimum wages above the federal floor of $7.25 per hour and the recent 2% budget cap on local budget increases. Mike believes decisions are best made closest to the people they impact.
Mike will work to restore local wage-setting authority and ensure that Iowa's working families can count on their local representatives to advocate for fair pay.
Issue 04
Higher Education Independence
Iowa's universities must remain free from political interference.
- Opposes the Center for Intellectual Freedom mandate at the University of Iowa
- Believes universities must be free from political curriculum mandates
- Supports academic freedom and open inquiry on Iowa campuses
- Committed to protecting Iowa's higher education institutions
Iowa's public universities are among the state's greatest assets — engines of research, innovation, and economic growth. Mike believes they must be protected from legislative overreach that threatens their academic independence.
He is particularly concerned about the establishment of the Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa and the legislative mandate requiring students to complete six credit hours from the institution. This kind of top-down political intervention in university curricula undermines the academic freedom that makes Iowa's universities excellent.
Mike will stand against efforts to politicize Iowa's higher education system and will work to ensure that our universities remain places of genuine inquiry, open debate, and world-class scholarship.
Stand With Mike
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