by Joe Moses
Iowa House District 56 Representative Kristi Hager and Iowa District 28 Senator Michael Breitbach held a public legislative forum in Waukon Saturday, March 18. Iowa House District 55 Representative Michael Bergan joined Hager and Breitbach shortly after the meeting began in answering questions from the capacity crowd in the Allamakee County Farm Bureau building.
Several hot-button issues were raised by those in attendance at the public forum. Steve Peterson, a Decorah Middle School teacher, addressed the legislators with his concerns relating to the $118 million cut from Iowa's budget. Peterson advised, "We are in a period of expansion and we are having to make all these cuts to things that are really important to people in the area: higher education, access to affordable women's healthcare, youth social services, the arts, environment, under-funding K-12 education at 1.1%, which is an increase but it is not sufficient."