A bill for an act making appropriations to the department of education for the therapeutic classroom incentive grant program.

Budget Education

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: MATSON, RAMIREZ, EHLERT, MADISON, GOSA, KURTH, LEVIN, GJERDE, WICHTENDAHL, AMOS JR., BROWN-POWERS, B. MEYER, WILSON, KONFRST, KRESSIG, WILBURN, McBURNEY, SCHOLTEN, R. JOHNSON, WESSEL-KROESCHELL and BAGNIEWSKI
Last action: 2026-01-26
Official status: Introduced, referred to Education. H.J. 149 .
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Therapeutic Classroom Incentive Grant Program Funding

This bill provides $5 million from the state's general fund to the Department of Education for a grant program that helps schools set up special classrooms for students with emotional, social, or behavioral challenges.

What This Bill Does

Provides $5 million in funding for the therapeutic classroom incentive grant program.
The money goes into a special fund within the Department of Education.
School districts can get grants from this fund to create therapeutic classrooms.
These classrooms are meant for students aged 3 to 21 who have trouble learning because of emotional, social, or behavioral issues.

Who It Names or Affects

The Department of Education
School districts that receive the grants
Students with emotional, social, or behavioral challenges

Terms To Know

Therapeutic Classroom: A special classroom designed to help students who have trouble learning because they struggle emotionally, socially, or behaviorally.
Grant Program: A program where the government gives money to schools or organizations to support specific projects or activities.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify how much each school district will receive.
It is unclear if there are limits on how many therapeutic classrooms can be created with this funding.

Bill History

2026-01-26 Iowa Legislature
Introduced, referred to Education. H.J. 149 .

Official Summary Text

A bill for an act making appropriations to the department of education for the therapeutic classroom incentive grant program.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

House

File

2151

-

Introduced

HOUSE

FILE

2151

BY

MATSON

,

RAMIREZ

,

EHLERT

,

MADISON

,

GOSA

,

KURTH

,

LEVIN

,

GJERDE

,

WICHTENDAHL

,

AMOS

JR.

,

BROWN-POWERS

,

B.

MEYER

,

WILSON

,

KONFRST

,

KRESSIG

,

WILBURN

,

McBURNEY

,

SCHOLTEN

,

R.

JOHNSON

,

WESSEL-KROESCHELL

,

and

BAGNIEWSKI

A

BILL

FOR

An

Act

making

appropriations

to

the

department

of

education

for

1

the

therapeutic

classroom

incentive

grant

program.

2

BE

IT

ENACTED

BY

THE

GENERAL

ASSEMBLY

OF

THE

STATE

OF

IOWA:

3

TLSB

5661YH

(3)

91

jda/jh

H.F.

2151

Section

1.

GENERAL

FUND

APPROPRIATIONS

——

DEPARTMENT

1

OF

EDUCATION

——

THERAPEUTIC

CLASSROOM

INCENTIVE

GRANT

2

PROGRAM.

There

is

appropriated

from

the

general

fund

of

the

3

state

to

the

department

of

education

for

the

fiscal

year

4

beginning

July

1,

2026,

and

ending

June

30,

2027,

the

following

5

amounts,

or

so

much

thereof

as

is

necessary,

to

be

used

for

the

6

purposes

designated:

7

For

deposit

in

the

therapeutic

classroom

incentive

fund

8

established

pursuant

to

section

256.25:

9

.

.

.

.

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.

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.

$

5,000,000

10

EXPLANATION

11

The

inclusion

of

this

explanation

does

not

constitute

agreement

with

12

the

explanation’s

substance

by

the

members

of

the

general

assembly.

13

This

bill

appropriates

$5

million

from

the

general

fund

14

of

the

state

to

the

department

of

education

(DE)

for

FY

15

2026-2027

for

deposit

in

the

therapeutic

classroom

incentive

16

fund.

Moneys

in

the

therapeutic

classroom

incentive

fund

17

are

appropriated

to

DE

for

purposes

of

distributing

grants

18

to

school

districts

for

the

establishment

of

therapeutic

19

classrooms

for

learners

ages

3

to

21

whose

emotional,

social,

20

or

behavioral

needs

interfere

with

their

ability

to

be

21

successful

in

their

current

educational

environments.

22

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