One Democrat and one Libertarian are competing for an open Urbandale-based House seat that is vacant after the retirement of incumbent Rep. John Forbes.
Iowa House District 44 covers Urbandale and parts of Des Moines.
Libertarian attorney Jake Heard and Democratic Urbandale City Council member Larry McBurney are competing for the seat. There is no Republican on the ballot.
To help voters, the Des Moines Register sent questions to all federal and Des Moines area legislative candidates running for political office this year. Their answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Early voting begins Oct. 16 for the Nov. 5 general election.
Learn More: Your Iowa Voter Guide 2024
Who is Jake Heard?
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Age: 34.
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Party: Libertarian.
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Where did you grow up: Urbandale.
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Current town of residence: Urbandale.
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Education: Juris doctorate.
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Occupation: Attorney (primarily criminal defense trial and appellate).
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Political experience and civic activities: First-time candidate. I worked in the Iowa Senate for a total of six years. Four years as a caucus staffer for the Iowa Senate Republicans. Two years as chief of staff to the Senate President (Jake Chapman) during the 2021 and 2022 legislative sessions. Have volunteered for several statewide and presidential campaigns.
Who is Larry McBurney?
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Age: 38.
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Party: Democrat.
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Where did you grow up: Des Moines.
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Current town of residence: Urbandale.
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Education: Some college.
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Occupation: Executive director, Filipino American Society.
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Political experience and civic activities: Urbandale City Council (2021 to present); Urbandale Civil Rights Commission (2019-2021); Urbandale 4th of July Committee vice president (2021 to present); Urbandale/Johnston VFW trustee (2021 to present); Bravo Greater Des Moines board member (2022 to present); Urbandale Lions Club member; Urbandale Community Action Network volunteer; Urbandale American Legion member; and Urbandale Historical Society member.
What would be your top issue should you be elected?
Heard: Freedom and less government intrusion into the lives of Iowans across the board. For a specific policy issue, my priority will be eliminating the Iowa income tax.
McBurney: Mental health care reform. As a veteran who was diagnosed with PTSD, I’ve seen firsthand how difficult it can be to navigate mental health resources in the state of Iowa. Access to resources should not be siloed; Iowans seeking assistance should be able to easily identify options for care with any provider in the state. Expanding telehealth care across rural Iowa, including expanding broadband access to broadband deserts, and working to mirror neighboring state mental health care requirements to allow mental health professionals the flexibility to work across state lines are two things we could work to accomplish on day one.
What policies would you support to improve Iowa’s education system?
Heard: Increase competition in the education system and more options for parents to send their children to increase the efficacy and overall educational value provided by schools in Iowa.
McBurney: Properly funding public education through state supplemental aid that, at a minimum, keeps up with inflation. Returning public money to public schools by eliminating the education savings plan. Unwinding the AEA from the Department of Education and returning it to a separate entity working for all of Iowa’s regions. Restoring collective bargaining powers to the Iowa State Education Association and their local branches to allow teachers to negotiate better and safer working conditions. Reestablishing local control for school boards to determine what literature is deemed appropriate for their districts rather than mandating it at the state level.
What do you think Iowa’s tax policy should be? Do you believe the state’s priority should be on lowering rates or spending on services for Iowans?
Heard: Iowa should completely remove the income tax. Eliminate excess and wasteful spending in government, and if necessary, increase sales tax or other use taxes to fill any gap in revenue. This question presents a false choice that the only two options are lower rates or increasing spending. It is possible to lower the state’s income tax and maintain or increase services provided by government.
McBurney: As a current member of the Urbandale City Council, I recognize the importance taxes play in our every day lives. Taxes are an investment into our communities. Investments such as strong public schools to create an educated workforce; good streets and reliable public safety to attract new residents; bolstered infrastructure such as bridges to keep America’s transportation system moving smoothly. These are all vital to ensuring a high quality of life for our residents and it’s our responsibility to ensure our investments continue going towards improving the lives of all Iowans.
What policies would you support to improve school safety in Iowa?
Heard: Allow schools and parents of students to decide what type of security they want. Whether that is metal detectors, arming teachers, having a resource officer, locking buildings down during school hours or any other security measure chosen by the school and parents of students at that school.
McBurney: Given the most recent laws passed by our state Legislature, guns in schools are unfortunately inevitable. We should be supporting school districts to put in place public tracking of which staff are carrying, what they’re carrying and any associated serial numbers. This is what we should do in the immediate term as we continue to work to reverse this dangerous law of arming school employees, which has been shown to be historically dangerous and ineffective due to accidental discharges, inadequate training of staff and increased security risks with more guns on school premises.
Iowa’s six-week ‘fetal heartbeat’ abortion ban is now in effect. What next steps do you believe the Iowa Legislature should take when it comes to abortion?
Heard: The Legislature should propose a constitutional amendment one way or the other and let the people decide whether there is a constitutional right to an abortion or not, and if so, what restriction or limitations should be placed on that right. The issue of abortion is such an important and personal topic, I would want the people of Iowa to decide on a constitutional level what the baseline should be for when someone can (if any) and cannot get an abortion in the state of Iowa. The General Assembly would only have the power to legislate within those parameters/baselines set by the people.
McBurney: The Legislature should work to enshrine Roe v. Wade into the state constitution because everyone has the right to full bodily autonomy and the ability to make their own health care and reproductive care decisions. Additionally, Medicare/Medicaid should not have restrictions based on a person’s reproductive health care if a doctor and their patient determine what care best fits the patient’s needs.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Jake Heard, Larry McBurney run for Iowa House District 44 in Urbandale
