Establishing immigrant welcome centers around the state will be the goal ofopponents of the “English-only” bill to be debated in the House late today. The bill declares English Iowa’s official language and would create a”Center for New Iowans.” Representative Bill Dotzler, a democrat fromWaterloo, is leading the charge to change the bill so Workforce Developmentoffices around the state would begin lining up jobs and lining up Englishclasses for immigrants.Dotzler is getting alot of heat from his constituents for his opposition todeclaring English as Iowa’s official language.Dotzler expects to be targeted in the coming election by the English-Onlymovement.Supporters of the “English-Only” bill say it’s important to establish Englishas Iowa’s official language so problems can be avoided in the future, suchas having schools teaching classes in six or seven languages.
