The 24 Republican members of the Iowa Senate sent a letter to the state Board of Regents Tuesday asking regents to postpone the consideration of a naming an institute after Sen. Tom Harkin, according to a letter sent to Regents president David Miles.

Regents are scheduled to discuss naming the Harkin Institute for Public Policy at Iowa State University at their meeting Wednesday in Ames.

The letter, signed by the senators, backed a statement Sen. Jon Greiner, R-Keota, made last week about delaying the discussion.

The letter states: "We agree with Sen. Greiner’s points that the inclusion of the proposed institute raises serious questions about transparency within the regents’ system and also prompts very concerning legal and ethical challenges."

Sen. Harkin’s wife, Regent Ruth Harkin, serves on the Board. House Republicans asked Regents to delay the discussion, according to the letter, until further public discussion is held on the naming an entity after a current elected official.

— by Ariana Witt