As the Iowa Legislature begins its work for 2014, the big question is whether bipartisanship is possible.

Roger Thomas (center) on Monday's first day of the 2014 legislative session

The 2014 session of the Iowa Legislature opened on Monday.

State Representative Roger Thomas of Elkader and State Senator Mary Jo Wilhelm of Cresco both stressed their desire to create jobs to help grow Iowa's middle class.

But Wilhelm said much of that progress may depend on whether Republicans and Democrats can come together and agree on legislation: "We've found bipartisan agreement on a commercial property tax cut, on freezing university tuition, on health care, and on expanding workforce training opportunities but we haven't yet found bipartisan agreement on local school funding," said Wilhelm.

Thomas says some other issues likely to be considered this session include encouraging the continuation of production and use of renewable energy like wind, solar, and biofuels; expanding access to broadband and free WI-FI, especially in under-served rural areas; cutting taxes for middle class families; and expanding preschool.