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State universities facing issues as they seek to maintain enrollment
Enrollment at the three state universities has been holding steady recently, but there are some challenges ahead.
Regents associate academic officer Jason Pontius says enrollment remains down from the record peak in the fall of 2016.
“Forty percent of that drop over that time are from Chinese national students who are choosing not to attend our universities,” he says. “And another factor that is influencing that is nationally, there’s been about a seven to ten percentage point drop in the percent of high school graduates that are choosing to go to college.”
He says there has been some recovery of the international students. “That recovery is not coming from Chinese students. It is actually coming, in part, from students from India that are increasingly attending our universities,” Pontius says.
The enrollment at Iowa State, the University of Iowa and Northern Iowa is about 81% undergraduate students and around 59% of those students are Iowa residents.
Pontius says one of the issues ahead is a drop in the size of high school classes. He says the decline is likely to hit nationally, but it is not evenly distributed.
“So there are major differences by region and state. The two regions that are expected to be hit the hardest are the Northeast and the Midwest, and with the least amount of impact in generally the South,” Pontius says.
DNR continuing study of gray fox population
The Iowa DNR is in its second year of a pilot study on the gray fox. DNR wildlife biologist Vince Evelsizer says the animal’s numbers have been dropping.
“The reason for doing pilot gray fox research is because we’re concerned about their population decline statewide, and that is occurring in other Midwest states too,” he says.
Evelsizer says they are asking trappers who catch a gray fox in a live trap to give the DNR a call.
“We are hoping to catch live foxes and put collars on them for tracking purposes,” Evelsizer says.
He says they want to find out where the gray foxes are living and hunting, and to better understand the population decline.
Evelsizer says there is a $400 reward provided by the Iowa Wildlife Federation for anyone who catches a gray fox that can be used for this study. He says the fox will be released on the site where it was caught.
The DNR is also working with Iowa State University on a pilot project this winter in northeast Iowa, using cameras to track gray foxes to determine what areas these species occupy. He says other regions may be surveyed in the future, depending on how this study goes.
Governor says 2025 focus will be on cuts in local property taxes
Gov. Kim Reynolds has not announced whether she intends to seek reelection in 2026, but she is giving a few hints about her 2025 policy agenda.
“I’ve signed five tax cuts into law over the last six years, lowering taxes for every single Iowan who pays them,” Reynolds said at a campaign fundraiser last month, “January 1, we’re going to a flat, 3.8% flat and fair tax.”
Two years ago, at a Republican Governors Association forum, Reynolds said her goal was to eliminate the state income tax by the end of her current term, which ends in early 2027. However, Reynolds has indicated her focus in 2025 will be on reducing tax that’s collected by local governments, like cities, counties and school districts.
“We’re working on property tax,” she told the Westside Conservative Club on Oct. 30. “We know we still have work to do there, so hang in there. We’ve shaved off $250 million, but we know we still have work to do.”
The latest report on state tax revenue indicates the state will take in a billion dollars less in income taxes over a 24 month period due to the tax cuts Reynolds has signed.
Democrats in the legislature say the tax cuts Reynolds has already signed will lead to cuts in state services, and warn a reduction in state support of public schools is ahead when the next round of income tax cuts take effect.
Reynolds indicated the state has enough money as a cushion in case there is a downturn in the economy and a more dramatic decline in state tax collections than has been predicted. There’s $1 dollars in the state’s cash reserve plus a $2.5 billion budget surplus. There’s also $3.75 billion in the state’s Taxpayer Trust Fund.
Greenfield hospital fully reopens
The hospital in Greenfield is reopening fully on Monday, six months after a tornado severely damaged the facility.
The EF-4 tornado that tore through Greenfield last spring didn’t directly hit the Adair County Memorial Hospital, but its strong winds and flying debris caused enough damage that the hospital had to close.
Philicia Hancock, the Chief Clinical Officer at the hospital, says major parts of the hospital, like the inpatient floor and the emergency room, are finally up and running.
“The closest hospital for ER is about 20-25 minutes, and so that’s why we’ve been trying hard to get back open, to be able to provide those emergency services that our patients really count on.”
The hospital has already reopened some outpatient services.
The May 21 tornado killed four people and injured at least 35.
Iowa’s first ever “zero carbon certified” building opens soon
New tenants will begin moving into Iowa’s first ever “zero carbon certified” building starting in a few weeks. Star Lofts, which will have 20 affordable housing apartment units and four spaces for businesses, is located on Ingersoll Avenue in Des Moines. The building swaps out typical steel-and-concrete designs for engineered wooden beams and low-carbon concrete. And, together with high efficiency utilities and off-site solar panels, the building’s carbon impact is brought down to zero.
To earn the title zero carbon, new buildings must meet benchmarks for cutting carbon emissions both during the construction phase and when it's in use. Developers must offset the remaining emissions through renewable energy projects to reach net zero.
Molly Cutler is part of the husband-wife development group behind the project. She says a lot of trial and error was involved initially but she’s hoping to share their knowledge with others.
“There haven't been a lot of projects yet who have achieved this certification to look from, but we're very open book with how we achieved it, and have shared those learnings, and hope that other developers go after the same certification in the future.”
Anawim Housing will help manage the apartments when tenants start moving in in December. The units are available to people in different income levels who make 80% or less of the area median income.
Mission Creek Festival announces 2025 dates and a big change
A longstanding Iowa City music festival will come to an end after this year — at least in its current form.
The Englert Theatre, which has organized the Mission Creek Festival since 2014, announced Friday that this will be its final year producing the event. Brian Johannesen is the Englert’s programming director.
“I think, on the whole, you know, we’re ready to kind of move on to some different exciting festival ideas that we’re working on, and needed to just kind of clear some space.”
The festival isn’t disappearing for good. A new iteration of Mission Creek, led by one of the festival’s original co-founders, is already being planned for 2026.
The 20th season of the Mission Creek Festival will take place in April in Iowa City, with the full artist lineup set to be released Friday, Dec. 13.
Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center remains closed
The Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center in Prairie City will remain closed indefinitely due to heavy damage from summer storms.
Visitors Services Manager Nancy Corona says heavy hail and flooding last July left extensive damage to the ceiling, drywall, rugs and exhibits, including their seed lab. She says the center will not be assessed for long-term repairs until next year.
“First phase was, you know, clean up, and second phase was just getting us back in the office and getting us up and running again. And now third phase will be getting that engineering information and costs and the scope of the work, and then we can give a projection at that point.”
Corona says the center will remain closed to the public for at least several months. The outdoor refuge – including the surrounding trails and hunting grounds – are still open to the public.
US beef cattle numbers continue to shrink; contributing factor is ongoing drought
The USDA is reporting the nation’s beef cattle herd is the smallest it’s been in over 70 years. There were just over 28 million head of beef cattle in the United States at the beginning of this year, down 6% since the beginning of 2022. According to the USDA, this is the smallest U.S. beef herd since 1951.
Several factors contribute to the smaller numbers, but the largest is ongoing drought in many parts of the country. Iowa Cattlemen’s Association CEO Bryan Whaley says that at the height of Iowa’s multi-year drought, beef producers were forced to haul water and hay to cows because pastures had dried up.
“Producers have had to reduce their stocking rate on their pastures, and so therefore they’re not able to have as many cows running on their pastures in order to keep them in the quality condition they need to be kept in.”
Whaley says compared to hogs or poultry, it takes longer to build a herd of beef cattle. He says the threat of continued drought next year has producers weighing whether to make large investments at this time. Beef prices have been rising more sharply over the last few years, with the price of ground beef up 47% since 2019.
Challenged ballots could make or break Senate District 14 race
The Iowa Secretary of State’s effort to challenge votes by potential noncitizens could factor into the closest legislative race in the state.
Last month, Secretary of State Paul Pate directed county auditors statewide to flag ballots from a list from the DOT of self-reported noncitizens, even though he said most of them have likely become citizens.
In Senate District 14, the Dallas County Auditor cannot count ballots from people on that list unless the individuals prove they voted legally. There were 19 ballots on hold as of Friday morning.
That’s equal to Democrat Sarah Trone Garriott’s lead in the race over Republican Mark Hanson. In an election this close, Trone Garriott says every legal ballot should be counted.
“There are people who are citizens who have a right to vote and who don’t know that their right has been challenged.”
Notices were mailed about a week ago to the people on the Secretary of State’s list. Dallas County Auditor Julia Holm says her office has also called people they had numbers for.
Any new citizens in Iowa who voted early or by mail should contact their county auditor to make sure their ballot is counted by the deadline at noon on Tuesday.
Kirkwood Community College to take apart campus wind turbine
The wind turbine on the Kirkwood Community College campus in Cedar Rapids will be coming down next year after being decommissioned.
The turbine was used for instruction and the power it produced was sold to Alliant Energy, but after 12 years it needed significant repairs.
Kirkwood Vice President of Operations Troy McQuillen says the revenue it was producing had fallen short of projections. Additionally, Kirkwood has dropped its Energy Production and Distribution Technologies program.
“A lot of that training was happening in the field. Some of the major groups that were hiring wind turbine technicians were taking students right out of high school or career technical programs and doing on-the-site training.”
McQuillen says the decommissioning will free up financial resources for other Kirkwood sustainability initiatives.
He says some of the turbine will be recycled while some of it will be sold for parts.
Little-discussed ‘sextortion’ scam aims to dupe Iowans into paying up
Iowans are being warned about online criminals who are threatening to expose people’s alleged shady internet habits.
Lisa Schiller at the Better Business Bureau says the nonprofit is tracking a type of “sextortion” blackmail scam where con artists will claim they have evidence of you watching porn.
“They’ll say they gained access to all of the websites that you visited, and then they threaten to send embarrassing images or videos to your contacts, your family, friends, coworkers, if, of course, payment is not made.”
Schiller says these scams can be effective because no one wants to talk about this, much less if they have fallen for it. She says the crooks want to spook people into sending money immediately.
“Scammers will contact somebody, anybody, whether or not they visited a pornographic site or sent any explicit photos anywhere, and they’ll claim that they hacked your computer, they activated your webcam and recorded you.”
Schiller says this tracks along with other scams like the IRS or warrant scams, where callers try to scare people into taking immediate action.
Her advice to anyone who receives a call like this is to simply hang up.
Trump’s ‘Great American Fair’ idea on Iowa State Fairgrounds recirculates
President-elect Donald Trump has said his first act after he is sworn in on Jan. 20, 2025 will be appointing a task force to plan for the country’s 250th anniversary in 2026 — and he picked Iowa as the spot for a major exposition.
“The Great American State Fair will showcase the glory of every state in the union, promote pride in our history and promote innovative visions for America’s future,” Trump said.
A video Trump posted on social media back in May of 2023 is recirculating online after X owner Elon Musk commented on it. Trump said he would work with all the nation’s governors to create pavilions for each state that will be set up on the Iowa State Fairgrounds for a year-long expo.
“My hope is that the amazing people of Iowa will work with my administration to open up the legendary Iowa State Fairgrounds to host the Great American State Fair and welcome millions and millions of visitors from around the world to the heartland of America for this special, one-time festival,” Trump said. “Together we will build it and they will come.”
Gov. Kim Reynolds, in a post on social media Thursday, said Iowans “know the Iowa State Fair is the best fair in the country!…We stand ready to host the Great American State Fair.”
Reynolds was at Trump’s election night party in Florida Tuesday.
Jeremy Parsons, manager and CEO of the Iowa State Fair, issued a written statement
“We know the world’s greatest state fair is in Iowa, but no formal request or inquiry has been made for use of the Iowa State Fairgrounds at this time,” Parsons wrote.
Campus DEI cuts continue as Iowa Board of Regents works to enforce compliance
The Iowa Board of Regents is continuing to make cuts to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs across its three state universities to comply with an upcoming state law that will prohibit those offices.
Over $2 million has been reallocated to other departments across those schools so far, which has resulted in the elimination of positions and entire offices, and has spurred student protests.
Students at Iowa State University have pushed back by holding protests at the school’s LGBTQ center.
At its board meeting Thursday, Regent Nancy Dunkel said the board should consider bringing in student voices to help guide decisions.
“We really need to put a student representative on the board. When they were on the board, they gave us that input, so we really need to put an effort into getting that seat filled so we can hear that perspective as well,” she said.
The law goes into effect in July 2025, but the Board of Regents anticipates changes to be implemented about eight months before the deadline.
Appeals court reopens discrimination case against Tyson in Waterloo
The Iowa Court of Appeals reopened a discrimination lawsuit filed against Tyson Fresh Meats in Waterloo.
The suit was initially brought against the company by Congolese worker Boniface Ngwangwa in 2019 when the company fired him after he left work early to attend his citizenship ceremony.
Ngwangwa’s lawsuit was initially dismissed by a district court because he had missed his 300-day civil rights filing deadline, which fell during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Iowa Court of Appeals ruled that the window was improperly narrowed, as many government offices were shut down, and set up the case for trial.
Chief Judge Mary Tabor wrote in her opinion that the Iowa Civil Rights Commission’s rules improperly trimmed the 300-day window for filing complaints under the Iowa Civil Rights Act.
Ngwangwa, now a naturalized citizen, had been working at the Tyson plant since 2015.
Wastewater flows into Missouri River after equipment failure in Sioux City sewer system
Untreated wastewater washed into the Missouri River Wednesday after equipment failed at a lift station in the Sioux City sewer system.
Nearly 2 million gallons of wastewater was released. The Iowa DNR is unsure how much reached the river after it flowed through a connected dry creek channel.
Cities downstream, including Council Bluffs and Omaha, have been notified and the DNR is cautioning people to stay out of that stretch of the Missouri River.
Cedar Rapids theater to 'reevaluate everything' after narrowly avoiding closure
A performing arts company in Cedar Rapids is no longer in danger of closing after it raised enough money to cover its rent and keep its doors open through the end of the year.
Mirrorbox Theatre was given three days to pay back the rent it owed. Founder Cavan Hallman says that sparked an emergency community campaign to save the theater amid its ongoing $30,000 fundraising goal.
“The financial struggle wasn't new, but the urgency was new, and that's what led to the public part of the campaign.”
The theater raised enough to cover its rent, but Hallman says the overall fundraising goal is not yet met and the theater will need to reevaluate its operations in order to move forward.
Voters in Story and Johnson counties cast a resounding ‘yes’ on conservation bond projects
Voters in Story and Johnson counties approved conservation bonds to help fund new trails, support wildlife and improve water quality. The bonds received nearly 80% of the vote; they needed 60% to pass.
The $25 million Story County Water and Land Legacy Bond passed with 78% of the vote.
Jim Pease, chair of the Story County Conservation Board, says the new funding will support over a dozen projects in the next two decades. Near the front of the line are improvements to the recently acquired Deppe Family Conservation Area, where new trails, picnic shelters and parking will be added.
Future Story County projects include a bike trail between Ames and Slater, where the High Trestle and Heart of Iowa trails meet, and expanding the green belt along the Skunk River to protect water quality and habitat for wildlife.
Pease says the passage of the bonds shows that people want more opportunities for outdoor recreation and that they value wild places in Iowa.
“Iowa is one of the most altered states in the union. The prairies, woodlands and wetlands that were once here have been tremendously altered to make a very strong agricultural state and a very altered state from the nature that was here.”
In Johnson County, nearly 80% of voters approved a $30 million conservation bond. Residents passed a similar measure in 2008.
Polk County passed conservation bonds in 2012 and in 2021.
Forecasters want Iowans to start prepping for the snowy season
There are still about six weeks of fall left, but today is Winter Weather Awareness Day in Iowa.
Meteorologist Chad Hahn at the National Weather Service says it’s important for Iowans to be aware and prepared for whatever may be around the corner, including ice, snow and bitter cold.
“It’s a good time for us to begin to transition out of what we traditionally think as our warm season hazards — thunderstorms, hail, winds, tornadoes and some of the extreme heat that we have during the warm months — into what we know is going to be coming our way. Obviously, the cold season is already here. In certain parts of the state, we’ve already seen some snow.”
Parts of northwest and north central Iowa got a surprise blanket of snow on Halloween morning.
The long-range forecast shows above-normal temperatures in Iowa for the next few weeks, also with above-normal rainfall likely, but no snow indicated.
The first day of winter is Dec. 21.
Meet Aime Wichtendahl, Iowa’s first transgender state representative
Iowans have elected the first transgender representative to serve in the state Legislature.
Democrat Aime Wichtendahl of Hiawatha won the race for the open seat in Iowa House District 80 in the Cedar Rapids area. On IPR’s River to River, Wichtendahl said it was late into the night Tuesday before she was sure she had won.
“It was a lot of different emotions processing on Tuesday evening. Excited to be elected to the House of Representatives and excited to do the people’s work. But also concerned about the trends we saw both statewide and nationwide, as I believe a lot of people are concerned for.”
Wichtendahl, 44, is a freelance writer and consultant with U.S. Cellular. In 2015, she made history as the first transgender elected official in the state when she was voted onto the Hiawatha City Council. She has served in that position for nine years.
She now joins a Democratic minority in the Iowa House that lost ground in this year’s elections. Based on the current unofficial results, Republicans would hold enough seats to form a supermajority in the chamber.
Wichtendahl says she believes she can still influence her priorities, which include promoting public education and protecting LGBTQ rights.
“I will do whatever I can to work across the aisle, but I will also push back when the ideas do threaten the livelihoods and freedoms of our citizens.”
Her election to the Statehouse comes as several other transgender representatives made history around the country, including Sarah McBride of Delaware, who will be the first transgender member of Congress.
Miller-Meeks claims victory in 1st District without official race call
Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks’ lead in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District grew Wednesday as more votes were tallied. But less than 1,000 votes separate her from Democratic challenger Christina Bohannan.
At a press conference Wednesday afternoon in Iowa City, Miller-Meeks once again declared victory, though the Associated Press has not called the race.
"Washington County results are fully in. Again, those results showed what we expected they would show and what we had predicted they would show, which is that I would win in Washington County — and we did, with 58% of the vote. That almost doubled our vote total, our margin of victory of 799 votes.”
The 1st District race was a rematch between Miller-Meeks, who is seeking her third term in Congress, and Bohannan.
Miller-Meeks says Bohannan had not yet called her to concede. The race could go to a recount.
In the 2022 midterm Miller-Meeks won by about 20,000 votes.
The Cook Political Report ranked the district as a toss-up race, and one of the most competitive in the country.
Voters reject CO2 pipeline law in South Dakota. What does this mean for Iowa?
Carbon dioxide pipeline opponents in the Midwest say they secured a win at the ballot box Tuesday. Voters in South Dakota rejected a state law that would have made it harder for counties to regulate the location of CO² pipelines.
Much of the opposition to the project boils down to safety and the use of eminent domain. Ed Fischbach, a South Dakota landowner, spoke on a press call Wednesday.
“This has been a grueling fight we’ve been going on for three and a half years, and last night’s results were particularly gratifying and humbling.”
Summit Carbon Solutions wants to build a 2,500-mile pipeline across Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and the Dakotas and store CO² emissions from ethanol plants deep underground.
Construction cannot begin in Iowa until North and South Dakota approve the project.
Summit said Wednesday morning it will apply for another pipeline permit in South Dakota later this month, adding “our focus continues to be on working with landowners and ensuring the long-term viability of ethanol and agriculture in the state.”
Driver in fatal Highway 20 crash near Earlville had been shot
State investigators say one of the three men who died in a fiery crash on Highway 20 near Earlville in October had a bullet wound and evidence indicates the gunshot came from within the vehicle.
According to the Iowa State Patrol’s preliminary report on the wreck, a sedan driving east crossed the median and drove the wrong way on the westbound side of Highway 20 for about a mile before crashing head-on with a milk truck. Both vehicles burst into flames.
The truck driver had minor injuries, but the three men inside the sedan died at the scene.
According to an Iowa Department of Public Safety news release, all three men were from the Minneapolis area and the 50-year-old driver had been shot before the car hit the truck.
Man charged with murder in death of 10-month-old in Webster City
A 26-year-old Webster City man has been accused of murder in connection with the death of a 10-month-old boy.
In April 2023, first responders were dispatched to a home in Webster City, where the 911 caller said an infant was unresponsive. The baby boy was taken Webster City’s hospital, then transferred to Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines, where he died later the same morning.
According to a news release from the Iowa Department of Public Safety, the baby had been abused and evidence indicates Gunner Jones caused the fatal injuries.
Jones has been charged with first-degree murder
Voter turnout in Iowa remained strong
Around 1.6 million Iowans cast votes in the 2024 general election. That puts turnout at 74% of registered voters, according to the unofficial results as of Wednesday afternoon.
Those are strong numbers compared to other presidential elections in Iowa over the last two decades, but they are down from highs reached in 2020.
In the race for president, former President Donald Trump increased his vote tally in Iowa by more than 20,000 compared to four years ago. Vice President Kamala Harris underperformed relative to President Joe Biden, earning more than 50,000 fewer votes than Biden did in 2020.
Republicans expand majority in Iowa House and will likely pick up a seat in the Senate
Iowa House Republicans have expanded their majority to at least 65 members and could claim a supermajority after the remaining close legislative races are called. Senate Republicans look likely to add a member to their supermajority.
House Republicans defended their incumbents in competitive races and may have flipped as many as four seats held by Democrats. Democrats picked up one seat that was formerly held by a Republican.
Republican candidates ousted Democratic representatives Sue Cahill of Marshalltown and Chuck Isenhart of Dubuque. A Republican won an open seat left by a retiring Democrat, and a Democrat will take an open seat left by a retiring Republican.
Unofficial results also show Republican Ryan Weldon is leading Democratic Rep. Molly Buck by less than 1%. The AP hasn’t called that race yet as of 2 p.m. Wednesday.
Read more about the balance of power in the Iowa Legislature.
Deaths by suicide decrease in Iowa, syphilis cases continue to rise
The number of deaths by suicide in Iowa reported in 2023 has significantly decreased for the first time in almost ten years, according to updated data from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, which also showed an increase in teen suicide rates.
Death by suicide went down to fewer than 500 for the first time since 2018. The number peaked in 2022, with nearly 600 reported deaths by suicide in Iowa.
The teenage suicide rate for the state, however, increased from 3.1% in 2022 to 5.2% in 2023. County-specific data is also available on the state data portal, which shows teens die by suicide at higher rates in Polk County than the state as a whole.
The website says, “suicide is many times more common than homicide in the state, and can affect any Iowan regardless of age, location, or other factors.”
The fall data update also included 2023 cases of gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis in the state.
Chlamydia is the most common out of the three, though cases declined from 2022 by about 1,000. Gonorrhea cases have similarly declined, but cases of syphilis in the state have drastically increased from fewer than 300 cases in 2018 to nearly 950 cases in 2023.
This is not unique to Iowa. Syphilis cases have been on the rise nationally, and, according to NPR, is linked to increased substance abuse, decreased condom use and a lack of testing — or access to testing — for sexually transmitted diseases.
Iowa political experts weigh in on what caused Harris to lose the election
Former President Donald Trump won the race for the White House decisively. Political experts joined IPR’s River to River to share why Vice President Kamala Harris didn’t perform as well in the battleground states.
Chris Larimer, a political scientist at the University of Northern Iowa, said one question is if Harris had campaigned longer would her odds have been better.
“Would you see the candidate sort of figure out a message that would resonate with voters, looking at the exit polling data that we have, she performed better than Donald Trump on the issue of abortion, but then on the issues of immigration, crime, the economy, Donald Trump performed better. And if she had had more time, would we have seen messaging that, again, would have resonated better with the larger block of voters, or at least voters in those seven battleground states?”
Donna Hoffman, a political scientist at the University of Northern Iowa, said it appeared that the Harris campaign was “running a pretty well oiled machine.”
However, experts said Harris also faced challenges as a woman and as a woman of color.
Casey’s completes buyout of Fikes chain, acquiring 200 stores
An Iowa-based convenience store chain is announcing the closing of a major business deal — its biggest ever.
Casey’s General Stores says its buyout of the Fikes Wholesale chain is complete. Fikes was the owner of some 200 CEFCO convenience stores, with most of them in Texas and several dozen across Alabama, Florida and Mississippi.
A news release from Casey’s calls the acquisition a “highly strategic market” for the chain, which takes Casey’s total store count to around 2,900.Founded more than five decades ago, the Ankeny-based Casey’s is the nation’s third-largest convenience store retailer and the fifth-largest pizza chain.
2024 Election results: Trump wins presidency, some Iowa races remain uncalled
The Associated Press called the U.S. presidential race for Donald Trump early Wednesday morning, after the former president won Wisconsin.
Trump also easily won Iowa’s six electoral votes, despite a weekend poll that projected that the state could be more purple than previously thought. It’s the third time Trump has won Iowa.
Additionally, Republicans are likely to have a supermajority in both the Iowa House and Senate.
GOP candidates won their races in Iowa’s 2nd, 3rd and 4th congressional district, but the 1st District race between Democrat Christina Bohannon and Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks has not yet been called, though Miller-Meeks declared victory and gave a speech Tuesday night.
And, Iowans voted to approve two new constitutional amendments Tuesday night. One amendment changes language regarding voter eligibility from “Every citizen of the United States” to “Only a citizen of the United States.” Current state law only allows U.S. citizens to vote, but the amendment prevents the state from allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections in the future.
The other amendment clarifies the governor’s line of succession. It says that if a governor leaves office, the lieutenant governor takes their place, leaving a vacancy in the office of lieutenant governor. The new governor can then appoint a new lieutenant governor.
Find more information and results at IPR's 2024 Election Live Blog.
Libertarian congressional candidates aren’t on your ballot this election. Here’s why:
The Iowa Supreme Court ruled that three Libertarian candidates for Congress cannot be on the ballot in this fall’s election because the Libertarian Party of Iowa failed to follow state law for nominating candidates by convention.
The final decision came two weeks after 1st Congressional District candidate Nicholas Gluba, 3rd District candidate Marco Battaglia and 4th District candidate Charles Aldrich were first kicked off the ballot.
Republican officials on the State Objection Panel removed the Libertarian candidates from the ballot because they held their county conventions the same day as their caucuses and did not report delegates to county auditors.
The candidates appealed, but the Polk County District Court and the Iowa Supreme Court upheld the panel’s decision.
A closer look at Gen Z voters
At 42 million-strong, many political pundits are watching how Gen-Z, those between the ages of 18 and 27, will vote in this election.
IPR’s River to River went on the road to hear from young voters at a conversation held at Drake University, discussing gun violence, the 2024 presidential candidates, abortion and climate change. Listen to the conversation and read more at our 2024 Election Live Blog.
UI to expand mental telehealth services to students statewide
The University of Iowa’s Scanlan Center for School Mental Health is expanding its services to offer psychiatric care to students ages ten and up anywhere in Iowa.
UI professor and psychiatrist Amanda Elliott will lead the new initiative, for which she says there’s great need. Elliott says a federal study found nearly 90% of Iowa counties are considered mental health care professional shortage areas.
“There were only 62 child psychiatrists in the entire state. So, with 99 counties, that’s not even one child psychiatrist per county in the state. And of those, the psychiatrists are kind of centrally located, so there’s 14 counties out of the 99 that currently have a child psychiatrist that lived in that county.”
Elliot says the services will start with an interview-based assessment of a student’s symptoms, past histories and past treatments, and determining if there are any medication options. She says school districts would set up a telehealth visit on-site, along with a primary care provider who is involved with the student’s care.
October rainfall was up as harvest season winds down
Most of Iowa received above-normal rainfall last week. The state climatologist reported the statewide average precipitation was more than four times higher than normal.
Nearly a month’s worth of rain fell in many locations. It brought relief after the driest September on record in Iowa and knocked October down a few placements in the record book.
The statewide average temperature during the week ending Nov. 3 was 53.1°, which is 7.5° above normal. In central Iowa, the average temperature was 12° higher than normal.
The Iowa Crop Progress and Condition report shows 92% of corn in the state has been harvested, placing this year six days ahead of last year and two weeks ahead of the five-year average.
The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service releases the Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report each week from April through November. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship provides a weather summary for each report.
Shooter in East High drive-by shooting sentenced to life in prison
A Des Moines teen will serve life in prison with the possibility for parole for his part in a drive-by shooting outside East High School.
In March 2022, Jose Lopez was killed and two other students were critically injured when shots were fired toward the school from three vehicles driving past.
Alex Perdomo was one of the shooters. Police say he fired eight bullets from a 9-millimeter handgun. He was 15 years old at the time.
Perdomo pleaded guilty last year and was sentenced Monday.
In all, ten teenagers were charged with crimes related to the shooting, including three who pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and four who pleaded guilty to second degree murder.
Voting absentee? You can still drop your ballot off today
If you’re voting absentee in this year’s election, there’s still time to bring your completed absentee ballot to your county auditor's office or county elections office. The ballot must be received by your county auditor by 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 5. Some counties have a ballot drop box.
At this point, it is too late to mail your completed ballot back to your county auditor. It must be dropped off in person. If you’ve already mailed your absentee ballot, election officials recommend checking the secretary of state’s website to see what date it was received by your county auditor.
Read more about what to do if voting absentee at IPR's Election 2024 Live Blog.
How civic engagement can be good for your health
People in communities with higher levels of civic engagement have better physical and mental health, according to public health experts.
One literary summary from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that people who are members of civic groups are more likely to be physically active because expanding their social network made them aware of more ways to get out and get moving. Another study from Social Science & Medicine found that volunteering in a community can increase psychological well-being by reducing stress. Adults 60 and older can especially benefit from volunteering, as noted in a study from the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, which found that volunteers had a lower risk of cognitive impairment.
Civic participation can mean political acts such as voting, but it also includes community gardening, volunteering, playing recreational sports and attending religious services.
Read more about the benefits of civic engagement with IPR's Election 2024 Live Blog.
Upper Mississippi River refuge celebrates 100 years of protection for fish, wildlife and habitat
The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge protects over 240,000 acres across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois. It’s one of the largest blocks of floodplain forest habitat in the lower 48 states and a critical rest stop for migrating birds in the fall and spring. Around 40% of North America’s waterfowl fly through this corridor.
Fishing, kayaking and hiking are popular on the “Upper Miss,” which hosts more than 3.7 million annual visits. Waterfowl migrations also attract bird watchers and hunters, who are allowed to bag ducks in certain parts of the refuge.
Back in 1924, outdoor enthusiasts saved the wetlands from being drained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
As U.S. Fish and Wildlife managers and biologists look to the next century, they say one of their biggest concerns is an uptick in more severe and longer-lasting floods. To protect the refuge and its diversity, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its partners, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Geological Survey and state agencies, are working on large-scale habitat rehabilitation and enhancement projects.
Read the full story from Harvest Public Media’s Rachel Cramer.
It's Election Day. Here’s what you need to know to vote in Iowa
Election Day is Tuesday, and polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Iowans who aren’t registered to vote yet can register at their polling place. You can find your polling place at voterready.iowa.gov.
All voters need to show an accepted ID to vote. For most people, that’s an Iowa driver’s license or state ID. Voters who moved recently or need to register to vote may also need to show proof of residence, such as a utility bill.
Iowans who voted by mail need to make sure their absentee ballot is received by their county auditor by 8 p.m. on Tuesday. You can check the absentee ballot tracker at voterready.iowa.gov to make sure it was received.
Voters who still have an absentee ballot at home can complete it and bring it to their county auditor’s or elections office by 8 p.m. Tuesday, or they can surrender the absentee ballot at their polling place and vote in person.
Early voting lines in Johnson Co. wrapped around the building, cars blocked the street
Vehicles lined the street near the Johnson County Administration Building in Iowa City, where drive-thru and in-person absentee voting was available Monday.
The line persisted throughout the day on the final day to vote early. At times, cars blocked the railroad crossing north of Lafayette St. and S. Clinton St.
Most early voting sites were open through 5 p.m. Monday.
Polls open on Election Day at 7 a.m. and stay open through 8 p.m. If you are voting Tuesday and need to find your polling place, visit the Secretary of State’s website.
Iowa among top states for book removals, report by PEN America finds
The group PEN America, which opposes book removals from libraries, found more than 3,000 instances of Iowa schools restricting access to certain books or removing them from shelves.
The report covers the 2023-2024 school year. It shows a big increase compared to the prior two years when only 14 books total were removed from Iowa schools.
Iowa was one of the top states for book removals, accounting for about a third of instances recorded nationwide by PEN America.
The reason for the surge is a state law that prohibits school libraries from offering books that show or describe sexual acts. That law is the subject of ongoing federal lawsuits brought by students, teachers, book publishers and civil rights groups.
The most frequently removed books in Iowa were Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult and Looking for Alaska by John Green. Each were removed 76 times. Picoult and Green are also two of the authors suing over Iowa’s law.
Nationwide, PEN America found more than 10,000 instances of book removals and restrictions. In Iowa, removals and restrictions reached over 3,670 instances and included 1,140 different titles.
Grain handling poses risk for accidents
Every harvest season means the movement of huge amounts of grain, which can also lead to serious accidents.
Walking on a pile of grain can be like walking on quicksand, and farmworkers have suffocated after sinking into grain inside bins.
Stuart Beckman, safety director for Columbia Grain in North Dakota, says workers who detect an issue inside a bin sometimes ignore the risks.
“And then people feel compelled to enter a bin to try and get that grain to move or walk that grain down. And those are very dangerous things that we do not allow that.”
University of Illinois professor Salah Issa, says it’s easy for workers to either sink into the corn while walking on it in a bin, or to be caught in the flow of corn being loaded.
“It really doesn't take long. It takes maybe five seconds or so for the grain to reach up to your knee levels, once it's up to your knee levels, you cannot escape. You cannot get out. It just grabs you in.”
OSHA’s Kansas City regional office recently added Missouri to the list of states where it’s been emphasizing grain handling safety, along with the states of Kansas and Nebraska.
Election-related stress is a thing. Here’s what specialists advise to do
Election-related stress is a thing. Here’s what specialists advise to do
Election Day is almost here, and a lot of people are at the end of their rope. Research shows an estimated 94 million Americans perceive politics as a significant source of stress. Some even lose sleep over politics and others struggle with suicidal thoughts.
“The constant barrage of negativity and fear-driven narratives was leaving me irritable, exhausted and anxious. Politics was killing my soul,” said Rachel, an Indianapolis resident in her fifties. “So, I decided for my mental health to listen to more music and humorous podcasts like Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me! on NPR.”
That’s actually a good practice, according to therapists like Laurel Roberts-Meese. She said this election, check your trusted news sources, but limit how long you spend on social media so you’re not overexposed to disturbing content.
“You can be an activist and not just be constantly doom scrolling,” Roberts-Meese said. “In fact, you're going to have more capacity to be an activist if you're not constantly stressing yourself out.”
Therapists say it may be a good idea to skip the live updates on election night and instead spend time journaling, solving a puzzle or taking a walk.
Iowa counties to vote on EMS services
At least a dozen Iowa counties are asking voters to support a tax levy to help pay for local EMS services.
A state law passed in 2021 allows counties to fund EMS through a property tax of up to 75 cents per $1,000 of assessed value.
Ty Davison is the EMS director for the southwest Iowa city of Shenandoah, which covers small departments in Page County when they’re short on volunteers. Speaking on IPR’s Talk of Iowa, he said the county is behind on recruiting and it leaves residents vulnerable.
“If we’re on a transport to a higher level service to Omaha, which is about a three, three-and-a-half hour turnaround, and we’re on another 911 call, someone’s going to have to wait for us to free up and be able to respond.”
Davison says the Page County ballot measure would provide around $647,000 per year for EMS services. He says that money could help bring in new volunteers by covering the cost of education, training and equipment.
Floyd County in northeast Iowa is seeking less than that after an EMS measure failed on the ballot last year. David Luett, director of the volunteer ambulance service in Nora Springs, is hoping it passes this time around.
“The full-time paramedic service in Charles City loses about $430,000 per year. Nora Springs ambulance loses about $5,000-10,000 per year even though we don’t have salary expenses.”
Animal Rescue League offering ‘election relief’ puppy snuggle sessions
The Animal Rescue League of Iowa is hosting an Election Relief Puppy Paw-ty for anyone who “needs some relief from all the paw-litics.”
Visitors can come snuggle a litter of puppies during one of the 30-minute time slots at the ARL’s main location in Des Moines.
The event will be held Wednesday, Nov. 6, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 for puppy cuddles and a beverage.
All proceeds go to the ARL.
ISU plans to “restructure” LGBTQ student center after state prohibits DEI funding
Iowa State University is “restructuring” an LGBTQ center on campus. The change is the result of a Board of Regents directive and a state law going into effect next summer that prohibits state universities from funding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion offices and programs.
A report released last week detailing DEI university changes says the Center for LGBTQIA+ Student Success will be open to all students as a general reservation space and study center.
Erin O’Brien, a junior at ISU and a part of ISU Students Against SF2435, says this change is redundant.
“It's always been available to all students. In Senate File 2435, it specifically defines Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts as something that shows preferential treatment to certain groups, but like, it's really not preferential. Anybody can show up at any time.”
Other adjustments include changing the job description of two staff members. The center also cannot host its own events anymore and student groups can reserve the space for events. It’s not clear when these changes will go into effect, but the report says all DEI changes should be made by the end of the year.
Iowa receives nearly $7 million grant to bolster housing for homeless youth
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded nearly $7 million to Iowa service coordinators to support housing for homeless youth across Iowa.
Courtney Guntly, director at the Iowa Balance of State Continuum of Care, a co-applicant on the grant, says the money can expand more tailored services for people aged 18-24 across the state.
“Young people may have never had an apartment in their name, and so you just need to walk through what does all of that look like? The needs of this population, I think, are different than the needs of our general homeless population.”
The money is issued through HUD’s Youth Homeless Demonstration Program, which distributes money for addressing youth homelessness across the country. The grant can be used for solutions like rapid rehousing, transitional housing and permanent supportive housing.
Guntly says after the two-year grant is over, HUD will continue to provide long-term funding to support the projects.
Voting Nov. 5? Prepare for the polls by making a voting plan
Election Day can be stressful, but if you’re planning on voting in person Nov. 5, making a plan ahead of time can ensure a smooth process when casting your vote.
Know when and where to vote
Polls on Election Day, Nov. 5, are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. for in-person voting. Tuesday is also the final day you can return an absentee ballot. If you work on Election Day, decide when you could fit voting into your schedule. Some professions and workplaces provide time off to go vote.
Once you know when you’ll vote, locate your polling place.
Research who will be on your ballot
Candidates for president, Iowa’s members of the U.S. House of Representatives, two constitutional amendments, candidates for Iowa Legislature, county officials and judges up for retention votes are on the ballot. Check out our Election Guide to read up about your choices.
Know what to bring
You’ll need a form of ID in order to vote. Any of these will be accepted:
- Iowa Driver’s License
- Iowa Non-Operator ID
- Iowa Voter Identification Card
- Military ID or Veteran ID
- U.S. Passport
- Tribal ID Card/Document
If you don’t have any of these forms of ID, you can bring Election Day registration documents or have another voter registered in the precinct attest to your identity. If you don’t have any of those with you, poll workers should offer you a provisional ballot. You can vote the provisional ballot, and if you return to the county election office with proper ID in the days following Election Day, your vote will get counted.
Iowans can also register to vote at their polling place on Election Day. If you need to register or if you have moved recently and your ID doesn’t have your current address on it, be prepared to show proof of residence.
Iowa approves $3.4 million settlement to family of deceased Glenwood Resource Center patient
The Iowa State Board of Appeals has approved a $3.4 million settlement to the estate of a 30-year-old Glenwood Resource Center resident who died following inadequate care.
Joshua Ramspott died in a Council Bluffs hospital in February 2022 of sepsis and severe constipation.
An Iowa Health and Human Services investigation found Glenwood staff failed to follow a medical care plan that required increased fluid intake and urine checks following an earlier hospitalization.
Ramspott had cerebral palsy and a history of seizures. He was non-verbal and had lived his entire adult life at the state-run facility for Iowans with severe disabilities.
Iowa HHS closed Glenwood in June 2024 saying it could not find enough staff to safely run the facility.
Glenwood had been the recent subject of two separate U.S Department of Justice investigations. They concluded Iowa HHS was providing inadequate care and likely violated residents’ constitutional rights.
Voting line stretches down the block in Polk County on the last day of early voting
Early voters in Polk County braved an hour-plus long line to cast their ballots Monday.
The line coming out of the Polk County Auditor's Office had already stretched two full blocks by 9 a.m in Des Moines' downtown on the last day of early voting.
Most early voting sites are open through 5 p.m. Monday. Voting in-person on Election Day will began at 7 a.m.
Federal judge lets Iowa challenge voters on flawed list of potential noncitizens
A federal judge ruled that the Iowa Secretary of State can carry out his plan to challenge the citizenship of more than 2,000 voters at the polls. The ACLU of Iowa sued the state last week on behalf of four naturalized U.S. citizens who’s names appeared on a flawed, confidential list of people flagged as possible noncitizens. The judge says about 12% of the people on the list apparently aren’t U.S. citizens, and it would be wrong for him to order election officials to let noncitizens vote.
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says the decision is a win for election integrity. He says he is still asking the federal government to give him a list of about 250 verified noncitizens who are registered to vote.
Harris leads Trump in latest Iowa poll
Vice President Kamala Harris is polling ahead of former President Donald Trump in Iowa. The survey of likely voters gathered at the end of October puts Harris ahead of Trump by three points — 47% to 44%, which is within the margin of error. That’s according to the latest Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll, which also found that older women and independent women voters are breaking sharply for Harris. This marks a reversal from September when the Iowa Poll showed Trump leading the state by four points.
Trump won Iowa in 2020 by eight points and in 2016 by nine points. Before that, the state chose Barack Obama for president in 2012 and 2008. In each of those four races, the final Iowa Poll before Election Day predicted the winner.
Iowans with disabilities and advocates seek to close voter participation gap
People with disabilities make up a growing share of eligible voters in the U.S., and they are increasingly participating in elections. But people with disabilities are still slightly less likely to vote than people without them. Disability rights advocates in Iowa have been trying to close that gap and remove barriers to ensure equal access to the ballot box.
There isn’t good state-level data on how many Iowans with disabilities vote, according to Piper Haugan, a voting rights advocate with Disability Rights Iowa. But she points to a national study by Rutgers University that looked at the 2022 midterm elections.
“There is a gap between individuals with disabilities and individuals without disabilities in their voting,” Haugan said. “So it’s about a 1.5% difference.”
When the study accounted for the fact that people with disabilities skew older, and older people are much more likely to vote, researchers found a bigger gap. Comparing voters with and without disabilities who are the same age showed a 10% gap in voting.
According to Rutgers researchers, turnout of voters with disabilities in the 2024 election depends on campaign dynamics, get-out-the-vote efforts and the extent of barriers faced by people with disabilities.
Haugan said she believes election officials in Iowa are really trying to make voting accessible. Iowans who vote in person can get help from poll workers or use accessible voting machines. There’s also curbside voting for people who don’t want to get out of their car. But a national survey shows there can still be issues.
Survey finds growing fears of looming recession
As we head into the final two months of 2024, typically the busiest months of the year for many retailers, a survey of business leaders in Iowa and eight other Midwestern states points to a looming economic downturn.
Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says the Business Conditions Index grades the region's economy on a 0-100 scale, with 50 being growth neutral. It's risen slightly from around 48 in September to 51 in October — just barely into growth territory.
"That's the fifth time this year — and of course, that's ten months — the fifth time this year the index has been above growth neutral. Of course, that means five times below growth neutral, as well."
Goss says supply managers remain pessimistic about the economic outlook, with many expecting a recession or a sharp drop-off in the next six months. He says the region’s employment index slumped below growth neutral for the tenth straight month in October.
2024 World Food Prize underscores the value of seed banks and their stewards
Two scientists received the World Food Prize Thursday night for decades of work supporting seed banks and crop diversity.
Geoffrey Hawtin and Cary Fowler helped establish the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway in 2008, which backs up gene banks from around the world.
Seed Savers Exchange in northeast Iowa sends samples of seeds to the Svalbard vault each year.
Executive Director Mike Bollinger says home gardeners and small-scale farmers who save and share heirloom seeds are key to protecting crop diversity.
“No matter how you’re looking at it, you need crop diversity. It is really the foundation of our agricultural food system, and so it’s important to preserve that.”
Bollinger says he was happy to see the 2024 World Food Prize awarded to scientists in the gene bank field. He says it brings attention to seed banks and their role in food security, especially in the face of climate change.
Read the full story from Harvest Public Media’s Rachel Cramer.
UI looks to acquire rest of Old Capitol Town Center mall
The University of Iowa is seeking approval from the Board of Regents for a purchase that would give it full ownership of a downtown Iowa City mall.
The purchase would cover the 45% of the Old Capitol Town Center that the school does not already own and would cost nearly $21 million.
The mall is located two blocks from the center of the main campus.
The university has been using the portion of the building it owns for what it calls a UI student and staff transaction hub. The information for next week’s board meeting says the school would continue developing the mall spaces to serve student and operational needs. The university plans to continue to maintain the retail space to help offset the costs.
A Midwest beetle that needs corpses to survive is dying out. But there’s still hope
The American Burying Beetle was once found in 35 states, but it is now federally threatened.
Efforts are underway to conserve this spooky beetle that’s native to the Midwest and Great Plains. At the St. Louis Zoo, buckets are filled with dirt, quail carcasses and American Burying Beetles. Underground, these bugs process dead animals into meatballs to feed to their babies.
Burying beetles are basically the cleanup crew of the ecosystem, according to Kayla Garcia, the zoological manager of invertebrates at the St. Louis Zoo.
“Without animals like burying beetles, we'd have a lot more kind of dead, decaying stuff on the surface, and also a lot more flies.”
A range of ecosystem changes are putting pressure on the American Burying Beetle. Experts say people can support these beetles and the animals they eat by planting native plants.
UNI overhauls teaching curriculum for 2025 school year
The University of Northern Iowa will be overhauling its teaching curriculum beginning next fall semester. The changes include improving non-native English-speaking instruction and flexibility for foreign and transfer students.
Benjamin Forsyth, associate dean of Undergraduate Studies and Teacher Education at UNI, says the changes could also anticipate how students and educators are using Artificial Intelligence in the classroom.
Over 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students are studying education at UNI, which is roughly a quarter of all students enrolled at the school.
Democrat Heather Sievers seeks to unseat Republican Rep. Bill Gustoff in House District 40
Voters in Iowa House District 40 have the choice to elect Republican Rep. Bill Gustoff or his Democratic challenger Heather Sievers. The district covers Altoona, parts of Ankeny and Des Moines and some unincorporated areas of Polk County. Sievers is a first-time Statehouse candidate who works in health care leadership. She says her top priority is investing in public education and special education services.
Cargill reaches deal with union to end strike at Cedar Rapids plant
Workers at a Cargill corn processing plant in Cedar Rapids have ended their month-long strike and are returning to work after reaching a new agreement with the company.
In a statement, Teamsters Local 238 says it reached what it called a “mutual resolution” with Cargill. The announcement did not say what concessions the union or the company made, but called the result a “win-win.”
The end of the strike comes about a week after the union said Cargill planned to cut off health insurance for the picketing workers.
Local Teamsters officer Jesse Case says the union hopes to build a cooperative relationship with Cargill going forward.
Iowa’s toss-up House races see large outside spending to attack opponents
Iowa’s representatives in the U.S. House are back on the campaign trail, meaning money is flowing into the state from river to river. All four Republican incumbents each face a Democratic challenger, but only two races are considered competitive.
The amount of money raised in the competitive districts is nearly double the amount raised in the non-competitive races.
Three out of the four Republican congressional candidates outraised their Democratic opponents so far this election cycle. Historically, incumbents tend to raise more than challengers and newcomers, so the current trend is not unexpected. But in Iowa’s 1st District, which has been labeled a “toss-up” by the Cook Political Report, Democratic challenger Christina Bohannan has outraised the Republican incumbent, Mariannette Miller-Meeks.
Read more about where the candidates are getting their money with IPR's 2024 Election Live Blog.
ACLU sues Iowa Secretary of State over potential noncitizen voting
Naturalized U.S. citizens sued Iowa’s top election official in federal court Wednesday to try to stop his plan to challenge voters at the polls if they appear on a flawed list of potential noncitizens.
Last week, Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate flagged more than 2,000 people as potential noncitizens based on driver’s license data. More than 100 were referred to law enforcement, but Pate acknowledged most people on the list probably became U.S. citizens before voting.
Midwest voters elect Republican leaders but don’t agree with the laws they pass. Why?
A recent survey of registered Midwest voters shows a disconnect between issues voters support and the actions of those they elect.
Many voters support abortion rights and the legalization of marijuana, but the conservative candidates they elect often strongly oppose these measures.
2nd District candidates try to sway a district open to change
The 22 counties in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District will have the choice this November between a well-established Republican incumbent and a Democratic challenger who’s running an entirely grassroots campaign.
Polling and fundraising numbers so far show the district as majority Republican. According to data from the Secretary of State, Republican voters outnumber Democratic voters by about 20,000, and there are almost as many No Party active voters as Democrats. However, the district hasn’t always voted along party lines.
It used to regularly swing between Republicans and Democrats, but incumbent Rep. Ashley Hinson has kept it red. She is now seeking her third term in Congress and faces Democrat Sarah Corkery.
This is Corkery’s first leap into politics, and the Cedar Falls resident is running without financial support from the national Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Republican Dave Sires challenges incumbent Eric Giddens in Senate District 38
Iowans in Senate District 38 in northeast Iowa have a chance to flip their district to Republicans or keep it Democratic this election. Incumbent Democrat Eric Giddens, a former schoolteacher, is seeking his second full-term in the Statehouse. He’s challenged by Republican and former Cedar Falls City Council member, Dave Sires.
DART ends free downtown Des Moines bus route
The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority, known as DART, will end its free downtown bus line on Nov. 23. The route ran in a loop from the State Capitol to the Western Gateway area.
DART says it is discontinuing the line because of low ridership and the end of funding specifically set aside for the downtown line.
The change comes as the transit system is reviewing and redesigning its services. The Des Moines suburbs of Pleasant Hill and Grimes opted to leave DART due to low numbers of riders and high costs to the cities.
The regional transit system could face an estimated budget shortfall of $6.7 million in 2027 if long-term funding options aren’t secured, according to the Des Moines Register.
A full list of the new route changes is available online.
Public pressure led Iowa’s top election official to flag thousands of registered voters as possible noncitizens
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says public pressure led him to flag more than 2,000 registered voters as potential noncitizens shortly before Election Day. He says he recently found out about a Department of Transportation list that he could use to check for noncitizens, and he referred about 150 of the names to law enforcement. On Wednesday, the ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of the naturalized U.S. citizens included on the list.
Be on the lookout for election scams
Law enforcement, military and cybersecurity agencies say they’re working with Iowa election officials to ensure all eligible voters can cast their ballot and have it counted accurately. Iowa Public Safety Commissioner Steve Bayens says it’s his department’s responsibility to monitor digital and physical election-related threats from foreign and domestic adversaries. He says DPS will alert Iowans to false information that seeks to keep people from voting.
120 temporary FEMA homes are being prepared for Rock Valley flood victims
A northwest Iowa community deeply impacted by historic flooding is working on long-term temporary housing for displaced residents.
Rock Valley City Administrator Tom Van Maanen says two sites are being prepared for about 120 manufactured homes provided by FEMA, and that some residents could start moving in next week.
“It does give us hope, seeing all this work they're getting done. If you go two days without coming here — how much farther they've gotten. So there's a lot of work to be done out here yet, and hopefully, the fall will continue cooperating with us. But, yeah. We need this housing for our community.”
The goal is to have all the homes in place by Thanksgiving.
Van Maanen says Rock Valley will ask for a FEMA buyout of an estimated 140 homes destroyed when the Rock River poured over a protective berm erected after previous flooding. It takes six months after a natural disaster to request a buyout, which includes federal, state and local funding.
Iowa senators say USDA ‘dropped the ball’ on now-defunct chicken processor
Iowa’s two U.S. senators are questioning why Pure Prairie Poultry, which recently declared bankruptcy, was given tens of millions of federal dollars.
Sen. Chuck Grassley says two years ago, the USDA handed the Minnesota-based company a nearly-$7-million grant, along with guaranteed loans of almost $39 million.
“We all know it’s very important for the USDA to support the farm economy, especially in today’s tough market, but companies don’t just fail out of the blue.”
When the company’s plant in Charles City closed this month, it left around 50 farmers in Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota without processing capacity or feed for more than two million chickens. Plus, another 100 Iowans lost their jobs.
Grassley questions when it became apparent the company was going to fail.
“This proposition raises questions about how well the Department of Agriculture is overseeing the federal funding it administers. For example, does the USDA have a process for vetting companies before it gives away taxpayer dollars? More importantly, are there other companies in a similar financial situation right now?”
Sen. Joni Ernst says “Pure Prairie Poultry’s abrupt closure shows the importance of proper vetting and oversight at USDA.” She says those funds need to help producers “rather than being flushed down the drain and harming entire rural communities.”
Grassley says it’s the USDA that’s “responsible for keeping tabs on the taxpayer-funded grants it administers, but it clearly dropped the ball with Pure Prairie.” He is asking the agency to explain to Congress and the public “what went wrong to help prevent a repeat scenario.”
100-bed emergency women’s shelter opens in Des Moines
A Des Moines nonprofit will soon open a new women and children’s shelter with triple the capacity of its previous location.
Hope Ministries’ new 50,000 square foot space has 50 short-term shelter beds and 50 long-term beds. It’s also equipped with classrooms, an art therapy room and a fitness center. Staff will serve three free meals a day to residents in the dining room.
Hope Ministries Chief Development Officer Kathy Coady says the project has been a long time coming.
“This plan was born out of strategic planning that our staff and leadership and board did back in 2015. So this has been nine years of prayer and work and collaboration in the community.”
Coady says she’s hoping the increased capacity means they can start taking people in on the same day they come to the shelter. Staff and residents from the former facility will start moving to the new shelter in two weeks.
According to a housing inventory count in January, there are 50 other emergency shelter beds reserved for women in Polk County. Based on a point-in-time count by county service providers, nearly 250 women were homeless in July of this year.
Some Iowans' voter registrations may have been improperly canceled due to mass challenges, ACLU says
The ACLU and the Iowa Secretary of State have expressed concerns that some Iowans may have had their voter registrations improperly canceled too close to Election Day.
They sent letters to all county auditors last week reminding them that they’re prohibited from canceling voter registrations in most cases within a few months of Election Day.
Rita Bettis Austen, legal director for the ACLU of Iowa, says they heard from voters who were notified that their registrations were being challenged in attempts to cancel large numbers of voter registrations.
“One of the things that our letter reminds auditors of is the fact that they need to restore those voters who may have been improperly removed due to those challenges.”
The ACLU letter mentions Johnson, Muscatine and Pottawattamie counties as places that have faced mass voter challenges. People who deny the 2020 election results have conducted such challenges across the country.
Voters can check their registration status online before going to vote. Iowans can also register to vote at their polling place on Election Day.
No Iowa hospitals have signed on to a federal program designed to save struggling rural hospitals
It’s been nearly two years since the federal Rural Emergency Hospital model was launched, and no Iowa hospitals have chosen to convert to the designation yet.
The Rural Emergency Hospital designation gives struggling hospitals increased financial support from the federal government. In exchange they must give up pricey inpatient care and offer just outpatient services with an emergency room.
Julia Harris is with the Bipartisan Policy Center think tank, which recently released a report on the model’s progress. She says they recommend the feds revise the rules to allow hospitals to retain a small number of inpatient beds.
“Like an elderly patient comes into the ER and needs just to be kept under observation overnight...maybe just a day, or two or three.”
The Rural Emergency Hospital designation went into effect January of 2023 So far, 32 hospitals in 14 states have converted to it.
Polarizing abortion ads and outside spending heat up Iowa's already competitive 3rd District
Democrats running for U.S. House seats across the country see abortion as a key issue that could help them retake the majority from Republicans. Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, which includes the Des Moines metro and parts of southern Iowa, is currently one of 25 House races across the country listed as a “toss-up.”
This year, ads and money from outside groups are making sometimes misleading claims about candidate stances on abortion. And the 3rd District race — with incumbent Republican Rep. Zach Nunn facing Democratic challenger Lanon Baccam — has seen high amounts of national spending.
According to the nonprofit OpenSecrets, the race has garnered more than $13 million in outside spending alone, exceeding outside spending in all three other congressional races combined. Outside spending includes money spent by groups or individuals independently of a candidate’s campaign committee.
Voters in the 3rd District might be familiar with the swinging nature of the U.S. House seat. Ten years ago, it was held by a Republican before turning Democratic when Cindy Axne unseated incumbent David Young. Four years later, in 2022, Nunn won by less than a percentage point in the newly redrawn district.
Iowa’s weather forecast for Halloween
The weather forecast has several communities moving trick or treating from Wednesday evening to Halloween night. A cold front is expected to move into Iowa late Wednesday morning and move across the state throughout the day.
Meteorologist Cory Martin with the National Weather Service in Des Moines says when colder air meets the warm air currently over the state, it could trigger storms with the possibility of severe weather.
“Also coming along with that is rain, and we haven't seen really widespread appreciable rainfall in our area in quite some time here. We're looking at the potential for 1-2 inches or more over a large swath of the area, but particularly, kind of across southern and into central Iowa.”
Communities in central Iowa that moved trick-or-treating from Beggars’ Night to Halloween include Des Moines, Altoona, Ankeny, Carlisle, Clive, Indianola, Johnston, Norwalk, Urbandale, West Des Moines and Waukee. Pleasant Hill says trick-or-treating is still on for tomorrow, and it’s up to individual families to decide whether to go out.
Lassa fever kills an Iowa resident after traveling to West Africa
The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services has confirmed the death of an eastern Iowa resident from Lassa fever.
The individual, described in a release from the agency as middle aged, had recently returned from traveling in West Africa, where it is believed they contracted the virus. There have been eight travel-associated cases of Lassa fever in the U.S. in the past 55 years.
Initial testing was done at the Nebraska Public Health Laboratory Monday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working to confirm the diagnosis.
Robert Kruse, state medical director of the Iowa HHS, says the risk of transmission is “incredibly low.”
Iowa HHS says they are working closely with the University of Iowa Health Care, where the individual was receiving care, along with the CDC and local public health employees to identify anyone who may have been in close contact with the patient. Iowa HHS says this is being done out of an abundance of caution.
The virus that causes Lassa fever can be transmitted from human-to-human contact through blood or bodily fluids, and not through casual contact, according to Iowa HHS.
Lassa fever is carried by rodents in West Africa and is transmitted to humans who may come in contact with urine or feces of the infected rodents. Approximately 80% of those that contract Lassa fever have mild or no symptoms at all.
Severe weather forecast prompts Des Moines to move Beggars’ Night to Halloween
Beggars' Night has been moved due to the severe storms forecasted to reach Des Moines during trick-or-treating hours on Oct. 30.
This year, Beggars’ Night will be held Thursday, Oct. 31 from 6 - 8 p.m. to provide a safe and festive trick-or-treating experience for Des Moines children and families.
Chilly temps and rain may put damper on Iowa trick-or-treaters
Most kids hate to go trick-or-treating while having to wear a winter coat that covers up their spooky costume. But that might be necessary in parts of Iowa this week.
Meteorologist Brooke Hagenhoff at the National Weather Service says the forecast for Halloween night calls for lows in the 30s in central and southern Iowa, and the upper 20s in northern Iowa.
“The good news is, those coldest temperatures won’t occur until very, very late — in most cases, after midnight on Thursday night. But for prime trick-or-treating, kind of in that 6-8 p.m. time range, we’re looking at temperatures, just after sunset, should be dropping into the mid to low 40s.”
Some areas of northern Iowa may be in the upper 30s during trick-or-treating time, meaning kids will need to wear warmer costumes or layer well under their outfits to stay warm.
World Food Prize awarded to scientists protecting food security with a global seed vault
The winners of the 2024 World Food Prize reflected on decades of work protecting global crop biodiversity during a lecture Monday at Iowa State University.
The Des Moines-based World Food Prize — often described as the “Nobel of food and agriculture” — recognizes individuals who make exceptional achievements in addressing food security.
This year’s laureates, Geoffrey Hawtin and Cary Fowler, helped establish the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway two decades ago.
Fowler said Svalbard is a backup to help protect crop diversity and culturally important plants.
There are roughly 1,700 gene banks globally, but some are vulnerable to natural disasters, war and a lack of resources.
"In a world of changes, we are all in this together, and a loss in any seed bank around the world is a loss for all of us.”
Hawtin and Fowler will receive the World Food Prize Thursday evening during a ceremony at the Iowa State Capitol.
Hear a conversation with the winners on IPR’s River to River.
Wisconsin company closing Waukee plant, affecting 88 workers
A Wisconsin company will be closing its printing plant in a Des Moines suburb early next year.
The Quad/Graphics facility in Waukee employs 88 people. The company, now known as Quad, notified the State of Iowa of its plan to close the plant in January 2025.
Last week, Quad announced it was selling the majority of its European operations to a venture capital firm in Germany for $45 million. Quad’s chairman said it’s focusing on growth as a marketing experience company and will maintain state-of-the-art printing operations in locations that best support that mission.
Quad closed its Dubuque printing plant in 2013, affecting 215 employees. The company closed its printing facility in Marengo in 2014.
Democrat Heather Matson runs for reelection in the Iowa House against Republican Heather Stephenson
In House District 42, which covers parts of the Des Moines suburb of Ankeny, Democratic incumbent Rep. Heather Matson faces Republican challenger Heather Stephenson. Matson says if she is reelected, her priority is to improve Iowans’ economic security by supporting public education and improving access to health care. Stephenson did not agree to an interview with IPR News before Election Day, but told The Des Moines Register her top issue would be to reduce property taxes.
Republican Brad Zaun runs for his sixth Iowa Senate term against Democrat Matt Blake
In Senate District 22, which largely covers the Des Moines suburbs of Urbandale and Johnston, Republican Sen. Brad Zaun is up for reelection. His challenger is Democrat Matt Blake, a former Urbandale City Council member. Blake says his priority, if elected, would be to improve Iowa’s quality of life. To him that means supporting public school funding and growing job opportunities. Zaun says his top goal for the Legislature is to reduce the cost of property taxes, especially for Iowans over 65 years old. Here’s what else the candidates said about key issues facing Iowans in this election.
Cybersecurity expert says foreign adversaries seek to ‘undermine American confidence’ in election
The head of the country’s cybersecurity agency says U.S. cyber and physical election infrastructure is more secure than ever.
Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), says the agency has worked to ensure everyone’s vote will be counted accurately. At the same time, Easterly says election threats have never been more complex.
She says foreign adversaries are trying to influence the election by spreading disinformation online. Easterly says American voters should make sure they’re not sharing false information.
Read more about election security at IPR's 2024 Election Live Blog.
Planned Parenthood is seeing more patients seeking abortion care travel out of Iowa
Planned Parenthood North Central States says more Iowans are traveling out of state for abortion care in the three months since a highly restrictive law went into effect in late July. The law bans abortion when cardiac activity is detected, which can be as early as six weeks of pregnancy. There are exceptions for rape, incest, life of the pregnant person and fetal abnormalities.
Kristina Remus, an associate with Planned Parenthood North Central States, says a lot of people seeking care already have children and struggle to find the resources to travel to places like Minnesota or Nebraska, where the procedure is less restricted.
“Traveling across state lines means that they have to find child care, along with the resources to travel and take time off of work. Transportation has also been a huge issue.”
According to the most recent Centers for Disease Control data, about 56% of abortions in Iowa in 2021 were performed after six weeks of pregnancy.
Iowa destroys over 1 million chickens after processing plant closure
Due to the threat of litigation connected to the closure of a Charles City plant, over a million chickens from 14 northern Iowa farms have been euthanized.
Pure Prairie Poultry had contracts with farmers in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin and provided the chicks and their feed until the chickens were ready to be slaughtered and processed at the company’s plant in Charles City. The company abruptly filed for bankruptcy and closed the plant in early October. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship took over the care and feeding of 1.3 million chickens.
Court records show Tyson had agreed to buy, process and then sell those chickens, but attorneys for some of the Charles City plant’s creditors threatened to sue for part of Tyson’s profits and Tyson rescinded its offer. IDALS was unable to find another buyer and, with ever increasing costs to feed and care for the chickens, officials decided to euthanize the birds.
According to Minnesota’s ag department, the owners of the Charles City plant had about 300,000 chickens being raised in Minnesota that were either processed, given away or euthanized.
Wisconsin law did not allow that state’s department of agriculture to intervene, and local news reports indicate most of Pure Prairie Poultry’s 170,000 chickens in Wisconsin have been transferred to other owners.
Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Lee County appeal speed camera shutdown
A spokesman for the Iowa DOT says so far three local governments have filed appeals after being told they had to shut down speed cameras.
Cedar Rapids, Waterloo and Lee County have each appealed the ruling to shut down their cameras. The appeals go to the director of the DOT, who then has 30 days to make a decision.
A change in state law required cities and counties to submit information that showed the cameras were being used to improve safety. A DOT panel reviewed each camera site, and earlier this month the DOT said just 11 of 139 speed cameras reviewed were allowed to stay.
Hy-Vee removing some self-checkout stations in stores
Hy-Vee is removing self-checkout stations from some stores.
A spokesperson for Hy-Vee says they have started removing the self-checkouts from some stores, but they do not have a final number.
The spokesperson says they “want to provide a better customer experience in several of our stores by bringing back the face-to-face interaction with our employees that we had pre-COVID.”
A clerk in a central Iowa store says the self-checkouts were being removed over concerns about theft. The Hy-Vee spokesperson would not confirm that, saying there have been national stories about retailers doing this, however, she says their main focus is to provide customers with the best service possible.
FEMA aid totals nearly $68 million for severe weather in Iowa this year
FEMA is in the process of handing out about $68 million to more than 6,900 households in 29 counties impacted by severe weather this year — everything from deadly tornadoes to historic flooding.
The deadline for storm victims to apply for Iowa’s final Presidential Disaster Declaration ended last week. FEMA spokesperson Sharon Karr says even though Iowans can no longer apply for individual assistance, FEMA will still have a presence in the state.
“We are here for Iowa. We will not rest until Iowa is taken care of. There may be people that might come and go, but there is still a good, sound core number of people here to make sure that Iowa is taken care of, and everything is done for them that is expected to be done.”
Karr says three long-term disaster recovery centers in Council Bluffs, Spencer and Rock Valley are available to assist residents in person, or they can reach out to FEMA by phone, online or through their mobile app.
Iowa Supreme Court to decide if courts can bill low-income defendants when charges are dismissed
The Iowa Supreme Court will hear arguments over whether courts can bill low-income Iowans for the cost of their court-appointed defense attorney when charges against them are dismissed.
The case the Supreme Court is reviewing involves a man who pleaded guilty to two theft charges, while two other charges were dropped.
Alex Kornya, former litigation director for Iowa Legal Aid, says under Iowa’s current system, poor people often end up paying less in legal fees if they’re found guilty.
“If you were convicted, the constitution and Iowa Code says that you can be charged the cost of your defense. But only to the extent that there is a finding you have an ability to pay that money. That ability to pay assessment is almost never happening in cases that are dismissed.”
According to a report from the Marshall Project, Iowa imposes some of the highest legal fees in the nation. It also charges people for their public defenders even if they are acquitted or the cases against them are dropped.
It tastes like chicken, but 'cultivated' meat sees growing opposition from U.S. lawmakers
Cultivated meat — meat grown from animal cells — is touted as a way to meet growing global demand with far fewer climate impacts.
Earlier this year Florida and Alabama passed bans on cultivated meat – or meat grown from cells – while Iowa passed restrictions on its sale and labeling. And bans have been proposed in at least six other states, including Nebraska and Illinois.
Josh Tetrick, GOOD Meat’s CEO and co-founder, calls such bans “political calculus.” He said politicians in some states are trying to make cultivated meat a wedge issue.
“It’s not ideal, that it's become sort of a cultural thing in those states,” Tetrick said. “But my hope is, as is usually the case, if you make something that most Americans and consumers really want to buy, they'll do it, and the politicians will adjust.”
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen says restrictions need to be established now, before cultivated meat grows to be a real threat to livestock producers.
“Fake meat, petri dish meat, lab-grown meat, bioreactors,” Pillen said, “to just sit back and hope that doesn’t happen? Hope’s not a very good strategic decision.”
Pillen’s family owns Pillen Family Farms, Nebraska’s largest pork producing operation. And in August, the Republican governor used his executive powers to order restrictions on the sale and labeling of cultivated meat in his state. Now he’s backing legislation that he hopes lawmakers will take up next year to ban its sale in Nebraska.
Patients encouraged to turn in unneeded prescription drugs
Saturday, Oct. 26 is the second National Drug Take Back Day. The head of the Iowa Office of Drug Control Policy, Susie Sher, encourages everyone to take part.
“You can bring back any unused or unneeded medication to this event, any expired prescriptions or extra medications you have in your medicine cabinet at home. It’s a great time to clean out those cabinets and have a safe and anonymous way to properly dispose of those medications.”
Sher says there are two national take back days every spring and fall.
“It’s a proper, safe way to dispose of those medications. It keeps them out of the hands of people who might either intentionally or unintentionally get a hold of those medications.”
To find a turn in site near you, visit the Take Back Day website and enter your zip code.
Southwest Iowa's House District 20 representative faces Republican challenger
In the state Legislature, Josh Turek is the only Democrat representing southwest Iowa. In 2022, he won by only six votes in Iowa’s House District 20. This election year, he faces Republican challenger James Wassell. Both candidates shared their views on important issues, including abortion, income tax, ESAs and their top legislative priorities.
Newly renovated Ames History Museum opens Saturday
The Ames History Museum is ready to reopen after a years-long, $4.5 million expansion and renovation.
It now has five times more exhibit gallery space, a special collections room and an event space.
One of the highlights is a nearly full-scale replica of the Dinkey engine, a steam train that ran between Ames and Iowa State University's campus in the 1890s.
Alex Fejfar, the exhibit's manager, says the idea for the revamp was years in the making.
“The old museum was in a 1993 office building, so not a building that was built to be a museum at all.”
Private donations and grants have paid off most of the renovation expenses.
Fejfar says the museum is for everyone.
“We really want people to feel pride in their community, whether they’ve been here for a long time or not. I think coming here and learning the history of your town is a great way to connect with people and the community, and maybe you’ve seen that weird building in that weird location and now you’ve finally learned why things are the way they are.”
The Ames History Museum’s grand reopening is Oct. 26 from 12-8 p.m.
Midwest researchers discover chemical treatment to stop a source of greenhouse gas
Fermented livestock feed, or silage, could be the country’s third-biggest farm source of nitrous oxide – a potent greenhouse gas.
This gas warms the planet and hurts the Earth’s ozone layer. But Kansas State University professor Jeongdae Im says there is good news.
His team identified the bacterial source of the gas in silage and found a chemical treatment that can stop this almost entirely.
“So I’m trying to persuade EPA to recognize silage as a major source of nitrous oxide emissions, so that we can do something to minimize it. And luckily, we have a simple solution.”
Im says it would cost about $5 million to treat all the silage in the U.S. each year to block 99% of its nitrous oxide. The team will continue to study the treatment’s safety.
Iowa ranks 13th in national for women’s and children’s health
According to the America’s Health Rankings report by the United Healthcare Foundation, Iowa ranks 13th in the nation for women and children’s health.
The report, which analyzes more than 100 indicators of health, found Iowa women overall ranked low for health habits like regular exercise and fruit and vegetable consumption.
Lisa Saul, the chief medical officer of women's health for United Healthcare, says there are some categories where the state ranked high, such as high prevalence as high school completion and low housing cost burden among households with children.
Saul says Iowa alcohol use also stood out. It has one of the highest consumption rates for adolescents and women ages 18 to 44.
Iowa's new abortion ban being used to sway voters
Abortion is a major topic in the 2024 election, and Democrats in Iowa are leaning hard on reproductive rights to win them seats. This year stands out because it's the first presidential election since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to abortion nationwide, and an Iowa Supreme Court decision that lowered protections for abortion in the state constitution. These rulings paved the way for Iowa’s new “fetal heartbeat” law to go into effect this summer. Recent polling shows a majority of Iowans disapprove of the new law, and Democratic candidates are relying on that to sway voters.
Read more about how Democrats are leaning on Iowa's new abortion ban to sway voters
Water rationing now in place in Shenandoah
By unanimous vote Tuesday night, the Shenandoah City Council enacted what it calls Stage 4 water rationing. City water superintendent Tim Martin explains what those restrictions entail, including a ban on all non-commercial irrigation.
“No water shall be used for irrigation at all,” Martin says, “except for businesses engaged in selling or growing plants. No water shall be used from a hose to wash automobiles, except places of business where autos are washed every business day, either with attendants, automatic equipment or self service.”
The Stage 4 rationing also prohibits water-consuming air conditioning equipment that uses five-percent of the water circulation.
The latest U.S. Drought Monitor map shows more than 97% of Iowa with at least abnormally dry conditions or some level of drought, and less than 2.5% in the normal range.
Also prohibited in Shenandoah: outdoor cleaning of surfaces, including buildings, sidewalks, driveways or porches, and the nonessential cleaning of commercial or industrial equipment, machinery or interior space. Martin says allowing the loss of water through defective plumbing or fixtures is prohibited, unless the customer can provide proof of a defect.
“If you know you have a problem with leaks somewhere on your property, and you’re just ignoring it, that could be a problem,” Martin says, “but if you’re getting it fixed in a timely matter, we would understand.”
Senate District 20 sees Sen. Boulton facing a new challenger
This November, the Iowa Senate has 25 seats up for reelection. Nate Boulton is one of five Democratic incumbents who could help determine the balance of the chamber where Republicans currently hold a supermajority. Boulton represents Senate District20, which covers parts of East Des Moines, Pleasant Hill, South Ankeny and Altoona. He is being challenged by Republican Mike Pike. Here’s where Boulton stands on some key issues.
Iowa still predicted to have La Nina winter, though intensity remains uncertain
The latest projections from the National Weather Service show less certainty that Iowa will experience a classic La Nina winter.
Madelynne Wuestenberg, an agricultural climatologist for Iowa State University Extension, says sea surface temperatures near the equator have not cooled as much as expected, and that has the Climate Prediction Center giving Iowa a 60% chance of warmer and wetter conditions for the Midwest this winter, down from 70% in their outlook three months ago.
“Because it is a weak event and that reduces that coupling between the sea surface temperatures and the atmosphere, we just don’t have a strong percentage that would tell us temperatures are going to be one way or another or precipitation this winter are going to be one way or the other.”
Wuestenberg says she’s still predicting La Nina will start over the next few weeks and end between January and March, but it probably won’t be as pronounced as La Ninas in the past.
An Oelwein City Council member among five people arrested on drug charges
Karen Anne Seeders, 43, is an at-large member of the Oelwein City Council and office manager of the Oelwein Community School District.
According to police reports, she and her husband Michael James Seeders were arrested on Friday after a search warrant was executed on two properties, where officers discovered psilocybin and marijuana.
Three other Oelwein residents were arrested, as well.
Seeders is facing three felony charges and a misdemeanor as a result. The school district says she’s been suspended from her job while the investigation unfolds.
Additional charges are still pending.
Iowa Attorney General touts bid to overturn Massachusetts pork law
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is part of a legal effort to block regulations in Massachusetts that ban the sale of pork from pigs kept in tightly confined spaces.
“We’re leading a big coalition of states, pushing back on that to help pork producers,” Bird said.
In July, a federal judge upheld a ballot initiative approved in 2016 by 77% of Massachusetts voters. It prohibits the sale of pork as well as veal and eggs from animals raised in confinements that don’t meet certain space requirements. Bird is leading a coalition of 22 state attorneys general who signed onto a brief calling that approach “unworkable” for pork producers and an “economic hardship” for consumers who will pay higher prices.
“We don’t tell Massachusetts how to fish for lobsters,” Bird said. “They don’t need to tell us how to raise bacon.”
Bird made her comments during a meeting in Atlantic with Cass County Republicans.
Some agriculture programs lack funding after Farm Bill expires
The 2018 Farm Bill expired for a second time last month. The lapse does not affect the bill’s biggest pieces – like food assistance or crop insurance. But it leaves other programs without funding to operate. For example, some animal health and conservation programs lost authority.
Until recently, extensions were uncommon over the bill’s 90-year history. Now Congress has used extensions for three of the past four Farm Bill updates, according to Roger Cryan, chief economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation.
“It's become a standard thing to not get this done on time, which is unfortunate, because it's kind of the last big bipartisan thing that gets done in Congress on a regular basis.”
This expiration comes as farmers have faced natural disasters and low income.
Cryan says today’s high input costs and low crop prices overpower any assistance farmers get from the old Farm Bill. He’s hoping lawmakers can approve a new bill before the year ends.
House District 80 candidates vying for open seat
Residents of Hiawatha, Robins and northeast Cedar Rapids will have the chance for change this November. Current Iowa House District 80 Rep. Art Staed is eyeing an Iowa Senate seat in a neighboring district, leaving the race open for others to throw their hats in the ring. Democrat and current Hiawatha City Council member, Aime Wichtendahl, and first-time candidate, Republican John Thompson are pitching their visions to voters.
Secretary of State Paul Pate referring noncitizens who allegedly voted for criminal prosecution
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says he’s found 87 people out of more than two million registered voters who allegedly broke the law by voting in past elections without being citizens. And he says he’s found 67 noncitizens who illegally registered to vote. Pate says he’s sent their information to law enforcement for potential felony prosecution.
Pate says his office also found more than 2,000 people who said they were not citizens, and later voted or registered to vote. They could have become citizens before they voted.
Pate says he’s directed counties to require those 2,000 people to vote a provisional ballot. That means it wouldn’t get counted until they provide proof of citizenship.
Joe Henry is political director for the League of United Latin American Citizens of Iowa. He says Pate’s actions are politically motivated.
“We’re concerned about this. We think that this will probably create a chilling effect with some people who have become citizens, or who may have always been citizens.”
Last month, Pate said he didn’t think noncitizen voting was a widespread problem in Iowa. There’s no evidence that noncitizen voting is a widespread problem anywhere in the country.
Greater Des Moines Music Coalition is dissolving, 80/35 festival in question
The Greater Des Moines Music Coalition is dissolving after nearly 20 years putting on events aimed at growing central Iowa’s music scene.
The organization is responsible for putting on the annual 80/35 festival. The event experienced lower turnout after moving away from downtown Des Moines this past summer.
In addition to the festival, the DMMC put on local music events, summer camps and educational sessions for local, growing musicians navigating the industry.
The DMMC wrote in a statement that the future of the 80/35 festival is “not currently determined.”
Community trout stocking underway across Iowa
Fishing for trout has become a fall tradition in Iowa.
DNR Regional Fisheries Supervisor Mike Siepker says they get a lot of positive feedback.
“Anglers love the community trout stocking program. It provides a great close-to-home fishing opportunity for a lot of Iowans that might not otherwise have a chance to catch trout,” he says.
They have started stocking trout in 18 community ponds and lakes.
“Trout need cold water, and that’s one of the reasons that we wait until late fall to stock those fish, because if the ponds are too warm when we stock them, the fish don’t bite and the anglers are unhappy,” he says “So we wait long enough for the water to cool down, and that way, when we stock the trout, they’re happy and and are ready to bite.”
Siepker says they’ll release around 1,000 - 2, 000 trout in each lake. You will need a valid fishing license and have to pay the trout fee to keep the trout you catch. Children age 15 or younger can fish for trout with a properly licensed adult, but they must limit their catch to one daily. Children can purchase a trout fee, which will allow them to catch their own limit.
Casey’s to take over naming rights to Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines
The Des Moines venue where hundreds of sports and other events are held is getting a new name.
The Wells Fargo Arena and Iowa Events Center will be renamed the Casey’s Center as the Ankeny-based convenience store chain signed a ten year deal for the naming rights. The 17,000-seat arena opened in 2005 and took over hosting the boys’ and girls’ state basketball and boys’ state wrestling tournaments from Veterans Auditorium. It has also hosted the NCAA men’s basketball tournament multiple times.
The name will be changed on July 1, and it is the first naming rights deal for Casey’s.
Polk County court official encourages documentation of students missing school
A Polk County court official says it’s important to have documentation if a student misses school. This school year is the first under a state law that requires a documented agreement if a student misses 15% of required school days.
The agreement is signed by guardians, the student and school officials. Once 20% of days are missed, then it’s considered truancy and can be punishable by a fine or jail time.
Andrea Vitzthum is the juvenile bureau chief at the Polk County Attorney’s office. She says legal prosecution is likely to come from breaking an agreement, not necessarily the 20% threshold.
“It is not our goal to fine or put any of these people in jail. These are families in crisis, and we have run truancy court for many, many years, and so we have seen these families. And, the schools have worked very, very hard with these families to try and remove barriers before they ever refer them to us.”
Vitzthum says in her 22 years of experience, it’s rare parents are fined or jailed for truancy. She says, so far, about 1,900 students in Polk County have missed at least 10% of school days.
ACLU, Lambda Legal challenge law banning books and restricting LGBTQ topics
The Iowa Chapter of the ACLU and Lambda Legal are asking a federal judge to block an Iowa law that restricts schools from teaching about LGBTQ-related topics and requires them to ban books depicting sex acts.
Nathan Maxwell, attorney for Lambda Legal, says the state has offered little guidance on what books violate the law, forcing school districts to rely on differing advice from their attorneys.
“It's understandable that schools are a little bit confused about what they should or shouldn't be doing. The law is intentionally vague that way, it is over-broad that way. And the disciplinary measures in the law are so strict that they’re meant to enforce schools overapplying this.”
One of the plaintiffs in the new challenge is Dan Gutmann, a fourth grade teacher for Des Moines Public Schools. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, he said he was told by a school administrator last year to not mention his husband in the classroom because it could violate the law. After Gutmann raised objections the district reversed course, claiming the administrator misunderstood an attorney’s advice.
“If someone in authority could misunderstand a law so grossly, and feel required by law to make such a dehumanizing demand of me demonstrates the dangerous vagueness of Senate File 496. Vagueness that hit me with a hammer last year.”
A District Court judge in December placed an injunction blocking enforcement of the law while lawsuits challenging it proceeded. The state appealed, and in August a three judge panel overturned the injunction, allowing the law to go into effect.
ACLU attorney Thomas Story says the latest challenge involves some new plaintiffs, including LGBTQ students and faculty members. He says at this point, there is no timeline for when this new case will be heard.
In 1st District debate, candidates clash on abortion
Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and her Democratic challenger Christina Bohannan sparred on abortion in a debate hosted by Iowa PBS Monday night.
Both candidates are running to represent Iowa’s 1st Congressional District in a rematch of the 2022 race.
Bohannan, a law professor and former state representative, criticized Miller-Meeks' sponsorship of the Life at Conception Act, which would have given a fetus the protection of personhood.
Bohannan said Iowa’s new law, which bans abortion around six weeks of pregnancy, is too strict.
“What I support, what I’ve always supported, is Roe v. Wade, restoring Roe v. Wade into federal law where it was for half a century, before Dobbs overruled Roe v. Wade a couple years ago.”
Miller-Meeks opposes abortion rights, but supports exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. She says access to birth control is the best way for women to get pregnant on their own timelines.
The candidates found consensus in their concern about tariffs impacting farmers.
Miller-Meeks responded to the potential of former President Donald Trump invoking more tariffs if he is elected.
“I have concern over tariffs and concern over getting into trade wars. I think free trade is very important but it has to be trade that is fair for American producers, as well as American farmers.”
Bohannan said she agreed with Miller-Meeks on this issue, and that tariffs must be looked at very carefully to ensure there are markets out there for Iowa farmers’ products.
Iowa Judicial Branch fixing mistake that incorrectly distributed millions
The Iowa Judicial Branch says it’s fixing IT mistakes that sent more than $26 million of court debt collections to the wrong funds over the past four years.
The judicial branch says it hired the National Center for State Courts in 2022 to look into the issue. They found more than $22 million went to the wrong state funds, and nearly $4 million went to the wrong county funds.
Two Republican officials sent letters about this to State Auditor Rob Sand last week, the only statewide elected Democrat. They’re questioning why he didn’t take action when he learned of potential problems with the court debt money about two years ago.
Sand says state law requires him to keep such allegations confidential until his office issues a report. He says he’s always been planning to review the final figures from the judicial branch when he gets them. Sand says his office will report any issues in fiscal year 2023 audit reports.
Application for FEMA flood summer support in Iowa closes Tuesday night
The deadline for Iowans impacted by historic summer flooding to apply for individual federal assistance from FEMA ends at midnight Tuesday night. There are 16 counties in the state that are eligible.
Doug Reed, the director of Pottawattamie County Emergency Management, says that so far, FEMA has approved $1.2 million in individual assistance in Pottawattamie County. The Small Business Administration also provided $660,000 in low-interest loans to homeowners.
“Everybody wants to come in and help immediately in the emergency, and then, you know, after a fairly short time, everybody goes back home. You know, it's here, and then it's gone. And people still have needs.”
Reed says a long-term disaster recovery center is still open to help residents recover from three Presidential Disaster Declarations. This includes a deadly tornado outbreak in April that impacted the community of Minden, in addition to another weather event in May.
There is no conclusive link between climate change and tornadoes, but there is a connection with floods growing more frequent and severe in most of the United States because of more extreme precipitation.
House Speaker Mike Johnson rallies support for Iowa incumbents in competitive elections
House Speaker Mike Johnson rallied voters in West Des Moines and Indianola over the weekend, saying GOP candidates will “return sanity to Washington.”
Johnson is touring key swing states, such as Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan, to throw his support behind Republican House candidates with just over two weeks left until Election Day.
Johnson joined incumbent Reps. Zach Nunn in West Des Moines and Mariannette Miller-Meeks in Indianola for events Friday evening.
He says he thinks the Republican party could expect a demographic shift in November.
“We're going to have a record number of Hispanic and Latino voters who come into the Republican party. That's what's going to happen. That's what's going to happen. We're going to have a record number of Black and African American voters, a record number of Jewish voters.”
A report this year from the Pew Research Center found both parties have grown more racially and ethnically diverse in the past 30 years. The change has been greater among the Democratic party, but the party’s advantage with Hispanic and Black voters has decreased some in recent years.
Johnson pushed his support for presidential candidate Donald Trump, repeating one of Trump’s campaign phrases alluding to the false claim the 2020 election was "rigged."
“We got to do it, though, every single vote is going to count. We got to make it too big to rig, as was said, and that's exactly right.”
In 2020, Miller-Meeks won the then 2nd District election by only 6 votes – making it one of the closest House races in history. The Cook Political Report, which evaluates the competitiveness of elections across the country, classified the 1st and 3rd District races this year as “toss ups.”
Emerald ash borer has appeared in all Iowa counties
One of the most destructive tree pests in North America has reached all 99 counties in Iowa.
Emerald ash borer first showed up in Iowa in 2010, and federal officials recently confirmed the invasive beetle in Emmet County, the last hold-out.
Emerald ash borer kills ash trees, which make up roughly 20% of total street tree canopy in the average Iowa community. In some communities, ash trees represent over 50%.
Mike Kintner, an entomologist with Iowa’s department of agriculture, says signs of infection include dead tree limbs in the top third of the canopy. This is easiest to spot in summer when healthy branches leaf out.
“After emerald ash borer moves through a community, you can really see the impact it has, not only aesthetically, but also financially. It can kind of put a burden on municipalities with resources and also homeowners, too.”
Kintner says preventive insecticide treatment is an option for healthy ash trees. But once they show severe symptoms – like dead branches in the top third of the tree – recovery is less likely.
Infested ash trees tend to die within two to four years. As landowners and communities consider replacing these trees, Kintner recommends planting with diversity in mind.
Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott faces challenger in District 14
Iowans will determine the layout of the Statehouse for the next legislative session with their choices in the November election. Republicans are looking to defend majorities in both the Iowa House and Senate while Democrats hope to regain seats in both chambers. Voters in Waukee, Adel, Van Meter and parts of West Des Moines and Clive will either reelect Democratic Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott or elect her Republican challenger Mark Hanson to represent Senate District 14 in the Iowa Legislature. Here’s where each candidate stands on key issues.
Perry school shooter motives revealed in state investigation
The Iowa Department of Public Safety says the 17-year-old student responsible for the Perry High School shooting acted alone and with suicidal intentions.
Perry High School student Dylan Butler fatally shot sixth grade student Ahmir Jolliff and injured seven others on Jan. 4, 2024, including the school principal, Dan Marburger, who later died of his injuries.
Iowa DPS Commissioner Stephan Bayens says evidence shows Butler acted alone and did not target anyone specifically.
“We recovered writings from the shooter, who indicated just that he desired to be famous. He desired to commit suicide. Desired to take others with him.”
Bayens says some people had knowledge of Butler’s fascination with violence and school shootings, but did not find any evidence anyone knew he was planning the January attack.
Bayens called Marburger a hero for putting his students’ safety first and continuing to engage with Butler even after he had been shot.
Butler died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Top official says Iowa court’s pricey computer error hasn’t been fixed
The governor’s budget director says he’s been told by a top court official that the computer programming error that has improperly distributed over $53 million in court fees and fines has not been fixed.
“My understanding is that the system is still not corrected and I have offered assistance to the chief justice and she is taking me up on that and we’re meeting here very soon, as in yet this week,” Iowa Department of Management director Kraig Paulsen told reporters on Thursday. “…We don’t have the code, we haven’t seen the code and by this I mean the programming code, and so that all has to be analyzed, but it is my understanding that the errant distributions continue to this day.”
The Judicial Branch has not issued a statement on the situation, which Paulsen and House Speaker Pat Grassley disclosed to the media earlier this week. Paulsen said the state fund for road and bridge projects has been shorted by nearly $10 million over the past few years, for example, and some of the money it should be getting is still being sent elsewhere.
Paulsen said he will discuss all the misdirected funds with the chief justice.
The state court system is an independent branch of state government. However, the Legislature and governor approve the budget for the courts. Spending levels for several programs that were changed five years ago were not programmed correctly into the court’s computer system. Paulsen said court officials have given his department spreadsheets explaining the underpayments and where the overpayments have gone.
“Some counties got more than the distribution dictated, or the law dictated, and some got less, so on and so forth and we’re going through that right now,” Paulsen said Thursday morning. “It’s a lot of money and a lot of different distributions. It’s going to take a little bit to unwind.”
Paulsen believes the age of the computer system for Iowa courts “is a factor in this,” but he’ll find out more when he meets with the Iowa Supreme Court’s chief justice.
Tax cuts expected to reduce Iowa revenue by a billion dollars
Iowa’s revenue forecasters say state revenue is expected to decline by about a billion dollars over a two-year period. That’s because of major personal income and corporate tax cuts signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds.
The state took in $9.8 billion in the most recent fiscal year that ended in June. In fiscal year 2026, revenue forecasters are projecting the state will bring in $8.7 billion. That’s less than what the state is spending on government services this year.
Department of Management Director Kraig Paulsen says he doesn’t see any problem with that.
“The estimates here also don’t include the balance carry forward, which was about $1.9 billion, so there’s clearly enough money there with no transfers.”
Paulsen says that budget surplus and the taxpayer relief fund combined with Iowa’s economic growth means even more tax cuts could be possible. Reynolds says the tax cuts are working as designed and Iowans can keep more of what they earned. Democrats say her tax and budget policies are putting private schools and corporate tax cuts ahead of kids in public schools and seniors in nursing homes.
Southwest Iowa holds candidate forum
Candidates who want to represent southwest Iowa in the state Legislature participated in a forum Thursday night in Council Bluffs. Brent Siegrist represents House District 19 in the Iowa Legislature, and at one time served as the Speaker of the House after first being elected in 1984. The former teacher left state politics more than 20 years ago and returned in 2020. He was the only Republican who attended a forum. His Democratic challenger, Roger Peterson, did not attend. Democrat Benjamin Schaur, a city councilman and teacher from Dunlap, is running for House District 15 against Matt Windschitl, the Republican Majority Leader from Missouri Valley. Here’s what the candidates had to say about reproductive rights.
Iowa is experiencing peak fall color – how does this display happen?
Temperatures are feeling more like fall, and the trees are following suit. According to the Iowa DNR Fall Color Report, much of the state experiences peak color in mid- to late October.
Mark Vitosh, a forester at the Iowa DNR, joined Garden Variety to share how weather conditions impact when and how fall colors appear.
“Depending on what colors you want to see, especially if you want to see vibrant purples and reds, we need cool evenings and clear days," Vitosh said.
Moisture is also an important factor in how vibrant the colors will appear. Dry conditions can cause leaves to look more bleached, or cause browning.
In years with consistently warmer temperatures, the process for a tree going dormant may slow down, so the transition to fall colors doesn’t happen as quickly.
“You're always going to have that trigger of light, or lack of light and darkness, that is the start,” Vitosh said. “But then weather, temperatures, rain, freeze, all that can have a big impact on how long things last.”
Read more and view Vitosh’s recommended leaf peeping spots here.
Chemical leak in Dubuque aquarium tank kills all but 17 fish
The aquarium at Dubuque’s National Mississippi River Museum is closed due to a chemical leak in one of the tanks.
A pipe from the museum’s HVAC system was dripping glycol into one the aquarium’s 40,000-gallon Gulf of Mexico tank last week, killing all but 17 of the fish inside as of Tuesday.
Aquarium staff were alerted to the presence of glycol in the water due to a milky bacteria bloom that was placed in the water to fight the chemical.
Kurt Strand, president and CEO of the museum, says the bloom happened overnight, and murky water made rescue efforts difficult.
“Bacterial bloom can happen in a few short hours. As soon as our team got in at 7 a.m., it was all hands on deck. They knew they couldn’t dive in because it was murky, but they were doing everything possible to save as many as they could.”
Strand says he anticipates reopening the tank in about six weeks if cleaning goes according to plan, but that depends on the health of the surviving fish.
It’s a team effort to ensure rural students who are homeless get an equal education
A federal law called McKinney-Vento provides funding for school districts to ensure that homeless students have equal access to education. But the amount of money available is limited, especially for rural schools.
The Midwest Newsroom found that, in large rural swaths of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska, hundreds of school districts report they don’t enroll any homeless students, even though other measures of poverty indicate that’s likely not true.
The challenge is that many students go under the radar when their housing is disrupted. Nebraska recently stepped up its efforts to identify which students qualify and can receive assistance.
They identified 4,868 students that are eligible for services through McKinney-Vento during the 2023-24 school year, according to Ann Carmoney, the Nebraska coordinator for McKinney-Vento. That number grew from about 2,500 students in the 2020-21 school year because schools reopened after the pandemic.
Part of Nebraska’s plan to help families in need involves partnering with nonprofit organizations.
Ryan Weldon challenges Rep. Molly Buck in Iowa House District 41
The election results in November will reset the balance of power in the Iowa Statehouse. In House District 41, which covers northern Ankeny, voters will choose whether to elect Democratic incumbent Rep. Molly Buck or her Republican challenger Ryan Weldon. IPR spoke with Buck and Weldon about their legislative priorities.
Read more from the candidates about where they stand on key issues.
Emmet County places temporary moratorium on wind turbine permits
The Emmet County Board of Supervisors approved a temporary moratorium on construction permits for new wind energy projects in the county. The county’s planning and zoning board proposed updates to zoning rules for wind turbines.
Supervisor Tim Schumacher of Estherville says the board now has time to review the proposal.
“We just need to tap the brakes a little bit, take a breath and try to catch up with technology on our ordinance. The technology’s gone far greater than any of us imagined in the last 10-12 years since we developed the original ordinance, and we just need to catch up so we can have the same assurances in place that we had with the original.”
The moratorium will be in effect until Jan. 31, 2025.
Schumacher, who describes himself as a supporter of wind energy development, says he wants to make the right decision for Emmet County.
“We are probably one of the highest in the state, as far as wind speed — probably 17.5 [miles per hour] or better. And so, as I look at ways to keep Emmet County strong and develop Emmet County, that seemed like a logical choice.”
A public hearing on the new wind energy ordinance will be held next Oct. 24 at the Emmet County Courthouse. Earlier this year, developers of the Red Rock Wind Energy Center said they plan to erect 18 turbines in Emmet County. The company submitted its application for a construction permit to Emmet County officials earlier this month.
Fire danger in Iowa is ‘very high to extreme’
Iowans are warned not to do any open burning Thursday, and farmers need to use caution in the fields with their hot harvest equipment, as 88 of the state’s 99 counties are under a Red Flag Warning.
National Weather Service meteorologist Alexis Jimenez says the fire danger is very high to extreme. In most areas, the warning runs through 7 p.m., though Jimenez says it could be renewed Friday, as there is virtually no rain in the forecast.
“Friday is looking like another pretty breezy day, especially across northern and western Iowa, and then as we get into Saturday, we could start seeing some wind taper down a little bit.”
The extended outlook shows a chance of rain showers Monday night.
Eleven counties in eastern Iowa are not under Wednesday’s warning. The state fire marshal’s office posted burn bans for 58 counties.
Early voting is underway in Iowa. Here’s what you need to know
Wednesday was the first day for early voting in Iowa. This is the first presidential election since Iowa passed new voting laws shortening the window for early voting from 29 days to 20 days. The changes also mean absentee ballots are due by the time polls close on Election Day.
Iowa Senate Democrat Nate Boulton says voters need to be proactive about turning in their ballots with the new laws.
“Your ballot needs to get returned as soon as possible. It's just a very tight window, so it’s not an opportunity to kind of sit around and let that ballot sit on the kitchen counter for a week or two. It's a tight timeline — make sure you turn in that ballot.”
County auditors’ offices or election offices will be open for early voting through Nov. 4. Eligible voters who want to vote by mail need to request their ballot by Monday, Oct. 21.
Former Des Moines city council member ordered to pay $6,000 to police officer over chokehold charges
A Polk County judge ordered former Des Moines city council member Indira Sheumaker to pay $6,000 in damages to a police officer who accused her of putting him in a chokehold.
The decision stems from a physical altercation Sheumaker had with officer Jeffrey George during a racial justice protest in July 2020. Sheumaker pleaded guilty in 2021 to assault on a peace officer relating to the brawl, but the civil lawsuit was filed more than a year later.
In a counter-lawsuit that was later thrown out, Sheumaker alleged she was put into a chokehold by another officer and grabbed George to prevent being dragged across the ground.
George originally sued for more than $260,000, but the court found his injuries were relatively minor and he did not present enough evidence of emotional distress to warrant the full amount.
Sheumaker did not file a response and did not appear at any hearings related to the civil case.
Emerald ash borer confirmed in all 99 counties. Here’s how to protect your trees
Emerald ash borer has been confirmed in all 99 counties in Iowa. The non-native insect is considered one of the most destructive tree pests in North America.
State officials recently collected insect samples from a declining tree in Emmet County, the last ash-borer-free county in the state. The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed that they were emerald ash borer.
The pest first showed up in Allamakee County in 2010.
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship said landowners with ash trees within a 15-mile radius of a known infestation have options. They can wait and see what happens, replace ash trees with other species or use preventive insecticide treatments on mature, healthy trees. These treatments are most effective in the spring.
Since emerald ash borer and other invasive pests can hitchhike in firewood, state officials ask people to use locally sourced firewood.
Iowa Judicial Branch improperly distributed $53 million because of an IT error
A computer programming error has caused the Iowa Judicial Branch to improperly distribute more than $53 million of collected court debts since 2021, according to letters from House Speaker Pat Grassley and Iowa Department of Management Director Kraig Paulsen.
Paulsen says he recently learned from court officials that an IT error caused about $26 million of overpayments, and $26 million of underpayments for things like crime victim assistance and highway repairs. The letters don’t say what the money was used for instead. A judicial branch official said Tuesday they’d respond to questions “as soon as possible.”
Grassley and Paulsen, both Republican, wrote letters to State Auditor Rob Sand, a Democrat, urging him to investigate the debt collections and questioning why he hasn’t already done so after being notified of issues two years ago.
Sand says “everyone” knew the judicial branch had hired a specialist for an in-depth review and that Grassley’s accusations of inaction are “partisan bluster.”
Grassley: Disaster funding is more than ample, satisfied with FEMA response
Some Democrats are calling for Congress to return from its recess to enact emergency legislation that would pay for additional relief following the two recent hurricanes that caused significant damage in several southern states.
Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican, says he’s confident there’s sufficient funding in place to handle the disasters.
“Just before we left, we put $20 billion in the pot, and as of Sunday, only 2% of that was spent yet,” Grassley says, “so there’s only three weeks to go until Congress is in session, so there’s more than ample amount of money available.”
Federal lawmakers aren’t scheduled to return to business until Nov. 12. Grassley says if they’re called back, he’d go, but he doesn’t think such action is necessary.
“At least what I know from reading in the newspapers, listening to the radio and watching TV, I’m satisfied,” Grassley says, “but I’m not in Asheville, North Carolina, seeing it on the ground.”
Hurricane Helene spawned severe winds, heavy rain and record flooding in western North Carolina, where Iowa utility crews are still helping to restore power.
Iowa has had its share of terrible weather events this year, too, and Grassley says FEMA’s response in Iowa to deadly tornadoes and historic flooding was up to par.
“Things that have happened in Minden and Greenfield, and let’s see, Spencer would be where we had a flood, Rock Valley, we had a flood,” Grassley says. “I’ve been to those communities today, and I’m satisfied with what I saw FEMA doing here in Iowa.”
In addition to the billions in damage from the two hurricanes coming 13 days apart, Helene killed at least 250 people in seven states, while Milton is responsible for 14 deaths in Florida.
FEMA and nonprofits continue to assist in flood recovery
When the Little Sioux River hit record levels, half of Correctionville’s 300 homes ended up with some damage, including Mayor Ken Bauer’s.
“It was a nightmare. They said, for three days, they kept saying, ‘Well, it will only get to here. It'll only get to here.’ And it kept going, and it kept going.”
Bauer says his town pulled together for the clean-up that took about a month. The focus on recovery continues. On Tuesday, FEMA and nonprofits met with residents still trying to repair their properties and lives.
Other damage in Woodbury County included 150 homes in Sioux City and 30 properties in the tiny town of Smithland.
Woodbury County Emergency Management Director Michael Montino says he’s proud of the strong support.
“Particularly our community members, our nonprofits, our government organizations for pooling together and putting forth the effort that they did as part of the response and recovery process.
The deadline to apply for FEMA assistance in Woodbury and 14 other western Iowa counties is Oct. 22.
Story and Johnson counties have conservation bonds on the ballot
Voters in Story and Johnson counties will decide this November whether to approve bonds to help fund conservation and recreation projects. If passed by voters, the bond in Story County would generate $25 million over two decades. The money would be used for things like adding more ADA-compliant paths at Hickory Grove Park and completing the Heart of Iowa Nature Trail. It would also help to restore wetlands and reduce erosion along the Skunk River.
Clayton County farmer sentenced to 15 years in prison for livestock theft, wire fraud and false bankruptcy claims
A federal judge has sentenced a Clayton County farmer to over 15 years in prison and ordered that he pay more than $5.7 million in restitution.
Michael Butikofer sold cattle he did not own while running a large, unregistered feeding operation in Clayton County. He also made false statements in bankruptcy court and defrauded the US Department of Agriculture of more than $1.2 million in emergency assistance funds during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He pled guilty for livestock theft, wire fraud and false claims while filing for bankruptcy.
The case follows a 2020 civil judgment against Butikofer related to his mistreatment of three farmworkers from South Africa. Prosecutors said Butikofer profited from forced farm labor and recruited workers through the H-2A visa program on false pretenses about the type of work, housing conditions and reimbursement he was offering.
U.S. Attorney Timothy Duax stated in a press release, “Butikofer treated his victims and the rule of law with equal contempt, and fully deserves his fifteen-year sentence to federal prison.”
Smithsonian to display Iowa butter cow
The iconic Iowa State Fair butter cow is heading to Washington D.C. next year.
The sculpture will be displayed at the Smithsonian American Art Museum as part of a year-long exhibit celebrating the art of state fairs around the country.
Artist Sarah Pratt has sculpted the cow since 2006. She will create the cow in D.C., along with her two daughters, who are also learning the craft.
“I am just still pinching myself that I have the opportunity to be sculpting for the Smithsonian and representing Iowa and butter sculpting, and then I get to do it alongside my family.”
The exhibit will open next August, after the 2025 Iowa State Fair ends.
Iowa House Democrats try to link ESAs to public school closures
House Democrats claimed last week that 36 new private schools have opened and 16 public schools have closed because education savings accounts became available last fall. But the governor’s office says those numbers are wrong. And according to the Iowa Department of Education, there’s been no recent increase in public school closures. The department says it lists private schools that become accredited, not all private schools that open in the state.
House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst says there are “some issues with the data,” but she says the governor should provide more transparency and better data about the impact of ESAs.
“Schools were at a breaking point when it came to school funding, and what these vouchers have done is push them over the edge in many ways.”
A spokesperson for Gov. Kim Reynolds’ office says it’s wrong to suggest that Iowa’s public, charter and private schools are “engaged in a zero-sum struggle.”
Iowa Cancer Summit will discuss Iowa’s high cancer rates
The Iowa Cancer Consortium holds its “Iowa Cancer Summit” in Ankeny on Tuesday.
A recent report from the Iowa Cancer Registry shows Iowa has the the fastest-growing rate of new cancers and the second-highest rate of new cancers in the U.S.
Kelly Wells-Sittig, the Iowa Cancer Consortium’s executive director, says cancer is a complex disease, and there is not one single thing that’s causing the high rates.
“I think that we are, understandably, hearing a lot of concern about Iowa having the second highest cancer incidence rates in the country, and rightfully so. We are also seeing a lot of passion, and people who are ready and interested in trying to figure out what’s happening in our state.”
Wells-Sittig says the Iowa Cancer Coalition includes a wide range of stakeholders, including physicians, public health officials and cancer survivors.
“Even though I know we’re all feeling confused, and often afraid, by the news our rates are so high. But we do know a lot about how to prevent cancer, how to find it early, how to take the best care of people who are going through a cancer experience.”
The Cancer Registry’s report shows Iowa has the 4th highest incidence of alcohol-related cancers in the U.S., and the highest rate in the Midwest.
Wells-Sittig says people can learn more and join the coalition at canceriowa.org.
Hinson and Corkery debate ahead of election in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District
The issue of abortion access provided some of the most heated discussion Monday night, when the candidates for Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District met for their only scheduled debate before the November election.
Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson reiterated her stance opposing abortion rights, but claimed she would support legislation that provides exceptions for rape, incest and life-threatening situations.
In the debate on Iowa PBS, her challenger, Democrat Sarah Corkery, thought differently.
She’s against government restriction when it comes to abortion access, particularly Iowa’s law banning the procedure as early as six weeks based on cardiac activity. She said reducing the issue to any length of time trivializes it.
“I think it should just be between a person and a doctor; I’m going to push back on this. We’ve all talked about that one indicator. This is not a flippant conversation, and that’s what it becomes when we focus on one metric. Nobody should tell you the fetus you carry has more rights than you do. That’s just wrong.”
Both candidates acknowledged the U.S.-Mexico border as one of Iowans’ primary concerns.
Hinson proposed increasing personnel and infrastructure on the southern border, which she said has been hindered by a lack of support from the current administration.
“We do need more border patrol agents. We need more ICE detention beds. The biggest question is, though: How are we going to get those bodies down there to work in these places? Not everyone wants to work in law enforcement, and certainly not for CBP, if the administration isn’t supporting them to do their job.”
Corkery agreed that increasing funding would be necessary, but criticized how current resources are being used.
Jellyfish in Iowa pond surprise farmer
A farmer found peach blossom jellyfish on his property in Guthrie County, west of Des Moines.
The freshwater species originates from China, but is found on every continent of the world except Antarctica.
DNR officials say there have been a couple of other sightings over the years in quarries, but never in public waterways.
Kim Bogenschutz, the aquatic invasive species program coordinator for the Iowa DNR, says the jellyfish do not pose any environmental concerns and, due to their tiny size, aren’t able to sting humans.
DNR officials say there are theories on how the jellyfish ended up in Iowa, including migrating birds, fish stocking, or someone dumping their aquarium, which is illegal.
Court rules county auditor’s lawsuit over Iowa voter registration lists may proceed
The Iowa Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that the Linn County Auditor can pursue his lawsuit that questions the security of Iowa’s voter registration system.
In 2019, Linn County Auditor Joel Miller, a Democrat, alleged the state’s computerized database of registered voters is potentially vulnerable to cyber threats. Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, said Miller failed to give an example of a specific security threat and the Iowa Voter Registration Commission dismissed the complaint. The Linn County Auditor filed a lawsuit in 2020 and a district court dismissed the lawsuit last year.
The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled Miller has the right to proceed with his lawsuit that questions whether the state’s computerized list of registered voters is vulnerable to hacking.
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, in a written statement, said “first and foremost,” he wants to “assure Iowa voters that Iowa’s election systems are secure.” Pate said in the years since Miller’s complaint was filed in 2019, the state has installed “robust cybersecurity measures” in its election systems.
In a statement to The Des Moines Register, Miller said his complaint is still valid because Iowa is “using the same voter registration system that I complained about in 2019.”
Miller, who has served as Linn County Auditor since 2007, is not seeking reelection. In 2022, Miller was the Democrat who ran against Iowa’s Secretary of State. In that race, Miller questioned how Pate had spent several million dollars to update Iowa’s computerized voter registration system. Pate, a Republican who also lives and votes in Linn County, won that race with about 60% of the vote.
Emergency medical responders have decreased in Iowa for past seven years
Iowa has seen a drop in emergency medical responders since the COVID pandemic started.
According to a report from the Department of Health and Human Services, the number of certified EMTs in Iowa has declined for seven straight years.
Mark McCulloch, former president of the Iowa Emergency Medical Services Association, says a lot of Iowans he talks to aren’t aware that EMS, unlike fire and police, is not considered an essential service in this state.
“Number one is awareness. I don’t think everybody understands the situation we’re in, and I don’t think everybody understands EMS is not considered essential, it’s not funded. You know your county is required to adjudicate your fencepost boundary disputes, but not provide you EMS.”
A law passed in 2021 allows counties to declare EMS an essential service and put a levy referendum on the ballot to fund it. McCullough says it’s a good start, but more needs to be done to attract younger volunteers.
“Iowans are special in a way. They care a lot about their communities and they care about the people they live around. And I think if more people knew that we need volunteers, we need responders, I think more people would answer that call. At the same time, as systems go, we need to try to make it an easier ask.”
He says paying for EMS training might be one way to bring more young people into EMS work.
Golden retriever joins Panther Marching Band as a service dog
This football season at the University of Northern Iowa, fans are delighting in watching a new four-legged member of the Panther Marching Band take the field at halftime.
Winnie, a golden retriever, is a service dog for sophomore student Gabi Riessen, who has a chronic condition called POTS.
“My heart rate fluctuates more than other people. I can get dizzy just standing,” says Riessen. “And so Winnie will warn me before I pass out, or if my heart rate is too high, so I can sit down.”
Riessen transferred to UNI when her old school didn’t allow her to join activities because she would need her service dog with her. Now, Gabi and Winnie are local celebrities.
“When we first spoke on the phone, the plan was, you know, she was not really gonna really do any marching,” says Justin Mertz, UNI band director. “But then we met her, we met Winnie, and we saw what they would both be capable of, and we agreed to give it a try. And the next thing you know, there's a dog on the field.”
You can watch them perform next at UNI’s Homecoming football game against Missouri State on Oct. 26.
University of Iowa International Writing Program alum wins Nobel Prize
South Korean author Han Kang has won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature. The writer was once in residence at the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.
Kang attended the prestigious program in 1998 as a young writer.
Christopher Merrill, the program’s director, says that Kang began as a poet, and that’s clear in her now award-winning novels.
“Her prose is very precise. It's a kind of chiseled prose, and she's the sort of writer who pays close attention to, sometimes just the most seemingly insignificant details.”
Merrill says Kang was among at least five other IWP alumni in the running for the prize. The Nobel Foundation has honored Kang for her, “intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life.”
Kang is the third IWP alum to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Midwest states ramp up wind turbine recycling
While wind is a renewable energy, wind turbines don’t last forever. The wings have a lifespan of about 20 years, while some are replaced after just ten.
Wind turbine blade recycling has ramped up in Iowa, Missouri and now in Oklahoma.
Oklahoma’s first wind turbine blade recycling plant just opened and has started shredding the blades.
Scott Greene, professor at the University of Oklahoma and former director of the Oklahoma Wind Power Initiative, says it’s important to have a recycling plant open now for a couple of reasons.
“We don't want to waste things if we don't have to waste them. The other thing is, we're starting to get to the point of the end of life cycle.”
When the blades need to be replaced, they are taken down and later sorted at the facility. They are cut into smaller pieces, hoisted into a large metal machine and shredded into mulch-like bits. They’ll go to a recycling mill, to be broken down further and used in products like concrete.