People were evacuated from the site of the National Speech and Debate Tournament in downtown Des Moines Thursday.

Des Moines police say a man entered the stage area at the EMC Expo Center and his behavior caused safety concerns. He was taken into custody.

Police say no weapons were seen or found, and no one was hurt. But access to the building was restricted as a precaution.

The National Speech and Debate Association says it plans to resume the tournament later Thursday.

Cedar Crossing Casino and Entertainment Center

A lawsuit seeking to block developers from building a new casino in Cedar Rapids was struck down by a district court judge Thursday.

Developers have been moving forward with the $275 million casino since the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission ruled to grant Linn County a gaming license in February. But competitors made a last-ditch effort to halt its development, saying the language on a 2021 referendum that voters approved was inadequate.

Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell says the ruling affirmed that Linn County voters knew exactly what they were voting for.

“These voters approved this back in ‘21 and have been dodging bullets and fists ever since. And so, to get to this ruling today really validates the will of the people here, and also validates the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, frankly.”

Market studies have estimated the new casino would help increase Iowa’s gambling revenue by over $60 million, while drawing roughly $68 million from its competitors. It’s expected to be finished by the end of 2026.

State health officials say they have confirmed three additional cases of measles in eastern Iowa. The new cases bring Iowa’s total count to six so far this year.

The cases were confirmed in a woman between the ages of 18 and 40 and two children under the age of 18. All three people were unvaccinated, and the cases were locally acquired through household contact.

The state’s previous three confirmed cases were all determined to be travel-associated. Two of those cases were in unvaccinated individuals.

The nation is in the middle of an outbreak of the highly contagious virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed nearly 1,200 cases nationwide.

Health officials are encouraging people to make sure they are up-to-date on their MMR vaccination, which is 97% effective against measles.

Iowans might need to rethink their weekend outdoor plans, as forecasters say the entire state will be under an extreme heat watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday night.

National Weather Service Meteorologist Brooke Hagenhoff says Saturday will be the first full day of summer — and the hot and muggy weather will arrive right on time.

“We’re looking at excessive heat … Really the main time frame for the hottest conditions Saturday and Sunday, with the heat index maybe surpassing 105 degrees in many cases.”

Even after the sun goes down Saturday night, Hagenhoff predicts there will be little relief from the steamy conditions.

“We’re looking at overnight low temperatures that could be record warm. We’re looking at low temperatures in the upper 70s, and with that humidity still around overnight, it may still feel like the mid-to-upper 80s.”

A storm front might arrive Monday, which she says could knock down the heat.

As for the weekend ahead, she suggests drinking plenty of fluids, staying in an air-conditioned room and out of the sun, and checking up on relatives and neighbors.

Nearly 4,000 Iowa Army National Guard soldiers are in the midst of three weeks of rigorous summer training at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Johnson, Louisiana.

Col. Tony Smithart is the 734^th Regional Support Group commander. He says troops from the 2^nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 34^th Infantry Division are there, along with nearly 1,800 soldiers from across the state, who will soon be going overseas.

“The key mission for the 734^th Regional Support Group is to build combat power for forces to flow into an assigned mission. We’ve received about 6,000 soldiers for the exercise, 2,000 pieces of equipment that the 734^th RSG has received and moved into staging yards for the forces that are deploying to the exercise to be ready to do their mission.”

This is the final training step for the soldiers who will be deployed overseas as part of Operation Inherent Resolve.

Despite pushback from some agriculture leaders, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will raid farms, ranches and dairies in an effort to ramp up arrests and deportations. This is a reversal of a brief pause following recent ICE raids at farms and meat-processing facilities.

Some immigration experts say this policy could hurt an industry that heavily depends on immigrants. According to Sonia Parras, an immigration attorney in Des Moines, rural communities and immigrant workers are concerned about raids.

Parras previously worked on cases in 2008 when ICE raided a meat-processing plant and arrested nearly 400 people in the city of Postville.

“When the administration, to me, prioritizes punitive enforcement that targets these workers, it creates a bit of a paradox, where the very workforce that the farmers relied upon is being driven into the shadows.”

More than 40% of U.S. farm workers are in the U.S. without legal status or are not legally authorized to work, according to a 2022 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Iowa’s share of a legal settlement with the maker of the opioid drug OxyContin is nearly $38 million.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, along with 54 attorneys general from states and U.S. territories, signed onto the settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sacklers, the family that owns the company.

Half of Iowa’s $37.8 million share of the settlement will go to local governments in Iowa. The other half will go into a state fund set up to distribute money from settlements with companies that made, marketed and sold opioids.

Bird said the settlement is “bittersweet” because “OxyContin is an extremely harmful and addictive drug.” State records indicate 238 Iowans died of an opioid overdose in 2023, although the names of the opioid taken are not listed.

Ten other companies that made or sold opioids have already agreed to settlements and have paid the state of Iowa over $56 million. After three years of negotiations, the Legislature agreed this spring on a plan to distribute the money from the state’s Opioid Settlement Fund.

This latest settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family must be approved by a court before the money reaches Iowa and other states. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a settlement offer last year that was nearly $3 billion less and would have shielded the Sackler family from civil lawsuits related to OxyContin’s use.

James Kelley

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Iowa Public Radio

Mobile home owners in Johnson County are voicing their frustration over property rent increases and worsening living conditions after their lots were purchased by an out-of-state investor.

A group of residents from three mobile home parks in Johnson County say they have noticed steep increases in their lot rent, dirty drinking water and unsafe infrastructure. They say it’s after their lots were purchased by a Utah-based investor called Havenpark Communities.

Jessica Andino is the executive director of the Johnson County Affordable Housing Coalition.

“They own their home as much as any other individual in the county. They just don’t own that land underneath them, they rent it. That means they are uniquely vulnerable to predatory practices of these out-of-state agencies if the landowner decides to raise the rent too high or refuses to make repairs.”

Residents say their complaints about unsafe living conditions have been largely ignored. They are asking for a two-year moratorium on rent increases at lots with improved living standards.

A spokesperson from Havenpark Communities says the company has invested more than $2 million in upgrades at the three locations and is committed to keeping residents safe.

Splash pads in the Des Moines metro area can reopen Thursday, even as a lawn watering ban continues.

Central Iowa Water Works banned watering lawns to keep dangerous nitrate in drinking water below the federal standard. Levels in the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers are still well above the Environmental Protection Agency limit.

Cities in the metro also closed public splash pads to save water. Now, with hot weather on the way, they can reopen. But some may have limited hours.

Central Iowa Water Works says splash pads use about 1 million gallons of water per day, while lawn watering uses around 40 million gallons per day.

A federal judge extended an order that temporarily blocks the U.S. Department of Labor from shutting down Job Corps training program for low-income young adults. The extension goes through June 25 to give the judge more time to review the case.

Ryan Dunker is a Job Corps participant. He lives on campus in Denison, one of two residential programs in Iowa. The other is in Ottumwa.

“I know for me, this place was perfect. It definitely gave me a lot of hope for my future, at least.”

Dunker recently completed a pharmacy tech program and says he does have some job leads. However, he worries about others who would have nowhere to go if the campus closes.

Supporters of Job Corps are optimistic the judge will decide to extend the order further, which would allow Job Corps to continue operations as the legal process continues. Plaintiffs in the case say only Congress can cut money for the program.

A Juneteenth celebration is planned for Thursday in Sioux City after five years without one.

The NAACP says this year it felt more support to put on the event, which will feature live music, art and soul food. Organizers want people to understand the true meaning of Juneteenth, which commemorates the emancipation of enslaved people in the U.S.

Across the country, some Juneteenth celebrations have been scaled back due to a lack of funding as companies and cities have changed their support for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Sioux City’s event takes place from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Sioux City Public Museum.

Photo courtesy of Blank Park Zoo

Iowa’s largest zoo is adding sharks to its Big Reef Aquarium for the first time. Two bamboo sharks, Snoopy and Pluto, were introduced this week at Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines.

Blank Park Zoo spokesman Alex Payne says the light brown, spotted sharks are slender and about 2 feet long, but they might eventually grow up to 4 feet.

“They’re cute little sharks, but they do like to hide. So you’ll find them around the bottom of the aquarium most of the time.”

Payne says Blank Park Zoo is excited for visitors to connect with this new species and appreciate the rich diversity that makes the planet’s oceans so extraordinary.

“This is the first time that we have had sharks at the zoo. We were looking for some new species to introduce into our aquarium, and they were a perfect match. We have the size of aquarium that we could fit them in, and it adds something a little additional to the aquarium for guests to be able to interact and engage with.”

Sharks have a reputation for being predatory, but Payne doesn’t expect any trouble with the other fish in the 15,000-gallon aquarium.

“We make sure that, when we do put animals together, that they will interact with each other in a positive way. Our keepers make sure that they work with the sharks and they’ll make sure that they’re well fed and have the enrichment items that they need to make sure that there won’t be any sort of conflict with the other animals.”

June 20 marks the 50th anniversary of Steven Spielberg’s classic shark horror film Jaws, and some Iowa theaters are holding special screenings over the weekend, though Payne insists it’s just a happy coincidence.

Health care and food supply leaders in Linn County have concerns about how Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients in the area could be affected by President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

The bill is estimated to cut nearly $300 billion in SNAP funding and nearly $800 billion from Medicaid over 10 years.

Theresa Graham-Mineart, director of outpatient services at UnityPoint Health’s Abbe Center for Community Mental Health, discussed the bill at an event Tuesday with local service providers.

She says over 50% of the clinic’s patients are on Medicaid, and with the proposed changes to work requirements outlined in the bill, those patients could lose their coverage.

“If a person cannot get in for care within those time frames, they will just skip it. And skipping it means a lot of different things. For behavioral health, skipping it can mean, ‘I’m just going to dig my heels in and try to get through.' Skipping, it can also mean suicide and overdoses.”

The bill has been approved by the U.S. House and is currently working its way through the U.S. Senate. It will then be sent back to the House for review before being sent to Trump’s desk. Republican leaders say they want to get the bill to the president by July 4.

A new report ranks Iowa’s health system 18^th in the nation.

The report by the nonpartisan organization Commonwealth Fund found Iowa has low rates of drug overdose deaths and adults who go without care because of the cost. However, Iowa also has some of the nation’s highest obesity rates.

It also found Iowa’s uninsured rate dropped from more than 12% in 2013 to about 7% in 2023.

Sara Collins, with the Commonwealth Fund, says current proposals at the federal level to add work requirements to Medicaid could cause Iowa’s uninsured rate to go back up. Most people on Medicaid already work.

“The reporting requirements will be the thing that really does lead to people disenrolling and becoming uninsured. People really have no other options.”

Iowa lawmakers also passed Medicaid work requirements at the state level during the 2025 legislative session and are waiting on federal approval to implement them.

Read more.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

The Hinterland Music Festival introduced a new policy this year that addresses its most pervasive problem: Iowa heat. It’s called the 90-Degree Guarantee, and through it, ticket-holders can request a refund if temperatures are predicted to reach or exceed 90 degrees. The policy also references the growing impact of climate change.

Read more about what it could mean for the future of outdoor festivals as they navigate the impacts of a changing climate.

Law officers across Iowa are taking part in a nationwide effort this week to promote the “Move Over, It’s the Law” program.

Trooper Paul Gardner of the Iowa State Patrol says it’s been the law in Iowa for more than 20 years, but it’s only recently been passed in all 50 states.

“We want to remind motorists who happen to approach a stopped emergency vehicle, a maintenance vehicle, tow truck or any vehicle displaying flashing lights that’s parked on the side of the road, to move over into the other lane. Or, if the lane change is not possible, to slow down to a reasonable speed below the posted speed limit.”

Law enforcement will be focusing on making sure motorists move over during a special operation that’s running through Thursday.

“This law protects first responders, road workers, maintenance crews, tow truck operators, and it’s been on the books in Iowa since 2002. It’s designed to protect those whose majority of the work is on the roadways.”

Ignoring the law could bring about a $200 fine and a suspended driver’s license for up to a year.

Nicole Baxter

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Iowa Public Radio

Nitrate levels are still high in the central Iowa waterways that supply the Des Moines area with drinking water.

It’s been five days since Central Iowa Water Works banned customers from watering their lawns to keep drinking water from violating the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard for nitrates. Since then, the community has decreased its demand for water by about 30%.

Des Moines Water Works CEO Ted Corrigan says that’s a positive response, but the ban remains in effect.

“We're going to need your continued support. This … is likely going to be measured in weeks, not days.”

Nitrate levels in the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers are at their highest since 2013. Corrigan says the main source of the high nitrate levels is fertilizer from crop fields.

Read more.

The Iowa House has gathered signatures supporting a special session to override Gov. Kim Reynolds’ veto of a bill that would put new regulations on carbon capture pipelines.

In all, 70 Republicans and Democrats signed the petition. But that only meets part of the requirement in the Iowa Constitution. Two-thirds of the Iowa Senate must also sign a petition to convene a special session.

In a statement, House Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, called on the Senate to secure the signatures needed to reconvene the Legislature and provide protections for landowners.

Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver, R-Grimes, has previously said he does not think a majority of his members would support overriding the governor’s veto.

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This post was updated June 19, 2025 at 9:34 p.m.

Grant Gerlock

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Iowa Public Radio

Ryan Melton, the Democratic candidate in Iowa’s 4^th Congressional District in the past two elections, has suspended his 2026 campaign.

Melton, who lives in Webster City, announced the decision on social media. He said it was a tough choice to exit the race, but he was notified that he’s losing his full-time job in the private sector and needs to focus on finding a new job to support his family. Melton also said he’s dealing with a health concern he needs to prioritize, and his campaign schedule had been hard on his 6-year-old son.

Melton finished his 2024 race against Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra with nearly 33% of the vote — about 2.3 points better than his finish against Feenstra in 2022.

Melton said he doesn’t regret “a single minute” of his campaigning over the past several years and “it was an honor” to build up the Democratic Party in an area of the state that has been dominated by the GOP.

Feenstra, who was reelected in 2024 to a third term in the U.S. House, has set up a committee to explore a run for governor in 2026. Republican state Sen. Lynn Evans announced in May that he’s exploring a campaign in Iowa’s 4^th District.

Lucius Pham

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Iowa Public Radio

Democrat Christina Bohannan announced another bid for Iowa’s 1st Congressional District in 2026. This is the third time she has tried for the seat.

Bohannan, a University of Iowa law professor, came up just 800 votes short of unseating Republican incumbent Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks last November. Bohannan says she’s picking up right where she left off — trying to win what is expected to be one of the country’s closest contests in 2026.

But this time, Bohannan is angling against President Donald Trump's tariffs and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, both of which Miller-Meeks supported.

“People wanted her to do one thing, and that was to bring down costs. And instead, she has done exactly the opposite. She has voted to increase costs on everything from electricity to mortgages to groceries in this district.”

Bohannan says she would vote to repeal Trump’s tariffs on foreign countries and to reverse the proposed Medicaid cuts if she is elected.

Read more.

Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley says the deep cuts to Medicaid proposed in the federal reconciliation bill won’t affect those who need the program.

Republicans have been targeting the health coverage program for low-income and disabled Americans as a way to offset the loss of revenue due to the proposed tax cuts in the bill.

Grassley says the bill proposes adding things like work requirements to make sure able-bodied people are working to get coverage.

“The needy who rely on Medicaid — grandma and nursing homes, people with disabilities, kids and more — I want to make clear, will not lose any coverage.”

Democrats and opponents of the bill say it will cause millions of eligible Americans to lose health coverage by creating confusing bureaucratic red tape to keep their benefits, which will strain the whole health care system.

Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley doesn’t think the conflict between Israel and Iran will expand to directly involve U.S. forces.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Grassley said President Donald Trump does not want the U.S. to get involved in another war and is pursuing a diplomatic solution to the escalating attacks between the two countries.

“Also, from the standpoint of the success of the Israelis on destroying so much of the military capability of Iranians, I don't think it can spread.”

The New York Times reported Tuesday that Trump is considering sending U.S. planes to refuel Israeli combat jets. Around 1,800 Iowa National Guard troops recently deployed to parts of the Middle East — including Kuwait, Iraq and Syria — in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.

Local and state law enforcement officials took protective custody of 88 children from a church camp in southeastern Iowa after reports of alleged child abuse.

Officials say they rescued 88 children who were attending the Shekinah Glory Camp run by the Kingdom Ministry of Rehab and Recreation in Columbus Junction. The organization’s website says it was founded in 2018 and practices evangelical Christianity.

The Louisa County Sheriff’s Office says it partnered with other state and local law enforcement agencies after receiving complaints of child abuse and endangerment.

Officials say the children were taken into protective custody and transported to a nearby church, where they met with child protection workers. A spokesperson from the Iowa Department of Public Safety was unable to comment because the investigation is ongoing.

A rural water association in western Iowa has placed its highest restrictions on water usage, citing ongoing drought and high demand.

Among other things, Regional Water’s “Level RED” advisory prohibits watering of lawns and gardens, car washing and filling pools.

Tom Kallman, general manager of the nonprofit utility, says their problems started in 2019. Since then, yearly rainfall has been well below average in the region. Kallman says they’ve been looking for new water sources for some time.

“Since 2016, regional water has dug almost 100 holes across three different counties looking for water, both at the shallow level and at the mid-level, so that's between 200 and 500 feet.”

Kallman says they also looked into tapping the Jordan Aquifer, between 2,000 and 3,000 feet down.

“At least in this part of the state, they're saying you've got about a 40% chance of hitting it at a cost of about a million bucks. And for a nonprofit utility, that's just not a good risk of our customers' dollars.”

A pipeline that connects the Regional Water plant in Avoca to the Council Bluffs water system was supposed to be operational by now, but Kallman says it developed a leak when pressurized. He says repairs will be completed soon.

Livestock health officials have confirmed Asian longhorned ticks and a parasite they carry in Iowa for the first time.

They were detected in a cattle herd in Van Buren County, in southeast Iowa, according to the state veterinarian. While the tick and parasite are not considered risks to humans, they can be fatal to cattle. Around 20 cattle have died in the 100-head herd.

Grant Dewell, an Iowa State University Extension veterinarian, says cattle producers should keep a close eye on tick infestations this summer.

“We don't normally see 1,000 ticks on an animal, except for this Asian longhorned tick, where we can get just a massive amount of a bloom of these ticks.”

Dewell says infected cattle can quickly become anemic – both from the ticks and the parasite, which attacks the red and white blood cells. In severe cases, cattle can die.

“We haven’t had this parasite in Iowa before that we know of, and we haven't had the tick before, and so we've got some pretty susceptible cattle right now.”

Dewell says the best way to protect livestock is through tick control methods since there’s no approved treatment for the parasite in the U.S.

Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig and former Ag Secretary Patty Judge opened a time capsule last week that was put inside the base of a replica steel plow in 2000.

The plow display was inside the Wallace Building and the capsule was supposed to be opened in 25 years. It was during a goodbye event for the Wallace Building. Current and former staff members from the Ag Department and DNR who worked in the building for many years were on hand watching as Judge and Naig showed off the contents.

There were many pamphlets and newspapers from 25 years ago in the capsule. There were some photos and Naig pulled out small tubes containing samples of corn, soybeans and oats.

“No, the mice did not make it into the [capsule] that was well sealed, I guess.”

Judge said she hadn’t remembered all the things that were put in the capsule 25 years ago. She says she does remember that one of the items inside was a half pack of cigarettes. Naig said the Ag Department will come up with some things to put into the capsule to seal it for another 25 years.

Shelley O’Connell filed an age discrimination lawsuit against the University of Northern Iowa in Polk County District Court. She says her demotion from her role as assistant vice president last year when she was in her late 50s was an act of age discrimination. She alleges her supervisor asked her if she had any plans to retire, and O’Connell said she did not.

Court documents say she then received a $50,000 salary cut, and that her younger successor received a raise of roughly the same amount.

O’Connell says she had received positive evaluations from the university and was not interested in stepping down.

She is now asking for a trial with a jury and compensation for her lost wages and emotional distress. A UNI spokesperson said the university does not comment on pending legal matters.

The National Speech and Debate Association turns 100 this year.

The association was formed in 1925 as the National Forensic League and held its first national championship in 1931. The organization is headquartered in Des Moines.

Over 7,000 middle and high school students are competing in the national tournament this week. Preliminary rounds are currently taking place in high school classrooms across the Des Moines metro. Championship rounds will take place at the Iowa Events Center on Friday.

Executive Director Scott Wunn says about 25 Iowa schools are participating in the national tournament this year, along with 45 states and eight international countries.

“These students are not only learning how to hone their critical-thinking skills and how to listen to one another and how to have empathy for one another, but also utilizing those things to become incredible servant leaders in our society.”

To celebrate the centennial, the association has announced a new goal to double participation in speech and debate activities by 2030 and reach a total of 8,000 schools nationwide.

A 30-year effort to reduce farmer injuries and deaths will lose funding this fall due to federal layoffs under the Trump administration.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health funds farm research and outreach programs at a dozen centers across the U.S., including in Iowa, but that support will abruptly end this fall after the agency was effectively dissolved this spring.

Jeff Bender, head of the Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center at the University of Minnesota, says small and mid-size family farms will feel the loss of these programs the most.

“Their margins are small. And you know, they can only spend so much money on personnel, and they don't often think about health and safety."

Bender hopes partnering with farmer groups and state health officials could keep some of the center's outreach programs going. But he says several on-farm studies will likely go unfinished because of the funding loss.

Center director Risto Rautiainen says it will cost farmers in the long run.

"It's sort of like if you don't talk about it, people think it doesn't exist. But then it will affect you in increased injuries and ag-related illnesses."

He hopes Congress will bring back farm research funding in the next budget. But he's also informally telling his staff to start looking for new jobs.

The final tenants of the iconic Wallace Building across from the State Capitol are in the process of moving out, and the building will eventually be demolished.

Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig held a “goodbye party” for current and former employees last week.

Naig says the Wallace Building has had a lot of internal issues with its structure and operating systems, but it is one of the most photographed buildings in the state because of the reflection of the State Capitol on the mirrored windows that span the south side.

The Ag Department will be out of the building by the end of the month.

Gov. Kim Reynolds’ spokesperson, Mason Mauro, in a statement says “the Iowa Department of Administrative Services has initiated the process to demolish the Wallace Building without selling or otherwise disposing of the underlying land which requires the approval of the legislature.”

The Wallace Building was named for Henry A. Wallace, the founder of Pioneer Hi-Bred and President Franklin Roosevelt’s first secretary of agriculture. He served one term as Roosevelt’s vice president.

The Minnesota state senator and his wife who were shot and survived early Saturday morning in their home have connections to Iowa.

Sen. John Hoffman worked for Polk County and the state of Iowa from 1991 to 2001, according to the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library.

Kate Garner was an intern at a Des Moines radio station where Hoffman’s wife, Yvette, was co-hosting a morning show in the 1990s.

“They actually met at a political fundraiser with shared friends and they hit it off immediately.”

Garner describes Yvette as her first mentor when she started out in radio and they became lifelong friends.

“She is the ultimate political wife, but in the good, really supportive, bake-cupcakes-make-signs, whatever kind of way. And he is the just serious but fun, dedicated guy and they made this amazing marriage with this amazing daughter Hope, who has spina bifida and they took that and helped her become an activist and they’re this little powerhouse family.”

Garner said it’s hard to wrap her head around what happened.

“The fact that someone would put together a list of people to hurt because overwhelmingly they care about other people — as an Iowan and an American, it’s hard for me to fathom.”

Over the last 15 years, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation has spent $10 million to purchase parts of their original reservation — including 130 acres near Shabbona Lake State Park in what is now DeKalb County, Illinois.

Since the U.S. government illegally sold the tribe’s land to white settlers in 1849, much of it has been developed into residential properties, a golf course, or is maintained by state and county governments as park land. The tribal nation, meanwhile, is now headquartered in the Kansas town of Mayetta.

Despite this, Raphael Wahwassuck, a member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi’s tribal council, said the Prairie Band has remained connected to their ancestral home to this day.

In 2024, the U.S. Department of the Interior placed the tribe’s Illinois land into trust — making the Prairie Band the first federally recognized tribal nation in the state. In March, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law that transferred ownership of the chief’s namesake park to the tribe.

For Wahwassuck, this return is a step towards “correcting some of the historical injustices” his tribe has experienced.

“There’s a lot of emotion behind that. To see that happen in my lifetime is something that I thought I would never experience.”

Read more.

People were packed onto the steps in front of the Iowa State Capitol on Saturday. They held up protest signs and yelled chants despite the hot, humid day.

These protestors showed up to be a part of the rallies that happened across the country. Organizers planned the day of action called “No Kings” to protest against President Donald Trump’s military parade in Washington, D.C.

Julie Russell-Steuart, former Iowa Democratic disability caucus chair, says federal budget cuts are taking away the essential resources that families need.

“It is clear from this week's events at ICE protests that our humanity doesn't matter to the Trump administration. It never matters to an authoritarian.”

Russell-Steuart says she showed up to send a message to the federal government. She says people are taking action to stop the madness.

Sue Dinsdale, director of Iowa Citizen Community Action Network, said Trump’s budget cuts will cause chaos.

“It's a dangerous signal of what this second trip looks like — an authoritarian spectacle for the rich and what, in reality, will be deadly cuts for everyone else.”

More than 30 protests happened across Iowa, including Iowa City, Waterloo and Fort Dodge. Around 2,000 protests happened across the country.

Read more.

A small group in West Branch called Humans for Racial Justice is organizing the eastern Iowa city’s first Juneteenth celebration. The date commemorates the emancipation of slaves in Galveston, Texas, in 1865. In 2021, it became a federal holiday.

The events include historic displays, film showings, a concert and a tour of historical sites from the Underground Railroad. West Branch was home to Traveler’s Rest, a safe house where the abolitionist John Brown stayed for two winters before conducting a raid on Harper’s Ferry.

Gwen Senio, one of the organizers, says the group wanted to put together the celebration to recognize the area’s history.

“You know, much of the history of the Underground Railroad had to be secret. So, not a lot of documentation out there. And so, it seemed important to keep that story alive.”

The group formed after the murder of George Floyd in 2020. Senio says although the group has organized Martin Luther King Jr. Day events in the past, this is the first time they are celebrating Juneteenth in the community.

“As we've been working on it and putting it together, I think there is just a lot of emotion in the importance of not erasing history but embracing it and learning from it and making amends.”

The celebrations, which started over the weekend, will run through Juneteenth on Thursday.

The head of Central Iowa Water Works says the utility has seen a change in demand since telling customers to stop watering lawns, but they’re not out of the woods yet. The utility instituted the watering ban Thursday when nitrate levels in the rivers that supply the system reached the highest levels seen since 2013.

Neil Hamilton, founding director of the Agricultural Law Center at Drake University, says coverage of the watering ban diverts attention from the real problem.

“In some ways it kind of insulates the sources of the pollution from much public attention because all of the obligation kind of falls on the water works.”

In 2015, the Des Moines Water Works filed a federal lawsuit claiming drainage districts in Sac, Buena Vista and Calhoun counties were funneling high levels of nitrates into the Raccoon River. A federal judge later dismissed the suit, saying Iowa's water quality problems are an issue for the Iowa Legislature to resolve. Hamilton says conditions since then haven’t gotten better and may be worse. He says the high nitrate levels show the state’s nutrient management plan is not working.

The Environmental Protection Agency released production targets for biodiesel and ethanol that are higher than the industry expected. Soybean prices surged after what’s known as the “Renewable Volume Obligation” was released Friday.

Chad Hart, an agriculture economist at Iowa State University, says the proposed RVO numbers are better than most people expected, and should make farmers and biodiesel producers happy.

“This was good news for them. This is what the industry had hoped for, that they did see a fairly significant boost.”

Brent Swart, president of the Iowa Soybean Association and farmer from Spencer, calls the EPA proposal “a significant step toward putting the market back on track."

Some Iowa biodiesel plants suspended production this spring due to uncertainty in the market.

In a statement, Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig says the RVO proposal is “yet another example of the administration keeping its promise to our farmers and biofuels producers.”

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. abruptly abruptly dismissed all 17 sitting members of the Centers for Disease Control’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices this week. He said the move was needed to “reestablish public confidence in vaccine science.”

Stanley Perlman is a microbiologist and immunologist at the University of Iowa. He was not on the panel, but advised the panel. He says it’s the first time he’s seen the federal government dismiss an entire vetted scientific panel, signaling less of an interest in science and vaccines.

“This will play out in the future, because vaccine-preventable diseases were a major burden on human health before we invented vaccines.”

Perlman says the entire board’s dismissal was shocking because all experts had been highly vetted.

“We have to do months of documentation showing what our conflicts of interest might be, and if there are any, how they're dealt with.”

Kennedy has unveiled eight new people. Perlman says there’s been little information about how the new panel was chosen and vetted.

Perlman made his comments on IPR’s River to River.

The African American Museum of Iowa is hosting its annual Juneteenth Festival in Cedar Rapids Saturday. Jacqueline Hunter, the museum’s executive director, says it’s an event designed around remembrance and celebration.

“It’s a chance for us to recognize the importance of the holiday, but what does that look like for our community and our state moving forward. It’s a deeply personal and powerful reminder of this unfinished struggle for freedom.”

Juneteenth is an annual, nationwide celebration of the freeing of the last slaves in the United States on June 19, 1865, when news of the Emancipation Proclamation at last reached Confederate Galveston, Texas. While that’s part of history, Hunter says current events keep related issues in the forefront.

The festival will include live music and performances, food and merchandise vendors, a talent show, lawn games and a homemade sweet potato pie contest.

The museum’s Juneteenth Festival is Saturday at Cedar Rapids’ NewBo City Market from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The facility will also host a screening of the documentary Juneteenth: Faith & Freedom next Thursday, June 19.

The Board of Regents approved a tuition increase Thursday of 3% for the University of Iowa and Iowa State University and 2.7% for the University of Northern Iowa.

Board of Regents representative Brad Berg says a plan to charge in-state tuition at UNI for students from states surrounding Iowa will be delayed.

The board also approved an increase in mandatory fees by 3% at the UI, 2.7% at UNI and 1.7% at ISU.

The Board then voted to give the leaders of the three universities and executive director of the board raises.

UI President Barbara Wilson is getting a $65,000 salary increase, setting her base salary at $825,000. ISU President Wendy Wintersteen is getting a $25,000 raise, bringing her salary to $735,000 and UNI President Mark Nook is getting a nearly $13,000 salary increase, bringing his salary to $410,000

The regents approved the salary increases with no discussion. A spokesman for the board did not answer when asked why the board voted to increase the salary of ISU President Wendy Wintersteen even though she is retiring in January.

Gov. Kim Reynolds’ summer food program for children that is meant to replace Summer EBT got off to a rocky start this month, according to food bank and pantry officials tasked with distributing food for Healthy Kids Iowa.

Officials described delays and logistical challenges with obtaining and storing food, at least partly due to the short timeline for getting the program up and running after the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved it in early May. They are hopeful the program will improve through the summer as food banks and pantries work through various issues.

Andrea Cook, executive director of Johnston Partnership, which runs a food pantry, says there are difficulties across the state.

“I think that it didn’t matter whether you were running a very small pantry in rural Iowa or a large pantry here in the [Des Moines] metro area. We’re all struggling with figuring out how to make this work and make sense.”

Reynolds proposed Healthy Kids Iowa as an alternative to Summer EBT, which provides low-income families with $40 per child each month in the summer on a prepaid debit card. She has said giving out money for food does nothing to ensure that kids are getting healthy meals, so instead proposed distributing $40 worth of “healthy” foods per child each month.

Read more.

Hundreds of alumni attended a recent farewell celebration in Orient, a small town about 60 miles southwest of Des Moines, to mark the closure of the Orient-Macksburg school district and reflect on how their lives have been shaped and intertwined with the school. In May, the school marked the final day students would attend classes in the district.

It's the first Iowa school district to dissolve since Corwith-Wesley did so in 2015. Orient-Macksburg, as a consolidated school district, existed for nearly 65 years.

Having attended Orient-Macksburg since first grade, Christa Cass, a 2023 graduate, could attest to the town's constant support of the school and its students.

“The school meant a lot to the community because there's always people from graduating classes at every single volleyball, basketball and softball games. I know, like small crowds, it seems like, ‘Hey, there's not a lot of people.’ But it's people who always show up time and time again. So that's what matters.”

Read more.

State attempts to regulate intoxicating hemp products are at an all-time high. At least 32 states, including Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota, have already passed regulations — and federal lawmakers are also looking at changes.

When federal lawmakers legalized hemp farming in the 2018 Farm Bill, they didn’t anticipate creating a massive marketplace for intoxicating hemp products. Now, as more states move to limit or ban the products, some advocates worry about the hemp industry’s future.

Jonathan Miller, an attorney for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, says the patchwork of state regulations leaves the industry on shaky ground.

“There are a lot of companies that want to sell in all 50 states, and when you’ve got different rules in each state, it becomes more difficult.”

A bill from the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture also proposes closing the so-called “loophole” that legalized the products at the federal level. The proposal worries hemp experts, but they’re hopeful that Congress will not destroy the multibillion-dollar industry.

Read the full story from Harvest Public Media’s Molly Ashford.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

Opponents of Summit Carbon Solutions’ CO2 pipeline are angry with Gov. Kim Reynolds for vetoing a bill that would have put limits on carbon capture pipelines.

Reynolds says the proposal would have undermined many different kinds of pipeline projects. She says it would also jeopardize the production of low-carbon ethanol in Iowa.

The governor says she shares the goal to protect landowners affected by pipeline projects, but Peg Rasmussen says Reynolds hasn’t shown it through her actions. Rasmussen is a Summit pipeline opponent from Montgomery County in southwest Iowa.

“A true leader steps in when a problem arises, and you, Gov. Reynolds, did nothing. The legacy you leave behind is one of bowing down to big business at the expense of Iowans.”

Rasmussen says she and other pipeline opponents will keep pressuring lawmakers to restrict the use of eminent domain in the next legislative session.

Central Iowa Water Works is telling customers to stop watering their lawns so that the level of nitrate in people’s tap water stays below the legal limit. The regional utility serves the vast majority of the Des Moines metro area.

Businesses and residents are now banned from watering their lawns so there is enough water available for drinking and bathing. Central Iowa Water Works Executive Director Tami Madsen says the problem is that nitrate levels in the rivers that supply the system are the highest they’ve been since 2013.

“We have ample source water, but the source water is so high in nitrate that it’s difficult for the plant to treat it at the same rate that customers are demanding it on the other side.”

Water leaving the treatment plant is currently around 9 parts per million. If it rises above the safety standard of 10 parts per million, pregnant women and children will not be able to drink it.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This entry has been corrected to more accurately state the level of nitrates in water leaving the treatment plant and the safety standard level.

The southwest Iowa town of Clarinda hosts its 50th Glenn Miller Music Festival this week, with jazz and big band concerts, dance contests and more to celebrate the legendary band leader.

Shari Greenwood, executive director of the Glenn Miller Museum and a board member of the Glenn Miller Birthplace Society, says events kicked off Thursday afternoon with a picnic and concerts on the town square. Friday’s schedule includes ragtime artist Adam Swanson, a Shenandoah native.

Some performers are coming to Clarinda from as far away as Japan. Other concerts on Friday include Bill Baker’s Big Band, Steve Shininger and the ShinSings, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra. One of Saturday’s highlights is Gooch and the Guys Big Band, led by Michael “Gooch” Gurciullo.

“He’s done everything from work with the Glenn Miller Orchestra to having his own band. He comes back this way every year to put on jazz camps. He’s a lot of fun with the Gooch and the Guys Big Band. They do things like Frank Sinatra and Glenn Miller — folks love him.”

Saturday’s performers include the Northwest Missouri State Jazz Group, Bill Baker’s Big Band and more performances by the Glenn Miller Orchestra — along with a swing dance competition.

The Glenn Miller Birthplace Society Museum and Birthplace Home will be open daily during the festival.

Opponents of wind turbines in the Iowa Great Lakes area are suing to overturn a permit that allows the construction of a wind farm in Dickinson County.

The lawsuit filed by Dickinson County Concerned Citizens (DC3) states that a move by the county Board of Adjustment to approve the project in April was illegal. The group says the wind farm would negatively impact property values and the beauty of the area.

DC3 wants the court to rescind the board’s action that paved the way for the Red Rock Wind Energy project. The board previously voted against wind turbines in 2023. The new plan the board approved included fewer wind turbines — 67 instead of 79 — and new setback distances.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

Gov. Kim Reynolds vetoed a bill that would’ve made it harder for companies to use eminent domain to build carbon capture pipelines and other energy infrastructure.

Landowners facing the use of eminent domain for the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline have pushed for years to get a bill passed that would prevent the company from taking part of their land.

In her veto message, Reynolds says the bill that passed last month goes too far, and even threatens pipelines that are built with voluntary agreement with landowners. She says the bill would’ve applied to other types of pipelines as well and would put Iowa at a disadvantage compared to other states.

Reynolds says she wants to work with the Legislature to strengthen landowner protections, modernize permitting and respect private property. In the meantime, she says she’s asking Iowa Utilities Commission members to be present for live testimony and informational meetings, which would have been required by the bill she vetoed.

House Speaker Pat Grassley says it’s a major setback for Iowa and he wants to hold a special session to override the governor’s veto. It’s not likely that the Senate will have enough votes in support of the bill to override the veto.

Read the full story.

—

This post was updated at 5:15 p.m. to include Grassley's statement.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

The number of people experiencing homelessness in Polk County has hit a new record.

The most recent count also found the share of homeless seniors is growing. Seniors, age 65 and up, made up around 3% of the homeless population in 2024. Now, that number is around 6%.

Angie Arthur, the CEO of Homeward, Polk County’s lead homelessness planning organization, says a lot of seniors rely on Medicare and disability benefits. She says they’re also facing increased costs for rent, food and other necessities, along with everyone else.

“But when you don't have a way to offset that, because you have a fixed income, that's becoming really challenging.”

Arthur says Polk County isn’t the only one seeing more homeless seniors — it’s a national problem, too.

Read more.

President Donald Trump’s domestic policy agenda — a reconciliation bill called the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act — narrowly passed the U.S. House last month. It’s now in the Senate. The bill has major spending and tax cuts that could significantly reduce the number of Iowans on Medicaid.

According to the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, about 700,000 Iowans are on Medicaid — or about one in five people. This includes people on Medicaid expansion and Hawki, the Medicaid program for children.

KFF estimates found Medicaid enrollment in Iowa could drop by about 90,000 by 2034 if the changes in the House’s version of the bill pass.

Iowa’s four U.S. representatives each voted for it on May 22, and Iowa’s Sens. Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley have indicated they will support the bill when it comes up for a vote in the Senate.

Here's a breakdown of what's happening with the bill and what it means for Iowans.

Cece Mitchell

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Iowa Public Radio

Story County filed a citation for landowners who did not have a special event permit for a pop-up concert that drew in thousands of people last month.

The All-American Rejects announced the show location on social media just hours before it started May 17. The barn performance was part of a series of pop-ups across the U.S. to promote the band’s new album. Iowa State University’s student-run radio station, 88.5 KURE, helped organize the show.

Cece Mitchell

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Iowa Public Radio

Story County requires a special event permit for something that lasts longer than four hours and involves more than 250 people. The county requested that landowners pay a permit fee of $100 and a civil penalty of $200, along with court costs and fees.

The Story County Sheriff told IPR that deputies responded to reports of an unconscious woman who was transported to a hospital during the concert.

Rachel Cramer

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Iowa Public Radio

To comply with a new state law, the city of Ames voted to repeal its ordinance for a police advisory committee during a city council meeting Tuesday.

City officials say the Ames Resident Police Advisory Committee reviewed policies, offered suggestions and supported outreach events. It was formed in 2021 in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Ames City Council member Tim Gartin says communities should be able to “craft solutions that work best for them.”

“We wouldn't begin to tell Davenport or Sioux City how to make such personal decisions for their communities. Those are things best left for them. But I would ask the Legislature to leave us alone, to allow us to make decisions.”

Other Iowa communities affected by the ban on police advisory boards include Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Iowa City, Dubuque and University Heights.

The new state law goes into effect Aug. 16.

Read more.

Courtesy of Wahls for Iowa

Democratic state Sen. Zach Wahls is running to represent Iowa in the U.S. Senate in 2026, joining two other Democrats who have launched campaigns to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst.

Wahls said he is running for U.S. Senate because he wants to help Iowa families who are working hard but not getting ahead. He said he made the decision after discussing it with his wife for several months.

“We thought really hard about what we could do and where we could make a big difference. And we decided that there are so many challenges that are facing our state right now, and so many of them are coming from Washington, we’d rather be in the fight than on the sidelines.”

Wahls said he has a track record of standing up to his own party when necessary — something he said Iowans want in a U.S. senator. He was ousted from his position as Iowa Senate Democratic Leader after he replaced longtime staffers in an effort to take Senate Democrats in a new direction.

If elected, he said he would focus on improving the economy, health care and education in Iowa. He also wants to push for term limits and lessen the influence of money in politics.

Read more.

Gov. Kim Reynolds says the state is working to try and help students impacted by the closure of two Job Corps residential centers in Iowa. Last week, a judge temporarily blocked a plan by the Trump administration to cut the Job Corps program. A hearing on the issue has been scheduled for June 17.

Reynolds says four state departments are looking to see if some of the students could benefit from existing programs. She says her top priority is helping students who were in foster care before attending Job Corps.

“We'll walk through what the impact of that looks like, what we need to do to make sure that we're serving those individuals that are relying on that moving forward.”

A recent U.S. Department of Labor report found the program costs too much and has low graduation rates. However, lawmakers say there are better outcomes at the Iowa locations in Denison and Ottumwa.

Randy Gehl

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City of Dubuque

The city of Dubuque reported higher-than-recommended levels of pollutants known as PFAS in its drinking water. PFAS compounds are sometimes called “forever chemicals” since they only break down under extremely high temperatures. The chemicals that make up PFAS are often used for stain and water resistance in household appliances.

In its most recent water quality report, the city of Dubuque said its drinking water was just slightly above the Environmental Protection Agency’s limits for PFAS. Water Operations Supervisor Nick Connolly says the numbers are subject to change throughout the year.

“We have changed some of the processes and how we do things. We are trying to use more of our deep aquifer water that, at this time, has not tested positive for any of the PFAS chemicals, and we blend in the shallow wells as needed.”

Connolly says the EPA has heightened its regulation on PFAS as testing has become more accurate. The city intends to spend nearly $15 million over the next five years to build a new well for access to deep aquifer water and filter rehabilitation.

Read more.

This story was updated at 2:42 p.m. to include a third case of measles reported by the state.

State and county health officials have confirmed two additional cases of measles in Iowa, bringing the total count this year to three.

Officials say a vaccinated male between the age of 18 and 40 in the eastern part of the state and an unvaccinated child in Johnson County have been confirmed to have the highly contagious virus.

The child was exposed during international travel. Officials confirmed the state’s first case since 2019 last month in an unvaccinated female that was also linked to travel.

The new cases come as the nation has seen an outbreak of measles. The Centers for Disease Control has confirmed more than 1,100 cases this year.

Officials are encouraging Iowans to make sure they are up to date on their MMR vaccine, which is 97% effective against preventing measles.

Sheila Brummer

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Iowa Public Radio

Almost one year after historic flooding, Gov. Kim Reynolds returned to northwest Iowa to check out the progress in Rock Valley.

Reynolds toured a new home in Rock Valley, which will replace one of about 150 that were destroyed when the Rock River poured over a protective berm last June. City leaders say FEMA appears to be in the final stages of reviewing a request to buy out the properties.

Reynolds says the state provided almost $7 million that resulted in five different development projects and more than 90 new housing units.

“I'm proud to say that this city and the surrounding region aren't just building back, they're building back stronger, more resilient and more sustainable than ever.”

Reynolds says the Iowa Legislature also approved nearly $14 million to support disaster recovery and demolition from natural disasters that hit the state last year.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

In downtown Des Moines Tuesday night, people rallied in opposition to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Los Angeles and the Trump administration deploying Marines and the National Guard against ICE protestors.

Similar rallies happened in Sioux City and Cedar Rapids in recent days.

Angel Pavon, a college student from Des Moines, says migrants want to make a life in the U.S., but federal officials are calling them a danger to the public.

“They're being told we're the danger, we’re bringing the chaos. But they’re not seeing us fully. They’re not seeing the fear we live in, the silence that we’re forced into, the pain we carry every time another door gets kicked in.”

Des Moines police observed the rally from a distance in a nearby building, but there were no confrontations with protesters.

Earlier in the day, Gov. Kim Reynolds posted on social media what appeared to be a warning about protests against ICE. She said on X that peaceful demonstrations are welcome, but unlawful behavior will be stopped immediately.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

The Satanic Temple in Iowa has filed a civil rights complaint claiming discrimination by state officials.

The Iowa Department of Administrative Services denied the Satanic Temple’s application to host a holiday event in the Capitol rotunda. Gov. Kim Reynolds said last December that the event was canceled because it would be harmful to minors.

The Satanic Temple says that administrators discriminated against their religion and retaliated against them with other policy decisions.

The ACLU of Iowa is helping the temple pursue a complaint under the Iowa Civil Rights Act. Legal Director Rita Bettis Austen says it’s the first step to bringing the state back in line.

“It is one of the foundational principles of our country and of our state civil rights law that the government should not favor one religious viewpoint or belief over another.”

The Satanic Temple is required to file a complaint before bringing the case to court.

The Trump administration has rescinded guidance directing hospitals to provide emergency abortions to women when they are necessary to stabilize their medical condition. The guidance was especially impactful for states in the South and the Midwest, like Iowa, that have total or near-total abortion bans.

The guidance was issued in 2022 by the Biden administration following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Jody Madeira, a professor of law at Indiana University, says the federal guidance provided an extra layer of assurance in states with total or near-total abortion bans. Now, she worries care may be delayed.

“Because, then physicians are worried about the civil liability and the criminal charges, and not only about the patient care. That does patients a great disservice.”

The Trump administration said it would still enforce a federal law that requires hospitals to provide care in case of an emergency, including for pregnant women. Physicians say that still isn’t enough assurance in states with strict abortion laws.

Read more from Side Effects Public Media’s Ben Thorp.

Peggy Whitson

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Axiom

Tuesday morning’s scheduled launch of an Axiom Space mission — commanded by Iowa native Peggy Whitson — is being pushed back to Wednesday.

The launch was originally planned for liftoff this past Sunday, but stormy weather has persisted over Kennedy Space Center in Florida, causing some delays. Axiom will try again Wednesday morning, with the launch now slated for 7 a.m. CT.

Ax-4 will carry Peggy Whitson and three crewmates to the International Space Station for a two-week stay. Whitson, who grew up on a farm near Beaconsfield, is considered to be America's most experienced astronaut having spent 675 days in orbit — a NASA record.

This mission will be her fifth trip to the space station.

A nonprofit pharmacy with urgent care is set to open soon in eastern Iowa. It’s the first of its kind in Cedar Rapids and will primarily serve low-income families.

Nearly 70% of Eastern Iowa Health Care's existing patients have earnings below the federal poverty line, and 61% are on Medicaid. Development Director Stacie Eastman says the new pharmacy may be able to better serve those patients under a bill currently awaiting Gov. Kim Reynolds’ signature.

If signed into law, the bill would allow patients to pick up covered medications from a pharmacy of their choosing, rather than being limited to certain pharmacies by pharmacy benefit managers, known as PBMs.

“This really allows people, as well, to be a little bit healthier, too. Because we have the opportunity then for people to be able to get what it is that they need in a quicker manner, rather than having your company decide, ‘Yeah, you can have that medicine, but now you have to wait for it to be mail ordered.’”

The deadline for Reynolds to sign or veto the bill is June 14.

James Kelley

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Iowa Public Radio

Hundreds of tractors are meandering across eastern Iowa in the Great Eastern Iowa Tractorcade, an event that gives farmers a chance to showcase their vintage tractors.

From June 8-11, hundreds of tractors are making their way from Mount Pleasant on a tour of eastern Iowa, making pit stops at high schools and county fairgrounds. The motorcade was organized by vintage tractor enthusiasts and KXEL radio in Waterloo. To participate, you only need a valid driver’s license and a roadworthy tractor.

James Kelley

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Iowa Public Radio

Matt Kenney, the event’s manager, says most of the restored tractors date back to the mid-20th century.

“Many of the riders are either current farmers or retired farmers. And, you know, they get a chance to polish up the old iron and take it out for a spin on the roads of eastern Iowa for a few days and see their old friends who do the same thing.”

This year marks the 26th annual Tractorcade, which Kenney says is now the largest tractor ride in the state.

The White House budget proposal is asking for billions of dollars in cuts to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Agencies that will be impacted include the Farm Service Agency and Rural Development programs. It may also affect the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helps low-income families purchase food.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig says he doesn’t yet know how the cuts might affect Iowans, but he trusts U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins.

“I know that Secretary Rollins has said many times she wants to bring USDA back to its core mission and to be farmer focused — and we’re going to take them at their word. So, there’s everything from how is USDA reorganized and rightsized, and does it continue to put farmers first.”

Naig says he is hopeful that countries will continue trade negotiations after Vietnam announced plans to purchase U.S. farm commodities. That plan includes $800 million for Iowa agriculture products — mostly corn, soybeans and pork.

Polk County is gathering ideas from community leaders to improve long-term plans for public health.

The county has already heard from residents that access to care, economic stability and mental health care should be top priorities for what’s called the Community Health Improvement Plan, also known as CHIPS.

Now, Polk County Health Department Director Juliann Van Liew says she will form three committees around these priorities to propose solutions.

“This is really our first effort as a county to take those needs assessment results and build a plan with them that really reflects those needs in the community voice.”

Community members can volunteer to be a part of the three committees. Other counties in central Iowa, including Dallas and Warren, are also creating their own health improvement plans.

The Black Hawk Bridge between Lansing and Crawford County, Wis., reopened to traffic Monday morning following a three-week closure. But the Iowa Department of Transportation says drivers should expect at least one more closure this summer.

The 94-year-old span over the Mississippi River was shut down last month after sensors detected one of the bridge piers had moved. Inspectors believe construction on a new bridge just to the north of the Black Hawk Bridge may have caused the movement.

When the bridge is closed, drivers face lengthy detours south to Marquette or north to La Crescent, Minn.

The Iowa DOT says it’s planning to keep the bridge open at least through the Fourth of July weekend, but there will be another multi-week closure this summer to facilitate construction on the new bridge.

The new bridge is scheduled to open by mid-2027.

There’s a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the person or people responsible for a weeklong fire at a northwest Iowa ethanol plant that caused significant damage.

The fire at the POET facility in Emmetsburg started in the evening of May 12. Stacks of the corn stover, used to make ethanol, burned. POET estimates $5 million worth of the material was destroyed.

The Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office and fire investigators say the fire is being “treated as an act of arson.” The general manager of the plant says it was “a serious criminal act that put people and property at risk.”

As trade with China remains tenuous, the National Pork Producers Council is pushing for new markets.

Maria Zieba, vice president of government affairs with the National Pork Producers Council, spoke on a policy panel in Des Moines at the 2025 World Pork Expo. She says the group’s top trade priority is exporting more pork to Vietnam.

“Not only because there’s 100 million people in Vietnam, whose number one protein consumption is pork, but also because, as we look at diversifying away from certain markets, Vietnam has that opportunity that is very unique.”

Zieba says Vietnamese consumers eat muscle cuts — like pork belly, loin and shoulder —but also organs and other variety meats, which are harder to sell in the U.S.

Read more.

A recreation and wildlife area in western Iowa is undergoing some changes to make it a four-season destination.

Pottawattamie County Conservation Executive Director Jeff Franco says his county and the state lack public spaces for recreation. Studies rank Iowa near the bottom in the nation.

“In theory, we should be in the top 10 in all categories of public land offerings, but we're really kind of falling behind. So, this is an opportunity for us to better serve the citizens of this county and its visitors.”

Pottawattamie County owns and operates Crescent Hill at Hitchcock, located north of Council Bluffs. The area has a 106-acre ski hill and a 1,500-acre nature area with some of the largest remaining sections of prairie land in Iowa in the Loess Hills.

“We also want this to be a place where we leverage our mission in a way that recreation, conservation and education kind of all come together in one space.”

Plans are in the works to potentially spend more than $25 million to add attractions, like a new tubing hill, lodge, amphitheater and ziplines in the next five to 10 years.

All of Iowa is considered a hot spot for radon — so is most of Kansas and more than half of Nebraska’s counties. The harmful gas is nearly undetectable and can show up in any building, including homes. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, radon exposure is the second-leading cause of lung cancer, and the leading cause for non-smokers.

The EPA recommends homes with radon levels above 4 pCi/L (picocuries per liter) get radon mitigation systems installed. A mitigation system routes radon out of a house to lower the levels.

Researchers compare a single picocurie per liter of radon to smoking two and a half cigarettes a day.

“Even if you've never smoked before — if you live in a home where the radon levels are high, you still could develop lung cancer or a lung disease,” said Katie Schultis, the epidemiology and environmental health lead for Three Rivers Health Department in Fremont, Neb.

Radon is found naturally in the ground, forming from decaying uranium. Schultis calls it the “silent killer.”

“Radon is something that we can't see, smell, hear, taste, touch, feel. We call it kind of the silent killer, which can sound a little intense, but it's something that you just don't know it's there unless you test for it.”

Iowa has the largest percentage of homes above the EPA’s acceptable level, with 71.6% of homes measuring above 4pCi/L.

Schultis recommends every building — including public and residential — get tested every two years for radon. She says even if a neighbor’s house tests under the EPA’s recommended limit for mitigation, people should still test their home because levels can vary from one house to the next.

Read more from Nebraska Public Media’s Kassidy Arena.

Iowa ranks ninth in the nation for child well-being, according to the latest Kids Count report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The state’s best ranking is sixth for childhood economic well-being, and its worst ranking is 20^th in the country for education.

Anne Discher, executive director of Common Good Iowa, says there’s room for improvement on policies to support kids, even in areas where Iowa is doing well compared to other states.

“The indicators in this report are kind of a mixed bag. I think they raise some questions about whether or not we’re as good of a place to raise kids as we used to tell ourselves that we are.”

Discher also says the report shows Iowa has a low percentage of kids without health insurance. But she’s worried that will change if Congress passes Medicaid spending cuts, including work requirements for many adults.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill into law Friday that directs the state to seek federal permission to establish Medicaid work requirements.

Under the bill, people in Iowa’s Medicaid expansion program without disabilities between the ages of 19 and 65 would have to work at least 80 hours a month to keep their health coverage, but only if the policy is approved by the federal government.

Reynolds has already started the process of seeking federal approval to require working at least 100 hours per month. Estimates by Iowa’s Department of Health and Human Services show about 50,000 fewer people would have Medicaid coverage under that plan compared to current numbers.

Reynolds says able-bodied adults who can work should be working, and Medicaid should go back to its intended purpose of providing coverage to those who truly need it. The new law also says that if the federal government allows work requirements and later ends them, the state must try to end its Medicaid expansion program.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a bill into law requiring public, private and charter schools to teach about fetal development starting in fifth grade.

Human growth and development and health classes in grades five through 12 will have to show a video that, “depicts the humanity of the unborn child.”

The new law also prohibits the use of videos and other educational materials provided by groups that perform, promote or refer patients for abortions. Democrats raised concerns that this will bar health classes from using scientifically accurate materials from prominent medical research institutions.

Republican lawmakers have said the law will teach children to value life and is meant to influence their future decisions about pregnancy and abortion.

Developers have broken ground on a new road project in the eastern Iowa town of Oskaloosa.

It will steer traffic away from residential areas and improve highway access to the city’s industrial park by connecting highways 23 and 63. It will also relieve downtown congestion when it’s finished in 2027.

The Southeast Connector Project costs roughly $15 million and received a major grant from the Iowa Department of Transportation.

The groundbreaking marks the end of a decades-long discussion about how to connect the two highways.

Isabella Luu

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Iowa Public Radio

Firefighters and police officers in the state’s municipal retirement system can now receive disability and death benefits if they’re diagnosed with any type of cancer. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the bill into law Friday. The new law also applies to some types of state-level peace officers, like state patrol.

In the past, employees had to have one of 14 listed cancers to qualify for accidental death and disability payments.

Des Moines Association of Professional Firefighters President Joe Van Haalen says when someone got a cancer that wasn’t covered, other firefighters took on their shifts to help them keep their jobs and paychecks.

“It’s something that we wanted to do, that we wanted to take care of them, but it's also a significant burden on our members. And so, with this legislation, we won't have to worry about that, and their families won't have to worry about that anymore. That'll all be covered.”

Van Haalen says, on average, the department took on 120 shifts per diagnosed individual. He says the group has been working on the issue for more than two years.

The law takes effect July 1.

Some House Republicans are showing a change of heart about the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act after learning it includes certain provisions prohibiting artificial intelligence regulation and limiting the power of federal judges.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has also taken to social media to decry the bill, calling it a “disgusting abomination.”

But Iowa’s 2^nd District Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson said in her weekly press call that she — unlike some of her colleagues — did review the legislation before the House’s vote, and remains committed to getting it passed.

“When I look at threading the needle and getting to 218 votes in the House, and a wide ideological spectrum amongst our House Republican conference, I think we did a good job of threading that needle. Look, this is the president’s agenda, and I want to make sure that we get this agenda done.”

Hinson said she is working with senators to change the bill’s provision on taxes, with the goal of eliminating them. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill will increase the national debt by $2.4 trillion over the next 10 years.

John Pemble

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Iowa Public Radio

Former Republican State Sen. Jim Carlin is running for a second time to represent Iowa in the U.S. Senate, setting up a primary challenge for Sen. Joni Ernst.

Ernst hasn’t officially launched her 2026 reelection campaign, but she has hired a campaign manager.

Carlin, an attorney who lives in Sergeant Bluff, served in the state Legislature from 2017 to 2023. He challenged U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley in the 2022 Republican primary election, where Grassley won with over 73% of the vote to Carlin’s 26%.

Joshua Smith of Indianola is also aiming to take on Ernst in a GOP primary. Democrats Nathan Sage and Rep. J.D. Scholten have also launched U.S. Senate campaigns.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently suspended imports of cattle from Mexico after new reports showed that a destructive pest called the New World Screwworm had moved north to the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Veracruz.

The New World Screwworm — which is actually a fly — was a huge problem for U.S. livestock and wildlife until it was eradicated in the 1960s. Their screw-shaped larvae burrow into mammals’ wounds and other sensitive spots of mammals, like an umbilical cord – causing disease, infection and death.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said in a statement that the decision to suspend imports of live animals from Mexico was to protect “our animals and safety of our nation’s food supply.”

A return of the screwworm to the U.S. would not only hurt ranchers raising cattle and other large animals, but it would also impact farmers growing feed and hay, experts said.

Read more form Harvest Public Media’s Michael Marks.

A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that carbon pipeline restrictions in Shelby and Story counties are preempted by federal regulations and state law.

Shelby and Story county officials adopted ordinances to establish safety standards, as well as prohibited zones around places like homes and schools, where the pipeline would be barred. The federal appeals court ruled the ordinances would prohibit Summit Carbon Solutions from running its pipeline through areas where it has a state permit to build.

A spokesperson for Summit said the ruling “confirms federal regulation of pipeline safety and the Iowa Utilities Commission’s authority over route and permit decisions in Iowa.”

A group that represents property owners opposed to the pipeline said the ruling “strips away common sense protections.”

Shelby and Story county officials could appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. Summit sued four other counties with similar ordinances, but those were placed on hold as the company’s lawsuit against Shelby and Story counties moved through the courts.

Read more.

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services warns that cases of whooping cough are on the rise in Iowa and nationally.

Polk County confirmed 19 cases of whooping cough, also known as pertussis, over the past three months. Addie Olson, a spokesperson for the Polk County Health Department, says there were fewer than five cases each year during the pandemic.

“I wouldn't say we're raising alarms at this point, but we certainly think that folks should be aware that pertussis is present in the community, and also there are steps that you can take to prevent it, like ensuring you're up to date on the pertussis vaccine.”

Olson says a whooping cough outbreak tends to occur every three to five years.

Anthony Scanga

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Iowa Public Radio

 Iowa Pride events are losing some corporate and local sponsorships this year, echoing a national trend fueled by political pressure from the Trump administration to abandon diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Iowa City Pride lost around $15,000 in sponsorships for its celebration starting later this month, including support from the University of Iowa and Integrated DNA Technologies. But Iowa City Pride Treasurer and Development Director Anne Ehlinger says local businesses have stepped up and helped them make most of the money back.

“They're doing it at our lower levels, but I know it's still a lot for them to give. So that, in itself, is amazing.”

Several long-time sponsors of Capital City Pride in Des Moines, including Nationwide and MidAmerican Energy, are also missing from the organization’s corporate sponsors list this year.

Read more.

Two private universities in eastern Iowa are merging after experiencing declining enrollment and financial pressures.

St. Ambrose University in Davenport is now officially the parent company of Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids. All of Mount Mercy’s assets were transferred to St. Ambrose this week. Mt. Mercy will keep its name as a campus of St. Ambrose University and will also keep its own athletic program. Down the road, students will be able to take classes at both campuses.

Todd Olson, president of Mount Mercy University, says smaller higher education institutions face unique challenges, especially as the rate of high school seniors enrolling in college declines nationwide. He says the merger will help make both institutions stronger.

“We believe in, we're committed to, and we want to improve the outcomes of higher education for our students. We believe we’re in the strongest position to do that if we can do it together.”

Transferring Mount Mercy’s assets to St. Ambrose is the first step in a merging process that is expected to end in the summer of 2026.

Iowa businesses will get an estimated $1.2 billion tax cut over the next five years under a new law signed Thursday by Gov. Kim Reynolds.

The new law cuts unemployment insurance taxes, which are paid by businesses to fund unemployment benefits that are paid out to people who get laid off from their jobs. It cuts the amount of wages that are taxed by half and lowers the top unemployment tax rate from 9% to 5.4%.

Reynolds says it was one of her top priorities this session. She says the state’s unemployment trust fund is the ninth largest in the country, even though Iowa is 32^nd in population. Reynolds says the state has needlessly over-collected unemployment taxes from businesses.

“I truly do believe that it will make a difference in making us more competitive as a state, and for employers across the state to give back to their community, their business or their employees.”

Democrats have criticized the bill, saying Reynolds is giving a tax break to corporations that’s paid for by raiding funds meant for laid-off workers.

The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) has come up with a new plan that will expand bus services on the most used routes, while eliminating others.

Chief Strategy Officer Erin Hockman says DART will release a draft proposal of the changes in September, then gather public input. She says the DART Board of Commissioners, along with members from Des Moines and surrounding communities, determined they can cut 10% of the current services while still meeting the needs of riders.

“Once we collect public input on that new network, we can't reduce service levels, after we do public input, per federal rules and regulations. So, the commission knows that they've committed to being able to fund 90% of our current service levels.”

Hockman says the new model will have fewer total bus routes, with buses running more frequently in the busiest areas of the region. DART will also consider expanding what’s known as “microtransit” to Altoona and Clive. Customers in those communities would be able to book a ride through an app. Dart currently runs this service, called DART on Demand, in Ankeny.

Iowa has lost a seat on a panel with the Democratic National Committee that is involved in setting the presidential nominating calendar for 2028.

In 2024, Iowa was removed from its long-time role as the first state to hold Democratic presidential caucuses.

The Des Moines Register reports the DNC has now taken Iowa Democrat Scott Brennan off its Rules and Bylaws Committee. At the same time, New Hampshire was given a second representative on the committee. That’s after New Hampshire Democrats held a January primary in 2024 against the wishes of party leaders.

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart says the 2024 nominating calendar gave President Donald Trump a head start. She says the party can’t afford to ignore Iowa again.

Volunteers are needed to help compile what’s known as the Iowa Bumble Bee Atlas, a statewide effort to gauge the population of the vital pollinators in Iowa.

Stephanie Shepherd, a wildlife diversity biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says volunteers are a tremendous help to researchers who study the tiny, yet important, insects.

“Volunteers are basically trained and then asked to go out to a natural area that is at least 2.5 acres in size that has flowers and habitat for bumblebees and then spend 45 minutes looking for and catching bumblebees, then submitting photographs of those bumble bees.”

Surveys would need to be done at least twice during the summer.

Volunteers don’t have to identify each bee they temporarily net, as experts will be studying the photos to determine the various species. She says there are between 300 and 400 types of bees living in Iowa.

Michael Leland

Distinguishing bees from bumble bees isn’t hard, she says, with a little training. Bumble bees are typically larger than a standard bee, they’re fuzzier and they carry pollen in a way that’s obviously different. Shepherd says people can start by watching the first few training videos posted on the Iowa Bumble Bee Atlas website, then consider attending an in-person session.

This is the second year for the program and Shepherd says volunteers are needed in every one of Iowa’s 99 counties.

“Bees are incredibly important pollinators. I think everybody understands the importance of pollination, and bees are probably our superstars of doing that. Bumble bees have some unique traits that make them especially valuable for pollination, and the more we know about them, the better we can do at making sure they have habitat available.”

The first of the eight training events is scheduled for June 21 in Peosta, with more to follow through July, including in Ames, Waterloo, Dakota City, Anita, Okoboji, Moravia and in New Castle, Neb. Registration is free and pre-registration is required.

A Missouri woman who spent more than a month in detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been freed. Immigration officials released Carol Mayorga from the Greene County Jail in Springfield, Mo., under a federal program for people in the U.S. from Hong Kong.

Raymond Balourtchi, Mayorga’s lawyer, says the immigration program allows her to remain in the country until at least February 2027.

“It's just been a very exciting day — afternoon — to see that, at least, she's going to be with her family this evening.”

Mayorga, whose legal name is Ming Li Hui, fled domestic abuse in Hong Kong and legally entered the U.S. in 2004. She overstayed her visa, but was allowed to stay in the county under an order of supervision, requiring regular immigration check-ins.

She’s now a mother of three and is a beloved employee at a diner in Kennett, Mo. Her arrest spurred a fundraiser at the restaurant that raised more than $20,000 for her legal fight and children.

Read more from the Midwest Newsroom’s Kavahn Mansouri.

Axiom Space

America’s most experienced astronaut, Iowa native Peggy Whitson, is scheduled to launch Tuesday on her fifth mission to the International Space Station (ISS). Tuesday’s launch will mark her second mission with the private firm Axiom Space.

Whitson will command Ax-4 on a two-week expedition to the orbiting station, along with three teammates, all of whom are from different countries. During an Axiom Space news conference, Whitson talked about the historic nature of the flight.

“It has been more than 40 years since the first person from India, Poland and Hungary has been to space. And through this commercial space opportunity, we are accelerating the national space programs in each of these three countries and creating new pathways for technological advancements.”

Whitson, 65, grew up on a farm in southern Iowa near Beaconsfield.

Retired from NASA in 2018, Whitson is now Axiom Space’s director of human spaceflight. She has already spent 675 days in orbit. She holds the record for the most time spent in space by any American or woman astronaut. She also holds records for the oldest woman spacewalker and the most spacewalks by a woman, with more than 60 cumulative hours of EVA, or extravehicular activity.

The launch of Ax-4 is scheduled for 8:22 a.m. (ET) June 10 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew will be aboard a Dragon spacecraft, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Read more.

This story was updated at 12:55 p.m. June 5 with the updated launch time of the mission.

Photo Courtesy of the University of Iowa

University of Iowa students in an advanced macroeconomics class were sent on a field trip across campus to the UI’s Stanley Museum of Art this past semester to learn how focusing on tiny details can help illuminate the bigger picture.

Alexandra Nica, a professor at UI’s Tippie College of Business, says she first had students look very closely at complicated graphs depicting economic concepts, then they headed for the art museum.

“They went through a series of exercises. One of them was also this ‘close looking’ exercise, and at the museum, I also had them link at least three economics concepts with the artwork that they were looking at. That was really rewarding because out of my 55 students, I did not receive the same answer twice.”

Calling it an “art intervention,” Nica says the business students took in Jackson Pollock’s famed Mural, as well as other works by Joan Miro and Katja Farin, and the museum’s extensive collection of African art. She says she was pleasantly surprised at how engaged the students became in linking economic concepts with artwork.

“The vast majority of them have been extremely enthusiastic, not just about the fact that they went to the art museum. Some of them told me that they’re graduating in two days and they never went to the Stanley Museum and they were really excited that this project offered them the opportunity to just even visit the museum.”

The field trip was part of a special program the Stanley Museum offered to UI faculty. Nico says she was the only professor not associated with the arts to seize the chance.

“I applied for it because I always wanted to do something economics and art related [and] because I’m also a concert pianist. So for me, art and economics go really well together, even though, maybe at first glance, they might not.”

Nica says learning to visualize and interpret artistic images shows the value of “close looking,” or slowing down to notice details, which helps to make more sense of the whole — whether it’s an economic chart or an abstract expressionist work of art.

Zachary Oren Smith

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IPR News

A long-awaited state investigation into the 2023 collapse of a Davenport apartment building has been released to the public. The report has new details on how much the building owner, Andrew Wold, knew about its worsening condition.

It states that Wold was buying steel beams the moment he found out the building’s wall had fallen. Documents show that a city inspector altered a previous report on the building after the collapse, leading some to question the city’s role in it. The incident killed three, seriously injured one and displaced dozens of residents, leading to an ongoing lawsuit.

Read more.

Lucia Cheng

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Iowa Public Radio

Around 50 people gathered on a street corner in downtown Des Moines Wednesday to advocate for Afghan refugees. The Trump administration is revoking temporary protected status for Afghan refugees, many of whom assisted the U.S. military fighting in their country.

Eric Schubert, a pastor at Grinnell United Methodist Church, says he organized the rally to spread awareness about the refugees’ situation. He fears that deporting Afghans means sending them to their deaths.

“If we, as a nation, have come to the place where we're fine with that, then we have lost everything from the founding fathers and mothers and everything else on, up to this day.”

Police temporarily disrupted the event to investigate a package nearby at the downtown federal building. The Des Moines Police Department says the bomb squad determined it was not dangerous.

Lucia Cheng

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Iowa Public Radio

Members of Gov. Kim Reynolds’ Iowa DOGE Task Force are considering recommending the consolidation of counties or county services.

The head of one of the task force’s working groups, Terry Lutz, said at an Iowa DOGE meeting Wednesday that Iowa’s 99-county model is outdated. He said it’s not affordable, and that regional shared services would help lower property taxes.

Iowa DOGE Task Force Chair Emily Schmitt was asked how seriously the group is considering that as a recommendation.

“Some of the ideas that are in the gathering phase may not make it to the recommendation phase. So, we’ll really find out in the research one, what are the recommendations that should be moved forward, and what are the ones that are practical and ready that we’re able to do.”

The task force has scheduled meetings for August and September to develop and finalize recommendations for the governor and Legislature.

Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley was called “the father of the modern wind industry” in his 2016 campaign ad, which featured him in a hard hat atop an Iowa wind turbine. Now, the U.S. Senate must consider the U.S. House version of the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act, which would significantly scale back or sunset tax credits on renewable energies, including wind and solar.

In a conference call with reporters Tuesday, Grassley was asked if he’s comfortable with those changes that could kill future wind projects.

“The reason that everybody has to be comfortable with almost anything in the bill is, we can’t let one issue stand in the way of preventing the highest tax increase in the history of the country without a vote of Congress.”

Without the extension of earlier tax cuts, Grassley says taxes could rise by some $4.5 trillion.

As for the portion of the spending bill dealing with wind energy, Grassley says those incentives were doomed a decade ago and he managed to get them extended. He recalls several of his colleagues wanted to eliminate the wind energy tax credits in 2015.

“So, I worked with the wind energy people for a five-year phase out. That five-year phase out ended in 2021. Biden was elected president, then we have the green energy bill that passed, and consequently, they went along with wind for a long, long period of time.”

Grassley suggests he will again work to defend the wind energy industry and will seek out a compromise in the Republican megabill.

“Whatever we can compromise on wind, it’ll be similar to the compromise that I had in 2015 … only by the end of the next compromise, that would have gone on another 15 years beyond what I originally intended in 2015.”

Grassley says he’s proud that Iowa gets almost 60% of its power from wind energy. He’s hopeful the Senate can pass the spending bill before the July 4 recess.

Madeleine Charis King

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Iowa Public Radio

The American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa is calling on five cities to amend ordinances it says unconstitutionally restrict drag performances.

The group sent out letters Wednesday asking the cities of Carroll, Harlan, Mount Pleasant, Polk City and Webster City to remove phrases classifying male and female impersonators as adult entertainment. The ACLU of Iowa says the wording places restrictions on all types of drag performances, even those without explicit content.

Shefali Aurora, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Iowa, says the current phrasing restricts free speech and targets LGBTQ people.

“Too often drag is equated with sexualized performances. But drag is not, by definition, adult entertainment. It can simply be someone wearing clothing and accessories conventionally worn by a person of a different gender.”

The ACLU of Iowa says it has sent similar letters to Eagle Grove, Pella and Grinnell. In response, those cities changed their ordinances.

The woman who yelled, “People will die,” last week as U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst answered a question about Medicaid cuts at a town hall is now running for a seat in the Iowa House of Representatives.

India May, 33, is the director of the Ionia Public Library, a registered nurse and a death investigator for Chickasaw County. May said her intention is to run as a progressive Democrat for Iowa House District 58. She said she wants to “undo the damage caused by the incumbent,” Republican Rep. Charley Thomson.

In a Facebook post, May said she attended Ernst’s town hall at Aplington-Parkersburg High School Friday, when she was “overwhelmed by the repeated lies and dismissals of the real concerns about food insecurity and losing health care,” and she yelled, “People will die!”

Ernst responded to May’s shout by saying, “We all are going to die.”

On Saturday, Ernst said she was in the process of answering a question from another member of the audience when “an extremely distraught woman” in the back of the auditorium screamed. Ernst told CBS News Monday that she is “very compassionate” and people need to listen to the entire conversation she had with the audience in Parkersburg.

Katarina Sostaric

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Iowa Public Radio

Republican state Rep. Eddie Andrews is officially running for governor in 2026. He announced his campaign Wednesday in front of the Iowa Capitol with dozens of supporters.

Andrews is serving his third term in the Iowa House, representing Johnston and parts of Urbandale and Saylorville. He says he started praying about the idea of running for governor before Gov. Kim Reynolds announced she wouldn’t run for reelection.

When asked how he would distinguish himself in a potentially crowded Republican primary, Andrews says he doesn’t see himself as running against the other GOP candidates.

“In my race — three races — I didn’t run against the Democrat. I just said I’m not running against you, I’m running for Iowa, I’m running for these ideas, and let you choose whether or not you believe I’m the best candidate for that.”

Andrews says he would focus on improving education, including public schools, private schools and homeschools. He also says he wants to protect landowners from eminent domain, fight human trafficking and reduce property taxes.

The state government will no longer publish Iowa’s historical journal, ending a 163-year-old partnership.

A spokesperson for the Department of Administrative Services says there isn’t enough staff to maintain the Annals of Iowa. The journal is currently managed by the State Historical Society, but the state is searching for a new university partnership that would start next July.

The announcement blindsided Iowa State University History Professor Pamela Riney-Kehrberg, who has been an editorial consultant for the journal for over 20 years. She’s worried about the future of the Annals of Iowa.

Riney-Kehrberg says the journal is the only outlet available for serious historical studies of the state.

“If you're trying to get something that's locally focused, something that's state focused, into a major historical journal, they're probably not going to publish it.”

Riney-Kehrberg says she has her students read articles from the journal for her class. She doesn’t know if she will still be able to access the website with this new change.

A new federal bill would give farmers more options to protect their livestock from black vultures. The Black Vulture Relief Act seeks to remove permit requirements for livestock producers, allowing them to kill the protected species any time they’re threatening herds.

Black vultures are rarely seen in Iowa, but their range has expanded, and populations have grown in recent years.

Laramie Adams, with the Texas Farm Bureau, says the vultures cost some farmers thousands of dollars a year in lost calves.

“This doesn't just put the farmer rancher in a bad position. That puts consumers in a bad position long term. Any loss that they take, even if it's a few baby calves a year, that's a loss they shouldn't have to take.”

Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin introduced the bill in May. Lawmakers have introduced similar bills in the past.

Read more from Harvest Public Media’s Jess Savage.

The Iowa Department of Transportation has issued a simple warning about deceptive text messages about unpaid traffic tickets and tolls — it’s a scam.

Ryan Ridout, with the Iowa DOT’s Bureau of Investigation and Integrity, said Iowans will never get a legitimate text message demanding payment for a traffic fine.

“Right away, you can dismiss that as a spam text. The Iowa DOT is not going to correspond with somebody in that fashion for those details. That’s your first red flag … Many Iowans have received the scam text and basically within that text, the scammers are trying to get people to click on the links and share personal information or credit card information.”

The bogus text message says people have to pay up by Friday, followed by threats if they don’t want their driver’s license suspended for a month. The text also begins with a reference to the “Iowa Department of Vehicles (DMV)” — a state agency that doesn’t exist.

Ridout said there was a similar scam earlier this year with a link that led people to a website that may have looked like the Iowa DOT’s, but it wasn’t.

People across the country are getting these deceptive texts this week. The scammers have tried to rewrite the texts for each state, but many sent to Iowans refer to the “North Iowa State Administrative Code.” That’s another red flag because there may be a state of North Dakota, but there is no state of “North Iowa.”

The reference to tolls is yet another red flag. Very few Iowa drivers rack up tolls because there are no toll roads in Iowa. Only two bridges — both in Lee County — charge tolls.

James Kelley

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Iowa Public Radio

Sen. Joni Ernst held a sometimes raucous town hall in the eastern Iowa town of Parkersburg Friday. She was challenged on proposed cuts to Medicaid that now sit with the Senate.

At her first in-person town hall this year Ernst was asked about several issues, but the one that got the most attention was the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill, which recently passed in the U.S. House. The Congressional Budget Office has said the bill would cut $700 billion from Medicaid over the next 10 years and estimates 10.3 million Americans will lose their Medicaid coverage.

Ernst said the bill is meant in part to make sure Medicaid benefits aren’t going to those in the U.S. without legal status. A person in the audience shouted back that people could die because of the cuts.

Ernst responded, saying, "Well, we all are going to die."

Ernst says much of what is included in the House bill will not be included in the Senate version, since the Senate focuses on mandatory spending rather than policy.