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Here First podcast from IPR
Here First
Monday – Friday before 7 a.m.

Start your day with the essentials. Coffee. Breakfast. And the local news you need to know. Host Meghan McKinney rises bright and early to bring you the top news stories from around Iowa in under 10 minutes. Wake up, grab that coffee and get your news Here First.

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Latest Episodes
  • A federal judge has blocked Title IX protections for LGBTQ+ students from taking effect in Iowa and other states. Iowa's consumable hemp regulations will stay in effect as a district judge rejected the latest request for an injunction. And a northeast Iowa ethanol-producing facility has been fined for expelling excessive pollutants; the DNR says this may have caused harm to the environment and public health.
  • Cedar Falls is seeing a sudden increase in extremist graffiti. A new report finds that Iowa and Nebraska nonprofits are still struggling to retain employees since the pandemic. And IPR takes an in-depth look at how Iowa's abortion law that bans the procedure at fetal cardiac activity will impact how people will get the procedure.
  • Iowa's new abortion law will take effect at 8 a.m. on July 29th. A report by the state auditor's office found the Iowa Department of Education improperly renegotiated a contract. And Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City is settling a lawsuit with international students who accused the college of human trafficking.
  • The Iowa Supreme Court will not reconsider its late June decision to allow the heartbeat ban abortion law to go into effect. Des Moines community members call the city's proposed ordinances that impact unhoused people "inhumane." And Iowa Democrats are backing Vice President Kamala Harris.
  • The Des Moines City Council is considering changing its ordinance that allows the clearing of encampments on public property this morning, some say the new ordinance is a harder-line approach to homelessness. The Iowa chapter of the ACLU has sent a letter to the council opposing the changes. Iowa Democrats respond to President Biden's exit from the 2024 presidential race. And a Polk County Judge says he's allowing some time to lift the injunction on Iowa's heartbeat abortion ban, but didn't say how much time.
  • The company Bayer is lobbying congress to prevent lawsuits over Roundup allegedly causing cancer. The Iowa Great Lakes boating speed limits will be lifted this weekend. And some state lawmakers say they will try to put another moratorium on gaming licenses.
  • Iowa's abortion law that bans the procedure at fetal cardiac activity could go in effect tomorrow, awaiting a Polk County district judge to lift an injunction. Rules for the sale of consumable hemp go into effect today after while hemp producers are still at a loss. And U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley wants to investigate what he calls a "monumental security failure" during the attempted assassination of Former President Donald Trump.
  • Iowa General Attorney Brenna Bird spoke at the Republican National Convention. ARPA funding aimed at helping homeless students still hasn't been fully spent by school districts. And there's an update to the 5 mile per hour boat speed limit in some parts of the Iowa Great Lakes Region.
  • The Sierra Club of Iowa, counties, and landowners are requesting the Iowa Utilities Board to reconsider its approval of the Summit Carbon Solutions' initial carbon pipeline project. Thousands of Iowans are without power after severe storms on Monday evening. And Attorney General Brenna Bird will speak at the Republican National Convention today.
  • Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufmann will give a speech today to formally nominate Donald Trump for president. Iowa political leaders respond to the attempted assassination of Trump. This week marks the second anniversary of the 988 national hotline. And there aren't as many foster group homes for girls compared to boys in Iowa and Missouri.