Kim Reynolds

Former governor and ambassador Terry Branstad was honored with the state's highest award for citizens on Thursday. Branstad is the country's longest serving governor in U.S. history.

The University of Iowa held an inaugural event over the weekend for the new Center for Intellectual Freedom. It featured prominent conservative voices and panel discussions about the future of the controversial center. UI President Barbara Wilson was not in attendance.

State officials have denied The Satanic Temple Iowa’s request to hold a holiday event in the Iowa Capitol for the second year in a row, as the state faces a religious discrimination complaint related to last year’s denial.

Gov. Kim Reynolds and Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteen celebrated the expansion of bioindustrial manufacturing in Iowa as they joined executives of BioMADE at the ISU BioCentury Research Farm Friday for a groundbreaking ceremony.

The state of Iowa will pay $600,000 to settle a wrongful termination lawsuit brought by former Iowa Department of Public Health Communications Director Polly Carver-Kimm, who claimed she was forced to resign for attempting to comply with Iowa’s open records law.

The food assistance program, SNAP, is headed into November without federal funding. Gov. Kim Reynolds said the state will match cash donations to Iowa food banks up to $1 million to help fill the gap.

About 131,000 low-income Iowa households may not receive SNAP benefits at the beginning of November because of the government shutdown. Food pantries and food banks in Iowa are preparing for “unprecedented” need.

Gov. Kim Reynolds released 45 recommendations Tuesday made by her Iowa DOGE Task Force. She said there has been misinformation about changes to IPERS, and she assured public employees that their pensions are not going anywhere.

Iowa will have to dip further into its reserves to cover a larger budget gap than expected as federal tax changes add to the impact of state tax cuts. Republican leaders say they have saved enough money to pay the state's bills, while Democrats say the majority party is mismanaging the state's finances.

Sen. Joni Ernst and other members of Iowa’s all-Republican congressional delegation blamed Democrats for the ongoing government shutdown. They also thanked U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for her agency's arrest of former Des Moines Superintendent Ian Roberts.