Iowa
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VoteVets targets Rep. Zach Nunn on Veterans Affairs cuts
A veterans voter education group is going after US. Rep. Zach Nunn in a new campaign over the Trump administration’s sweeping cuts to the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Progressive veterans group VoteVets is launching an ad campaign calling on Republican US Rep. Zach Nunn to oppose the mounting cuts and layoffs at the US…
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Iowa school cancels African American Read-In, 1619 Freedom School steps in
Waterloo Schools pulled out of an event focused on promoting Black literacy over fears of losing federal funding under Trump’s new anti-DEI directives. In response, the 1619 Freedom School is stepping in to host its own event this Saturday. In a move that has drawn statewide attention, the Waterloo Community School District recently withdrew from…
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Iowa Republicans’ bill to criminalize vaccine providers advances amid funnel week chaos
MRNA vaccines were key to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Iowa Senate Republicans cooked up a bill to criminalize the providers of numerous widely-used immunizations. But at the last minute, the bill’s sponsor said the language may be scrapped for something new entirely. Iowa Republicans are barreling through funnel week. If a bill hasn’t passed committee…
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Iowa Legislators advance bill to put free menstrual products in schools
A House Republican bill advanced that would require public schools to provide free menstrual products to students. The bill has bipartisan support, but the state won’t reimburse schools after three years. Legislation is advancing in Iowa this year that would require public schools to provide free menstrual products in at least half of school restrooms…
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Iowa Republicans advance bill to strip trans civil rights
Iowa House Republicans advanced a bill to remove gender identity from the list of protected classes under the Iowa Civil Rights Act. This has wide-ranging impacts on protections from discrimination in housing, education and more. The bill became the subject of the largest Iowa Capitol protest all session. Since passing in 2007, transgender Iowans have…
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Iowa House Republicans renew effort to strip transgender protections from Iowa civil rights law
House Republicans want to remove Iowa’s discrimination protections for transgender Iowans. The bill is a long list touching on bathrooms, birth certificates and introduces a new phrase “gender theory” into Iowa law. Just like all other Iowans, transgender residents of the state are protected under the Iowa Civil Rights Act, meaning they cannot be discriminated…
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VA shifts explanation as agency dismisses over 1,000 employees; Iowa cuts unclear
The US Department of Veterans Affairs has dismissed more than 1,000 probationary employees just weeks after assuring stakeholders that a federal hiring freeze would not impact operations, raising questions about consistency in the agency’s messaging. Iowa has two major VA health systems in Des Moines and Iowa City. The Veterans Affairs department claimed in January…
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Iowa senators advance crypto ATM fraud prevention bill
Iowans are losing their life’s savings to scammers using crypto ATMs to separate people from their money. A bill aims to regulate these kiosks in hopes of preventing future losses. A story keeps repeating. Iowans—particularly the elderly—get a call. The person on the phone says it’s their grandson. They’ve just been arrested and need someone…
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State agencies block Auditor Sand during review of private school voucher program
The State Auditor is raising the alarm, saying state government is stonewalling his office over details on the state’s private school voucher program. Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand said he has concerns about the $104 million school voucher program. According to an annual audit released this week, multiple state agencies refused to provide documentation about…
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Iowa House Republicans reject amendment to condemn antisemitic groups in the US
Iowa House Republicans found themselves in an awkward position last week. While pushing forward a resolution opposing international antisemitism, they rejected an amendment that would have condemned antisemitism from extremist domestic groups right here at home. Iowa House Republicans last week passed a bill to unconditionally support Israel’s war in Gaza and unconditionally denounce antisemitism…
