State News
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Reynolds announces $7 million grant program for charter schools
Gov. Kim Reynolds says this will expand charter schools in Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced in a Friday release she was creating a $7 million grant program to help fund new and existing charter schools in Iowa. The release does not specify where the funds for the program are coming from, but it will provide…
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Iowa legislators benefit from government subsidies while blocking assistance to others
About a fourth of the 150-person Iowa Legislature benefits from some form of farm subsidies. Here’s who they are and how much they are getting from the federal government.
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Hy-Vee will close stores in Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Davenport, creating food deserts
Midwest grocery chain Hy-Vee is closing three stores in low-income neighborhoods, which will have the effect of creating three new food deserts in Iowa. Hy-Vee announced this week it would be permanently closing three stores— a northeast Cedar Rapids store on First Avenue NE, a north Waterloo store on Logan Avenue, and a west Davenport…
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Advocates file suit to stop Iowa’s ‘unconstitutional’ immigration law
Immigration advocates filed a federal lawsuit Thursday to stop Iowa’s new immigration law—SF 2340—from taking effect arguing that the legislation creates new crimes for anyone in Iowa who has been deported in the past even if they are here legally now. A hearing date has not been set yet. The lawsuit was filed in the…
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Iowa joins lawsuit against feds over protections for LGBTQ students
New Title IX rules clarify that “sex discrimination” applies to discrimination based on gender identity. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and Attorney General Brenna Bird are suing the US Department of Education because of it Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Monday she was directing Attorney General Brenna Bird to sue the US Department of Education because…
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Iowa Senate passes bill to arm school staff, give legal immunity in shootings
Sen. Molly Donahue, a teacher, has more than a few ideas on how to make schools safer without arming teachers or other school staff. She shared them during Wednesday’s Iowa Senate debate on a bill to bring more guns into schools. “We could be investing far more funding in mental health resources to enhance access…
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2 years after historic union vote, Grinnell students sign 1st-in-nation contract
By Zach Spindler-Krage, News Editor, The Scarlet and Black Members of the Union of Grinnell Student Dining Workers (UGSDW) officially ratified, in a 162-1 vote, the first contract in US history to cover all undergraduate student workers. On Friday, Grinnell College signed the contract, which takes effect immediately. The historic contract raises the base wage for…
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Bills to support anti-abortion centers, expand postpartum Medicaid set to be law
Two bills affecting Iowans’ reproductive health passed out of the Iowa House Wednesday afternoon and could soon become law. Postpartum Medicaid SF 2251 passed the House 70-25, and it would restrict the number of people who qualify for postpartum Medicaid coverage in order to expand coverage to a full year. A fiscal note attached to…
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Founded with banned books in a garage, Annie’s Foundation opens new office
A year ago, Sara Hayden Parris’s garage was packed haphazardly with books, banners, signs, and other supplies for Annie’s Foundation events. Now, because of a generous donation, those days are no more. On March 28, Parris, board members, and supporters came out to cut the ribbon on a physical office space for Annie’s Foundation, at…
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Sioux City Republican activist gets light prison sentence for 52 acts of voter fraud
A Sioux City Republican activist who was convicted of illegally filling in ballots escaped a far harsher punishment on Monday for her 52 acts of voter fraud, which could have carried a five-year prison sentence for each. Instead, Federal Judge Leonard Strand sentenced Kim Phoung Taylor to serve four months in federal prison as part…
