State News
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Advocates speak out against Iowa’s anti-immigration bills
As far as Cecilia Martinez is concerned, they are very much an Iowan despite what some Iowa lawmakers may think. Martinez, 27, moved from Mexico to Iowa when they were 1-year-old. They were educated in Iowa schools from kindergarten through college and continue to live, work, and advocate for various causes while residing in the…
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Iowa Republicans unveil latest plan to arm teachers with guns
Despite Iowa Republicans calling teachers “sinister,” limiting how they can teach history and social studies, what books they can teach from, and proposing cameras in the classroom to monitor them in real-time, they apparently trust them enough to give them guns. Introduced on Wednesday, HSB 675 would allow districts, private schools, and colleges to arm…
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Iowa Republican’s bill would defund public libraries, eliminate local library boards
Sen. Jesse Green (R-Boone) introduced a bill last week that many library advocates say could lead to the end game for public libraries in Iowa. SSB 3131 would change how cities and counties fund public libraries by changing the language in Iowa Code from “shall” to “may,” which would allow those entities to opt out…
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Reynolds says her bill to erase LGBTQ Iowans in legal code is ‘necessary’
One day after LGBTQ advocates celebrated a trans discrimination bill dying in an Iowa House subcommittee, Gov. Kim Reynolds introduced a new culture-war-driven bill on Thursday aimed at legally erasing queer Iowans. HSB 649 would create a new code in Iowa to legally define “sex,” “male,” “female,” “mother,” and “father” and require all governmental entities…
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VIDEOS: Iowans react to LGBTQ discrimination bill going up in flames
On Wednesday, an Iowa House subcommittee for HF 2082 met to hear public comments and debate if the bill should move forward. If passed, HF 2082 would have removed gender identity as a protected class under the Iowa Civil Rights Act and categorized gender dysphoria as a disability, effectively legalizing the discrimination of trans Iowans.…
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Reynolds’ AEA bill goes dormant in House, but survives in Iowa Senate
When Lilli Norris’ parents adopted her from China, they did not know that she couldn’t speak, that she had a bad heart, and that she was mostly deaf. “The reason I tell you this is that Lilli was the first student at Carlisle Elementary to have a microphone introduced to us by Iowa AEA,” said…
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Iowa Dems introduce slew of bills to protect Iowan’s reproductive freedom
After years of attacks on reproductive freedom, Iowa Senate Democrats are challenging the extremism by introducing bills to honor Iowan’s wishes and protect reproductive healthcare rights. In a Tuesday press conference, Senate Democrats announced a package of bills similar to a suite of bill introduced by Iowa House Democrats in March 2023. Sen. Pam Jochum…
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Instead of fixing real issues, Iowa Republicans push 10 bills to discriminate against LGBTQ Iowans
We are less than a month into the 2024 Iowa Legislative Session and the Republicans in charge of Iowa’s state government have been busy— and by busy, we mean coming up with new ways to legally discriminate against LGBTQ Iowans. As Iowans struggle with stagnant wages, budget shortfalls in public schools, worsened water quality, higher…
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‘Kids need to eat:’ Iowans demand state participate in free-food program
Mandi Remington of Iowa City knows firsthand what it’s like to struggle to feed your kids and how the stability of two incomes can keep a person from leaving an abusive relationship. “Reflecting on my experience as a domestic violence survivor, I can’t help but wonder if I would have left sooner had I been…
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Kim Reynolds ‘diminished’ after trying to beat Trump following years of defending him to Iowa
After years of enabling Donald Trump and his abhorrent behavior, some of Iowa’s most prominent Republicans—including Gov. Kim Reynolds—staked their reputations and clout on other caucus candidates in an attempt to move on from the former president. On Monday, they learned how deeply they failed to convince the base of their party to move on.…
