by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch April 8, 2025 Gov. Kim Reynolds said Tuesday she intends to sign a bill setting a statewide ban on public school students using cellphones during class time. The Iowa House passed the bill, which the governor introduced in January, on a 92-4 vote Tuesday and sent it to her […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch April 7, 2025 Iowa K-12 public schools would receive a 2% increase in state per-pupil funding next year under legislation the Iowa Senate approved Monday on 32-15 vote. Senate File 167 sets the State Supplemental Aid (SSA) rate for the upcoming fiscal year. SSA is the growth rate for […]
by Kevin Hardy ǀ Stateline, Iowa Capital Dispatch April 5, 2025 Anna Pesek saw a federal program supporting local food purchases as much more than a boost to her Iowa pork and poultry farm. The U.S. Department of Agriculture grant program that allowed schools and food banks to buy fresh products from small farms helped […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch April 4, 2025 In light of Wednesday’s tariff announcement by President Donald Trump, U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley introduced legislation this week requiring more congressional oversight of such decisions. The president announced he was setting a baseline 10% levy on all international imports Wednesday, effective April 5, with higher tariffs […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch April 4, 2025 As the Iowa Legislature advanced past the second major deadline of the 2025 session, conversations on pipelines, Medicaid work requirements and new higher education requirements are continuing through surviving bills — though agreements have not necessarily been reached between the two Republican-controlled chambers. The session’s second […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch April 2, 2025 Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law Wednesday a measure banning drivers from using cellphones behind the wheel outside of hands-free or voice-activated modes. Reynolds was joined by more than 50 people in her office Wednesday, many of whom were related to people who had died […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch March 31, 2025 COLFAX– As U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins toured Iowa agricultural facilities Monday, she said the U.S. Department of Agriculture is prepared to support farmers while tariffs go into place. President Donald Trump announced plans Sunday to impose “reciprocal tariffs” on countries that have their own […]
by Tik Root, Grist, Iowa Capital Dispatch March 30, 2025 This story was produced by Grist and co-published with States Newsroom Rows of dead batteries stretch across some 30 acres of high desert, organized in piles and boxes that are covered to shield them from the western Nevada sun. This vast field is where Redwood Materials stores […]
by Jennifer Shutt, Iowa Capital Dispatch March 22, 2025 WASHINGTON — Americans living in rural communities throughout the country could see their access to health care diminish if Congress changes eligibility for Medicaid or significantly reduces its federal funding. While rural residents who depend on the state-federal program for lower income people would experience the most […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch March 21, 2025 Members of Iowa’s congressional delegation have introduced legislation they say will help lower drug costs. U.S. Congress has largely not met this week, with most of the attention in national politics centering on President Donald Trump’s moves to close the U.S. Department of Education and militarize […]
