Ty Rushing

Cedar Falls City Administrator Ron Gaines celebrated the news that his community will receive $10 million in federal funding to help with a complete overhaul of its Main Street. “This grant is a tremendous achievement for Cedar Falls and we are extremely excited,” said Gaines, who was hired to run the northeast Iowa city’s day-to-day…

The Biden administration is helping Iowa get its public transportation up to current standards by directing $43 million to the state for electric buses and related infrastructure.  The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced Monday 130 awards totaling nearly $1.7 billion to fund transit projects in 46 states and territories, including Iowa’s…

Iowa’s new director of the Iowa Department of Education is a former aide to billionaire Betsy DeVos, who has used her family’s wealth to fuel the rapid expansion of taxpayer-funded private school scholarships, including in the Hawkeye State. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Thursday that McKenzie Snow—the former DeVos aide—would lead Iowa’s Department of Education starting…

Interim Warren County Auditor and 2020 election denier David Whipple placed deputy auditor and potential challenger Kim Sheets on administrative leave for 60 days, according to KNIA News. Whipple has come under intense scrutiny for sharing conspiracy theories that assert the 9/11 attacks were fake, the 2020 election was fraudulent, and QAnon material. County auditors…

Gov. Kim Reynolds announced another $148 million in funding for broadband expansion on Monday, but neglected to note it was only made possible by a Biden administration policy she once ridiculed. However, White House Regional Communications Director Haris Talwar pointed this out on Twitter. “Great to see @IAGovernor continuing to support President Biden’s bold economic…

Warren County residents want a special election to vote for a new county auditor after it came to light that newly appointed auditor David Whipple has a history of promoting conspiracy theories about 9/11 and the 2020 election. In Iowa, county auditors oversee elections. Whipple, who has no experience in government, was appointed to serve…

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds doubled down on her support for former President Donald Trump on Friday after he was federally indicted for illegally taking classified documents—including some containing information about US nuclear programs—from the White House. “The federal indictment of former President Trump represents a grave warning sign for the state of equal justice and…

The juxtaposition of the Iowa Capitol and the section of Des Moines’ East Village where PrideFest takes place will be even more glaring this year after Republican lawmakers spent a bulk of the 2023 legislative session crafting and implementing anti-LGBTQ laws.  The 44th annual PrideFest takes place June 9-11 and is put on by the…

Pottawattamie County will hold a special election on Aug. 1 to determine how future board of supervisors elections are conducted, a move community organizers and labor groups hope will create better representation in county government. The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors approved the special election when it met Tuesday, in response to a petition from…

Just a few days into the launch of Iowa’s new private school voucher program, Iowa taxpayers are already projected to spend about $76 million on private school tuition next school year. Applications for Gov. Kim Reynolds’ new private school voucher program—called Students First Education Savings Accounts—opened on May 31. For the first three days of…