News
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While Republican legislature obsesses over culture war, Iowa Dems pitch pocketbook policies
All Sami Scheetz wanted to do was feed kids. The Democratic representative from Cedar Rapids introduced HF 575 last session, which would allow 23,000 Iowa students enrolled in the federal reduced breakfast and lunch program to receive free meals at school. The state would use a small portion of its billion-dollar-plus surplus to pay the…
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Biden takes aim at high costs during State of the Union speech
Biden called on Congress to pass a mortgage relief credit that would give first-time homebuyers an annual tax credit of up to $5,000 a year for two years. He also endorsed legislation to build and renovate roughly 2 million homes and vowed to crack down on “big landlords who break antitrust laws by price-fixing and…
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Iowa House lawmakers send bill increasing teacher pay to Senate
The Iowa House passed a measure increasing teacher and school staff pay Thursday as the fate of top education policies lawmakers are pursuing this session remain uncertain. House File 2611 passed 92-1 Thursday, with only Rep. Mark Cisneros, R-Muscatine, voting against the measure. The bill would raise teachers’ starting salary to $47,500 in year one…
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When getting a raise means losing health care: Disabled Iowans fighting back
By all rights, Sioux City resident Erica Carter should be a success story. Despite a spinal cord injury 13 years ago—which left her unable to get out of bed without help—Carter was able to complete both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in accounting. Today, she is the finance manager at a public school and is…
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Iowa AG pressures YouTube to use anti-abortion talking points
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is mad at YouTube for its practice of adding context to videos about topics that are prone to misinformation. In a letter she sent out Monday, which has been joined by 15 other state AGs, Bird pushes lies about the safety of abortion medication and claims YouTube is targeting anti-abortion…
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Biden proposes new actions to address housing shortages and high costs
The actions announced last week will promote fairer rental markets, boost the supply of affordable housing and manufactured homes, and help families who are struggling to make ends meet.
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Iowa high school senior says bill to arm teachers makes him feel ‘unsafe’
An Iowa school student questioned state senators about a Republican proposal to arm Iowa teachers and staff in an attempt to deter school shooters. “This bill, for me, makes me feel unsafe, it means that this bill is going to put more guns into the hands of students and, frankly I find that profoundly nonsensical.…
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Iowa legislator: I’d ban all plant-based meat products from Iowa if I could
Rep. Mike Sexton (R-Rockwell City) would ban all plant-based meat products—such as Beyond Beef or the Impossible Burger—from Iowa if he could. “If it was up to me, I believe I would outlaw fake meat in the state of Iowa, and I would make it illegal to transport it across the state of Iowa,” said…
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An Iowa basic income pilot program seems to be working, but Republicans want to kill it
How much better would your life be with an extra $500 a month—especially $500 a month with no strings attached? That’s what people behind the UpLift – The Central Iowa Basic Income program are trying to determine, but the study might be the first and last of its kind in Iowa if Republican lawmakers have…
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Biden caps credit card late fees at $8
More than 45 million Americans who are charged late fees on credit cards each year will save an average of $220 annually under the new rule.
