(Radio Iowa) – Senate Republican Leader Mike Klimesh says it’s time to find a solution to the five-year-long debate over a proposed carbon pipeline and Klimesh says his alternative will fix a flaw in state regulations. Klimesh led a subcommittee hearing this (Tuesday) morning on the House-passed bill that would ban the use of eminent domain for the project. It concluded with Klimesh discussing his own plan to widen the proposed route so Summit Carbon could go around landowners who don’t want the pipeline on their property.

“We are all concerned about their property rights. Everybody in the Senate is. Everybody in both chambers is and it’s time for us to find a solution, but find a solution that allows us to get ourselves and dig ourselves out of the box we have currently put ourselves in by over-regulating the noticed corridor.” Klimesh says current regulations forbid Summit from approaching other property owners who might sign easements. Landowners who’ve refused to sign contracts with Summit back the House bill that bans the use of eminent domain and they say under Klimesh’s bill, Summit could still seize some land. Marjorie Swan and her sister own two farms in Wright County that are in the pipeline’s current path.

“Landowners cannot enter into the negotiation process when the heavy hand of big government is tipping the scale in favor of multi-million dollar CO2 pipeline companies via threats of eminent domain,” Swan said. The ethanol industry and the Iowa Corn Growers Association back Klimesh’s plan and say without the pipeline in Iowa, they’ll lose money shipping corn to Nebraska ethanol plants because a carbon pipeline is now operating there. Union representatives say the pipeline will create thousands of valuable construction jobs and the House bill would endanger the project. Dylan Gramlich is a lobbyist for the Laborers’ International Union of North America which has members who specialize in key aspects of pipeline construction and hope to work on Summit’s project.

“For our trade alone, that breaks down to over 2 million man-and-woman hours on this project,” Gramlich said, “and that’s roughly the same amount that our members accrue in a full construction season.” Cynthia Hanson owns a farm in Shelby County that’s in the pipeline route and backs the House bill. “Labor jobs are important and I understand that and I don’t want you guys losing jobs, but farmers are businesses, too, and we have jobs,” she said. “…We want our land safe to do our jobs on.”

Once the Senate Commerce Committee meets to consider the House plan that would ban eminent domain for the pipeline, Klimesh intends to switch it out for his own proposal.

DES MOINES, Iowa – An Ankeny man was sentenced Monday (January 26, 2026), to a six-month term of probation for violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, 82-year-old Joseph Thomas Lamb drove his vehicle into a flock of Canada Geese on State Street in Ankeny around 6:30 am on June 10, 2025. Lamb stopped to let a flock of nine Canada Geese cross in front of his vehicle. When the geese were in the middle of his lane, he accelerated into the geese, killing one of the geese. In addition to a six-month term of probation, Lamb was ordered to pay a $2000 fine.

The Canada Goose is a migratory bird protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service maintains a list of birds protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act are punishable by up to six months in prison, a fine of up to $15,000, and a term of supervised release of not more than one year.

United States Attorney David C. Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Ankeny Police Department investigated the case.

If you believe you have information related to a wildlife crime that violates federal law, please reach out to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

You may also submit a wildlife crime report to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) using the Turn in Poachers (TIP) online form or call the TIP Hotline at 1-800-532-2020.

Cass County: Corn $4.07 Beans $10.16
Adair County: Corn $4.04 Beans $10.19
Adams County: Corn $4.04 Beans $10.15
Audubon County: Corn $4.06 Beans $10.18
East Pottawattamie County: Corn $4.10 Beans $10.16
Guthrie County: Corn $4.09 Beans $10.20
Montgomery County: Corn $4.09 Beans $10.18
Shelby County: Corn $4.10 Beans $10.16

Oats: $2.57 (same in all counties)

(Prices are per bushel; information is from the area Farm Service Agency [FSA] offices)

(IOWA CAPITAL DISPATCH) – Young hunters could skip the in-person elements currently required by Iowa’s hunter safety program under a bill that advanced from a House subcommittee Monday. Currently, Iowa hunter education for those under the age of 17 requires either in-person classes or a combination of an approved online program, plus an in-person field day.

House File 2020 was filed by Rep. Jason Gearhart, R-Strawberry Point, who explained that the in-person requirements were difficult to attend for some families — like his own — who live in more rural areas and have limited opportunities to attend. Gearhart said to get around this, his children took an approved hunter safety course from the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which does not have a field day requirement, but is accepted in Iowa through reciprocity.

The bill adds language that a hunter over the age of 11 may obtain a hunter safety certification from a “nationally recognized organization, including the national rifle association.” HF 2020 also said the requirement could be satisfied by an online course either offered or approved by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Tammie Krausman, DNR’s communications director, said the language pointing to “recognized organizations” could affect Iowa’s reciprocity with other states since certifications are issued by a government entity. Krausman said the field days are a time for hunters to learn about handling firearms, Iowa-specific laws and how to interact with landowners. The department was not registered for or against the bill.

Gearhart said the field days should be optional for hunters who have someone to show them how to shoot and be responsible hunters.

Cass County: Corn $4.06 Beans $10.17
Adair County: Corn $4.03 Beans $10.20
Adams County: Corn $4.03 Beans $10.16
Audubon County: Corn $4.05 Beans $10.19
East Pottawattamie County: Corn $4.09 Beans $10.17
Guthrie County: Corn $4.08 Beans $10.21
Montgomery County: Corn $4.08 Beans $10.19
Shelby County: Corn $4.09 Beans $10.17

Oats: $2.56 (same in all counties)

(Prices are per bushel; information is from the area Farm Service Agency [FSA] offices)

DES MOINES, IOWA [Submitted by an Atlantic FFA reporter] —On Wednesday January 21st 6 members of the Atlantic FFA Chapter along with FFA members from across Iowa converged on the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines to build character and promote citizenship, volunteerism, and patriotism.

Atlantic FFA members Lauren Comes, Maddy Anderson, Hayden Kleen, Keston Schmitt, Frank Freund and Kayedance Sturm along with more than 500 high school students wearing blue corduroy from 88 schools visited the Iowa State Capitol Building in Des Moines on January 21st. The students visited with legislators, exhibited skills learned in the agriculture classroom and learned the importance of citizenship. This was all part of the 41st Annual Iowa FFA Legislative Symposium and FFA Day at the Capitol.

Left to right: Lauren Comes, Kayedance Sturm, Frank Freund, Maddy Anderson, Senator Shipley, Hayden Kleen, Keston Schmitt

Atlantic FFA members met with Senator Tom Shipley to discuss a variety of topics ranging from school funding to Eminent Domain and how it could affect Iowa agriculture. Representative Moore was unable to meet with us due to a committee meeting, but we did meet with his clerk Ella Stafford to discuss a few different legislative topics and how an FFA member could become a Clerk or Page in the future.

During the morning, FFA members gathered at the Downtown Embassy Suites for a brief greeting and tutorial. The program provided opportunities for FFA members to hear from Mike Naig, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, about the importance of agriculture in Iowa and abroad. Iowa Farm Bureau Federation Vice President, Brian Feldpausch, then delivered a message about the importance young agriculturalists can play in the agriculture industry. Jake Swanson from High Yield Strategies then spoke about the importance of advocating for the agricultural industry.

Seated Lauren Comes. Back row left to right: Frank Freund, Hayden Kleen, Keston Schmitt, Maddy Anderson Kayedance Sturm

The 41st Annual Iowa FFA Legislative Symposium and FFA Day at the Capitol was made possible with support from Iowa Farm Bureau Federation through the Iowa FFA Foundation.

(Photos submitted w/the story)

(Radio Iowa) – Case New Holland is laying off more than 200 workers at its plant in Burlington which makes construction equipment. Burlington Mayor Jon Billups says they worked hard to get the company to stay there. “We reached out to the state leaders, and everybody was trying to keep them here,” he says. Billups says the plant has been a point of pride for the Burlington community for generations.

“It stinks, because we’ve had years of investment in their plant, both as a city and as a state, and it’s just heartbreaking for the families that are going to be affected,” Billups says. The employees were given notice earlier this week and Iowa WARN says the layoffs will take effect in April and May. Case New Holland said its reason for the layoffs was a significant drop in loader backhoe demand. “I get they’re not selling as many backhoes as they used to, but they’re selling other equipment we could be manufacturing for them, and they’ve got a perfectly good plant here with a fantastic workforce, and they’re not taking advantage of it,” Billups says.

Local leaders and members of the United Auto Workers had been trying to convince the company to keep the plant open. U-A-W President Shawn Fain called the closure an example of corporate greed.

Cass County: Corn $3.99 Beans $10.11
Adair County: Corn $3.96 Beans $10.14
Adams County: Corn $3.96 Beans $10.10
Audubon County: Corn $3.98 Beans $10.13
East Pottawattamie County: Corn $4.02 Beans $10.11
Guthrie County: Corn $4.01 Beans $10.15
Montgomery County: Corn $4.01 Beans $10.13
Shelby County: Corn $4.02 Beans $10.11

Oats: $2.57 (same in all counties)

(Prices are per bushel; information is from the area Farm Service Agency [FSA] offices)

DES MOINES— Today, Governor Kim Reynolds authorized a disaster proclamation for Kossuth County, Iowa, effective immediately through February 21, 2026. The USDA has confirmed a positive case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a mixed species flock of game bird pheasants and backyard chickens.

This proclamation allows state resources from Iowa Homeland Security, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, and other agencies to assist with tracking and monitoring, rapid detection, containment, disposal, and disinfection. The proclamation also waives regulatory provisions related to commercial vehicles responding to affected sites.

The recent HPAI detections in birds do not present an immediate public health concern, and it remains safe to eat poultry products. If producers suspect signs of HPAI in their flocks, they should contact their veterinarian immediately.

(Radio Iowa) – Corn production in Iowa and the nation was on an upward trajectory last year, but industry leaders say there’s now a problem with declining market demand. A new study produced for two Iowa agri-business groups predicts that demand gap will continue to grow. Monte Shaw, executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, says an oversupply of corn will drag down prices for farmers unless something changes.

“As is usual, we’re outproducing our markets, and so, there’s really three paths forward,” Shaw says. “There’s the status quo where supply continues to go up faster than demand.” Mark Mueller, president of the Iowa Corn Growers Association and a fourth-generation farmer from Waverly, says he’s worried there won’t be a fifth generation on his family’s land.

Mueller says, “The bottom line is that we have high input prices, we have low commodity prices, and we’re producing more corn all the time. We need more places to move our corn.” The Iowa Corn Growers Association is pushing Congress to allow the year-round sale of E-15 nationwide. A new study for the group finds that would close the demand gap for corn by 2031. The study predicts new markets for corn, like sustainable aviation fuel, are needed for long-term profitability.