DES MOINES- Auditor of State Rob Sand, Thursday, released a report on a special investigation of the “Step Up, Stop the Spread” public service announcement campaign that occurred in November 2020, the height of the Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), or COVID-19, Pandemic in Iowa (https://www.auditor.iowa.gov/reports – click on the “Special Interest Reports” option) . The campaign was designed to raise public awareness in order to slow the spread of COVID-19. In his report, the Auditor claims the Governor mishandled CARES Act dollars by using those funds for video advertisements containing the likeness, voice, or name of the Governor in violation of Iowa Code section 68A.405A. That statute reads, in part: “Except as provided in sections 29C.3 and 29C.6, a statewide elected official or member of the general assembly shall not permit the expenditure of public moneys under the control of the statewide elected official or member of the general assembly, including but not limited to…”

Governor Kim Reynolds said “I’m proud of the Step Up, Stop the Spread” public service announcement. I felt it was important for me and other leaders to address Iowans during the height of the pandemic. And the law clearly allows it.” She says the auditor’s report ignores the opening clause: “Except as provided in sections 29C.3 and 29C.6.” That is a significant error, as 29C.6 relates to the powers and authority of the Governor during a public health disaster emergency.

The Step Up, Stop the Spread campaign promoted social distancing and mask-wearing in November 2020, which was the peak of positive cases of COVID-19 in Iowa. Hospitals and health care facilities were filling with patients being treated for COVID-19. The Governor’s Public Health Proclamation of Disaster Emergency had mandated (in certain situations) mask-wearing and required social distancing.

Gov. Reynolds says promoting the requirements and recommendations of a disaster proclamation in a public awareness campaign is a clear example of the public-emergency exemption in Iowa’s image-and-likeness statute. And, she said in a press release, “In case of any confusion, Section 29C.6(10)–which, again, is specifically mentioned in section 68A.405A– provides for the use of “all available resources of the state government as reasonably necessary to cope with the disaster emergency and of each political subdivision of the state.”

The Governor’s Chief of Staff Sara Craig said “Auditor Sand didn’t once ask to meet with our team regarding his concern or his investigation. If he had, we would have pointed him to this essential part of the law that he clearly missed. A statement from the Governor’s office says “Any competent reading of the plain language of state code would have acknowledged the role of the Governor in promoting an emergency order. Neither the Governor’s Office nor the Iowa Ethics & Campaign Disclosure Board were consulted prior to the issuance of Auditor Sand’s report. If that had happened, anyone within those offices could have directed the Auditor to the plain language of Iowa’s image-and-likeness statute and pointed out that, during a disaster emergency, the Governor may address Iowans in a public service announcement.”

Sheriff’s officials in Union County are investigating a vehicle hit-and-run incident. Authorities say Kami Raney, of Thayer, was driving a 2012 Chevy Malibu when the vehicle developed a flat tire while traveling north on Willow Avenue. She left the car on the side of the road, about 100-yards south of 223rd Street, and had planned to have her husband come to change the tire. When he arrived at around 5:17-a.m., Wednesday, the man discovered the vehicle was in the east ditch, and appeared to have been side swiped, with damage to the right rear side of the vehicle.

The damage was estimated to be around $5,000.

One person died during a single-vehicle rollover accident, Wednesday, in eastern Iowa’s Dubuque County. The Iowa State Patrol reports 34-year-old Wesley Carl Hames, of Farley, was driving a 1988 Chevy truck westbound on Highway 20 at around 11:30-p.m., when for reasons unknown, the vehicle went onto the shoulder, causing Hames to lose control. The truck entered the median and rolled over before rolling again across the eastbound lanes of traffic and coming to rest in the southbound ditch. Hames died at the scene. He was not wearing a seat belt.

The accident remains under investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – The new Board of Regents Free Speech Committee met for the first time Wednesday on the heels of the governor signing a bill into law requiring free speech training at the three state universities. Regent and committee chair, Gretta Rouse of Emettsburg, made some comments as the meeting started. “As far as this committee goes, the most critical thing I want to emphasize is that free speech is a hallmark of our society — and in higher education, it is absolutely critical that we not only protect that right — but that we have it embedded in the education that the students receive,” Rouse says.

The new law came after lawsuits or concerns raised at the University of Northern Iowa, University of Iowa & Iowa State University. “Institutions of higher education must be places where the explanation of ideas is embraced as a core value,” Rouse says. “It has been said before — but I will say it again — the Regents absolutely support free speech and the formation of this committee is an example of how we take this issue very seriously.”

Rouse says the committee is charged with ensuring everyone’s free speech is allowed. “This group will continuously evaluate what our universities are doing to protect free speech, and we will continue to examine our policies, as well as continue to examine best practices from outside the regents system,” Rouse says. Regent staffer, Aimee Claeys, says the state law requires annual training. “The purpose of that is really to provide high-level training on the fundamentals of the First Amendment with a focus on freedom of expression,” Claeys says. “And to complement that training, the universities are committed to providing additional more in-depth training in targeted areas to target groups, such as training for administrators or faculty.”

The committee voted to explore hiring an outside company to develop a training program — as Claeys says that would likely be the best way to get the training started on the campuses this fall. She was asked if the training will be mandatory. “For this first year it would certainly be required, but at this point, we don’t anticipate there being any kind of student or employee penalty for not completing it,” she says. “We would instead use encouragement and reminders to reach full compliance.”

Claeys says they will review the compliance and take action if it is not up to the level they desire. The Free Speech Committee is also looking to develop a survey that could be used on all three campuses to gauge on-campus feelings about free speech.