A man from Ringgold County escaped a house fire last week. The Ringgold County Sheriff’s Department reports several area fire departments responded to the fire at 303 West VanBuren Street, in Mount Ayr, at around 2:20-p.m., Thursday. The home’s occupant, 31-year-old Cody Atkins, awoke to find his house full of smoke. He was able to safely leave, and was provided with assistance from a passing motorist until emergency personnel arrived on the scene. The cause of the blaze was undetermined.

Agencies at the scene included the Ringgold County Sheriffs Office, Mount Ayr, Diagonal and Kellerton Fire Departments, and Ringgold County Ambulance.

(Radio Iowa) – Key Republicans in the Iowa legislature say last semester’s proficiency tests of students in several Iowa school districts yielded unacceptable results. House Speaker Pat Grassley of New Hartford says the G-O-P’s top priority in the 2021 state legislature is ensuring schools offer 100 percent in-person classes for students.  “Some schools have taken every effort to provide in-person learning, but in some areas of the state parents and students who wanted to be back in school were met with, at best, a lack of responsiveness and, at worst, outright contempt,” Grassley said. “Students are being trapped in situations that aren’t what’s best for them.”

Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver of Ankeny says the state cannot afford to let a generation of kids fall behind academically. “Kids learn better when they are in school, in classrooms, in person instead of in front of a screen,” Whitver said. “The longer they are out of school, the more their skills deteriorate and the further behind they fall.” Whitver says test scores this fall show the negative impact of not having kids in classrooms regularly.

“At midterm this fall, 37% of students in Iowa City schools were failing at least one class, a number double the previous year,” Whitver said. “A similar decline has occurred in other districts around the state and across the country By any rational standard, this performance is unacceptable.” Both Whitver and Grassley have been saying since mid-December that “everything is on the table” when it comes to education policy. That includes giving Iowa parents state tax dollars to pay private school tuition.

Senate President Jack Chapman, a Republican from Adel, describes it this way. “Tear down the barriers that prevent parents from choosing where to send their children for education,” Chapman said. Democratic leaders who gave speeches yesterday (Monday) as the legislative session began did not mention these policies, but emphasized that public schools need more state money to deal with pandemic-related expenses. Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls of Coralville says the virus is tearing through our state and the scars of the pandemic will be long-lasting.

He says speeding up delivery of Covid vaccines will ensure kids and educators can go back to school safely.

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Senator Chuck Grassley says congress should concentrate on working with the NEXT president rather than impeaching the one who’ll be out of office in eight days. “At least I’m looking forward to what I can do…to help Biden pull the country together,” Grassley says. If the U.S. House approves articles of impeachment, Grassley says the timing of an impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate could interfere with the process of confirming Biden’s cabinet and addressing Biden’s policy agenda.

Grassley says he was ushered to safety so quickly last Wednesday, he didn’t realize how frightening the situation actually was until he got to a T-V. “What happened on Wednesday…that sort of insurrection is untenable,” Grassley said, “and the president’s comments didn’t help the matter any and made it worse.” Grassley says at this point, he sees “very little opportunity” for Trump to lead the Republican Party in the future.

Grassley spoke to reporters after a meeting yesterday (Monday) in Newton. Earlier in the day, he was at the Iowa Capitol and administered the oath of office to his grandson to serve as speaker of the Iowa House.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:35 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa lawmakers began their legislative session with no mask requirements, and many members are opting not to wear face coverings even as rates of coronavirus infections rise in the Des Moines area and much of the state. Republicans, who hold majorities in both the House and Senate, chose not to mandate masks or even require that members disclose if they have been infected by the virus. And during opening ceremonies Monday, most Republicans didn’t wear masks while all Democrats were protected by a mask or face shield. More than 200 unmasked people opposing mask mandates protested before lawmakers began the session. They chanted “freedom” and many held signs that said “coercion is not consent,” and “mandates belong in socialist countries.”

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Republican Party is losing voters as it’s pulled in opposite directions after the attack on Congress by Trump loyalists. On one side are GOP voters disgusted with President Donald Trump’s behavior. Some, like former House Speaker John Boehner, say the president should leave office now. Others have even switched their registration from the party since the Jan. 6 insurrection. At the same time, Trump supporters argue the vast majority of the rank-and-file remains loyal. The attack is deepening the schism in the party that was papered over by an uneasy truce during most of Trump’s term.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — After a long stretch of relatively paltry prizes, U.S. lottery players now have a choice of jackpots that offer combined prizes of more than $1 billion. The jackpot for Mega Millions’ Tuesday night drawing has climbed to $615 million, and the top prize in the Powerball game has reached $550 million ahead of Wednesday’s drawing. It has been nearly two years since the two national lottery games offered such giant prizes and only the second time both jackpots have topped $500 million. The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are one in 292.2 million and one in 302.5 million for Mega Millions.

CLIVE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say three people have died in a crash following a police chase in central Iowa that reached speeds of more than 100 mph. Police in the Des Moines suburb of Clive say the crash happened early Monday, after officers attempted to stop a stolen car suspected in an earlier theft case in nearby Urbandale. Police say the car refused to stop, sped away and launched into the air as it crossed railroad tracks — flipping several times and hitting a utility pole and creek bank. Police found five young males, several of who were ejected from the car. Police say three died from their injuries and two were taken to hospitals.