DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — State budget experts say they expect state revenues to be about $1.9 million less than last year, revising their estimate to $7.91 billion. The forecasters also estimated Tuesday that the state will bring in about $319 million more for next year despite economic challenges from the coronavirus pandemic and a sagging farm economy.

The estimate by the Revenue Estimating Conference for the upcoming year would equate to 4% revenue growth, giving the state about $8.23 billion to spend. The group by law must meet again in December and provide an estimate that Gov. Kim Reynolds must use to draft a budget.

GREEN MOUNTAIN, Iowa (AP) — Firefighters in east-central Iowa say a rural church was destroyed in a fire sparked by an attempt to smoke out a wild animal that had gotten inside. Station WHO-TV reports that the Monday afternoon fire burned down the Chapel United Methodist Church near Green Mountain. Investigators say someone tried to get rid of an animal that had gotten inside the church using a smoke bomb, which started the fire.

Officials did not indicate what kind of animal had gotten inside. Fire officials say it took seven fire crews and several hours to fully extinguish the blaze. The church was first established in 1867,

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Senator Chuck Grassley says Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are using this week’s hearings to suggest Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett doesn’t care about access to health care. “Democrats are painting the judge as heartless and on a mission to scrap the health care law,” Grassley says. “Frankly, that’s absurd.” Grassley made his comments this (Tuesday) morning during his half-hour turn in the committee to ask Barrett questions. “Have you committed to the president or anyone else that you will vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act if confirmed to the court?” Grassley asked and Barrett responded: ‘Absolutely not. I was never asked and, if had have been, that would have been a short conversation.”

Grassley urged Barrett to consider legislative history when ruling on cases, but Barrett says legislative history cannot substitute for the actual text of a law. “That’s a matter of interpretive philosophy,” Barrett said. Grassley replied: “My position has always been that legislative history can be instructive to the intent of the statute, so judges should not completely disregard it.”

Grassley says congress can be more careful about drafting laws, but when there’s a dispute about the law, judges should pay attention to how congress drafted, debated and passed the law. Early this (Tuesday) morning during a conference call with Iowa reporters, Grassley accused Democrats of trying to stoke real fear that confirming Barrett to the Supreme Court will lead to the demise of the Affordable Care Act. “There’s no evidence ot suggest anything of the kind,” Grassley said. “In fact, legal scholars have expressed doubt that the court would strike down ObamaCare, with or without Barrett.”

The Republican-led Senate is heading toward confirming Barrett to the Supreme Court by the end of October. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear an appeal related to the Affordable Care Act on November 10th.