(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is not a fan of tariffs and fears farmers will be hurt, as President Trump plans to unveil a new series of tariffs against multiple nations Wednesday, on what the White House is calling “Liberation Day.” During a stop in Iowa Monday, U-S Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins said American farmers would again receive market disruption payments if there’s a trade war. Grassley says those payments would either have to be funded through taxes or by borrowing. “It would be too early to talk about how much aid or what form it would be, because we don’t know the impact of the tariffs, because that’s probably not going to be what tariffs we put on,” Grassley says, “it’s other countries’ reaction to the tariffs.”

During Trump’s first administration, those trade-related payments to U-S farmers topped 23-billion dollars over three years. Grassley, a Republican, is concerned farmers will see their international trade partners be forced to retaliate by imposing their own tariffs on a range of commodities. “It’s very apt to be against agriculture products. It wouldn’t be the only products probably that they’d put on a retaliatory tariff, but at least some,” Grassley says, “and then you’d have to know the financial impact of that before you would say how much money.” Grassley says he’s partly encouraged by Rollins’ saying agricultural producers would have a financial safety net.

Senator Grassley (File photo)

“I’m kind of glad that they’re willing to stand behind the farmers,” Grassley says. “I think that’s a way of kind of admitting that some of these trade policies of this administration could work negatively against agriculture, and that they’re willing to step in and fill the vacuum or the void.” He adds, however, farmers would rather get their money from the markets and not the federal treasury. Grassley says tariffs can be troublesome. “You folks know I’m a free and fair trader,” Grassley says. “If President Trump is successful in reducing tariffs from other countries, I’ll say ‘Amen.’ If he’s unsuccessful, I’ll say ‘I told you so.'”

Fontanelle, Iowa – The Nodaway Valley and CAM Community School District Boards of Directors have announced the three candidates to be interviewed for their superintendent vacancy.

The candidates selected for interviews are:

● Michelle Arneson Havenstrite, Prairie City, IA
● Jonathon Mendoza, Norwalk, IA
● Pam Stangeland, Stanhope, IA

Interviews are scheduled to be conducted on April 7, 2025. Interview teams will include community members, students, certified staff, support staff, administrators, and Board members. All participants will have the opportunity to meet the final candidates and submit input to the board about each candidate. The board intends to make their selection on April 7, 2025. The selected candidate will succeed shared Superintendent Paul Croghan, whose term expires at the end of the current school year.

The Nodaway Vally and CAM Community School Districts retained the services of McPherson & Jacobson, L.L.C. to assist in conducting their search. The consultants reviewed, screened, and conducted extensive background checks on all applicants. On March 31, 2025, the consultants presented the applicants to the Board of Directors and provided them with detailed background information on each applicant. The board selected three candidates as finalists.

After the superintendent has been hired, Stephen Murley, Kim Antisdel, and Tom Ridder will facilitate a Board/Superintendent workshop to assist in the establishment of performance objectives for the new superintendent.

(Radio Iowa) – Whirlpool announced today (Tuesday) it is laying off 650 people at its Amana facility in eastern Iowa on June 1st. Iowa Federation of Labor president Charlie Wishman says state and federal leaders are part of the reason for the layoffs.  “Rural manufacturing is dying all over the place, and especially in this state, and we need to save it,” he says. “These policies, from both the presidential administration as well as the governor’s administration, they aren’t helping.”

A spokesperson from Whirlpool says the layoffs are a necessary measure to meet a drop in demand for some of the appliances made in Amana, particularly refrigerators. Wishman says recently announced tariffs and state legislation cutting unemployment benefits will hurt people impacted by the layoffs.  “In a town like Amana, this is truly going to devastate that community. And when a company like Whirlpool is making 17 billion dollars in sales last year, that’s nothing compared to what the residents in that area are going to be facing,” Wishman says.

The Whirlpool layoffs amount to roughly one third of its workforce. A spokesperson for Iowa Workforce Development says they have already begun coordinating a response to the Whirlpool announcement through their Rapid Response team. I-W-D will schedule worker information meetings to provide impacted workers with resources, including available services on how to file for unemployment and to find their next job. I-W-D will also use the IowaWORKS Mobile Workforce Center to provide reemployment services in Amana as quickly as possible.

(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office posted on social media this (Tuesday) morning, another incident of illegal tire dumping has taken place.  A photo showed more than three dozen tires were dumped Monday night or early this (Tuesday) morning, near the intersection of Shelby County roads M-16 and 850th Street. 

Tires illegally dumped in Shelby County (Shelby County S/O photo, 4-1-25)

Authorities say “If you have any information please call the office. Any information leading to a conviction could be eligible for a reward! Thank you for your assistance!”

The Sheriff’s Office previously posted other images of tires being dumped in the County on March 11th. Other counties in southwest Iowa have had similar incidents take place.

(Creston, Iowa) – A woman from Creston was arrested late Monday morning. Creston Police report 49-year-old Christine Lynn Selvy was arrested on a Union County warrant for Failure to serve jail time, on original charges of Disorderly Conduct – Abusive epithets/threatening gesture, and, public intoxication.  Selvy was being held without bond in the Union County Jail.

(Radio Iowa) – With the arrival of warmer weather, Iowans are more prone to get outside and exercise, and if you’re searching for something easy that also has a positive impact on your health, consider the simple act of walking. Jessica Boland, a wellness consultant at Gundersen Health, says walking involves no expensive or special equipment, other than a decent pair of tennis shoes. “It’s an activity that people can start and build up their minutes or miles. It has physical benefits, such as a decrease of certain diseases. It also reduces stress,” Boland says. “So if you are looking for a physical activity and you don’t know where to start, walking is a good place to begin.”

She suggests starting out with short distances and gradually adding to them. While jogging or running can also good for one’s health, Boland says walking may be easier on your body. “In terms of impact, it is a lower impact activity, so not as hard on your joints,” Boland says, “and it’s something that you can begin, increase your minutes or miles without having a lot of jarring on your joints.” There are many free apps available for our phones that will track steps taken and calories burned.

“If you’re going to walk outside, you need to be mindful that you have enough light that you can see the roads when you’re walking,” Boland says. “If you are going to walk in the dark, make sure that you have a light so you can see the ground and that you also put on some reflective gear so cars can see you.” Having a friend to walk with, or an accountability partner, helps to keep you motivated and on-track with your goals. She suggests putting planned walks on your calendar so you’re more likely to take them.

Gundersen Health System has clinics in Calmar, Decorah, Fayette, Lansing, Postville and Waukon, and a hospital in West Union.

(IOWA CAPITAL DISPATCH) – Casey’s General Store is being sued for allegedly exploiting its workers through the discriminatory practice of imposing a tobacco-use surcharge for health insurance coverage. The surcharge, which is alleged to be $35 per pay period, amounts to an illegal “cash grab” by Casey’s that is masquerading as a wellness program, the lawsuit claims. Filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, the lawsuit seeks class-action status but is currently filed on behalf of one Casey’s employee, Elizabeth Blalock of Carroll County, Missouri.

Attorneys for Blalock allege that all Casey’s workers are automatically assumed to use tobacco unless they submit to a process in which they provide a sworn affidavit stating they do not. Any worker who fails to complete that process by a specified deadline is then required to pay “tobacco surcharge” for the entire calendar year, even if they do not use tobacco, the lawsuit claims.

In addition, Casey’s allegedly fails to provide the federally required options that would allow employees to avoid the surcharge. “The surcharge is structured as a penalty rather than a legitimate wellness incentive,” the lawsuit claims, since the workers “who miss the enrollment deadline are penalized for the entire year without any opportunity to later demonstrate compliance or avoid the surcharge.”

The lawsuit is based on the requirements of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. ERISA allows employers to deduct from workers’ pay a tobacco-use surcharge, but only in connection with wellness programs that meet specific federal guidelines established in 2014. Those regulations state they are intended to ensure corporate wellness programs actually promote health as opposed to being a “subterfuge for discriminating based on a health factor.”

This convenience store on West Des Moines’ Grand Avenue is part of the Casey’s General Store chain, which is being sued over the tobacco-use surcharge imposed on employees. (Main photo by Clark Kauffman/Iowa Capital Dispatch. Inset photo of company policy is from U.S. District Court records)

The lawsuit alleges Casey’s is illegally shifting the costs associated with less healthy workers from the company back to those same workers “who end up subsidizing their healthier colleagues.” ERISA bars any health insurer or medical plan from discriminating against participants by charging premiums based on a “health-related factor,” including tobacco use. It does, however, allow group health plans to establish premium discounts or rebates” in return for adherence to programs that promote wellness and disease prevention.

Casey’s, the lawsuit claims, does not meet that standard. The lawsuit goes on to allege that “allowing companies like Casey’s to exploit their participants and unlawfully extract millions from them under the guise of a wellness program that is, in reality, a cash grab, directly contradicts ERISA’s purpose of protecting workers from health-based discrimination. If unchecked, this practice would permit employers to manipulate wellness programs as revenue generating schemes rather than genuine health initiatives.”

According to the lawsuit, Blalock has forfeited to Casey’s $35 in earnings per pay period — roughly $910 per year — in order to maintain health coverage through the company. Casey’s, which is headquartered in Ankeny, is one of the nation’s largest convenience store chains, with more than 2,600 locations in 16 states. There are more than 18,000 employees enrolled in the company’s health plan, according to court records.

In seeking class-action status for their lawsuit, the plaintiff’s attorneys argue the amount of money at issue exceeds $5 million, and the number of Casey’s workers who might potentially join the case is more than 1,000. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for unlawful imposition of a discriminatory tobacco surcharge and breach of fiduciary duty. Casey’s has yet to file a response to the lawsuit. The company did not immediately respond Monday to requests for comment.

The plaintiff is represented by attorney Adam J. Wachal of the Koley Jessen law firm in Omaha.

DES MOINES – State Treasurer Roby Smith is celebrating ABLE to Save Month, a nationwide campaign recognized each April, by spreading the word about the IAble (Iowa’s Achieving a Better Life Experience) plan and the advantages it brings to eligible individuals with a disability.

“IAble can really make a difference and help individuals with disabilities achieve a better life experience,” said Treasurer Smith. “One of the biggest advantages of the plan is that eligible individuals can save without jeopardizing the benefits they count on.”

ABLE to Save Month is a national education and outreach campaign dedicated to highlighting the benefits of ABLE accounts like IAble. The month-long event aims to provide information to families and support systems to ensure they’re aware of a benefit they may not know about.

IAble is a financial tool eligible individuals and their support system can use to save money for their short- and long-term goals. When placed in an IAble account, the money is protected from the asset caps placed on Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and other means-tested benefits. Savings and earnings can be used for transportation, housing, food, assistive technology and other qualified disability expenses.

To learn more, visit IAble.gov or call (888) 609-8910. For additional details, read the Plan Disclosure Booklet. Connect with the Treasurer on Facebook,  Instagram and X to stay informed on current events and updates.

(Radio Iowa/Brownfield Network) – U-S Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says her agency will release over half a billion dollars to expand the number of U-S retail outlets that sell E-15. Grants may be used to upgrade fuel pumps and other infrastructure so gasoline blended with a higher percentage of ethanol may be sold. “This will fund 543 projects in 29 states,” she said. “I know it has an outsized impact here in Iowa.” Rollins made the announcement Monday during a stop at an ethanol plant in Atlantic.

“At USDA, we are aggressively exploring ways to unleash American energy and incentivize homegrown biofuel production,” she said. President Trump signed an executive order on January 20th declaring a National Energy Emergency and he directed the E-P-A to consider issueing emergency waivers so E-15 may be sold year-round nationwide. Rollins spoke with reporters outside the Elite Octane plant which has processed 300 million bushels of corn since it opened in 2018.

U.S. Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins, left, and U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst tour Elite Octane in Atlantic, IA. (Photo provided by Ernst staff)

“Here in the heartland, here in the very heart of America what you all stand for, what this amazing business stands for, what our farmers and ranchers stand for is how we do truly save the future of the country,” Rollins said, “and we do believe that E15 is a part of that.”

Also yesterday (Monday), during a stop in central Iowa, Rollins told reporters she’s planning another round of market disruption payments if Trump’s tariff announcement today (Tuesday) sparks a trade war. The first Trump Administration provided American farmers with 23 BILLION dollars in payments to cover trade-related losses.

(Reporting by Brent Barnett, Brownfield)

(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – Iowa’s education representatives say they are relieved that, at least for now, teachers and librarians don’t have to fear being fired under state law if they make a wrong decision about which books to keep on school shelves.

A judge last week placed a preliminary injunction against part of Senate File 496. The law, which the Iowa Legislature passed in 2023, prohibits school libraries from providing books deemed not age appropriate and primarily focuses on any book that includes “sex acts.”

Christy Hickman, general counsel for the Iowa State Education Association and representing ISEA as a plaintiff, said she was “incredibly relieved for our members.” Those members include educators at all levels. Teachers now “wouldn’t have to be concerned about their employment or their licensure being in jeopardy in the event they didn’t interpret this incredibly vague law incorrectly,” she said.

Some school districts, however, won’t be quick to change internal guidance on the law. “Given the number of injunctions and appeals, Southeast Polk is not taking any additional action with books at this time,” Jeannie Christenson, community relations coordinator at Southeast Polk Community School District, said. “We have not yet returned any of the removed titles to shelves, and we will continue to monitor legal developments.”

Federal District Judge Stephen Locher, in the Southern District of Iowa, had placed an injunction on SF 496 before, but the State of Iowa appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Eight Circuit. The appeals court ruled Locher had not performed the correct “analysis” on the case and sent it back to Locher’s court. This time, Locher’s analysis weighed the unconstitutional applications of the law against the constitutional ones, which in his ruling he admitted is “hard to do” for this case.

Still, Locher ruled “the law has been unconstitutionally applied in dozens (if not hundreds) of situations and constitutionally applied in one.” Locher wrote in his ruling that the law “places the burden on local school districts and school officials to determine whether a book is permitted” and that “this is the whole point of the law’s penalty provisions: local officials and districts are subject to punishment if they get it wrong.” The law put educators in a “precarious state … by passing this bill and not giving them a lot of direction about how to carry it out,” Hickman said. “I don’t even know where I would start to explain the heaviness of that.”

A student plaintiff in the lawsuit calls the injunction a “huge step in the right direction.” Grace Van Gundy, a senior at Urbandale High School, and the only student in the lawsuit, said she wants her fellow students “to feel reassured about the injunction and remember that there are still government officials looking out for our best interests—even if it doesn’t always feel like it.” She said the decision “solidifies the importance of education and that proves we will not tolerate attempts at censorship.” Despite the ruling, Van Gundy believes that “there is still work to do. The fight is not over.”

Locher’s preliminary injunction could once again be appealed to the Eighth Circuit based on the new analysis of the law. Hickman said she expects the state will appeal. If that’s the case, she said the appeals court will have “a very, very extensive decision with analysis of multiple different (legal) tests, so the Eighth Circuit will have a very fair record to make a final determination,” Hickman said.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird in a statement alluded to the state taking this case further and wrote in part, “This common sense law makes certain that the books kids have access to in school classrooms and libraries are age-appropriate. I’m going to keep on fighting to uphold our law that protects schoolchildren and parental rights.”

SF 496 also prohibits the instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity in K-6 curriculum. Iowa Safe Schools has filed a lawsuit against that part of the law. Locher is expected to also rule on that case.