(Radio Iowa) – Iowa property owners who oppose having the proposed Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline on their land are asking state regulators to pause the review of plans to expand the route. Jess Mazour of the Sierra Club’s Iowa chapter says a new South Dakota law banning Summit from using eminent domain in that state to seize land for the project is a game changer. “Too much has changed with Summit’s project to move forward with these hearings. They need to pause it and really stop it all together until Summit figures out what its next step is,” she said. Mazour is among about 70 people who gathered in the Iowa Capitol Tuesday before delivering petitions to the Iowa Utilities Board. Dennis King, a Clay County farmer, says the proposed pipeline route runs through four of his farms.

“South Dakota has shown us that this pipeline can be stopped,” King said, as the crowd cheered and waved signs. “Yay South Dakota. I agree.” Robert Nazario, a Republican from Iowa Falls who ran for a seat in the Iowa House last year, says pipeline opponents need to defeat Iowa lawmakers who support the project — just as South Dakotans fighting the pipeline did. “These government gansters in Iowa have got to be voted out,” he said. “South Dakota has made it known under God, we the people rule.” At least 14 Republican legislators in South Dakota were defeated by Republican challengers last year in races where the pipeline was a major issue. Marva Schuldt of Readlyn says the “phase two” extension of Summit’s pipeline route is within 450 feet of her farm in Bremer County. She’s urging people to attend a town hall meeting with U-S Senator Chuck Grassley next week. “I want all of your to come to Hampton, Iowa, and show him how many people are against this,” she said. “We have to email him, we have to call him and Joni Ernst both and tell them that we do not want this pipeline.”

Opponents of proposed carbon pipeline rally in Iowa Capitol rotunda on March 18, 2025.

The pipeline project is financed, in large part, with federal tax credits for carbon sequestration. Monte Shaw, executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, says the pipeline will address the demand for low carbon fuels — and its demise would be a damper on corn prices for Iowa farmers. The Iowa House has passed several bills to regulate carbon pipelines over the past four years. All of those bills have stalled in the Iowa Senate. This year, several bills addressing pipeline related issues are pending in the Iowa House.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors will hold a Special Session beginning at 9:15-a.m. on Thursday, March 20th, in Greenfield. The Board will act on administrative matters, and then set the date and time for a Public Hearing on the FY26 Adair County Budget.

(Radio Iowa) – The last day of winter is going out with a blizzard. Forecasters say a storm system will drop up to a foot of snow across a long stretch of Iowa today (Wednesday), from the southwest to north-central Iowa, with winds gusting up to 65 miles an hour. National Weather Service meteorologist Rod Donavon says some areas are seeing rain showers this morning, but that will change over to snow across the state’s northwestern half.  “That trend will continue throughout the day today, as we do have a band of heavy snow that we are expecting to develop basically from near Mason City, it’s going to be pretty close to the Fort Dodge area, out by Algona, off to the southwest towards Denison.” The blizzard warning covers 34 counties through tonight and Donavon says white-out conditions are possible which could make driving very dangerous.

“We are looking at a snow band anywhere from six-to-ten, even eight-to-12 inches through that region,” Donavon says. “In addition, we are expecting extremely strong winds to develop today. We’re expecting wind gusts of 55 to 65 miles per hour. Anywhere within that heavy snow band, travel is going to become impossible at some point today, with multiple roads becoming closed through that region.” More foul weather could be headed our way, though Donavon says it’s continuing to evolve.

Iowa DOT camera screenshot: I-80: CB – I-80 @ West I-29 Interchange (West) (49) as of 8:38-a.m. March 19th

“We’re still monitoring this one storm system coming through around Friday/Friday night that may bring another round,” he says. “Right now, we have rain in the forecast, but we could see some gusty winds with that, maybe a brief transition to snow on the backside of that, but otherwise, we’re going to get back a little bit more normal, with highs within that snow band lingering in the 40s.”

By the weekend, forecasters say high temps may be back in the 50s.

(Creston, Iowa) – Two people were arrested on drug charges, Tuesday night, in Creston. According to the Creston Police Department, 39-year-old Douglas Edward Woodward, III, of Clearfield, and 46-year-old Joleen Mary Most, of Creston, were arrested at Most’s residence in the 300 block of N. Elm Street in Creston, at around 7-p.m., Tuesday. Both faces charges that include Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Maintaining a Drug House.

Douglas Woodward, III, was additionally charged with four counts Possession of a Controlled Substance (PCS)-3rd or Subsequent Offense, and eight counts of Unlawful Possession of Prescription Drugs. His bond at the Union County Jail was set at $40,000. Joleen Most was additionally charged with three-counts PCS/2nd offense, Possession of Marijuana, and eight counts of Unlawful Possession of Prescription Drugs. Her bond at the Adams County Jail was set at $27,300.

(Des Moines, Iowa/Iowa Capital Dispatch) – The Iowa House passed a bill Tuesday, that would change the definition of school bullying in state law and remove a list of traits a bully might target, such as a student’s sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and disability status. Lawmakers also advanced education bills related to school safety assessment teams, therapeutic classrooms and school absences due to religious instruction. House File 865, approved on a 64-33 vote, defines bullying and harassment as “repeated and targeted” acts and conduct toward a student that create an objectively hostile school environment.

The bill removes the language in current Iowa code that defines bullying and harassment as any electronic, written, verbal, or physical act or conduct “based on any actual or perceived trait” that creates an objectively hostile school environment. The law lists 17 traits on which bullying might be based, including gender identity, sexuality, race, political belief and familial status, but does not limit bullying to these categories. The bill would remove this list of potential traits, and remove reference to “actual or perceived trait or characteristic” of a student in the definition of bullying and harassment.

Rep. Josh Turek, D-Council Bluffs, spoke in opposition to the legislation, sharing his experience of being bullied as a child because of his disability. He said that growing up, he spent a significant amount of time in surgeries and medical centers because of his disability, but that the hardest part of growing up was “actually my time in school,” saying he ended up leaving public school to attend private school for three years due to harassment and bullying he faced in sixth grade. Turek said he was unsure if the bullying he faced would meet the definition of “repeated and targeted” acts and conduct. He also shared his experience working with children with disabilities and their families — including going to schools where these children face bullying — to have disability awareness and anti-bullying talks with other students.

Rep. Josh Turek, D-Council Bluffs, spoke during debate March 18, 2025 in opposition to legislation changing the definition of bullying and harassment in Iowa state code to remove references to students being targeted on the basis of real or perceived characteristics. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

In subcommittee meetings on the measure, some individuals said school staff were not enforcing anti-bullying laws if the student was not being discriminated against based on one of the listed potential traits. School officials said this was an issue of enforcement, as existing statute does not limit anti-bullying action on the basis of this list. Rep. Elinor Levin, D-Iowa City, spoke Tuesday in opposition to the idea that having a list of traits and characteristics to reference was “exclusive” of students who face bullying for other reasons. Levin said the current code provides an important frame of reference for teachers as they determine whether a student is being bullied, as the listed traits and characteristics are “among the most common reasons for which students are bullied.” Levin said if state lawmakers want to address bullying in Iowa schools, they should instead focus on increasing reporting requirements, pointing to Iowa Department of Education data finding hundreds of Iowa schools reported no instances of bullying.

Rep. Helena Hayes, R-New Sharon, floor manager for the bill, said she believed reporting of bullying will improve if the bill becomes law, as teachers will not be referencing a list to determine if an act constitutes bullying or harassment. The measure heads to the Senate for further consideration.

More education bills advance

Iowa lawmakers moved on several other education measures Tuesday.

• The Iowa Senate voted unanimously Tuesday for Senate File 583, which would allow schools to set up multidisciplinary teams tasked with coordinating resources and intervening when a student exhibits behavior that could pose a threat to the safety of other students or school staff. Similar legislation is advancing in the House, but senators voted to change references to “threat assessment” in the original bill to “safety assessment.” The bill moves to the House for consideration.
• The House passed House File 522 in a 66-31 vote, legislation that would allow schools to use grant funding for therapeutic classrooms for new supports including certain foods, vitamin and mineral supplementals and exposure to natural light or “full spectrum lighting fixtures.” Therapeutic classrooms are spaces in schools designated for students with emotional, social or behavioral needs that cause disruption to other students in the general classroom.
  While Rep. Elinor Levin, D-Iowa City, said the proposal does not reflect the purpose or work done in therapeutic classrooms of deescalating students who are in a heightened state of emotion, Rep. Jeff Shipley, R-Birmingham, said the proposal would allow schools to be reimbursed for strategies related to nutrition and lighting that some schools are already implementing to address students’ behavioral health needs.
• House File 870, passed by the Iowa House 96-2, adds exemptions to the state’s compulsory attendance law, providing that a student’s absences will be exempted when they are attending religious instruction during the school day for up to five hours per week. The bill was amended to remove language in the original version of the legislation allowing school boards to adopt policies granting academic credit for the completion of a religious instruction course by a private organization.

(Des Moines, Iowa/Iowa Capital Dispatch) – House and Senate appropriations subcommittees on Tuesday advanced the governor’s health care proposal to expand Iowa’s medical residencies and increase funding for the state’s health care student loan repayment program, largely with support from advocates for Iowa’s medical providers. House File 754 and Senate File 575 are companion versions of Gov. Kim Reynolds’ bill aimed at addressing Iowa’s health care workforce shortages, and the lack of care available in rural Iowa. The legislation would consolidate Iowa’s current five student loan repayment programs and increase funding from $4.2 million currently to $10 million. The loan repayment program would be open to any person who commits to practicing in high-demand areas of Iowa for five years, even if they were trained out-of-state.

The measure also would increase the medical training available in-state through an increase of a projected 115 new residency slots at Iowa teaching hospitals, with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services directed to attempt to draw down $150 million in federal funding for the expansion. The University of Iowa and Broadlawns Medical Center, two teaching hospitals in Iowa, would provide the state match for that federal funding.

There are several other components to the legislation, including another directive for Iowa HHS to seek approval from the federal government for Medicaid rate flexibility “with the goal of incentivizing creative regional partnerships,” allowing rural health care systems to be modeled after the state’s existing Centers of Excellence Program. The bill would also unbundle Medicaid maternal rates and allocate $642,000 to increase rates for providers serving mothers and infants.

Gov. Kim Reynolds was joined by health care professionals at a news conference Feb. 18, 2025 about her proposals to improve rural health care access. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Overwhelmingly, advocates representing health care professionals spoke in favor of the legislation. Seth Brown with the Iowa Medical Society said the bill takes several of the suggestions members of his organization made on how to address health care shortages in Iowa. A majority of concerns brought up in the bill were about changes to the loan repayment program — specifically, professions covered by current loan repayment programs that would be no longer necessarily be defined as a “eligible health care professional” in the new legislation. Advocates representing physical therapists, social workers and nurse anesthetists, said they were concerned workers in their organizations currently utilizing the state’s loan repayment program would no longer be able to access the program.

The legislation defines an eligible health care profession as “health care occupational categories that are in high demand,” determined using a list created and maintained by Iowa HHS. The list may include, but is not limited to physicians, physician assistants, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, nurse educators and mental health professionals. Iowa HHS Director Kelly Garcia said the department is planning to hire a health care economist that will work with other HHS workers, as well as the Division of Insurance, to conduct an analysis on where there are physician shortages and where there are shortages in other professional and clinical areas. Garcia said this approach will “deepen our work quite considerably,” as Iowa HHS currently primarily assesses shortages “through a Medicaid lens,” she said. She said the list of high-demand health care professions and areas is currently in development, and that more information on the methodology of the list will be released when it’s finalized.

Garcia said the information will help HHS and lawmakers find how best to allocate money through the loan repayment program to address health care shortages in Iowa — information that is currently not being collected or used. Sen. Molly Donahue, D-Cedar Rapids, said she was still concerned on “transparency” regarding the funding of the measure. Garcia said the only state cost to the program is the increase to the loan repayment program, and that other components would be financed through federal dollars and private-public partnerships.

Garcia previously said the state aims to launch the new medical residencies by July 1, though requests for federal funding and changes have not been finalized. Iowa HHS posted its public notice Tuesday seeking changes to reimbursement rates for acute care hospital graduate medical education (GME) payments under Medicaid, a change that would require approval by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

(Radio Iowa) – While a large portion of Iowa may see thunderstorms or blizzard conditions today (Wednesday), farmers across the state are still preparing for the planting season ahead, as tomorrow’s the first day of spring. Angie Rieck-Hinz, a field agronomist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, says farmers will need to take a close look at their soil before starting to work. “There was a lot of fall tillage done. We may not need to come in and do any spring tillage this year, but in some cases, we may need to come out and make a finishing pass,” Rieck-Hinz says. “We need to think about what those soil conditions are at the time we do that. We don’t want it too wet. We just ball everything up, and then we have big clumps out in the field, and then our planter does not work efficiently.”

The amount of rain and snow we receive will also play a big role in how quickly farmers can get into the fields. “When we come back to plant, we also want good conditions, right?” Rieck-Hinz says. “We don’t want excessively wet, that maybe we’re compacting those side walls when we run that planter through, that we have germination issues. We have rooting depth issues over the course of the season.” Rieck-Hinz recommends farmers use their favorite search engine to type in “digital ag planters at Iowa State” if they could use a few more tips. “You will come up with a web page that will give you a bunch of videos for planter resources,” she says. “There’s a little picture of a planter and you can click on that. It will take you to a whole bunch of videos on planter metrics for crop scouting, using blocks to check your planter depth settings, and then studying planter downforce, so all the things we can do in advance of planting that we can actually do right in our shop.”

Rieck-Hinz covers several counties in north-central Iowa, including Wright, Franklin, Hardin and Cerro Gordo.

(Anita, Iowa) – The CAM School District’s Board of Education will hold a Public Meeting beginning at 6:30-p.m. on Thursday, March 20th. The meeting in the CAM High School Media Center, is with regard to the proposed 2025-2026 Budget. Patrons of the district may speak for or against the Budget as proposed.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill that’s cleared the Iowa House would to prohibit the three state universities from requiring students take courses about diversity, equity and inclusion or critical race theory — unless the subject matter is directly related to their majors. Another House bill approved Tuesday would deny Iowa Tuition Grants to students who attend Iowa private colleges that have diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Representative Steven Holt, a Republican from Denison, says D-E-I is a destructive ideology.

“I wish it taught us to celebrate our differences, but it doesn’t,” Holt said. “In my opinion, DEI at its core is racist which is one of the reasons we are becoming so divided as a nation.” Representative Ruth Ann Gaines, a Democrat from Des Moines, has traveled the country for 46 years as a diversity trainer and was recently asked to take the words “diversity, equity and inclusion” from the courses she’s developed.

“Things are changing, quickly, and it saddens me,” Gaines said. “I feel that I am going to leave this world thinking that all the work that I have done is going to be eliminated.” House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst of Windsor Heights says nine-thousand students got Iowa Tuition Grants this year to attend an Iowa private college or university.  “It simply blows my mind that we’re telling private organizations and businesses what they can and cannot do,” and we’re punishing the students who get those grants.”

Representative Henry Stone, a Republican from Forest City, says as an Asian American, he understands prejudice — and he says D-E-I is a treat to American society. “DEI only wants to look at what can be viewed from the outside and not what the person brings to the table in terms of their skills and abilities,” Stone said.

The bills passed with the support of all but a few Republicans in the House.