(Radio Iowa) – The U-S Department of Justice is suggesting one element of the governor’s energy bill could restrict competition and increase costs for consumers. The proposal would give the state’s major power providers the “right of first refusal” on upgrades to the power grid. Companies like MidAmerican and Alliant would get priority to build new transmission lines that are part of their systems before other companies could bid for the work.

House Speaker Pat Grassley says House Republicans are actively discussing the pros and cons. “When you look at that, there’s two sides of it. There’s one that would say we want to have companies here in Iowa that we know are here, that we can pick up a phone when we have a disaster or outages,” Grassley says. “There’s also the argument that can be made as far as the free market and competition within a highly regulated space.”

Governor Reynolds wrote a letter to the Justice Department, saying she fully supports President Trump’s energy goals, but Reynolds also said the most effective way to ensure Iowa transmission line projects are built efficiently and reliably is by giving Iowa utilities priority on contracts.

Senate President Amy Sinclair says while that “right of first refusal” on building transmission lines is in the governor’s energy bill, it is not the main way the bill seeks to keep utility costs affordable and ensure the power grid is reliable. “Improving our energy policy is essential,” Sinclair said. “…You’ll see us continue to work on that energy policy as the year comes to a close.”

Lawmakers often aim to conclude each legislative session by the end of April, however neither state law nor the Iowa Constitution identify an actual date when the legislature should end.

(Radio Iowa) – Members of the Oskaloosa High School baseball team will be playing under the lights at Chicago’s Wrigley Field next month as part of an extra special road trip. Assistant coach and volunteer Nathan Johnson says the team and their families will be in the stands to watch an afternoon Chicago Cubs game versus the San Francisco Giants, and afterwards, the team from southeast Iowa will take the field for a nighttime inter-squad scrimmage.

“I think we have about 26 or 27 kids total that’ll be going on the trip, and we have tickets for the parents for the Cubs/Giants game before we play,” Johnson says. “It should be just a great day to do team building, but also just to have an experience for these kids.” With two sons on the team, Johnson says being able to play in one of the oldest and most distinctive stadiums in Major League Baseball promises to be an exceptional treat for the teens.

“This kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a lot of these kids, and just to be able to step onto this iconic field, Wrigley Field,” Johnson says. “It’ll just be a really cool day for everyone, and hopefully a lot of good feelings and good memories going away from that day.” High school teams from Oskaloosa and Ottumwa got the opportunity to play at Busch Stadium in Saint Louis last year, which Johnson says was a rare honor, but he notes, Chicago will be next-level different.

Oskaloosa played Ottumwa in 2024 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis (Oskaloosa High School photo)

“No offense to Busch Stadium, but Wrigley Field is a historic venue,” Johnson says. “It’s not opened up very much to high school players to be able to play, and so just to have that opportunity to walk out, with the ivy, the history that’s there, it’s just a unique experience.” Wrigley opened in 1914, making it the second-oldest active M-L-B ballpark behind only Fenway Park in Boston.

The trip is scheduled for May 7th and is thanks to Oskaloosa-based Musco Lighting. Musco has a long-standing relationship with the Cubs and Wrigley Field. The company installed new field lighting at the stadium three years ago and has since worked on additional projects, including lighting for the exterior and tower areas.

(Radio Iowa) – House Speaker Pat Grassley says a bill that would provide some liability to protection to the makers of Roundup and other farm chemical companies does not have enough Republican support to pass the Iowa House. “We’ve had a lot of conversations…I think a lot of our members see both sides of this issue when it comes to making sure that we have a product that’s actually made here in Iowa, that’s an American made product,” Grassley says. “…I think there’s also some concerns with this, the public perception.”

The bill is a priority for Bayer, the maker of Roundup, which is facing a number of lawsuits from Americans who allege their cancer is connected to their use of Roundup. The bill says farm chemical companies that follow E-P-A labeling standards cannot be sued for failing to issue health warnings about the products. Grassley, a farmer from New Hartford, says the bill is narrowly focused.

“I’m not sure that the bill is being totally digested from the perspective of just from the labeling,” Grassley says. “Some of the narrative that’s been out there maybe distracts from that.” The bill passed the Iowa Senate last year and it passed the Senate again last week, but by a narrower margin. Senate President Amy Sinclair, a Republican from Allerton, has been a vocal supporter of the bill.

“I don’t try to tell the House how to do their job. I suppose the House can be entitled to their wrong opinion,” Sinclair said. “I believe wholeheartedly the bill we passed doesn’t prevent anybody from seeking justice if they’re damaged by a company.” But Sinclair says a company that sells a product with labels that follow federal guidelines shouldn’t face lawsuits alleging the labels are flawed.

(Radio Iowa) – A school district in northeast Iowa is the first in the area to use A-I for detecting possible guns in its buildings. La Porte City Union Community School District Superintendent John Howard says it’s a simpler alternative to arming teachers. “We have never had any conversations about arming teachers in our district. I know some districts have, and that’s been met with some push-back in terms of insurance and other legalities. We’ve never had that conversation here,” Howard says.

Superintendent Howard says the decision is a response in part to the Perry school shooting last year. )”We don’t want anything like that to happen here. No district wants anything like that to happen in their district,” Howard says. “So this is just another preventative measure to prevent a tragedy such as that.”

The district with some 900 students has installed camera software that detects guns across four buildings in two different towns that will notify staff and administration, and then call law enforcement.

(Radio Iowa) – Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says the array of tariffs President Trump announced yesterday (Wednesday) will pressure other countries to strike new trade deals with the U-S. “I think Americans can clearly see that we’ve been getting a raw deal,” Hinson said. “Many of these countries have been taking advantage of us and I think it’s high time that we stand our ground and I support the president in doing that.” Hinson, a Republican from Marion, predicts there will be new American opportunities and new jobs created through Trump’s tariff policies.

“When I look at what President Biden did wreak havoc on the ag economy, he put trade on the back burner and Iowa ag suffered from that,” Hinson said. “And I think President Trump’s goal in what happened yesterday is free and fair trade and he is using these tariffs as a negotiating tool to bring other countries to the table.” However, Hinson says she, like many people, is watching what the stock market is doing today (Thursday) and shares the concerns about the immediate impact of the tariffs. “I was actually at the White House last week for a ‘Women’s Day’ celebration with the president and he said: ‘Check back with me in a year, to see how these policies have worked,'” Hinson says. “I think it’s important that we give him not only the tools, but the time to get these other countries to…the conversation, to the table.”

IA (R) Congresswoman Ashley Hinson

Hinson says it’s important to enforce Trump’s tariff policies. “That’s an area where I’ve been very focused,” Hinson says. “I just recently reintroduced my trade crimes bill again just a few weeks ago — a bipartisan bill, a bicameral bill — that is designed to go after these bad actors who are continually trying to evade our tariffs and duties,” Hinson said. “They’re going so far as to ship things to other countries (and) relabel them to get around our tariffs. That has got to stop and accountability is here.”

Hinson made her comments this (Thursday) morning during her weekly conference call with Iowa reporters.

(Radio Iowa) – The emergency self-evacuation and shelter-in-place orders instituted Monday after a fire started at the Coop in Otley have been lifted. Information from the Marion County Emergency Management Agency says the fire at Two Rivers Cooperative is now out and the orders were lifted at 10:30 this (Thursday) morning. The fire in the fertilizer storage facility caused concerns about the air quality, but E-P-A monitoring shows the air quality is now safe.

Investigators are trying to figure out the cause of the fire. Marion County Public Safety and the D-N-R are continuing to monitor the cleanup efforts.

April 3, 2025 (DES MOINES) — The Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) today (Thursday), announced $40,000 in grants to drive growth in the rural Iowa towns of Imogene and Sibley, as well as Calhoun and Jackson counties. The funding comes from the Governor’s Empower Rural Iowa Initiative’s Building Ownership & Organization by Strengthening Teams (BOOST) program. IEDA and Iowa Finance Authority Director Debi Durham says “For struggling rural areas, this support can be transformative — helping local leaders to bring their vision to life, create and fill jobs and fuel economic progress where it’s needed most. These grants encourage innovative ideas that enable small Iowa towns to stay vibrant and competitive.”

The Rural BOOST program connects community and business leaders with expert guidance to develop actionable growth plans. Grant funding supports the implementation of those plans. Projects must serve communities with 20,000 or fewer residents and not be adjacent to a city of more than 40,000. Countywide projects must be located in one of the state’s 88 least-populous counties.

Each of the following awarded projects will receive $10,000:

• Calhoun County — Calhoun County Economic Development will develop a marketing strategy to attract businesses, manufacturers or service providers to locate in the Calhoun County Business Park, particularly on a 13.2-acre shovel-ready site, at the intersection of U.S. Highway 20 and Iowa Highway 4.
• Imogene (Fremont County) — With a population of 39, the city wants to invest in professional design and engineering services to prioritize community needs — such as street repairs, a campground expansion, a bridge replacement and downtown building renovations — in an effort to curb population decline.
• Jackson County — The Jackson County Economic Alliance (JCEA) reports that 72% of the county’s workforce is older than 55, and most are expected to retire within 15 years. To prepare, JCEA plans to survey the workforce needs of local businesses and industries and assist with creating succession plans for a smooth transition.
• Sibley (Osceola County) — Sibley Housing and Development Corp. is eyeing a new residential development to address a significant housing shortage, which is hindering the city’s economic growth. The grant will pay for a site plan proposal and public awareness campaign.

IEDA received six applications for this round of BOOST grants, which opened in January. Applicants, who are required to provide a financial match, were scored based on criteria that included economic need, partnerships, readiness and strategic goals.

Rural BOOST is administered by the Center for Rural Revitalization, a division of the IEDA, in consultation with the Governor’s Empower Rural Iowa Initiative Task Force.

• 37-year-old Joshua Kenneth Wolcott was arrested March 27th, for interference with official acts, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a controlled firearm by felon, and driving while barred. Wolcott was transported to the Cass County Jail,  and later released to Pottawattamie County to address charges there.
• And, on March 31st, Sheriff’s deputies in Cass County arrested 60-year-old Patty Kay Meyer, of Atlantic, for possession of a controlled substance. Meyer was transported to the Cass County Jail and later released on her own recognizance.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowans have seen radical temperature swings lately, with highs in the 80s followed by snowfall days later, but one outlet predicts the summer ahead will be stuck on one setting: steamy. Sandi Duncan, editor of the Farmer’s Almanac, warns Iowans had better stock up on sunscreen. “I hope you’re ready for some heat, because the heat is on for this summer, and in fact, we do think there’s going to be some possible record breakers,” Duncan says. “It does look like it’s going to be a very warm summer for you guys, so be prepared.” Since 1818, the almanac has been using a proprietary formula to forecast the weather, based on historical and celestial factors. Duncan says Iowa’s long-running bouts with drought will likely return this summer.

“Looking ahead, the Farmer’s Almanac is saying this should be about average on rainfall, so that’s good, not too wet, not too dry,” Duncan says, “however, with the very hot temperatures, you can imagine that you might have to do some supplemental watering for your garden or for your irrigation systems, because it’s going to be a hot one for sure.” The almanac predicts thunderstorms for the 4th of July in Iowa this year, and she suggests making plans either for the next day or to be indoors. Duncan says Iowa will be far from alone in trying to beat the summer heat.

“As we do, the long-range weather forecast does look like it’s going to be quite hot in almost every area,” Duncan says. “We are seeing some very dry conditions out in the California area, which is kind of concerning with all the wildfires that happen out there.” Last year, Des Moines saw 27 days with temperatures at or above 90 degrees, with the highest temperature of 99 degrees set last August 26th. The Lewiston, Maine-based almanac boasts a forecast accuracy rate of 80% to 85%. The prognosticating formula was developed more than two centuries ago, based on factors including sunspot activity, planet positions, and the effect the Moon has on the Earth.

Besides long-term weather predictions, the Farmers’ Almanac also contains a wealth of information on gardening, cooking, home remedies, folklore, managing your household, living in harmony with nature, and more.

On the web at: https://www.farmersalmanac.com/

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports two arrests took place Wednesday night.  49-year-old Elizabeth Lea Reents, of Creston, was arrested at around 11:05-p.m., for Driving While Suspended. She was cited and released at the scene on a promise to appear (in court).

And, at around 11:45-p.m., Wednesday, 51-year-old Amy Stiner, of Clearfield, was arrested for Driving While Suspended. She was also cited and released on a promise to appear.