(Radio Iowa) — Iowa has become the 6th state in the country to offer state government information through “smart speakers.” People may now reference the “State of Iowa” as they ask their Amazon “Alexa” or Google “Echo” some common questions, like how to get a birth certificate or replacement driver’s license. Lieutenant Governor Adam Gregg says nearly half of all the adults in the U.S. use voice assistants to interact with their mobile devices. “We talk a lot in our administration about connectivity, whether that’s broadband connectivity or otherwise,” Gregg says, “and starting today, our state government is that much more connected to its people.”

Jeff Franklin, the chief information officer for the State of Iowa, says the state hired a private company called “Webspec Design” to develop the template for this project. “Because people look for information in different ways,” he says, “some chat, some search and some ask their smart speaker, this capability allows us to meet the needs of our citizens and the way they use technology every day.”

State agencies identified more than 200 questions often asked by citizens. Those questions are now part of the “Ask the State of Iowa” database accessible by smart speaker.

Sheriff’s Deputies in Montgomery County, Tuesday afternoon, arrested a Villisca man on a warrant for Driving While Suspended. 20-year old Cordell Ryan Straw taken into custody at around 3:30-p.m., and brought to the Montgomery County Jail, where his bond was set a slightly more than $566.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of killing a 2-year-old boy in western Iowa by sitting on him is scheduled to go on trial next month. Pottawattamie County court records say 31-year-old Larry Murphy pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of first-degree murder and child endangerment resulting in death. His trial is set to begin May 29 in Council Bluffs.

The records say the boy’s mother told police on March 15 that Murphy was staying with her and her sons at a Council Bluffs motel when he became angry at the 2-year-old for taking his cellphone. She says he sat on the boy for around 20 seconds on a motel bed. Police say Murphy is 6 feet tall and weighs 160 pounds.

The boy was pronounced dead at a hospital. The records say a doctor noticed signs of asphyxiation.

(Radio Iowa) — Republicans in the Iowa House and Senate have developed a spending plan for Iowa’s three public universities that’s less than what Republican Governor Kim Reynolds proposed for next year. Senator Tim Kraayenbrink, a Republican from Fort Dodge, says the plan still provides a spending increase. “We knew that we couldn’t fund everything to the ask of what everybody wanted, but yet we wanted to be fair and offer them something that could be sustainable in our budget,” Kraayenbrink said.

Democrats say without the extra six million dollars that the governor suggested — tuition for students at Iowa, Iowa State and U-N-I will increase beyond the initial three percent hike university officials have planned. Senator Herman Quirmbach, a Democrat from Ames, says student debt will increase. “Our students coming out of our colleges and universities have accumulated more debt than all the rest of us adults have piled up in credit cards,” Quirmbach said. “That’s a very tough way to start a life.”

Republicans in the Senate have approved the G-O-P’s education spending plan. It must clear the House, too, before it goes to the governor for her review.

(Radio Iowa) — Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, a Democrat, soon may have to seek permission from Republican officeholders to join lawsuits outside the state of Iowa. Republicans in the Iowa House like Representative Gary Worthan of Storm Lake are upset with Miller’s participation in lawsuits challenging Trump Administration policies. “The attorney general’s client is the people of the state of Iowa, but does that election give him carte blanche to do whatever he cares to do?” Worthan said. “We don’t believe so.” Democrats like Representative Marti Anderson of Des Moines called the G-O-P move a power grab. “Don’t rearrange our good government for no good reason,” Anderson said.

Miller sat in the House balcony and watched the House debate. Miller said filing lawsuits is a fundamental function of the office he’s held for 37 years.”I’m an independently elected official, given these fundamental powers,” Miller told reporters. “…No other state does this. I think that tells us something as well.”

Miller is the longest-serving attorney general in the country and in 2018 no Republican candidate challenged his bid for a 10th term. The Republican-led House has now voted to force Miller to get permission from Republican Governor Kim Reynolds, the Republican-led state executive council or the Republican-led legislature to join any lawsuit outside the state of Iowa. The plan now goes to the Republican-led Iowa Senate for a vote. Governor Reynolds told reporters she hasn’t seen the proposal.