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Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
(Red Oak, IA) – An investigation into a collision early Monday afternoon in Red Oak resulted in a citation. Red Oak Police say no injuries were reported after a 2010 Honda Civic driven by 34-year-old Jamie Elizabeth Gentry, of Emerson, struck the rear of a 2019 Dodge pickup driven by 57-year-old William C. Watts, of Red Oak. The accident happened at the intersection of N. Broadway and W. Corning Streets, at around 1:20-p.m., Monday.
Authorities say the pickup was southbound on N. Broadway and had stopped behind a non-contact vehicle at the stop light. The Honda was also southbound on N. Broadway and approaching the intersection. Police say Gentry did not realize the pickup was stopped and was too close to stop in-time, before striking the back of the pickup.
Police cited Gentry for Following Too Close. Damage to her Honda amounted to a police-estimated $4,000 damage. The car was towed from the scene. The pickup sustained damage amounting to an estimated $2,000, and was driven away from the scene following the accident investigation.
DES MOINES, Iowa [KCCI-TV] — The U.S. Supreme Court has denied a request by Shelby and Story counties to hear their case. That’s according to a report by KCCI-TV, and it’s the latest turn in a years-long legal battle. The counties say they want to decide where a pipeline goes. They have said their ordinances are to protect residents’ public health.
Summit Carbon Solutions has proposed a multi-state pipeline to carry carbon dioxide. The company has argued in previous court filings that federal law preempts the counties’ ordinances. KCCI confirmed the decision with the counties’ Washington, D.C., attorney.
Officials in Shelby County issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court’s decision:
“Shelby County was surprised and very disappointed by the denial by the US Supreme Court to hear an important case addressing local control authority and protections. The Shelby County Board of Supervisors will be consulting with its legal counsel in the near future and weighing its options moving forward.”
DES MOINES, Iowa (KCRG) – A federal appeals court will hear arguments Tuesday (Today) over Iowa’s book ban law, continuing legal battles that began shortly after the legislation was signed in 2023. The law requires schools to ban books depicting sex acts from school libraries and prohibits instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation through sixth grade.
Hundreds of books have been taken off shelves by many school districts, but some struggled to make lists of books to remove to comply with the law. In May 2024, the court temporarily blocked portions of the law. The state appealed that decision.
Arguments are scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. in St. Louis, Missouri.
(Radio Iowa) – The 2026 Iowa legislature convened Monday and tonight (Tuesday) Governor Kim Reynolds will deliver the annual “Condition of the State” address to legislators (beginning at 6-p.m.). Reynolds says she and her fellow Republicans are ready for what’s next. “We’re back and we’re ready for what’s next: property tax relief, smaller government, smarter government, stronger and healthier Iowa communities,” she said, “and a whole lot of work that really matters for Iowa families.”
Reynolds made her remarks during an Iowa G-O-P fundraiser yesterday (Monday). Reynolds is not seeking re-election in November and she’s striking a theme of G-O-P unity for this 9th and final legislative session she’ll preside over. “I don’t have to tell you what we’ve all done, but the point is we could only do it because we came together,” Reynolds said. Reynolds notes, however, campaign season is right around the corner — and that was evident in remarks from some legislative leaders yesterday (Monday).
House Majority Leader Bobby Kaufmann says maintaining G-O-P control of the House, Senate and governor’s office is critical. “I really, truly do detest the woke left,” Kaufmann aid. “…Number one, we say ‘Merry Christmas,’ not ‘Happy Holidays’ and by the way we support the nativity scene in front of the courthouse,” Kaufmann said. “When it comes to this gender nonsense, there’s two genders. There’s male and female, there’s sir and ma’am and that concludes the end of your choices.”
Senate Democratic Leader Janice Weiner says something has gone wrong in Iowa while Republicans have been in control of state government over the past nine years. “We have some of the lowest income growth and GDP growth in the country,” Weiner said. “…It’s gone wrong for our state’s finances. Iowa is running a $1.26 billion deficit this year. It is time for change.” House Democratic Leader Brian Meyer says too many Iowans are working hard, playing by the rules and falling behind.
“After nearly a decade of nearly total Republican control of this state, working families are facing higher costs, fewer opportunities, public schools are being undercut,” Meyer said, “…and most concerning our state budget is in a fiscal death spiral.” House Speaker Pat Grassley says Democrats are in no position to weigh in on Republican tax and spending plans. “We’re not going to take advice from a group of people that can’t even count the number of genders,” Grassley said. Grassley was elected to the Iowa House in 2006 and is entering his seventh year as House Speaker.
(Atlantic, IA) – Members of the Atlantic School District’s Board of Education will hold their regular monthly meeting in the Atlantic High School Media Center, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, beginning at 6-p.m. The meeting will be viewable in-person, and via YouTube. Among the items the Board is expected to act on (Under approval of the Consent Agenda), are the resignations/retirement of the following:
Also under their Consent Agenda, the Atlantic School Board will act on approving the following Recommendations to Hire:
In other business, the Board will act on approving an “Agreement between Owner and Architect and Proposal for Design Services from SVPA,” and a “Snyder and Associates Topographic Survey Services Agreement.” Their final action item is approving the retirement of Board Director Laura McLean, effective Jan. 15, 2026.
(The complete agenda can be viewed here:PUBLIC AGENDA 01142026-1)
(Clarinda, IA) – A Page County man has entered a guilty plea to a felony charge of Enticement. The Page County Attorney’s Office today (Monday), announced 50-year-old Roger Kurtis Cromwell, of Shenandoah, plead guilty to one count of Enticing a Minor Under 16 years of age, a class D felony.
Roger K. Cromwell (Page County Attorney’s Office photo credit)
Chief Judge Craig Dreismeier sentenced Cromwell, in accordance with his plea agreement, to a five-year sentence of incarceration in the Iowa Department of Corrections. Cromwell will also be required to register as a sex offender.
The case was investigated by the Shenandoah Police Department and prosecuted by the Page County Attorney’s Office.
(Radio Iowa) – Iowa is among more than two-thirds of the states that have no state program requiring paid parental leave for teachers. The report from The National Council on Teacher Quality found just two states offer required fully-paid parental leave for teachers up to 12 weeks. Another 14 states have some other kind of required paid leave, while seven have optional programs. Council president Heather Peske says research shows paid parental leave can reduce turnover.
Peske says, “Specifically when it comes to teachers, we know from national research and national surveys that many teachers rank ‘encouraged family support’ as one of their top three incentives to recruit and retain them.” Peske says without paid parental leave, teachers struggle to balance the demands of their job with their family, and some teachers simply chose to quit. “What this means is that teachers have to hoard their sick days or try to plan to have children in the summer,” she says, “because the state doesn’t offer paid parental leave for teachers.”
An Iowa law went into effect last year that offers state employees up to four weeks of paid parental leave, but it does -not- include teachers as they are employees of their school districts, not the state.
(Radio Iowa) – The new majority leader in the Iowa House is promising to push for a pay increase for state legislators. Bobby Kaufmann of Wilton says he knows it’s not political popular to raise lawmakers’ pay. “But here’s what’s going to happen if we do not do this there are going to be two qualifiers to serve in the legislature: Are you retired and are you wealthy? Nothing wrong with retired people, nothing wrong with wealthy individuals, but that is going to be the candidate pool if we continue to do it the way we are doing it,” Kaufmann said. The current salary for an Iowa legislator was set 18 years ago.
“$25,000 is simply not enough money for a family to serve and I think it’s in our best interest for us to have families, on both sides of the aisle, serving in the legislature,” Kaufmann said. A bill introduced in the House in 2024 would have raised the base salaries for House and Senate members to 35-thousand dollars a year and then link future increases to the negotiated pay hikes for state employees represented by a union.
The six lawmakers who have leadership roles in the House and Senate are currently paid a salary of 37-thousand-500 dollars a year. The other 144 legislators are being paid that 25-thousand dollar base salary. Most legislators also get over 17-thousand dollars in expense payments each year to cover things like mileage and renting hotel rooms or apartments in Des Moines during the legislative session. Polk County lawmakers get less since they have homes near the Capitol.
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