(Radio Iowa) – The 2026 Iowa Caucuses are history. Last (Monday) night’s gatherings gave activists from both of Iowa’s major parties a chance to talk about their party platforms and hear from candidates. Randy Feenstra of Hull, one of the Republicans who’s running for governor, spoke to several precincts in the Des Moines area — including 16 precincts meeting together in a West Des Moines school’s cafeteria.

Feenstra told reporters hundreds of volunteers spoke on his behalf at other caucuses around the state.  “This is the time the Republican Party gets together, talks about policy and talks about how we are going to make sure that we keep this state red,” Feenstra said. “…This is the grassroots. These are the people who door knock, put out the signs and everything like that.” Feenstra’s Republican rivals organized for Caucus Night, too.

Candidate Zach Lahn of Belle Plaine spoke at three different precinct sites in Scott County last (Monday) night. Adam Steen’s campaign had over 450 people sign-up up online to speak at their local precinct gatherings. “It’s a moment we’ve been looking forward to,” Steen said. “We’ve been working really hard to get to this point.”

Rob Sand, a Democrat who’s running for governor, spoke to voters in his own precinct in Des Moines. Some counties had all precincts meet in one location. For example, Republicans in Adams County met at the Corning Community Building, while Adams County Democrats met at the Corning Public Library.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill that’s cleared a committee in the Iowa House would ban the sale of kratom — a plant-based stimulant that’s being sold in some Iowa gas stations and vape shops. Kratom trees are native to southeast Asia and the crushed tree leaves are being used in teas or sold as a powder or pill — plus a new synthetic version has been developed. Seven states have banned the sale of kratom. Bill backers say the adverse effects of kratom are profound. Katie Hall of Clive told lawmakers she’s witnessed someone get addicted to kratom.

They’re going to say it’s a botanical like coffee and it’s just not,” Hall said. “I have personal experience with a young adult under 21 getting access to this product because it was billed as safe, because it was billed as a mood enhancer.” Jen Rathje, a spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Corrections, says kratom is being smuggled into Iowa prisons and represents an escalating threat to security and public safety. “The physiological and the behavioral effects that it has had on individuals is often times more severe and volatile than other synthetics, such as K2 that we’ve seen historically.”

Paper soaked with K-2 — sometimes called fake marijuana — has been used to send letters to inmates. Seth Brown of the Iowa Medical Society says doctors are increasingly concerned about widespread use of substances like kratom. “Currently there are no FDA approved prescription or over-the-counter drug products containing kratom,” Brown said, “so in our opinion until the FDA says it’s safe, keep it out of the marketplace.”

Sheldon Bradshaw, an attorney representing a group called Scientific Association for Botanical Education and Research, is urging Iowa legislators to reject the bill. He says the natural botanical version of kratom has been used in Southeast Asia for centuries and that form of kratom should remain available for sale in Iowa.”It’s consumed for its pain relieving properties,” he said, “and it’s currently used by 20 million Americans.” The Trump Administration is considering a ban on the synthetic version of kratom, by classifying it as a controlled substance that’s highly addictive, like heroin.

Bradshaw’s group supports a ban on SYNTHETIC kratom. “Synthetics absolutely should be banned,” he said. “They’re dangerous. They’re opioids. They have no business being in the marketplace.” Bradshaw says his group would support the same kind of age restrictions for natural kratom that are used for alcohol and cigarettes. Susie Sher, head of the Iowa Office of Drug Control Policy, says the synthetic version of kratom is relatively new and most of the kratom-related overdoses her office has tracked IN IOWA are related to the natural version of kratom.

“In Iowa, we’ve had 92 cases reported by our state medical examiner where mitragynine, that primary compound in the kratom plant, was a contributory factor in that death,” Sher said. “We’ve seen increases in Poison Control Center calls. They’ve got up over 120% just the past couple of years. Most of those are intentional abuse, misuse or withdrawal.” And Sher says Des Moines hospitals have recently notified state officials about newborns.

“Where the mom is saying, ‘I was using kratom because I thought it was safe,'” Sher said. “…Babies are being born in opioid withdrawal because those compounds act in the brain the same way as other opioids do.”

A state ban on natural AND synthetic kratom has passed the House Public Safety Committee on an 18-to-five vote. A similar proposal is eligible for debate in a senate committee.

(Creston, IA) – Authorities in Creston say no injuries were reported and no citations were issued, following a collision late this (Monday) morning near the intersection of Adams and Elm Streets, in Creston. According to the Creston Police Department, a 2003 Chevy SUV driven by 59-year-old William Atteberry, of Lenox, and a 2023 Ford Bronco driven by 54-year-old Laurie Novotny, of Creston, were both traveling east on Adams Street.

The Bronco was in the turning lane while the Chevy was in the lane to the left. Atteberry told police he looked but didn’t see the Ford before turning to the right and into the side of the Bronco. The collision happened at around 11:55-a.m.

Damage from the accident amounted to $2,000 altogether, according to the report.

(Guthrie Center, IA) – One person suffered suspected serious injuries during a single-vehicle accident last week, in Guthrie County. The Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office reports 20-year-old Denon Joseph Doherty, of Casey, was transported by Adair County EMS to Mercy Hospital in Des Moines, after the 2005 Isuzu SUV he was driving left Whitepole Road as it was traveling eastbound, just west of the Stuart City limits.

The vehicle entered the south ditch and ramped the Iowa Interstate Railroad tracks before becoming airborne and rolling several times after landing, and before coming to rest on its passenger side. The crash, which occurred at around 2:10-p.m., Tuesday (Jan. 27th), remained under investigation. The vehicle sustained a law enforcement-estimated $8,000 damage.

And, a run-in with a deer Friday night in Guthrie County caused an estimated $1,500 damage to a 2020 GMCC Terrain SUV, driven by 53-year-old Dawn Shepherd, of Creston. The Sheriff’s Office reports the vehicle was southbound on Wagon Road at around 7-p.m., when it struck a deer crossing the roadway in the 2700 block of Wagon Road. Shepherd was not injured during the collision.

(Radio Iowa) – The Sheriff’s department says foul play is not suspected after a Kossuth County man was found dead a short distance from his rural Fenton home late last week. The Kossuth County Sheriff’s Office received a request to help locate 91-year-old Marvin Bollinger around 2 p-m on Thursday, January 29th. Bollinger lived alone at a rural residence about a mile southwest of Fenton, and family members were unable to contact or locate him after learning he had missed an appointment scheduled for the 28th.

When Deputies arrived, they noticed that Bollinger’s vehicle was at the residence, but family members reported that he took walks every day. Once the rural residence and outbuildings had been searched, Deputies and family members began to drive the area roads, where they found Bollinger lying in a ditch about a quarter mile from the home.

Foul play is not expected and an l autopsy will be conducted by the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Ankeny.

(radio Iowa) – The annual cookie fundraiser for the Girl Scouts of America is now underway in Iowa, helping young women build confidence and learn skills like how to count back change and how to talk to strangers without being afraid. Samie Swinton, vice president of marketing and communications for the Girl Scouts Greater Iowa, says the Cookie Program started on Sunday and orders are now being taken. Swinton says the best way to find the cookies is to find a Girl Scout.

“If you don’t happen to know a Girl Scout, you can go to the cookie finder on our website, which is girlscoutsiowa.org/findcookies,” she says. There is a place to enter your ZIP code that will bring up when and where different cookie sales will be happening near you. It also will connect you to a local troop to have the cookies shipped directly to you. If you want to save on shipping, there is a deal this coming weekend, February 6th through the 8th.

Swinton says, “The Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa is covering the cost of shipping for nine to 12 packages, if you have them directly shipped to you.” The Girl Scouts organization was founded in 1912, and the cookie program started just a few years later. Swinton says a new flavor is being offered this year, the Exploremores Cookie. “Which is a rocky road ice cream-inspired sandwich cookie,” Swinton says. “If you are a chocolate fan, this cookie is for you because it is a very chocolatey sandwich cookie with a really yummy creamy filling inside.”

Swinton says most booth sales will not start until February 13th. The Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa is made up of about 11,000 girls and 3,000 adult leaders.

(Red Oak, IA) – Two people were injured, with one suffering serious injuries, following a collision late Sunday afternoon in Montgomery County. According to the Red Oak Police Department, a 2019 Chevy Equinox SUV driven by 61-year-old Orlando Aday Aday, of Osceola, was traveling eastbound on Highway 34 at around 4:06-p.m., when – according to his statement to police – Aday fell asleep at the wheel. The SUV crossed the center line of the highway at 8th Street and struck the front passenger side of a westbound 2013 Dodge Journey (van), driven by 28-year-old Whitney Lynn Wright, of Malvern.

According to witness to the collision, following the impact, the  SUV went airborne and turned in the air before landing on its top in the north ditch. Aday managed to crawl out the back driver’s side door of the SUV and waited in the ditch for EMS personnel to arrive. Whitney Wright exited her vehicle, and with the help of witnesses, opened the rear passenger side door to remove her child from the car seat.

Wright suffered minor injuries. Her child was unharmed. Both were going to get checked out, but did not seek transport by ambulance. Two dogs in the back of her vehicle were uninjured. Aday was transported by Red Oak Rescue to the MCMH helipad, before he was flown by Life Flight helicopter to the UNMC in Omaha.

Both vehicles were totaled in the crash. Police said Aday would be cited for driving left of center.

(Radio Iowa) – Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says exports from Iowa manufacturing plants in the first 10 months of 2025 were over a BILLION dollars under the same period in 2024 — for a drop of nearly eight-and-a-half percent. Goss surveys manufacturers in Iowa and eight other states monthly and while there’s been economic growth in the nation’s midsection, Goss says the labor market is not good.  “We’ve really lost jobs almost every month for 2025,” Goss said. Goss says 25 years ago manufacturing accounted for nearly 14-and-a-half percent of the economic output from Iowa and eight neighboring states. It’s now close to 10 percent.

“The region has lost 333,000 jobs or almost 20% of its manufacturing base, so it has not been a good 25 years in terms of the number of jobs,” Goss said. “Now in terms of overall output, it has been good, so again the theme here is we’re creating output — GDP — but we’re not a lot of jobs.” Goss says inflation is getting tamer, but tariffs are creating more uncertainty in the manufacturing sector. “It’s clear that inflationary pressures are coming down. It’s the lowest inflation rate we’ve recorded since December of 2024 and, of course, that’s before the ‘tariff tantrums’ I’ll call it,” Goss said. “…When the president gets out there and says: ‘Well, I’m going to put a tariff here and a tariff there,’ that’s not good for the economy.”

Manufacturing supply managers in Iowa and eight surrounding states expect tariffs to stabilize over the next six months, however, and their economic outlook is at its highest level since Trump took office. Goss calculates a Business Conditions Index for each state in the survey. Iowa’s index increased from December to January and Iowa exports last month were slightly better than in the region’s, but Iowa’s manufacturing economy is not in a growth pattern, according to Goss.

(Glenwood, IA) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports five arrests took place between January 29th and February 1st, 2026. Those arrested include:

• 25-year-old Daniel Erick Ohnmacht, of Essex, who was taken into custody in Glenwood at around 8:15-a.m. Sunday, for Violation of Probation (Bond set at $5,000).
• 59-year-old Bryan Michael Schuler, of Shenandoah, was arrested at around 12:30-a.m. Sunday in Glenwood, for Interference with Official Acts (Bond $300).
• 27-year-old David Lopia Chaplain, of Omaha, was arrested at around 6-p.m. Saturday by Mills County Sheriff’s Deputies. He was arrested on an Out-of-County/State warrant (Bond $1,000).
• Deputies in Mills County arrested 37-year-old Tyler Scott McClain, of Omaha, Thursday night, in Glenwood. McClain was charged with Failure To Appear, and two-counts of Probation Violation (Bond $2,000).
• And, 50-year-old Larry Frimann, of Merrill (IA), was arrested Thursday evening in Council Bluffs, for OWI/2nd offense, with bond set at $2,000.

(Radio Iowa) – The temporary paper licenses on newly-purchased vehicles in Iowa are now digitized. The cards hang inside the back window of a vehicle, indicating the vehicle’s new owner has submitted the paperwork to the Iowa D-O-T to register the vehicle as their own. As of January 1st, auto dealers have been providing cards that can be scanned by law enforcement officers. Jazmine Sneller, the general manager of Ver Hoef Automotive in Sioux Center, says each card has an embedded number from the Iowa D-O-T, so the driver can confirm they own the vehicle. “So if you get pulled over, they can run that number and it will automatically show up in your name,” Sneller says.

Sneller says the change is providing reassurance to customers who’ve been wary of leaving the dealership with the temporary tag in the rear window. “If they had to cross state lines, they were worried about getting pulled over and not being able to provide enough documentation,” Sneller says. Dealers issue the temporary tags for a vehicle after tax, title, and license fees are paid and all paperwork is now handled electronically.

Iowa D-O-T officials say the updated system makes it easier to verify legitimate vehicle registrations.