Committee Passes Bill To Require State Employees To Prove Citizenship
(Des Moines, IA) — The state House will hear a bill that requires state employees to prove their citizenship. A committee passed the bill in a 15-to-five vote on Tuesday, sending it to the House floor for debate. The bill would not apply to current state employees. It was proposed following the arrest of former Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Ian Roberts who was found to be lying about his citizenship status when he was hired in 2023. The bill was proposed by Governor Kim Reynolds but Democratic opponents say it would violate legal immigrants’ constitutional rights.
Iowa AG Brenna Bird Joins Coalition Of States Targeting YouTube
(Des Moines, IA) — Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird says Iowa is joining a coalition targeting YouTube’s algorithm bias. The coalition is accusing the platform of not treating conservative commentators fairly. YouTube leaders testified before Congress last year saying they take the importance of protecting free expression seriously. Bird cited suppression of Iowa-based commentator Steve Deace, who had four episodes of his show removed by the platform from 2020 to 2022. In a statement Bird says, “YouTube needs to abide by its own promises – that all voices, including conservative voices, are fully promoted and not suppressed on their platform.”
State Auditor Says Department of Education Delayed Sharing Information
(Des Moines, IA) — Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand says the Department of Education delayed giving his office documents. Sand says his office’s audit of the Education Savings Account program found no issues, but they didn’t have enough time to fully investigate. He claims the department intentionally delayed handing over documents for six months. Sand says the ESA program crossed a threshold last year that made it eligible for a full audit. Department of Management Director Kraig Paulsen says the Department of Education wasn’t told it met the threshold until October, which prolonged the delivery of the audited documents.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds released the following statement in response to the Iowa State Auditor’s report:
“First, the Auditor claimed we didn’t give him the information he needed despite the fact he refused to sign an engagement letter. Now, he admits we gave him everything he asked for but claims we didn’t give it to him with enough time. This as he releases a report giving the Department of Education a clean audit with zero findings. The truth is this is just another manufactured opportunity for the Auditor to use his official office to advance his political agenda in his run for Governor. While the Auditor is focused on himself, we’ll continue to put families and students first by funding students, not systems, and ensuring every family has access to the education they choose.” unquote
Lawmakers Advance Bill To Permit Guns On School Grounds
(Des Moines, IA) — Iowa Republicans are pushing forward legislation to loosen gun restrictions. A law to allow gun owners to have firearms in their vehicles on school and college grounds passed through subcommittees on Tuesday and will head to full committee meetings in the Senate and House. Previous attempts to pass similar bills have failed in recent years. The Iowa Association of School Boards and Iowa State Education Association have both opposed the bills. The bills would prohibit Iowa’s colleges and universities from enforcing policies that bar weapons on campus grounds when weapons are locked in a personal vehicle.
State Senate Proposes To Cut Lawmaker Per Diem In Half
(Des Moines, IA) — Republicans are pushing a bill that would cut state lawmaker per diem payments in half. Senator Mike Bousselot of Ankeny introduced the bill and he says a lot has changed since the newest session timelines and laws were put in place. Lawmakers currently receive a daily allowance for every day they’re scheduled to be in session, which can be up to 110 days. Bousselot says they could get the same amount of work done in 50-to-55 days. One Democrat opponent offered an amendment, saying the pay cut should only apply to the majority party since they set the schedule.
