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3 weeks ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
With lawmakers gaveling out of the 2025 legislative session early Thursday morning, several of Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds' priorities were pushed through, although many of her priorities were left until the last few days of the session. Reynolds pegged education reform as a majority priority, and signed legislation restricting cellphone use in classrooms and reinstated an online education job posting site to combat the state's teacher shortage.
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3 weeks ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
Gaveling out of the 2025 legislative session early Thursday morning, Iowa lawmakers ended the session with a flurry of bills, yet did not take action to lower property taxes - a top priority for Iowa Republicans this year. After two weeks of legislative overtime, the final gavel came down at 6:31 a.m. Thursday, marking the end to the 123rd session.
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3 weeks ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
CEDAR RAPIDS - Pete Buttigieg criticized President Donald Trump's impact on veterans at a town hall in Cedar Rapids Tuesday. The former Navy Reserves intelligence officer condemned Trump's efforts to restructure veteran resources. The Trump administration plans to cut 80,000 employees from the Department of Veterans Affairs in August, according to an internal memo obtained by the Associated Press .
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3 weeks ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
Graduating fourth-year student Jaden "JB" Bartlett came to the University of Iowa for its political atmosphere. From a fourth-generation family farm in Iowa Falls, Iowa, Bartlett was looking for a hub of political activity and a vibrant, dynamic, and diverse community. Over the course of his four years at the UI, Bartlett placed himself at the center of campus, city, and county politics.
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1 month ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
The U.S. Department of Food and Nutrition Service approved Iowa's federal waiver to opt out of summer EBT and create a statewide summer food pilot program Wednesday, according to a news release from the governor's office. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Healthy Kids Iowa, an alternative to the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer program, or Summer EBT, that will utilize community providers across the state.
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1 month ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill into law Wednesday restricting the use of cellphones in state classrooms. House File 782 was a priority for Reynolds this legislative session. The law bars the use of personal electronic devices - smartphones, mobile phones, and video game devices, among others - from being used during instructional time in classrooms. The law allows, and encourages, school districts to implement further restrictions.
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1 month ago | 
mvlsun.com | Roxy Ekberg
Iowa lawmakers advanced two pieces of legislation to aid the state’s ailing child care workforce and childcare centers Wednesday. Senate File 445 passed by the Iowa Senate in a 33-14 vote Wednesday. House File 623 is the companion bill to the Iowa Senate bill. The bill will create a pilot program to award competitive grants.
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1 month ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
Dismayed by the dating scene on campus, University of Iowa first-year student Mary McCurdy added a special request on her Tinder bio: "Please do not swipe right if you voted for Trump."Burned in previous relationships with Republican-leaning men, the Democrat said she has drawn a line and will no longer date across the aisle. McCurdy broke things off a month and a half into seeing someone because she found out he voted for President Donald Trump.
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1 month ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
Iowa Senate lawmakers swiftly gave final approval for a bill that would prohibit the use of automated bots to purchase online tickets. Now, the bill heads to the governor's desk for her approval before becoming law. The bill, Senate File 146, would prohibit the creation of an online bot to circumvent ticket limits, online queues, presale codes, or sales limiting systems. The bill would require ticket sellers to report infractions within five days at the discretion of the Iowa attorney general.
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1 month ago | 
dailyiowan.com | Roxy Ekberg
A federal court ordered the visas of four international students at the University of Iowa, who previously had their student status revoked by the federal government, to be restored Thursday. The UI students filed a federal complaint Monday against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the department's Secretary Kristi Noem , and Acting Director of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons, for terminating their visa status without explanation.
