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Randy Evans is executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that promotes openness and transparency in Iowa’s state and local governments. He can be reached at [email protected]. This essay first appeared on his Substack newsletter, Stray Thoughts. The…
Bruce Lear lives in Sioux City and has been connected to Iowa’s public schools for 38 years. He taught for eleven years and represented educators as an Iowa State Education Association regional director for 27 years until retiring. He can be reached at [email protected] When I think about Amendment 1 on Iowa’s…
Robin Opsahl covers the state legislature and politics for Iowa Capital Dispatch, where this article first appeared. Iowa is expected to spend over $1 billion more than it raises in revenues in the current fiscal year, the Revenue Estimating Conference found on October 16 — but Iowa Department of Management Director…
Ric Zarwell, John A. Lundell, and Kevin W. Techau co-authored this column. Zarwell is a lifelong Allamakee County conservationist, birder, and former president of the Allamakee County Protectors, known for advocating for the land and water of the Driftless Area. Lundell is a former mayor of Coralville (2013 – 2021)…
Brian McLain is a co-chair of the Iowa Democratic Party’s Platform Committee and former chair of the party’s Progressive Caucus. Every two years, hundreds of Iowa Democratic Party members come together to determine the direction they want the Party to go. It is a long process requiring hours of meetings, debate, and…
Nature nerd Emily Bredthauer took the pictures enclosed below in August and September. (It’s better not to be too specific about the location of rare wildflowers.) I am of the opinion that Indigenous people should be celebrated every day. I am constantly full of gratitude for the people who have cared for the earth…
Phil Montag is a Des Moines area activist and serves on the board of the Iowa Unity Coalition. Listening to Zach Lahn on the Iowa gubernatorial campaign trail for the past year has been quite a show. To his credit, from the beginning he has put ecology, sustainable agriculture, and water quality front and center in
Iowans will decide this November whether to allow three Iowa Court of Appeals judges and 85 trial court judges to remain on the bench. Since our state adopted the current judicial selection system in 1962, each judge must periodically go on the ballot—every eight years for Iowa Supreme Court justices, every six years…