Here First

House Speaker Mike Johnson spoke at a conservative Christian event in Iowa. The 1619 Freedom School hosted its annual Read-In event to protest book bans. And it could be a warmer and drier winter.

Dubuque County leaders are considering an outright ban on data centers. Scientists say they're finding concerning levels of pesticides in U.S. rivers. And Iowa's largest utility is warning people to be wary of online scam artists posing as customer service workers.

A data center company wants to build a huge facility near Clinton in eastern Iowa. The state's new Medicaid fraud task force has met for the first time. And Iowa is looking for the rightful owner of a baseball signed by superstar Pete Rose.

A data center company building near Cedar Rapids is injecting $5 million into workforce development, while the Palo City Council voted to advance their data center ordinance this week. An Iowa woman is the first known patient in the U.S. to receive a quadruple organ transplant with re-transplanted lungs. And U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley says he's monitoring a proposed merger between two railways.

Some school districts are delaying or changing projects in connection to changes in state property tax laws. Another Iowa county has put a pause on data center development. And a conversation with Iowa Public Radio's retiring CEO.

Pete Buttigieg rallied with Iowa Democrats last night. President Trump has endorsed Republican Zach Lahn for Iowa governor. And a Midwestern couple is trying to set up government support for Alzheimer's early detection.

A hospital in Council Bluffs is set to close its labor and delivery unit. Des Moines residents are sharing their thoughts about the city's expected budget shortfall. And the education center at Springbrook State Park will be demolished.

Iowa has its first confirmed measles case of the year. The city of Decorah is considering an ordinance that would end its cooperation with ICE agents. And an Iowan shares her story of leaving the corporate world to start her own bakery.

The Democrat running in Iowa's Third Congressional District shares her plans on public health insurance. Undeveloped industrial land in the Cedar Valley region has made a national ranking. And a story of Indigenous resistance in Iowa.

Democrat Josh Turek, who is running for Iowa's open U.S. Senate seat, says he would push to break up agriculture industry monopolies. The Iowa Bee Atlas is training Iowans to help conserve native bees. And an artist's value of environmentalism shows up in her art.

Zach Lahn, the republican nominee for governor, has responded to criticism for having a second home in Kansas. Severe weather over the weekend has displaced about 400 Des Moines residents. And this week on Here First we have personal stories from Next Gen Journalism.

There will be more medical residency training slots at Iowa's teaching hospitals. Residents in the Des Moines area are allowed to water their lawns again. And Iowa's Bosnian community has been showing up for their home country's team during the World Cup.

A new state law taking effect today changes how Iowans access medication abortions. The Planned Parenthood clinic in Iowa City is closing. And an environmental advocacy group is suing the EPA for records about a nitrate health study.

The speed limit on some Iowa highways is set to go up. Iowa schools will be required to have policies to identify and support gifted students. And how will SNAP payment error rates affect funding for the federal food assistance program?

Iowa is gripped by the first heat wave of the summer, big cuts for the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice, and a popular lake in northwest Iowa reopens as part of a state program marking its 20th year.

The U.S. Supreme Court sided with the maker of Roundup over cancer warnings on pesticide labels, a new facility could support more conservation on farms across the state, and some farms are growing something you might find in your own backyard, serviceberries.

A termination letter shows why a former IPERS official was fired. Libertarians running for Iowa governor and lieutenant governor are suing to be put on the ballot. And a museum in Waterloo is bracing for funding cuts.

Iowa's SNAP restrictions have been blocked by a federal court. Woodbury County has passed a moratorium on data center projects. And U.S. senators are still working on a new farm bill.

There are fewer Iowans enrolled in SNAP since a federal law change. The governor has appointed a new director of the state's largest agency. And Des Moines area residents are still under a lawn watering ban.

A program at the University of Iowa will study how environmental exposures affect human health. Gov. Kim Reynolds shares her thoughts on a gas tax. And year-round sale of E15 could hurt the soybean market.

U.S. Senator Joni Ernst says Congress needs to know the terms of an initial deal to end the war with Iran. Council Bluffs council members voted down a moratorium on data center projects. And there's a new coalition in central Iowa trying to address cancer rates.

A state auditor's report shows how much the state has spent on the ESA program in its first year. City council members in Des Moines are considering cutting back services to fill in an expected budget gap. And where is Iowa's trash going to go as the state's landfills fill up?

Another community is pushing back on data center development. There has to be an investigation into the water quality of Bloody Run Creek under a court ruling. And the state's public universities will offer a three year degree program.

A few Libertarian candidates have been kicked off the November ballot. Cedar Falls is building a gas power plant. And there's a new healthcare job board to recruit more healthcare workers to the state.

Republican candidate for governor Zach Lahn rallied party activists at the GOP state convention Saturday. A new report shows two of Iowa's rural hospitals are at immediate risk of closure, and the City of Ames is rolling out its first curbside recycling program this July.

Stores that accept federal food assistance will have to stock even more foods to meet the Trump administration's push toward healthier eating. Several Libertarian candidates face challenges to their attempt to appear on the November ballot in Iowa. And, this weekend is the first opportunity for people to see a restored Grant Wood mural in Sioux City.

Residents in Clinton are pushing back on a proposed data center. A basic income pilot program in Des Moines has ended. And State Auditor Rob Sand says pharmacy benefit managers may have used prohibited drug pricing strategies.

About 200 people will lose their jobs with the state as part of a plan to outsource state agency IT services. A Libertarian candidate has joined Iowa's 3rd Congressional District race. And Sioux City is adding more automated license plate readers in the city.

A lawn watering ban is in effect in the Des Moines area because of high nitrate levels in source water. The governor has signed an executive order to create the Office of Outdoor Recreation. And Democrat Rob Sand has announced his running mate in the race for governor.

Rob Sand has started campaigning as the official Democratic nominee for Iowa governor. The courts will decide what to do with scholarship money at the University of Iowa left behind for Black students. And Iowa has ranked 10th in the nation for child well-being.

The governor has signed a bill that requires immigration status checks for public workers. Death is more likely to occur in domestic violence when a gun is involved. And how have 1970's federal laws cleaned up rivers in the U.S.?

A new study will look at how environmental factors affect Iowan's health. Governor Kim Reynolds reflects on her last legislative session as governor. And former residents of a teen treatment center in Missouri say they were abused there.

Zach Lahn, who didn't receive President Trump's endorsement, will be the Republican candidate for Iowa governor. Josh Turek will be the Democratic candidate for Iowa's open U.S. Senate seat. And Governor Kim Reynolds has signed a few crime related bills into law.

There has been a mass shooting in Muscatine that has left seven people dead. Residents in Palo voiced their thoughts on a proposed data center ordinance. And today is the last day Iowans can vote in the primary elections.

President Trump has endorsed one of the five GOP candidates for Iowa governor days before the primary election. The former Des Moines Public Schools superintendent has been sentenced. And there are over 2,000 certified wildlife habitats in Iowa

Candidates for several offices are making their last-minute pitches to primary voters just days before the election. And what is the farmer-led movement?

Des Moines metro residents are being asked to limit some of their water usage. There's a new mobile memory clinic in Polk County to help treat dementia. And Simpson College is dealing with a budget deficit.

Iowa Democrats are talking to the DNC today about changing the caucus process. The governor has signed a bill into law that will provide funding for pediatric cancer research. And Republican candidate for governor Randy Feenstra shares why he hasn't been going to debates.

Primary elections are a week away in Iowa. Community colleges are preparing for new state property tax laws. And Polk County has launched a website about water quality and health.

A new private behavioral health facility opens this June in Council Buffs. The nonprofit Environmental Working Group says testing has shown elevated nitrate levels in Des Moines and other Midwest cities. And a look inside a national competition in Oklahoma that draws hundreds of teenagers from across the country to show their skills judging soil.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was in Iowa yesterday. The governor has signed what she's calling Iowa's 'MAHA' law. And a lawsuit about Iowa jail fees is continuing in court.

The governor has signed a bill that further restricts abortion access in Iowa. Almost all the Republican candidates for governor debated water quality last night. And fundraising reports for the governor candidates are out.