(Radio Iowa) – The U-S-D-A is criticizing the governor’s proposed alternative to providing federal food assistance next summer to low-income households with children. Governor Kim Reynolds did not sign Iowa up THIS summer for the U-S-D-A program that would have provided families an extra 140 dollars for every child who qualifies for a free or reduced price lunch at school. Families can use the money to buy groceries at stores where food stamps are accepted. Reynolds is opting out of the program NEXT summer, too, but has asked the agency to let the state use 29 million dollars in federal money to buy groceries and provide food boxes to qualifying households.

A spokesperson for the U-S-D-A says the governor is asserting the State knows better than its own families do about what their needs are. Reynolds says her program would provide healthy meals and snacks for about 60-thousand more school-aged children because the state would make bulk purchases of food. The U-S-D-A’s spokesperson says there’s been rigorous evaluation of the agency’s summer food program showing it works to reduce child hunger and support healthier diets.

Friday evening, the Governor’s office issued the following statement:

(Radio Iowa) – Some Iowa schools are already back in session, while most others will be resuming soon, and motorists are being reminded to stay vigilant for young pedestrians, and for those big, yellow school buses. Page County Sheriff Lyle Palmer says if you’re behind the wheel and spot a bus, take the cue to be watchful for kids, whether you’re in town or in the country.

“Our school buses have very visible lights,” Palmer says. “They have a little white flashing light on top, plus your ambers and reds to indicate they are preparing to stop or stopping, and putting that stop arm out to load or unload children.” When approaching a school bus from behind, the sheriff says motorists should use extra caution and slow down.

“Flashing red or amber warning lights means, according to the Iowa Code, you’re not permitted to pass a school bus and should be ready to stop,” Palmer says. “When the school bus stops and the stop arm is extended, stop behind the school bus. It doesn’t take that long for them to load or unload kids. Don’t stop any closer than 15 feet from the rear of the bus.” If there’s a school bus pulled over in the far lane or a slow-moving vehicle lane, it could be a very costly mistake to assume it’s okay to pass.

“Probably 90% of our school bus violations come from Highway 2 about 4 to 6 miles east of Shenandoah,” Palmer says. “It’s because we have a slow-moving vehicle lane there. People think, ‘Since the bus got over, I can go around,’ or, ‘Since the bus is over and I’m meeting it, I’m okay.’ Well, that’s not okay. You’re still going to get a citation.” When the stop arm of a school bus is extended, it’s the same as a stop sign. Also, he says to give that bus — and the kids — plenty of room when you come to a halt.

“Make sure that you stop prior to the front of that school bus,” he says, “because a lot of times, if there’s children crossing the road, they’re going to cross in front. They’re not going to cross in back of the school bus, they’re going to cross right in front of it. So, be prepared to stop and stay stopped until the stop arm comes back in.”

In addition to stiff fines, Palmer says violating school bus laws may result in your license being suspended for up to 180 days.

(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – Nine states, including Iowa, are challenging an executive order by the Biden administration, that would enlist federal agencies to help register residents to vote, and those states say the order undermines their power to control elections, calling it federally subsidized program aimed at boosting Democratic and left-leaning blocs. Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach and Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen filed the federal lawsuit in court in Wichita, Kansas. The nine states are Montana, Kansas, Iowa, South Dakota, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Carolina. The heart of the lawsuit is Executive Order 14019, which was issued on March 10, 2021.

The states challenging the executive order say Biden converts various federal agencies, turning them in part into “a voter registration organization” illegally. The attorneys general say that elections, including voter registration, are solely the province of states, guaranteed by the Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Moreover, the states said that it’s an example of the federal government trying to usurp the sovereignty of the states, and giving the states no other choice than to resort to federal court. The lawsuit said the states were never invited into the process, never allowed to comment, and they accuse the Biden administration of hiding the plans.

The lawsuit lists a number of federal agencies as defendants, including the U.S. Treasury, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of The Interior, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Department of Education. The lawsuit also claims that the National Voter Registration Act means that federal agencies cannot stand in the way of citizens voting, but it also said that voter registration activity is left to the states, and Biden’s order oversteps its authority.

The 41-page suit outlines a number of ways the executive order commands the federal agencies to help bolster the efforts to register voters. The lawsuit said the order allows the Department of Education to allow federal work study funds to “support voter registration” activities. The states also said that encouraging a variety of different agencies without proper training put the elections at risk of fraud.

The states conclude the lawsuit by saying that the plans in the executive order weren’t motivated to help resident register to vote, rather they are part of a Democrat plan.

(Radio Iowa) – The World Health Organization is declaring an international health emergency over m-pox, what used to be known as monkeypox, though -no- cases are reported in Iowa and generally, Iowans are just warned to be aware. Brian Simmons, an infection preventionist with Gundersen Health System, explains how m-pox is transmitted and what it does. “Mpox is a virus that is spread either through close contact with family members or through sexual contact,” Simmons says. “It is a virus that can cause sores that we see on different parts of the body. It’s very similar to what smallpox might have looked like years ago.”

Symptoms of m-pox include: fever, headache, muscle aches and backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion and a rash or blisters. It can be fatal, especially a strain that’s appearing primarily in African nations. “The newer strain of mpox is more virulent than what the previous strain was that we saw a few years ago, that we actually saw around here in the United States, even around locally,” Simmons says. “Currently, the newer strain is mostly around or within the sub-Sahara African nations, such as Congo and so on.” The W-H-O has only declared public health emergencies seven times, including for m-pox in 2022.

CDC photo

Across the U-S, more than 16-hundred m-pox cases are reported this year, twice the number of cases seen by this time last year. Simmons says this virus shouldn’t be a big worry for the majority of Iowans, though people need to stay informed. “For those that could have a high risk for mpox, they may want to consider a vaccine. That still is a way to combat against mpox transmission,” Simmons says. “For those that are very low risk for mpox, just being aware of what’s going on in the world, or if you’re traveling to areas of Africa that have it endemic in those areas.”

State health officials say a limited amount of m-pox vaccines are available to eligible individuals in 13 Iowa counties: Black Hawk, Cerro Gordo, Des Moines, Dubuque, Johnson, Linn, Polk, Pottawattamie, Scott, Story, Washington, Webster and Woodbury.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – A man from Nebraska was injured during a chain-reaction crash involving his motorcycle and three other vehicles Thursday afternoon, north of Atlantic. The Iowa State Patrol says the vehicles: a 2014 Honda CTX-130, operated by 60-year-old Anthony Haynes, Sr., of Omaha; a 2024 Dodge Ram 2500 pickup driven by 53-year-old William Smith, of Vernona, NY, and a 2021 Chevy Silverado pickup driven by 30-year-old Jacob Swoboda, of Gretna, NE, were all traveling east on Interstate 80 near Exit 57 (Cass County Road N-16/Olive Street/620th St.) at around 3:25-p.m.

When a pilot car for an oversized load pulled into the traffic lanes, a 2021 BMW X-1 driven by 23-year-old Carly Boss, of Clive, slowed and pulled over to the left shoulder, as the vehicle ahead of the BMW was doing the same thing. When the BMW slowed to a stop, it was struck by the motorcycle.

The motorcycle was then hit by the Chevy pickup truck, which was hit by the Dodge pickup truck. The Patrol says Anthony Haynes, Sr., was transported by Cass EMS to Cass Health in Atlantic, before being flown by LifeFlight helicopter to the UNMC in Omaha. A report on his condition was not released.

Atlantic Fire and Rescue, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office and Cass EMS assisted at the scene.