(Radio Iowa) – Tuition hikes would be capped and diversity, equity and inclusion programs would be restricted at Iowa’s public universities, under a bill passed by the Iowa House on Thursday. The bill would add two lawmakers to the Board of Regents as non-voting members, and it would make other changes to higher education policies, including some the universities have already set in motion. Republican Representative Taylor Collins of Mediapolis says the regents spend too much on D-E-I initiatives.

“This bill stops the pursuit of these distractions and ideological agendas, reorients the focus of our higher education system back to the pursuit of academic excellence which should’ve been the point from the start,” Collins says, “controls the ever-rising cost of higher education, and gives this body increased oversight over the regent enterprise.”

All Democrats and six Republicans opposed the bill. Democrats say they support capping tuition hikes, but this bill doesn’t help the universities make up for lost revenue. They also say Republicans are politicizing D-E-I efforts, and that’ll have negative impacts on Iowa’s future workforce.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa is getting its first-ever pet disaster relief trailer through the American Kennel Club. Tom Sharp, president and C-E-O of A-K-C Reunite, says the 20-foot trailer can be pulled by a heavy-duty pickup and dispatched to any local disaster scene in Iowa where pets need to be sheltered. “For instance, if the Red Cross sets up a shelter for people in a local high school, they could use this trailer and its contents to set up a shelter for pets,” Sharp says, “say in the gymnasium right there beside the people who are sheltering.” The trailer is packed with equipment that can be used to create a safe, temporary home-base for dozens of pets during the first 72 hours after a disaster is declared. Sharp says the trailer houses a range of animal care items.

AKC Reunite photo

“Including a generator. It has about 60 mostly extra large pet crates. It has plastic wrap so you can put plastic down on the floor and walls to protect the building that you might be going in,” Sharp says. “It has cleaning supplies. It has microchips and a microchip scanner.” The trailer was delivered this week to Jasper and Poweshiek County Emergency Management and it’ll be housed in Newton until it’s needed in any of Iowa’s 99 counties.

“In most states, counties have mutual aid agreements, where they can help each other out,” Sharp says. “So if another county needs help and the equipment is not being used in Jasper or Poweshiek counties, they can hitch it up to a truck and take it where it’s needed.” AKC Reunite is the largest non-profit pet microchip identification and recovery service provider in the United States. This is the 110th trailer it’s donated nationwide and the first to Iowa.

www.akcreunite.org/relief

DES MOINES, Iowa (KCAU) — Iowa House lawmakers passed a “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” after the state senate passed the measure more than a week ago. Republicans said the bill will protect Iowans’ constitutional right to practice their respected religions, while Democrats said this will allow discrimination against people such as LGBTQ people.

The legislation would propose a higher legal standard in situations where an individual claims that government action has restricted their exercise of religion. If a person believes a government entity’s actions “substantially burden” their religious practices, they could take the issue to court. People could seek damages or other means to address the violation.

Gov. Kim Reynolds’ released a statement in support of the legislation’s passing:

“The right of religious freedom is endowed upon us by our creator – not government,” the statement reads. “Our founders recognized this principle, and today the Iowa House took a step forward to protect it. Twenty-three states around the country, with both Republican and Democrat governors, have passed similar laws. Now, it’s Iowa’s turn.”

Meanwhile, the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa also released a statement on what they called the “discriminatory” bill.

“It is a sad, and for many frightening, day in Iowa with the passage of the religious exemptions legislation inserting discrimination into Iowa law,” the statement reads in part. “The bill passed by Republicans in the Iowa Legislature will harm the LGBTQ and other marginalized communities in our state.”

The bill heads to Gov. Reynolds’ desk.

KEOKUK, Iowa (KCRG) – A Keokuk man has been sentenced to federal prison for his role in producing, receiving, and possessing child pornography.

Court records show 45-year-old Christopher Douglas Black was found with a minor who was reported missing from the Keokuk area. Following Black’s arrest, investigators found child sexual assault materials on Black’s cell phone.

Black was sentenced to 720 months in federal prison on Tuesday.

Following his term of imprisonment, Black will be required to serve ten years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.