Week in Iowa, June 19, 2023: Recap of news from across the state

Education Department director makes abrupt exit: Chad Aldis, the director of the Iowa Department of Education, is leaving the department after three months on the job. Aldis resigned last month, citing family reasons. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced McKenzie Snow, current deputy education secretary of Virginia, will replace him in the role.

Snow has held roles in former President Donald Trump's administration and as a policy director for the U.S. Department of Education. She will take the helm of the department that is navigating the implementation of Gov. Kim Reynolds' program to provide hundreds of millions in taxpayer funds to Education Savings Accounts to pay for private school tuition.

Ethanol mandates rankle Republicans: Iowa officials slammed President Joe Biden's administration after the Environmental Protection Agency announced a rule requiring lower-than-expected blending of ethanol by oil refineries. State and congressional officials said the decision was arbitrary and a reversal on past promises by the administration.

Outside firm to audit HHS services: The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services will pay a Michigan-based firm $431,000 to find ways to improve service delivery after the merger of the state's public health and human services departments. Health Management Associates will examine service gaps and duplicate services provided by the department.

State settles open records case: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by journalists who accused her of violating state law by failing to respond to open records requests in a timely manner. The state will pay roughly $135,000 to settle the lawsuit, all of which will cover legal fees.

The lawsuit was brought by Laura Belin, Clark Kauffman and Randy Evans after Reynolds' office did not respond to records requests for up to 18 months during the COVID-19 pandemic. The two Republican members of the three-member appeals board voted to approve the settlement. Democratic State Auditor Rob Sand voted against it, saying the people named as defendants should foot the bill.

ACLU criticizes drag restrictions: The ACLU of Iowa warned three cities last week that their ordinances restricting "male or female impersonators" in certain settings were an unconstitutional ban on drag performances. The city of Waukee said it may review the language, but argued the city code does not ban drag performances.

Key conservative calls for justices' ouster: Bob Vander Plaats, an anti-abortion leader and CEO of the Family Leader, called for the three justices who sided against reinstating a six-week abortion ban to be voted out in their next judicial recall election, or impeached by the Iowa Legislature. The justices are up for recall in 2028, and impeachment would require a two-thirds vote of the Iowa Senate.

They said …

"She has worked to expand career and technical education opportunities that empower students to earn a credential or credit, implement the Science of Reading to drive literacy, and promote transparency and student-centered funding." — Gov. Kim Reynolds on incoming Education Department Director McKenzie Snow

“It’s an insulting bait-and-switch for the American biofuels industry, and totally inconsistent with this administration’s climate agenda. — Iowa U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley on EPA renewable fuel mandates

Odds and ends

March for Life: Iowa anti-abortion activists held a rally and march Saturday outside the state Capitol building in Des Moines, a week after the Iowa Supreme Court rejected Gov. Kim Reynolds' appeal to reinstate a six-week abortion ban. Reynolds and Attorney General Brenna Bird were among the invited speakers.

KCCI meteorologist: A meteorologist for Des Moines-area news station KCCI is leaving the station due, in part, to death threats he received for reporting on climate change, which he said caused post-traumatic stress disorder. He said he would work to find sustainable solutions to climate change after leaving the station.

Water cooler

Fentanyl dealer sentenced: A Cass County man convicted of selling fentanyl in western Iowa was sentenced to 192 months in prison. Mason Blaine Loudermilk, 19, was the fourth person to be sentenced related to a fentanyl distribution network that led to a series of overdoses in Cass and Shelby counties.

Broadband funding: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced nearly $150 million in federal broadband funding this past week, adding to the more than $200 million the state already has directed to building out internet infrastructure. The funds, which come from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act, will be focused on 96 "Broadband Intervention Zones" around the state.