Capitol Notebook: More Iowa counties approved for FEMA assistance

More Iowa counties damaged by record flooding, tornadoes and severe storms have been approved for federal natural disaster relief.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved Osceola and Pottawattamie counties for Individual Assistance.

Qualified applicants can receive grants for temporary housing and home repairs, loans to cover uninsured property losses and other assistance, according to the White House.

Iowa Workforce Development also announced it is accepting applications for disaster unemployment assistance for residents in Osceola and Pottawattamie counties who lost wages due to severe storms and flooding in June.

The deadline to apply is Aug. 23. Individuals can receive up to 27 weeks of benefits as long their unemployment continues to be a result of the disaster. More information can be found at workforce.iowa.gov/unemployment/dua or by calling 1-(866) 239-0843.

Cherokee, Humboldt, Palo Alto, Scott, Winnebago, Woodbury and Worth counties have been approved for public assistance grants to help local governments and certain nonprofits cover the costs of debris removal, emergency protective measures and restoring public infrastructure.

The following counties were previously activated for emergency protective measures and have been approved for the addition of permanent work: Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson, O’Brien, Plymouth and Sioux.

Cherokee, Humboldt, Osceola, Palo Alto and Woodbury County residents also are now eligible for the Disaster Recovery Temporary Housing Program, as have residents of Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson, Emmet, Lyon, O’Brien, Plymouth and Sioux counties. 

For more information on disaster-related programs and resources available to Iowans, visit DisasterRecovery.iowa.gov.

Iowa earned $456 million on investments

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State Treasurer Roby Smith said Iowa earned more than $456 million in interest on money invested from the state’s pooled money fund for the fiscal year that ended in June.

“Records were broken in fiscal year 2024 as we earned more for the state than ever before,” Smith said in news release. “Our goal is to earn high income while also preserving investment principal, and I'm proud to say we've accomplished that again this fiscal year.”

Smith serves as the state’s banker and chief financial officer. One of his responsibilities includes investing all public funds not needed to meet current expenses. The pooled money fund is a combination of the state’s general fund, road-use tax fund, two reserve funds and other smaller funds.

“The more money we earn means less comes out of Iowans’ pockets,” Smith said.

Hundreds of acres along Missouri River transferred to Nebraska tribe

Roughly 1,600 acres of land along the Missouri River in Woodbury County is being transferred from the Army Corps of Engineers to the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska after President Joe Biden signed the Winnebago Land Transfer Act earlier this month.

The law was passed by unanimous consent by the U.S. Congress. The bill prohibits gaming on the land taken into trust.

The land — known as Winnebago Bend Wildlife Area, including the majority of the waterfowl refuge at Snyder Bend Wildlife Area — will become part of the Winnebago Reservation.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources had agreed to manage the land for public hunting and other recreation in 1981.