I took a drive the other day to an old rural cemetery — the kind that sits just outside a city of 500 people.

You see, in the nine years we've called Dickinson County home, I had yet to travel the 60 miles to visit my grandparents' gravesite. So I made the trek, rather than look back on the alternative years from now with regret.

Hope Rolls donates gift of outdoor recreation

Over the last few years, Hope Rolls has gifted 13 adaptive tricycles and an adaptive bike trailer to 14 amazing kids and their families in Dickinson County.

On Friday, April 12, I had the opportunity to visit the U.S. border in Texas at Eagle Pass. This site is the famous area where several thousand illegal immigrants were crossing each day just a few months ago. During the height of the crisis at Eagle Pass, the U.S. Border Patrol could not process the illegal immigrants fast enough.

By Dale Hodges - Faith Pentecostal Church, Spencer

Every month, when Iowa families look over their finances and put together a budget, the price of gas is always an unpredictable factor in spending decisions. While people in urban centers have access to other transportation options, in rural Iowa, we drive – everywhere. Going to work, driving to church, seeing friends in other communities and taking our kids to school and practice all require a car – and in the wintertime, an electric vehicle just won’t cut it.

Q: What’s your recent work on behalf of Iowa airports and sustainable aviation fuel?

Technically this was the last full week, while the 100 days of this 2024 session conclude on Tuesday, April 16. In reality, we still have budgets to work on through the Appropriations Committee, in addition to several bills waiting to come to the floor in Ways and Means. So, there is no guarantee we will adjourn by that date. In the meantime, this week we focused on moving bills off the floor on to the governor’s office and moving eligible bills through committee for next week.

This week, Gov. Reynolds signed into law legislation to strengthen Iowa’s laws on ownership of Iowa’s agricultural land by nonresident aliens. Senate File 2204 easily passed with bipartisan support with a vote of 95-0 in the House of Representatives. The new law increases reporting requirements, increases enforcement of current laws and authorizes the Attorney General's office to investigate reports of potential violations of Iowa's laws concerning foreign ownership.

Look, I want lean, beneficial, affordable, resourceful wind energy just like everyone else.

But, from what I've experienced and researched in the past decades, what these wind turbines offer is just an ideology or an illusion at best. They do not benefit us as a community and are self-serving only to those who are receiving financial gains at the expense of the negative health effects of residents and the natural habitat.

By Barb Dean, Living Word Outreach Ministries

Dear Editor,

This week in the Iowa Senate, we had three days of debate, committee work and continued to focus on the FY 2025 state budget. As chair of the Administration and Regulation budget subcommittee, I presented SSB 3199 to the Appropriations Committee this week and saw it pass through both subcommittee and committee. This starts the discussion between both chambers as we set budget priorities that are prudent and fiscally conservative.

There are some topics that are difficult to discuss. One of those topics is sexual assault. April is nationally recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness Month and provides an opportunity for us to embrace uncomfortable conversations to support victims of this crime.

Q: What federal law did you steer through Congress to improve the nation’s organ transplant system?

A: Nearly 20 years ago, I launched an oversight investigation from the Senate Finance Committee to keep check on the nation’s organ donation system. For too long, I heard far too many stories of patients who lost their lives due to negligence and abuse of the system.

On my 36 County Tour, workforce issues and labor shortages are topics of constant and repeated concern when I’m meeting with farmers, small business owners, manufacturers, childcare centers, hospitals and other enterprises. With so many job openings in Iowa and nationwide, we need to do everything possible to help our businesses, manufacturers and hospitals hire, train and retain quality employees.