DES MOINES, Iowa (Gray Media Iowa State Capitol Bureau/KCRG) — The Iowa Senate, by a vote of 27-20 Monday afternoon, approved the agreement to increase funding for public school districts in the coming year by 2%, a result of a compromise between majority Republican leaders in both legislative chambers and Governor Kim Reynolds. While Republicans tout the agreement as a responsible approach to taxpayer dollars, Democrats argue the increase is simply insufficient to meet the needs of Iowa’s educators and students. Iowa Speaker of the House Pat Grassley (R-New Hartford) said, “What we’ve been hearing from our schools is, ‘Get us the money, get it locked in.’ We’re coming up on budget time. That’s why we made this deal right now to get this done and then give the certainty to our schools.”
SPENCER, Iowa (KTIV/KCRG) – A Spencer woman has turned herself in after an investigation from the Office of Auditor of State. On Friday, Feb. 20, authorities say 52-year-old LaVonne Bell turned herself in to the Clay County Jail. There was an active arrest warrant for Bell for first-degree theft. This comes about after Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand’s office released a report about a special investigation they conducted on the city of Spencer. City officials were concerned about financial transactions processed by Bell and asked the auditor’s office to conduct an investigation. The auditor’s office identified about $46,000 in misused funds. $38,767.56 in undeposited landfill fees, $7,141.56 of improper disbursements, and $188.81 of unsupported disbursements. According to officials, the city was first alerted of an issue when Bell went on vacation in June 2024. The city staff were “unable to locate a cash deposit from a law enforcement testing class where candidate paid cash to take their test.” Bell was then contacted as the money was nowhere to be found. When she returned to the office, she reportedly gave the city an envelope which contained $100 bills. The class had been paid with $20s, $10s, $5s, and $1s. Due to this, Bell was terminated. When interviewed by investigators, Bell reportedly told them “I don’t really want to get into it, lots of personal things going on, my husband has been sick and he wasn’t working … And I know it was wrong, believe me I know it was wrong and I am trying to be a better person and it was keeping me up all the time.” Bell was booked into the Clay County Jail and is held to appear in court on a future date.
DUBUQUE, Iowa (KCRG) – A former Dubuque Senior High School football coach was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison for stealing more than $47,000 from a local football league. 40-year-old Darrell Moore pleaded guilty in January to first-degree theft for stealing $47,360.52 from the Dubuque Independent Football League. His plea agreement had recommended two years of probation through a deferred judgment, but the judge rejected that deal. The judge said Moore was in a position overseeing kids and he “should’ve been an example to them and he wasn’t.” According to court documents, the stolen funds were deposited into Moore’s FanDuel account and used to pay for his Roku account, as well as purchases at grocery stores, gas stations and restaurants. The funds were also used at golf courses, for hotel reservations and other online purchases. The Dubuque County Attorney’s Office confirmed the plea agreement had called for a deferred judgment and that the judge went against it.
DES MOINES, Iowa (KCRG) – Families of two Iowa National Guard soldiers killed in Syria last December will attend President Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday as guests of Iowa’s congressional delegation. Staff Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, were killed during an attack by an ISIS gunman in Syria in December. Both were members of the 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment and have been honored as heroes by the Iowa National Guard. Misty and Jeffrey Bunn, the mother and stepfather of Staff Sgt. Howard, will attend as guests of Rep. Ashley Hinson. Arianna Howard, the widow of Staff Sgt. Howard, will be hosted by Sen. Joni Ernst. Hugo Torres and Isabel Tovar, the parents of Staff Sgt. Torres-Tovar, will attend as guests of Rep. Zach Nunn. The two soldiers were among approximately 1,800 Iowa National Guard soldiers deployed to the Middle East in May 2025 as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, a counter-terrorism effort. Iowa lawmakers are also considering legislation to name part of Highway 30 in Marshalltown in honor of Staff Sgt. Howard. Supporters said the highway designation would permanently honor Howard’s legacy and link his sacrifice to his hometown of Marshalltown. Trump is scheduled to address Congress at 8:00 p.m. Tuesday. He’s expected to talk about several topics including immigration, the economy, and foreign policy. You can hear the President’s State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at 8:00 p.m. tonight on News/Talk 1540 KXEL.
