Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is continuing what he calls a quest to ensure that noncitizens in the state do not vote in elections.
On Tuesday, Pate and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird in a release said the Biden administration is stonewalling the release of lists of “known noncitizens on Iowa voter rolls.” Those two Iowa officials are suing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to release any such list.
Two weeks before the November election, Pate said he had found 87 people out of more than 2 million registered Iowa voters who allegedly voted in past elections without being citizens.
Pate’s team also found 67 people who illegally registered to vote. He has sent their information to law enforcement for potential felony prosecution.
Pate said he also found more than 2,000 people who said they weren’t citizens, and who later voted or registered to vote. It is possible those people could have become citizens before they voted.
Joe Henry is political director for the League of United Latin American Citizens of Iowa, and Henry has asserted that Pate’s actions are politically motivated.
*In other news, Sioux City is the host site for two annual NAIA college women’s volleyball championship tournaments, and the volleyball version begins Wednesday at the Tyson Events Center downtown.
This is the 45th annual NAIA volleyball championships. The top-seeded team is a local squad, from Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa.
Pool play for the tourney will reduce the field of 24 teams to the final four teams by Saturday. Those teams will meet in semi-final matches on Monday, December 9, then the 2024 NAIA championship will take place the next day.
*The Sioux City Council on Monday approved a procedural step that specifies some financial details, so that a waterpark can ideally be built on the city’s northeast side by 2025.
Siouxland Splash is being built by the Frontline Development LLC business for roughly $7 million.
There is currently no private waterpark in Sioux City, while within 100 miles there are such facilities in Storm Lake and Sioux Falls. City officials say it will be a great quality of life addition.
The Sioux City Council has worked through details back to late 2023 towards aiding Frontline to create the waterpark, first by approving the sale of 10 acres of land to the company. The action Monday included a subordination agreement approval, which specifies the order in which debts are paid off if a borrower defaults.
*Additionally, Republicans will have an even greater majority in the Iowa Legislature for the upcoming session, which could have an impact on ongoing water quality issues for Iowans.
The state’s Natural Resources Trust Fund, which was meant to provide permanent funding for water quality and conservation projects, has sat virtually empty since it was approved by voters 14 years ago.
If Republican lawmakers aim to enact more tax cuts, the Natural Resources Trust Fund might not be funded any time soon, says Iowa Environmental Council Attorney Michael Schmidt.
And if tax cuts also force budget reductions, Schmidt says that could hit the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and reduce water protection that the agency provides.
“Changes in taxes can definitely affect the ability of agencies like the D-N-R to do get their job done. D-N-R has a big job in Iowa, and so it needs the financial support to have the staff to do that job,” Schmidt said.
The Republican majority will be the largest seen in the Iowa Legislature since 1970, as Democrats have seen losses of formerly held seats over the last 10 years.
*In other news, a baby girl born November 11 is now in the care and custody of the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services and will be placed with a foster family until permanent placement is determined.
Over the 2023 and 2024 years, a combined 16 infants have been relinquished to Iowa HHS custody under the Safe Haven Act.
This brings the overall total to 72 infants since the so-called Safe Haven Law went into effect more than two decades ago.
Iowa’s Safe Haven Act is an option for parents in crisis who determine they cannot care for an infant up to 90 days old. Designated safe havens are locations such as hospitals and police and fire stations. Iowa HHS then works to place infants in an approved foster home, while awaiting permanent adoption.
