Despite widespread support for the legislation, state lawmakers have failed to pass a ban on motorist handheld use of cellphones. From 2014 to 2023, 78 people in Iowa were killed by distracted drivers using a cellphone or other handheld device.
Bills limiting cellphone use while driving by mandating hands-free technology have been introduced in the Iowa Legislature since 2019, but all attempts at passage have been unsuccessful. More than 30 other states have passed such laws. Why won't Iowa?
Also, an Iowa Air Guard unit in Fort Dodge will close, and Gov. Reynolds joined 50-plus other governors opposing a federal proposal to shift Guard members to the U.S. Space Force