Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
A bill that would change the workers compensation system to permit workers injured on the job to choose the doctors who will treat them will be debated in the state Senate Labor and Business Relations Committee Monday.
The bill would give employees the right to choose a physician who is a primary care provider, who has previously provided treatment to the employee and has retained the employee’s medical records, to provide treatment for a work-related injury. Employers would be required to provide written notice to employees of this right upon hire and periodically during employment.
Nearly 170 groups, including the Iowa Chamber Alliance and Iowa Association of School Boards, have declared their opposition to the proposal. Opponents believe the move would significantly increase costs.
Groups such as the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the Iowa Federation of Labor AFL-CIO and United Steel Workers of America have declared support for the measure.
The bill is one of four labor-backed pieces of legislation that legislative leaders have said will be debated this session. The other proposals would expand collective bargaining for public employees; allow unions to charge non-union workers a small fee to help pay to secure and enforce bargained contract benefits; and set a prevailing wage floor on public-sector projects based on local pay scales.
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