QCA.news - Quad Cities news and view from both sides of the river

Thursday, April 23rd, 2026
	Man sentenced to more than 25 years in prison for meth charge Jason L. Ringold, 47, sold more than 600 grams of meth in Burlington between April and June 2024, according to court documents.
	Burlington man sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine On April 21, a man from Burlington was sentenced to 310 months (over 25 years) in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, according to a news release from the Department of Justice (DOJ). Public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing show that Jason Lee Ringold, 47, also known as “Ringo,” sold over 600 grams [...]
	Officials search for man who did not return to Davenport work release center Sabastian D. Bustillos, 27, didn’t return to the center.
	ISU Extension to host garlic mustard pulls, reopen Hort Clinic for growing season ISU Extension and Outreach Scott County is hosting two community garlic mustard pulls and preparing to open its seasonal Hort Clinic, offering residents hands‑on help with invasive plant removal and expert gardening support.
	2026 My Favorite Teacher \| Haley Ackerman with Bureau Valley Junior High In only her fourth year as an educator, Haley Ackerman is taking a different approach to her class, giving students a hands-on lesson to improve comprehension.
	Another round of strong to severe storms for the Quad Cities A strong cold front will bring a line of strong to severe thunderstorms into central Iowa late this afternoon and across the Quad Cities area this evening and tonight. After another warm day today, it'll turn cooler tomorrow into early next week. More wet weather arrives Sunday night into Monday night. Here's your full 7-day [...]
	McCullough sworn in as New Finance Director for City of Muscatine The City of Muscatine appointed LeAnna McCullough as the new finance director to oversee budgeting, accounting, and long range financial planning for the city.
	U.S.-Iran peace talks still in limbo after Iran seizes ships in the Strait of Hormuz President Trump told Fox News Wednesday that there was "no time pressure" on the ceasefire, which he has extended indefinitely.
	U.S. seizes another oil tanker as peace talks with Iran still in limbo The seizure comes after President Trump told Fox News Wednesday that there was "no time pressure" on the ceasefire with Iran, which he has extended indefinitely.
	The U.S. seizes another oil tanker as peace talks with Iran remain in limbo The seizure comes after President Trump told Fox News Wednesday that there was "no time pressure" on the ceasefire with Iran, which he has extended indefinitely.
	Habitat for Humanity Home will be dedicated in East Moline The public is invited to help celebrate the Dedication of Habitat Home #144 on Saturday, April 25, a news release says. The brief ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. at 1402 18th St., East Moline. Guests can tour the home after the ceremony. This home was collaboratively funded by sponsorships from Russell Construction, Case [...]
	Central DeWitt plans to move elementary students, creating a single campus The district could close the elementary building and have elementary students attending the main campus starting in the 2029-30 school year if the plan moves forward.
	Two startlingly different views on long-awaited data on America's anti-HIV efforts After a year without data, the State Department released figures on PEPFAR, the program launched by George W. Bush and credited with saving millions of lives. How did Trump's aid cuts affect it?
	Spoonbill Catfish This is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Before I moved to the Mississippi River, I used to worry about God. He never seemed to have much fun. Oh, no question…
	Sycophantic AI flatters and suggests you are not to blame The AI models and chatbots that we interact with tend to affirm our feelings and viewpoints — more so than people do, with potentially worrisome consequences.
	Democrats dominate midterm fundraising, but Republicans have a huge cash advantage The latest campaign finance reports show Democratic enthusiasm in key House and Senate races, but national Republican groups have far more in the bank to potentially spend down the road.
	Senate GOP is kickstarting budget reconciliation to fund ICE. Here's how that works. After a historic partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, Congressional Republicans are looking to a budgetary tool called reconciliation which could enable them to fund immigration enforcement agencies without any Democratic support.
	World Press Photo announces Photo of the Year 2026 The executive director of World Press Photo said this image shows the inconsolable grief of children losing their father in a place built for justice. It is a stark and necessary record of family separation following the U.S. reform policies.
	How TikTok is driving American expats to Southeast Asia Americans who moved to Vietnam and Thailand say their lives are now lower-stress and lower-cost. But glamorous videos on TikTok don't tell the whole story.
	Trump administration flies 10-year-old back from Cuba amid custody fight President Trump's Department of Justice sent a plane this week to Cuba to return a 10-year-old from Utah who is at the center of a custody fight involving the child's gender identity.
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026
	Illinois House approves megaprojects bill, but the Bears want changes The measure, which passed 78-32, is ostensibly a step toward keeping “the pride and joy of Illinois” from bolting for Indiana, where Hoosier lawmakers have tried to lure the NFL’s founding franchise with the promise of more than $1 billion in public subsidies to build a football palace just across the state line in Hammond.
	Bettendorf police adding 2 drone first responders The drones will be used to help provide real-time video footage of crashes, fires, suspect pursuits and more.
	Safer Foundation packs up lunches for annual sack lunch fundraiser The money raised helps provide education and job training for members of the community with criminal records.
	Scott County Waste Commission celebrates collecting 1 billion pounds of recycled goods The milestone amount is enough to fill over 68,000 recycling trucks.
	One occupant transported to hospital after car hits power pole in Silvis One person was transported to a hospital after a car hit a power pole Wednesday morning in Silvis, according to a news release from the Silvis Fire Department. About 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, the Silvis Fire Department responded to a reported vehicle crash in the 900 block of 1st Street involving a vehicle that lost control [...]
	Warrant issued for teen charged with 5 counts of attempted murder in Iowa City shooting The Iowa City police chief said investigators have since received more than 150 tips, served three dozen search warrants, and recovered three firearms.
	Bettendorf City Council approves use of Drone First Responders On Tuesday, April 21, Bettendorf City Council approved a resolution authorizing Bettendorf Police Department to purchase two Drone First Responder (DFR) units, a news release says. These drones will serve as rapid-response aerial resources, allowing officers and firefighters to assess emergency situations more quickly and make informed decisions before arriving on scene, the release says. [...]
	Illinois progresses on school bus driver shortage Illinois is making progress on its school bus driver shortage. First Student is the largest nationwide school transportation provider, working with districts in 38 states. The company collaborated with Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias to lower barriers to hiring, raised pay and expanded training. A State of School Transportation nationwide survey by the Associated Press [...]
	‘Best of the Quad Cities’: Hob Nosh highlights local businesses, bites and beats The Quad Cities Chamber held it’s annual Hob Nosh business showcase at the Bend Expo Center Wednesday night.
	Muscatine appoints new finance director The City of Muscatine has appointed LeAnna McCullough as its next finance director, bringing more than a decade of municipal finance experience and a strong record of service to the Muscatine community, according to a news release. McCullough was officially sworn in by Mayor Brad Bark during the April 21 Muscatine City Council meeting. McCullough [...]
	Vehicle damages power pole, catches fire in crash A vehicle crashed into a power pole Wednesday morning sparking a fire.
	One person suffers minor injuries in Silvis crash that caused power outage The crash downed power lines, which caused a power outage, and the vehicle caught fire.
	Workers at two mental health clinics elect union by large majorities Workers at Rogers Behavioral Health clinics in Madison (left) and West Allis (right) voted overwhelmingly in favor of union representation Wednesday. (Wisconsin Examiner photo collage; building images from Rogers Behavioral Health media files)Employees of two Wisconsin clinics operated by Rogers Behavioral Health voted by large majorities in favor of union representation Wednesday after more than two months in which the mental health nonprofit had campaigned heavily against the union. In West Allis, employees voted 53-4 in favor of joining the National Union of Healthcare Workers. In Madison, the vote to join the union was 26-4. The Oconomowoc-based Rogers has not commented on the outcome. The next step will be for the National Labor Relations Board to certify the results. But a federal lawsuit challenging the agency is still pending. In addition, Rogers said in public statements as well as in communications to the workers before the vote that the company would not begin bargaining with the union until all its appeals have been exhausted. The nonprofit campaigned actively against unionization, telling employees that a union would not have been in the interests of the staff, the patients or the organization. In a final letter distributed on Monday, Rogers urged employees to vote no and made statements that the organization had made mistakes and wanted to be given another chance to improve relationships with the staff without a union. Union supporters welcomed the outcome of Wednesday’s votes. “We are thrilled with the overwhelming victory,” said Stephani Lohman, a nurse practitioner who was among those active in the union organizing campaign. “Over the last few weeks Rogers has shown us exactly why we need a union by running an aggressive anti-worker campaign, trying everything in their toolbox to intimidate and demoralize us, but it failed spectacularly because it was so cruel and wicked that it drove everyone to support the union.” Lohman was one of three employees fired shortly after workers announced their petition for a union. The union has filed unfair labor practice charges over the terminations, claiming that the three were fired in retaliation for their support for unionization, which is illegal under federal law. Rogers has declined to explain the firings, citing employment confidentiality, but said that it has not violated any laws. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Courtesy of Wisconsin Examiner
	Pebble Creek Golf Club, LeClaire, opens under new ownership Pebble Creek Golf Club, 3851 195th St., LeClaire, has opened under new ownership,according to a news release. Under the direction of General Manager Brady Randall, Pebble Creek is embracing a welcoming, semi-private club model designed to offer both members and public guests an elevated yet approachable golf experience. “Our goal is simple,” said Randall. “We [...]
	‘Dangerous’ winter weather broke state records for cold-related deaths, ER visits Emergency department visits for cold-related reasons set a record this winter, along with record numbers of cold-related deaths, cold-related emergency calls and cases of carbon monoxide exposure, new state data shows. (Photo by by Wesley Farnsworth/U.S. Air Force)A “dangerous” winter season with prolonged drops in temperatures led to record-breaking number of both cold-related fatalities and emergency room visits this year, according to reports from the Maryland Department of Health. The numbers serve as a grim reminder to Marylanders to take cold weather seriously and look out for neighbors who may be more vulnerable, state health officials said. “We saw temperatures that we don’t usually see. That kind of cold can be very, very dangerous,” said Clifford S. Mitchell, director of the Maryland Health Department’s Environmental Health Bureau. “It doesn’t have to be that cold for it to be dangerous, but when it does get that cold, we want to emphasize those preventive measures.” According to a recent report from the Maryland Department of Health, the 77 Marylanders who died from cold-related illnesses this year is two more than the previous record of 75, set just last year. Those low temperatures also led to almost 3,000 people landing in the emergency room – most for cold-related reasons, but some due to carbon monoxide exposure, which tends to increase in the cold months. The data comes from weekly updates to the “Maryland Cold-Related Illness Surveillance Report” which issued its last update for the year on April 8. The annual cold season typically runs from November through March, with some years spilling into the first week of April. The cold season surveillance period ended on April 4 this year. “We’re looking very closely at the data and thinking about how we better identify, in greater detail, those people who are at increased risks,” Mitchell said. “We’re trying to understand those increased risks where we can do a better job with our local health department colleagues and emergency services.” The most recent data shows that of the 77 people who died, 46 were 65 or older, a vulnerable group if exposed to extreme temperatures. Almost 70% of the fatalities were men. About 16% of the total deaths were of people who are presumed homeless, while 69% had an address associated with them. The remaining 15% could not be confirmed to have an address or not. The number of emergency room visits for cold-related reasons has been growing over the last four years. (Chart courtesy the Maryland Department of Health) “We really want to try to reach people who are at risk however and wherever we can – that I think is the continuing lesson of this,” Mitchell said. Meanwhile, there were 2,665 people who went to the emergency department or urgent care for cold-related illnesses, well over last year’s record of 2,130 visits. A total of 326 people went to the emergency room for carbon monoxide exposure, beating the previous record of 205 visits from the 2023-2024 cold season. There were also 907 calls for emergency medical services, up from last year’s record of 572. The record-breaking winter comes on the heels of a deadly 2025 heat season that saw the highest number of deaths in over a decade. Mitchell says that some of these extreme temperatures are to be expected due to climate change. He said state officials like the health department and emergency services need to be prepared to help people in times of crisis and more quickly identify vulnerable populations. “Even as we talk about a warming planet, we’re also seeing changes in temperatures that are not only extremely high, but also lower lows and longer lows,” Mitchell said. “We have to be prepared for, and are trying to be prepared for, weather events that are both from extreme heat and related to cold.” SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Maryland Matters
	Nebraska officials weigh in on multimillion-dollar Omaha contract prior to approval The Omaha City Council voted 4-3 to approve a major infrastructure project contract that has the backing of Omaha's mayor but has raised eyebrows of some, including a few top state officials. (Cate Folsom/Nebraska Examiner)OMAHA — Despite “serious questions” raised by Nebraska’s top civil and criminal attorney, the City of Omaha moved forward with a $411 million contract integral to one of its most expensive-ever infrastructure projects. Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers, in an April 21 letter, laid out concerns about the proposed wastewater treatment plant expansion contract with Missouri-based McCarthy Building Companies. A City of Omaha presentation compared the next expansion phase of the Papillion Creek wastewater plant to the size of Memorial Stadium at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (Courtesy of the City of Omaha) In the end, Hilgers said that while his team was bothered by the city’s compliance with a previously-approved agreement, he saw nothing that “appears unlawful.” He said contract approval was a matter best left to the judgement of the City Council. The council voted 4-3 to support the McCarthy pact following a lengthy discussion during this week’s council meeting and more than a month of delays on a decision. Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr. urged approval, saying the agreement ensures reliable wastewater treatment for a growing metro area. He was confident that city officials, with help from HDR and an outside reviewer, presented a contract that protects the interest of taxpayers. “Risk has been carefully managed up front, protecting the city from the sticker shock that often comes with costly change orders during construction,” Ewing said in a letter to the council. The McCarthy agreement became controversial partly because well-known, homegrown Hawkins Construction Co. said it could have done the work for about $78 million less. CEO Chris Hawkins pointed out what he saw as flaws in the process and asked the council to start a new, open bidding process. Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers. March 4, 2026. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) Hawkins, as well as some council members, were skeptical of aspects including a contractual language change that allowed McCarthy to “self-perform” too much of the work rather than undergo competitive bidding. Hilgers also noted that concern and also questioned the accuracy of McCarthy’s fees. State Auditor Mike Foley also became involved, reaching out to council members after fielding “numerous” concerns from taxpayers. In a March 27 letter, he said: “The more I learn about this, the more concerned I become.” But Foley said in an interview this week that the final decision was for the City Council, not his office. The $411 million contract is essentially the more complex and detailed sequel to a $4 million September 2024 contract in which the city selected McCarthy to do pre-construction and design work for the wastewater plant expansion project. Under the “Construction Manager at Risk” project delivery method, which is a relatively new contracting process for the City of Omaha, the council was asked to approve the $411 million “guaranteed maximum price” for work laid out in the roughly 180-page amended agreement approved Tuesday. The project at hand is the upgrade and expansion of the city’s Papillion Creek Water Resource Recovery Facility, which is designed to meet the growing metro area’s wastewater treatment needs through 2050. Nebraska Auditor of Public Accounts Mike Foley. Feb. 5, 2026. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) The city has budgeted about $565 million over six years, including for work laid out in the McCarthy contract and $88.5 million for special aerobic granular sludge equipment and construction of a new Omaha Public Power District substation. According to the Hilgers letter, the language change gives McCarthy the green light to self-perform work worth about $163 million — over 64% of the total costs of direct work. “This volume of self-performance materially differs from what would be expected” based on the earlier agreement, the AG’s letter to Deputy City Attorney Ryan Wiesen stated. However, it said that “because there is some uncertainty surrounding” how the city applied state law, the AG could not conclude that the process was unlawful. “Whether the city chooses to ratify such a departure from the council-approved CMAR agreement is, however, a decision best left to the judgment of the City Council,” said the letter which was discussed publicly. In explaining the uncertainty, the AG looked to state statute that sets the legal baseline for a constructing bidding process. He noted that the statute allows contract refinements so long as those refinements do “not exceed the scope of the project statement contained in the request for proposals.” The AG went on to say that, “as a threshold matter,” he could not readily identify “a definitive ‘project statement’ in the request for proposals” to serve as the baseline for whether the contract changes later sought “exceeds the scope of the project statement.” Omaha City Council members Pete Festersen (left) and Aimee Melton (right), listen to public testimony at a previous hearing. (Aaron Sanderford/Nebraska Examiner) Council members Danny Begley, Pete Festersen, LaVonya Goodwin and Ron Hug voted to approve the contract, while Brinker Harding, Aimee Melton and Don Rowe voted against. Goodwin called the contract situation “very complex” and said she leaned on guidance of city officials who, she noted, believed they operated in “good faith” and within legal bounds. Festersen said the impact on ratepayers was top of mind. He acknowledged the lower unsolicited bid by Hawkins Construction, which city officials have said could not be legally considered and did not guarantee a price. The McCarthy $411 million proposal is viewed as a “guaranteed maximum price.” Festersen said the contract amount would not raise sewer use fees, which is the primary funding source that will cover the project cost. Sewer fees are collected for the City of Omaha by the Metropolitan Utilities District. Begley, while questioning a McCarthy official, noted that some segments of work had been competitively bid even though construction had yet to begin. Hawkins has said his company had hoped to bid on segments of the overall project but was not invited. Jim Theiler, assistant public works director, acknowledged that the team should have consulted earlier with the City Council, but said it acted in the “best interest” of the city. Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr. (Courtesy of City of Omaha) “We fully believed that we were doing what was in accordance with state law,” Theiler said. Harding said the concerns he voiced weeks ago hadn’t changed. He said the original 2024 agreement with McCarthy laid out “the rules of the road” related to work to be self-performed or competitively bid. “I don’t believe that was followed,” said Harding. “We violate the public’s trust if we’re changing it to accommodate the process that … was agreed upon in an earlier action.” Ewing called it a “well thought out and well executed process” to get a “necessary health and environmental project done carefully and on time, given a six-year construction timeline.” SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Courtesy of Nebraska Examiner
	Two Davenport firefighters recognized for off-duty life-saving efforts One incident took place while the firefighter was working out at the YMCA, while the other happened while the firefighter was on vacation in Florida.
	Two people arrested, one wanted in connection with Rock Island stabbing Officers responded to the area of 20th Street and Third Avenue at 2:55 p.m. Monday to investigate a report of a fight involving three men and a male juvenile.
	Quad City Animal Welfare Center seeking help finding hospice homes for senior pets One of their animals looking for a home is Luna, an affectionate and gentle cat born in 2017. She has a pituitary tumor, which requires some extra care.
	Officials warn of invasive 'crazy worm' in Iowa and Illinois, other states There are no effective eradication methods for the worm.
	Illinois bill to require surgical technician certification A bill in Illinois would require surgical technicians to be certified before working in the operating room. The Operating Room Patient Safety Act (House Bill 1598) would to require surgical technologists to be certified by January 1, 2028. Currently, surgical technicians in Illinois are allowed to support operations if they have on the job training. [...]
	Chemical leak at a W.Va. plant kills 2 people, sends 30 more to hospitals, officials say The leak occurred at the Catalyst Refiners plant, a silver recovery business. An emergency management official says workers were preparing to shut down at least part of the facility when the leak occurred, causing a chemical gas reaction.
	Iowa House approves bill adding restrictions on automated license plate reading cameras The Iowa House approved a bill adding restrictions on using automated license plate reading cameras.
	Senate passes tax on vapes, other nicotine products to fund pediatric cancer research The Senate passed a bill Wednesday to implement a nickel tax on alternative nicotine products like nicotine pouches and vapes, with funding to go toward pediatric cancer research at the University of Iowa.
	Bug season could be more active than usual: How to prepare Many people are eager to get outside in the spring, whenever the weather allows. It's the same time that many bugs wake up out of their dormant winter. This year, insects are expected to be more active than usual, and it's all because of the weather from the past months. "Even though it feels like [...]
	Advocates discuss housing bill for people returning from prison Local housing advocates came together Wednesday to learn about a bill providing support for people returning from prison.
	Transportation providers, schools, state officials ease school bus driver shortage In response to the nationwide school bus driver shortage, a partnership emerged between Illinois schools, transportation providers and the secretary of state.
	Pentagon says Navy secretary is leaving, the latest departure of a top defense leader Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said John Phelan, the Navy's top civilian official, was "departing the administration, effective immediately." Navy Undersecretary Hung Cao will become acting secretary of the Navy.
	Illinois launches new tax credits for environment-friendly film projects Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has announced a new tax incentive that gives film and TV productions an extra tax break if they meet environmental sustainability standards.
	Tesla's profits beat expectations, but Elon Musk says big costs are ahead Tesla's profits were up from this time last year. But the company warned investors to prepare for expensive investments in next-generation technology like humanoid robots and AI.
	Latest Hero Street documentary will screen at free Morrison, Ill., film festival The Northwest Illinois Film Office has announced the return of its signature event. The Sixth Annual Northwest Illinois Film Festival: Shorts‑A‑Palooza 2026, taking place Wednesday,April 29, at Morrison Tech, 701 Portland Ave., Morrison, Ill. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. withscreenings beginning at 7 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public. “Shorts‑A‑Palooza continues to [...]
	Sunset nearing 8pm in the Quad Cities Have you noticed more and more daylight lately in the Quad Cities? That's the case for early risers AND for people enjoying some of this nice weather in the evening. Our sunset is now approaching 8pm! A couple months ago it was much earlier, and 4 months ago it was setting before 5pm! 2 months [...]
	Tick season off to strong start nationwide, experts urge precautions Tick-related emergency room visits are more than double the usual nationwide, according to the CDC. Experts share why this is and how to stay safe outdoors.
	Bettendorf City Council approves emergency response drone purchase to enhance public safety The Bettendorf Police Department will be getting two drones for emergency response situations.
	From furniture store to music hub: Davenport building to become Sound Factory Bruce’s New & Used Furniture in downtown Davenport is getting a new life—one centered around music and community.
	New bill to create housing opportunities for formerly incarcerated people Project NOW and dozens of community partners got together on Wednesday to discuss what opportunities a new affordable housing bill could present in Illinois. Known as the Home for Good Act (House Bill 624), it would expand housing, focusing on housing for people who are getting out of prison. It would fund an option that [...]
	Geifman Group to buy former Quad-City Times building The sale of the former Quad-City Times building is pending, with the Geifman Group set to take ownership.
	Volunteers pack hundreds of lunches for Safer Foundation fundraiser The lunches are for the Safer Foundation’s sack lunch fundraiser, which supports programs that help previously incarcerated people with reentry into society.
	Iowa Board of Regents to make decision on tuition increases at state universities The Iowa Board of Regents is set to make a final decision on tuition increases at state universities. The board is set to meet April 22 and April 23 at the Iowa State University Alumni Center in Ames. Members will discuss and take action on increasing resident undergraduate tuition by 3%.A vote on the proposal [...]
	Riverdale students give back to community on Earth Day, National Volunteer Week In total, the middle school students had the opportunity to volunteer with one of 18 projects.
	Peking restaurant in Muscatine announce closure The news comes after recent reductions in hours and menu options.
	Muscatine bond rating reflects 'responsible financial stewardship' Moody’s Investors Service has assigned the City of Muscatine an Aa2 credit rating for its upcoming $5 million General Obligation Corporate Purpose Bonds, Series 2026A, citing the city’s stable population trends, expanding tax base, consistent financial operations, and healthy reserves, a news release says. The city will receive bids for the bonds on Tuesday, May [...]
	Teen charged in Iowa City shooting that injured 5 Police are searching for a Cedar Rapids teenager who has been charged in connection with the Pedestrian Mall shooting in Iowa City on April 19.
	Lou Fusz Kia cuts ribbon on new facility The dealership's state-of-the-art new space has an upgraded showroom, expanded service department and a boost in customer hospitality.
	Warrant issued for teen charged with 5 counts of attempted murder in Iowa City shooting The Iowa City police chief said investigators have since received more than 150 tips, served three dozen search warrants, and recovered three firearms.
	Field of Dreams to open new ballpark with high school baseball series The Field of Dreams Movie Site will open its new ballpark with a high school baseball series in June featuring teams from eastern Iowa.
	Senate passes tax on vapes, other nicotine products to fund pediatric cancer research Users of vapes and other alternative nicotine products would pay more under a new tax approved by the Iowa Senate on April 22, 2026. (Photo by Peter Dazeley/Getty Images)The Senate passed a bill Wednesday to implement a nickel tax on alternative nicotine products like nicotine pouches and vapes, with funding to go toward pediatric cancer research at the University of Iowa. Senate File 2480, passed with unanimous support, would create a 5-cent tax on these other nicotine products on a per-unit basis. Containers of nicotine pouches containing up to 20 pouches would be taxed 5 cents, adding a proportionate tax for each unit above 20 within a container. Vape products would be taxed at 5 cents per milliliter of nicotine or a nicotine analog in a solution, with the tax applying both to disposable vapes and vape cartridges, but not to components, parts or accessories used in the device “when not sold in combination with any substance containing nicotine.” SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The funding generated from this tax would be put into the state’s health care trust fund, a Medicaid appropriation program. From there, up to $3 million would flow to the Iowa Board of Regents specifically to conduct pediatric cancer research, clinical therapy trials and provide physician-scientist leadership at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. The measure was amended to ensure the first $3 million goes to the UI system — any excess revenue generated past this point would stay within the pool for Medicaid funding. During the subcommittee meeting on the measure, health care and anti-nicotine advocates called for implementing a higher tax on these nicotine products as well as raising the tobacco tax, saying the nickel proposal was not enough to discourage new or current users from buying the products. Sen. Kara Warme, R-Ames, who floor managed the bill, acknowledged these concerns, but said she supported the bill moving forward to create funding for cancer research. “I understand that the level of tax we’re looking at here is not likely to be enough to deter usage, but it is enough to create this investment in pediatric cancer research that we all want to get behind, with any remaining funds going to the health care trust fund for funding Medicaid in our state — which again is impacted by the costs of these addictive products,” Warme said. While the legislation passed without opposition, several Democrats said they would like to see a higher tax that would serve as a deterrent. Sen. Molly Donahue, D-Marion, said she supported the cancer research funding, but asked Warme if she would work with her or other members of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee in 2027 to “up that tax, so that we can really make an effort to curtail the use of these.” Warme said she was willing to continue work on the issue, and said she supported raising taxes on nicotine and tobacco products — pointing to her support for raising the excise tax for cigarettes and tobacco products, and create a new tax on consumable hemp and vapor products, provisions originally included in Gov. Kim Reynolds’ “MAHA” bill. Though the bill received a 9-8 vote in the Senate HHS Committee, because the bill did not receive approval from 10 members of the 18 member committee, it did not advance. “I brought forward the governor’s proposal of an increase in cigarette tax,” Warme said. “(I) reached across, looking, pleading for votes to get it done, and very publicly came up one vote short. I thought it was important that we take that public vote, and I would be happy to continue the discussion so we can do things to lower our lung cancer, and help us continue to take steps in the right direction.” The governor’s proposal also included several other provisions related to “Make America Healthy Again” initiatives, including allowing for the over-the-counter distribution of ivermectin, as well as requiring the state to continuously request waivers from the federal government to keep in place restrictions on purchasing unhealthy foods through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the federal Summer EBT program. This measure has advanced as House File 2676, but was amended early in the House committee process to remove the nicotine and tobacco tax components. Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, said though he believed “quite frankly, the industry is the one that wrote” the nickel tax bill, he still supported moving the measure forward because he supported funding pediatric cancer research. He also pointed to the measure as an nicotine industry-supported measure because of conflicting reports on how much money would be generated by the tax. Dotzler said while representatives for companies making and selling these products told lawmakers the tax would generate significantly more than $3 million in a year, the Legislative Services Agency fiscal note on the proposal predicted it will take until 2031 for the tax to generate $3 million. “The fact that we have this bill and there’s some money going to children’s cancer research makes it a bill that everybody’s going to support,” Dotzler said. “But the reality of the situation is, we are not really helping reduce cancer by this insignificant amount, because people are switching to the vapes, and they’re using more nicotine, because it’s so easy. … Just think, if we’d have had just another nickel on it, we could have hit the $3 million immediately.” Though he said he was disappointed by the measure, he said he supported Warme in continuing to work on raising nicotine and tobacco taxes, telling Warme, “I know you fully understand these issues, and I have faith that in the future, we can hopefully move this a little farther in the right direction.” Warme said there was some dispute about the estimated revenue impacts, saying the LSA note was created with “very limited information” because the substances are not taxed currently. She said she was confident, working with industry representatives, that the correct estimate for the tax would be $15 million to $18 million in revenue during the first year of implementation. “To me, this shows that only a nickel really adds up when we work together — A lot of nickels turns into $15 to $18 million,” Warme said. “And yes, it’s a tiny step forward. But for families who have a little one with cancer, they are begging and pleading and praying for their little one to take a tiny step forward.” The Senate bill is not the only proposal lawmakers are considering to fund UI pediatric cancer research. On Tuesday, the House passed House File 2758, which would create a standing appropriation of $1 for every Iowan, capped at $3 million, to be appropriated to Board of Regents for pediatric cancer research in the UIHC system. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Iowa Capital Dispatch
	Scam Alert: Iowa State Patrol warns of court hearing text scam Multiple phones have gotten a text claiming to be a final court notice from the state, according to a Facebook post.
	Free Autism Acceptance Walk set for April 25 in East Moline The walk is hosted by the Autism Society of the Quad Cities. Another nonprofit, the Quad Cities Autism Center, says the local need for services is rising.
	Spring Fling fundraiser to support Quad Cities refugees You're invited to join the nonprofit, Tapestry Farms, for an evening of food, music, auctions and a flower bar. The money supports local refugees and urban gardens.
	Davenport police conduct death investigation near railroad tracks The body was found near the 3300 block of Hickory Grove Road. An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the cause of death.
	River Action Quad Cities cleans up Indian Spring Park for Earth Day Organizers say the event helps build a relationship with the land we live on.
	Iowa bill for pediatric cancer research funding advances A bill unanimously passed in the Iowa House of Representatives for funding for pediatric cancer research. House File 2057 would provide almost $3 million to the state board of regents for pediatric cancer research at the university of Iowa hospitals and clinics. The bill now heads to the Senate for approval. For more information, click [...]
	Quad Cities Summer Games return for 35th year with new events, expanded access Formerly known as the QC Senior Games, this year's event runs from May 16-30. A mix of athletic, crafting & performing competitions are open to those 40 and older.
	New Jersey reports first measles case of 2026 involving Hudson County resident Assemblyman Al Barlas (R-Essex) questions the state Health Commissioner about additional funding to pay staff working on the state's vaccination programs. (Photo: Dana DiFilippo/New Jersey Monitor.)State health officials announced New Jersey’s first measles case for 2026 on Wednesday, hours after a legislative hearing that touched on Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s plan to increase state funding for immunization programs by nearly $4 million. A Hudson County resident was diagnosed with measles following a trip abroad, according to the state Department of Health, which urged people to remain current on their vaccinations and be on the lookout for symptoms: fever, runny nose, cough and eventually a telltale rash. The infected individual visited Newark Liberty International Airport’s terminal B on April 14 between 5:50 a.m. and 9 a.m., state officials said. They were also at the Hackensack University Medical Center’s pediatric emergency room from around 11 p.m. on April 17 through 3:15 a.m. the following day, they said. New Jersey counted a dozen measles cases in 2025. Cases around the nation have continued to escalate in recent years across several states, with more than 2,200 recorded last year and at least 1,700 cases diagnosed nationwide by mid-April, health officials said. Health Commissioner Raynard Washington said these trends underscore the need to invest in New Jersey’s immunization system. If untreated, measles can cause severe complications, including pneumonia and swelling of the brain, and in pregnant people can result in miscarriage, premature birth and a low-birthweight baby. “Vaccines remain essential and highly effective tools to prevent illness. With statewide vaccination rates declining, the Sherrill administration and our department are committed to ensuring all New Jerseyans who want a vaccine, can get one,” he told members of the Assembly budget committee Wednesday. Lawmakers are now reviewing the $60.7 billion spending plan Sherrill proposed earlier this year and must craft and adopt a final budget before the new fiscal year begins July 1. Under Sherrill’s plan, the state would boost spending on its vaccination program from $1 million this year to $3 million to fund more shots for adults without insurance coverage. Her budget also provides $4.4 million, an increase of $1.9 million, to modernize the state’s immunization information system, which helps health care workers monitor who needs shots and when they are needed. New Jersey is also slated to receive some $17.6 million in federal funding for the national vaccines for children program, which pays to immunize kids who aren’t covered by insurance. Washington called this funding “critical” and said the children’s initiative is “a program our country should be proud of.” “Unfortunately our country does not have a vaccines for adults program,” Washington said, which is why the state is increasing funding for this work. Washington said the programs are especially important as vaccination rates decline in New Jersey and nationwide. The Garden State lost ‘herd immunity’ status last year, meaning the level of immunization coverage is no longer robust enough to prevent some diseases from spreading in the community. Less than 92% of youngsters have been vaccinated against measles, Washington told lawmakers earlier this year, while herd immunity for that disease — one of the most contagious — requires 95% of people to be immunized. While some parents have concerns about vaccines, others just forget or get confused by the schedule, he said, making updates to the immunization information system so important. “We see what happens when we don’t have the right coverage we need to protect communities,” Washington said, noting that kids get sick, miss school and struggle academically. “And the last thing we want is kids dying in our state from infectious disease when we can prevent them,” he said. Assemblyman Gabriel Rodrigues (D-Hudson) urged Washington to work with schools to help educate parents on the need. “I never would have thought that we’d be discussing measles and deaths as a result of unvaccinated children,” he said. While some Republican lawmakers have questioned the need for more spending on vaccine programs, Assemblyman Al Barlas (R-Essex) focused on a subset of the allocations intended to pay for additional health department staff. He suggested the money would be better spent on certain community based programs, many of which were cut under Sherrill’s proposal. “This is not an anti-vax conversation,” Barlas said. “What I’m having a hard time reconciling is, we have a tough budget year,” he said, reiterating the Sherrill administration’s message, “but you are also increasing allotments for payroll while cutting programs.” Washington said some of the staff funding was needed to replace federal revenue — which will soon disappear — that had been used to pay the workers in the wake of the pandemic. “Investments in our state’s immunization registry are essential to core public health operations,” he said, adding, “this is so the system is functional.” Courtesy of New Jersey Monitor
	QCA teams to christen new Field of Dreams ballpark in If You Build It series Several Quad Cities-area baseball teams will play in a series at the new professional ballpark built at the Field of Dreams movie site.
	Nature’s table: Why the Central Wasatch needs food too The mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon is pictured on Sunday, March 31, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)This year, as locals head into the Central Wasatch Mountains to plant and picnic for Arbor Day, they carry with them a 16th century Spanish tradition that inspired Don Ramón Vacas Roxo, the priest at Villanueva de La Sierra in Cáceres, Spain. In 1805, Don Ramón was so “convinced of the importance of trees for health, hygiene, decoration, nature, environment and customs,” that he led the first modern Arbor Day celebration with a three-day tree planting festival. In our modern landscape, his conviction remains vital. Thriving forests and community health are linked by a fundamental, universal thread: food. Across the country and the world, food access is a paradoxical crisis. Migrant food service and production workers — the very community members feeding the globe — are frequently those with the highest levels of food insecurity. The Central Wasatch encompasses several ski resorts that temporarily employ South American immigrants via the J-1 and H-2B visa programs. These workers are more often positioned in food service roles than as ski and snowboarding instructors. In Park City, many rely on humanitarian services provided by the Christian Center of Park City to acquire sufficient food for their pantries. However, food service employment presents a reductionist view of Hispanic and Latino relationships with our beloved Central Wasatch. For many, these mountains are a sanctuary for celebrating heritage while sharing a meal. In oral history interviews conducted by Olivia Juarez, Community-Practitioner-In-Residence with the University of Utah Environmental Humanities program, participants often recounted the importance of food in forest outings. One participant who grew up in Salt Lake City’s Glendale neighborhood fondly recalled carne asada, sliced watermelon, macaroni salad, tortillas, meat, rice, salsas, queso fresco, and elote (corn) on a Millcreek Canyon picnic table during a family outing. He also described the food he brings backpacking: “It’s so elaborate. And I carry that with me today. I go backpacking quite a bit with friends in the Uintas and they’re always laughing with the amount of, like, (intricate) food that I bring. Like they have the typical freeze-dried (foods) and I’ll have literally carne asada and, like, tortillas. And I’ll have a stovetop cooker and they’d be like, ‘Woah, that’s like a lot of weight to bring up.’ And I’m like, ‘It’s worth it…’ You should eat good when you’re out.” Another ultra-marathon-running oral history participant highlighted a Millcreek Canyon gathering: “Some of us went running and some went hiking. But at the end, we all met to eat and have a barbecue. It was like a potluck so everybody brought something. Yeah, it was actually one of my favorite memories… There was a lot of food. And everybody brought food from their country or (the) city where they’re from. It was delicious… Everybody, they asked me questions about the food I brought. I asked questions and (had a) learning experience through food … I was in charge of making the carne asada that day. I took the meat … I love cooking for others … I think I’m known in the Wasatch Trails Collective for cooking more than running.” Whether in the mountain backcountry or at a day-use site, food, friendship, and outdoor heritage are inseparable. Especially when traditional foods become a point of connection. An exemplary instance of this is the Indigenous Central American farming method of cultivating corn, beans and squash with other produce within La Milpa. The products of this time-tested technique are at the center of many national forest picnic tables. This agricultural heritage interacts with another matter of Central Wasatch Mountain gatherings: food access. Food deserts exist within Salt Lake City and the Central Wasatch region where healthy, affordable, fresh produce is unavailable. As an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Forest Service’s mandate should extend beyond timber and trails to augment healthy, affordable food access in mountain communities. Most of us support the Forest Service’s role in maintaining accessible forests for all. We know that the stakes are high for a Forest Service that should optimize community well-being. Recent agency restructuring ordered by USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, will shutter Ogden’s Intermountain Region office, Logan’s Forestry Sciences Laboratory, and Cedar City’s Rocky Mountain Research Station. How this will affect Forest Service operations is yet unknown but the danger is clear: if we lose our national forest infrastructure — our picnic tables, fire rings, and grills — we lose a seat at the table. This Arbor Day, Don Ramón’s 1805 sentiment remains increasingly relevant. For local outdoor recreation and traditions to continue, the Forest Service must remain a steward of inclusive, accessible spaces while enhancing healthy, affordable, and culturally-sustaining food availability. Courtesy of Utah News Dispatch
	Bettendorf police adding 2 drone first responders The drones will be used to help provide real-time video footage of crashes, fires, suspect pursuits and more.
	Vacunas de rutina para personas mayores: qué es lo que quiere el farmacéutico que usted sepa sobre la culebrilla y más (BPT) - Para varias personas, la culebrilla no es una preocupación habitual, sino simplemente una erupción dolorosa sucede. Pero, en realidad, es mucho más grave, ya que aproximadamente una de cada tres personas adultas es afectada por la culebrilla en el transcurso de su vida.1 Para algunas de ellas, la típica erupción dolorosa es solo el principio. Algunas de las consecuencias duraderas, que se suelen subestimar, pueden ser dolor nervioso intenso y persistente, sensación de ardor y comezón que continúa por largo tiempo después de la desaparición de la erupción. Es fundamental reconocer todos los síntomas de esta enfermedad, para comprender por qué la prevención con la vacunación es un elemento esencial para un envejecimiento saludable, especialmente para las personas mayores de 50 años o con un sistema inmunitario debilitado.Más que "un sarpullido"La culebrilla es causado por el mismo virus que provoca la varicela, el virus varicela-zóster. Según los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC), más del 99% de los estadounidenses nacidos antes de 1980 han tenido varicela, aunque no lo recuerden.1 Después de que una persona se recupera de la varicela, el virus permanece inactivo en el organismo y puede reactivarse años más tarde y provocar la culebrilla. Cuando se reactiva, las consecuencias pueden ser graves."La culebrilla puede provocar dolor intenso, complicaciones como dolor de nervios y hasta hospitalización", afirmó Samantha Picking, doctora en Farmacia y directora (Senior) de inmunizaciones de Walgreens. "Una de las complicaciones más frecuentes de la culebrilla es la neuralgia posherpética, una condición que puede provocar un dolor ardiente de los nervios y persistente por un largo tiempo después de que desaparece la erupción. Para algunas personas, este dolor puede interferir su vida diaria al dormir, trabajar y en las actividades cotidianas, y prolongarse durante meses o incluso años."La mejor defensa es la prevenciónAunque las consecuencias de la culebrilla pueden ser graves, esta es también una enfermedad altamente prevenible. Según las recomendaciones de la CDC, las personas mayores de 50 años y las personas mayores de 19 años con un sistema inmunitario debilitado deben darse dos dosis de la vacuna contra la culebrilla.2 Los estudios demuestran que la vacuna tiene una eficacia del 97% en la prevención de la culebrilla en personas adultas de entre 50 y 69 años con un sistema inmunitario sano, y del 91% en la prevención de la neuralgia posherpética.Algunas personas podrían tener síntomas secundarios leves tras la vacunación, pero estos suelen desaparecer en unos días."Aunque es posible que algunas personas sientan molestias después de obtener la vacuna contra la culebrilla, como dolor en el brazo o cansancio, estas son considerablemente menos dolorosas que el dolor y las posibles complicaciones asociadas con una infección por la culebrilla", afirmó Picking.Además, la mayoría de los planes de seguro, incluida la Parte D de Medicare y varias aseguradoras médicas privadas, cubren las vacunas contra la culebrilla, por lo que son accesibles y, en general, son gratuitas para las personas que cumplen los requisitos.Más allá de la culebrilla: otras vacunas importantes para personas mayoresTener todas las vacunas de rutina al día es una de las formas más sencillas de proteger su salud a medida que uno avanze en edad."Además de la culebrilla, recomiendo la consulta con un farmacéutico sobre otras vacunas de rutina que son fundamentales para que uno avance en edad de la manera más saludable; se trata de tener un enfoque preventivo en el cuidado de la salud y no reactivo", afirmó Picking.Si tiene 50 años o más, es posible que sea elegible para recibir las vacunas contra el neumococo y el virus sincicial respiratorio (VSR), además de una dosis de refuerzo de la vacuna contra el tétano, la difteria y la tos ferina (Tdap). La CDC también recomiendan una segunda dosis de la vacuna contra la COVID-19 para las personas mayores de 65 años, y es posible que las personas con un sistema inmunitario debilitado sean elegibles para obtener una dosis adicional."Es totalmente normal tener dudas sobre las vacunas", afirmó Picking. "Para eso precisamente están los farmacéuticos locales. Somos expertos altamente especializados y de fácil acceso, y estamos dispuestos a orientarle, atender sus inquietudes, y ayudarlo a tomar decisiones informadas sobre su salud".Walgreens: su aliado en la saludTener las vacunas de rutina al día puede parecer complicado, pero en Walgreens es más fácil, ya que ofrece la posibilidad de programar varias vacunas en una misma visita y con horarios flexibles, lo que incluye citas en el mismo día, por la noche y los fines de semana. También se aceptan visitas sin cita previa.Acérquese sin cita previa o programe una cita en Walgreens.com/ScheduleVaccine, a través de la aplicación de Walgreens o por teléfono al 1-800-WALGREENS.1 Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades. "Acerca de la culebrilla (herpes zóster)". 17 de enero de 2025.https://www.cdc.gov/shingles/es/about/acerca-de-la-culebrilla-herpes-zoster.html2 Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades. "Vacunación contra la culebrilla (herpes zóster)". 19 de agosto de 2025.https://www.cdc.gov/shingles/es/vaccines/vacunacion-contra-la-culebrilla.html
	A chance for some storms tomorrow night We have been getting a lot of very nice weather for us here in the Quad Cities with temperatures in the 80s. But it is not going to last forever. We are watching a chance for some showers and thunderstorms tomorrow late into the night by around midnight, and hitting the Quad Cities closer to [...]
	Federal judge voids RFK Jr.’s ‘unlawful’ directive banning gender-affirming care Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a rally earlier this year in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Whitney Downard/Pennsylvania Capital-Star)A federal district judge in Oregon overturned Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s directive that said health care facilities providing gender-affirming care to minors are barred from Medicare and Medicaid. U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, in a scathing opinion filed Saturday, called Kennedy’s Dec. 18 directive “one of a long list of examples of how a leader’s wanton disregard for the rule of law causes very real harm to very real people.” “Secretary Kennedy’s unlawful declaration harmed children. This case illustrates that when a leader acts without authority and in the absence of the rule of law, he acts with cruelty,” Kasubhai wrote. Kasubhai vacated the Dec. 18 declaration on “Safety, Effectiveness and Professional Standards of Care for Sex-Rejecting Procedures on Children and Adolescents,” as unlawful, saying Kennedy exceeded his authority and failed to follow required procedures for setting regulations. He also ruled that federal officials lack the authority to set standards that supersede standards of care in the 21 states and the District of Columbia that sued to block the directive. And he prohibited HHS from trying to enforce the “Kennedy Declaration” or “any materially similar policy.” In a brief emailed statement, HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard said, “HHS will continue to fight to protect our nation’s children, as this Biden-appointed judge’s ruling puts radical ideology ahead of their safety.” Rhode Island was one of 21 states and D.C. that filed suit on Dec. 23, claiming Kennedy’s directive exceeded his authority, violated the states’ rights to manage their Medicare systems as they saw fit and effectively banned “by fiat, an entire category of healthcare.” Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, welcomed the ruling. “When families and doctors make healthcare decisions together, no federal official should be able to use threats and intimidation to get in the way,” Rayfield said in a statement Monday. “That’s what Secretary Kennedy tried to do — force hospitals and providers to abandon their patients. Oregon will always stand up for the dignity and wellbeing of every person.” The dispute stems from the Dec. 18 directive that says, “Sex-rejecting procedures for children and adolescents are neither safe nor effective as a treatment modality for gender dysphoria, gender incongruence, or other related disorders in minors, and therefore, fail to meet professional [sic] recognized standards of health care.” Kennedy said in a news conference that day, according to Kasubhai’s opinion, that the declaration should be taken as “a clear directive to providers to follow the science and the overwhelming body of evidence that these procedures hurt — not help — children” and that anyone providing such care would be “out of compliance with these standards of healthcare.” Any health care provider that fails to meet professionally recognized standards of care can be excluded from participation in Medicare and Medicaid — effectively cut off from federal funding — on a finding by the HHS Office of Inspector General. In the weeks after the directive was issued, HHS General Counsel Mike Stuart referred 18 health care facilities that offered gender-affirming care to the inspector general for investigation under the Dec. 18 directive. The directive had the intended effect. By Feb. 11, Stuart was saying on social media that “more than 40 hospital systems across the country have made the right decision to stop these heinous procedures.” HHS argued in court that the declaration was not a “‘definitive statement’ on the standard of care” that the inspector general has to apply, but merely Kennedy’s musings on the topic, and could not be challenged by the states as an official regulation. And because the inspector general has not ruled on any of the referrals, there is no damage for the states to assert, the government said. It also claimed that reversing the directive would deny Kennedy his First Amendment right to express his views on important public issues. Kasubhai called that argument “asburd,” and said he could “scarcely recall an … action that has come before it [the court] in which the agency’s action was so clearly unlawful.” He said many of the government’s arguments were based on “falsehoods.” “Defendants cannot bully or gaslight this Court into ignoring the many procedural and legal flaws of the Kennedy Declaration by invoking one of the most sacred principles of our constitutional democracy — the freedom of speech — when that principle comes nowhere close to being implicated,” Kasubhai wrote. He said the states’ lawsuit has nothing to do with Kennedy’s right to express his opinion about gender-affirming care for minors. “Rather, Plaintiffs’ claims challenge Secretary Kennedy’s authority to unilaterally, categorically, and without any process, supersede professional standards of care regarding gender-affirming care that apply in the Plaintiff states,” he wrote. What is at stake, Kasubhai said, is the rule of law and state sovereignty. “The Kennedy Declaration exceeded Defendants’ statutory authority, flouted applicable notice and comment rulemaking procedures, and impeded Plaintiffs’ rights to regulate the medical profession and their discretion to design their own statutorily-compliant Medicaid plans,” he wrote, before entering his order. In addition to Rhode Island, Oregon and D.C., states involved in the suit included California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. Courtesy of Rhode Island Current
	Free Autism Acceptance Walk set for April 25 in East Moline The walk is hosted by the Autism Society of the Quad Cities. Another nonprofit, the Quad Cities Autism Center, says the local need for services is rising.
	Eldridge rejects three proposals to lease community center and roller rink Council members said the proposals would have required more city subsidies to operate and indicated they'd like to sell the building.
	Care facility says it’s ‘diligently working’ to correct medication issues New Hope Village in Carroll, Iowa, is facing sanctions from state regulators at the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing. (Photo via Google Earth; logo courtesy of DIAL)The administrator of a state-sanctioned Iowa care facility for intellectually disabled adults says “immediate steps” are being taken to address recurring issues involving hundreds of medication errors. Since January 2025, New Hope Village in Carroll has been repeatedly cited for failing to properly handle or administer residents’ medications and failing to properly document the medication errors by the staff. Specific violations have included a failure to provide one of the home’s 42 residents with his prescribed medications while he was suffering from seizures, and mistakenly feeding another resident shampoo through a gastronomy tube. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Recently, the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing placed on “conditional” status the home’s license as an intermediate care facility for individuals with disabilities. Since Feb. 11, 2026, DIAL has been imposing a $50 daily fine for each day the nonprofit facility remains out of compliance with regulations. DIAL officials say those fines remain in effect, which means they would total roughly $3,550 at this point. The administrator of New Hope Village, Lacie Tedrow, said in a written statement that the home is addressing DIAL’s concerns. “We take this matter very seriously and are fully cooperating with Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing,” Tedrow said. “We have taken immediate steps to correct their findings and are diligently working to take further steps to fully comply with their findings. “New Hope is committed to meeting the health, safety, and well-being of all individuals served. Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for individuals with disabilities by providing a safe, caring and welcoming home environment. It is the heart of our work, and we are dedicated to living that mission as we provide services and supports.” Tedrow added that all of the home’s medication aides are now fully trained and the home’s governing body is now more fully involved in oversight of the home. State records show that in September 2025, in the midst of repeated medication-error violations, New Hope’s CEO at the time, Jennifer Quigley, asked DIAL for a waiver that would exempt the facility from a set of specific training requirements for certified medication aides, noting that the home had been struggling with staff turnover and had difficulty recruiting medication aides. DIAL’s interim director, Aaron Baack, agreed to issue the waiver, telling Quigley in November 2025 that the agency concluded the continued imposition of the training requirement “would pose an undue hardship” on New Hope Village. Three months later, in February 2026, inspectors from DIAL reported that the director of nursing at New Hope Village had confirmed the facility had trained only one of its 11 certified medication aides by the agreed-upon date of Jan. 31, 2026. The state’s training-requirement waiver is to remain in effect until May 1, 2026. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Iowa Capital Dispatch
	Clinton Hy-Vee breaks ground on new community garden Hy-Vee in Clinton marked Earth Day with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new community garden. The garden will provide more fresh produce to people in Clinton County as part of a partnership between the Clinton Hy-Vee and two local organizations. The Clinton Hy-Vee is hosting the garden on its property, providing water for the plants [...]
	WATCH LIVE: Iowa City police to hold first press conference on Ped Mall shooting The Iowa City Police Department is preparing for a press conference about the shooting at Iowa City’s pedestrian mall over the weekend.
	More immigrants are being held in detention for over a year. NPR followed one family's ordeal. The El Gamal family has been held in ICE detention for more than 320 days. They are not alone: the number of immigrants who've been in ICE detention for over a year has skyrocketed.
	How Busy Families Can Balance Time, Taste and Nutrition (Feature Impact) In those precious few minutes between waking up and heading out the door or arriving home from school pickup, the pantry is a common destination. Seeking a grab-and-go lunch, sending your student off with a bite of protein or searching for an afternoon snack can leave you scanning the shelves for a go-to solution. With snackers increasingly mindful about what they put in their bodies, you’re not alone if you’re looking for a snacking shakeup – in fact, in a recent survey conducted by Bumble Bee Seafoods and FleishmanHillard’s TRUE Global Intelligence, 50% of Americans agreed it’s hard to find snacks that meet all their needs. According to the survey, people are looking for foods that offer: “Bang for their buck” (78%) Affordability (61%) Protein packed (51%) Meet specific dietary goals (48%) Easy to eat on the go (35%) Among all factors, however, 70% said great taste is most important, proving flavor remains the single biggest driver of snacking decisions. In response to demand for powerhouse snacks that do it all while tasting amazing, Bumble Bee Snackers easy-open, single-serve cans are shaking up snack time with a variety of bold flavors that are perfect for any time, place, budget or craving. The various unique flavors can be eaten right from the can and are perfect for snacking occasions, from zesty Lemon Pepper to bold and savory Hickory Smoke, tastebud-tingling Sweet Heat, spicy Thai Chili and nostalgic Tuna Salad while traditionalists can opt for classic Chunk Light Tuna. “Snacking has evolved,” said Dana Kowal, senior director brand marketing and corporate affairs at Bumble Bee Seafoods. “People want it all: bold flavor, real protein and grab-and-go simplicity – and they want it at a price that makes sense.” The 3-ounce cans are premixed and can be enjoyed straight from the can, paired with crackers or veggies, or tossed in salads, sandwiches or wraps. To turn them into quick, family-friendly dinners or make-ahead lunches, consider these adorably colorful and crave-worthy Rainbow Tuna Bowls balanced with sweet mango, creamy avocado, crisp radish and spicy tuna. For a perfect addition to game day, these Bang Bang Tuna Sliders are spicy, creamy, crunchy and easier to make than they look with just a few ingredients and fun flavor. Tuna is topped with a layer of coleslaw and spicy mayo to solve those afternoon hunger pangs whether you’re in the office or enjoying the comforts of home. To find more snacking solutions that are packed with flavor while saving time and money, visit BumbleBee.com. Rainbow Tuna Bowls Servings: 2 2 cups cooked sushi rice 2 radishes, sliced 1 can Bumble Bee Snackers Sweet Heat Tuna 1 mango, cubed 3 tablespoons shelled edamame 1 avocado, sliced 1/4 cup shredded red cabbage 2 tablespoons thinly sliced scallion furikake, for serving Sriracha, for serving In two shallow bowls, layer rice on bottom then evenly divide radish, tuna, mango, edamame, avocado, cabbage and scallion. Sprinkle with furikake and Sriracha. Bang Bang Tuna Sliders Servings: 2 8 ounces tri-color shredded cabbage (coleslaw mix) 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (1 lime) 2 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/4 cup mayo 2 tablespoons sweet Thai chili sauce 1 can Bumble Bee Snackers Thai Chili Tuna, included whole chili minced and reserved 4 slider buns In small bowl, mix cabbage, lime juice, oil and salt. In another small bowl, mix mayo, chili sauce and minced chili from tuna can. On bottom of each bun, evenly divide layer of coleslaw followed by tuna. Drizzle sauce over top, to taste. Cap with top bun and serve.
	Spring Fling fundraiser to support Quad Cities refugees You're invited to join the nonprofit, Tapestry Farms, for an evening of food, music, auctions and a flower bar. The money supports local refugees and urban gardens.
	Idaho committee begins process of awarding $186 million in rural health funding The Idaho State Capitol building in Boise as seen on Jan. 11, 2023. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun)A committee of Republican Idaho legislators that is overseeing a $930 million, five-year federal grant intended to improve rural health care held its first meeting Wednesday at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Members of the new Rural Health Transformation Committee will provide governance and recommendations to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare as the department works to award the entirety of this year’s $186 million portion of the grant by an Oct. 30 deadline. All 10 legislators serving on the committee are Republicans. There are no Democrats on the committee. “This is really to transform and bring innovation to health care in our rural communities really quickly,” Idaho Department of Health and Welfare Director Juliet Charron told committee members Wednesday. Wednesday’s meeting was all about getting the committee up and running and going over the timelines and requirements for awarding the funding. Idaho to receive $930 million in federal funds to improve rural health care access Between now and June, department officials will prepare requests for proposals and begin soliciting competitive subgrants to award the funding. “We have a lot of work to do in this first year,” Charron said. “I think hopefully (it will be) smooth sailing in years two through five. But in this first year we’re kind of on a shortened timeline from when we received our award.” State officials found out in late December that Idaho would receive funding through the grant. Money for the Rural Health Transformation Program comes from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that President Donald Trump signed into law last summer. The law provides $50 billion to transform rural health care delivery in every state. Idaho received almost $186 million in funding for the first year and expects to receive a total of about $929 million combined over the five-year program. However, Charron said the amount of funding awarded to states in future years could go up or down based on how states comply with timelines and grant requirements. Charron told state legislators that Idaho has developed five initiatives related to the Rural Health Transformation Program: Improving rural access to care through technology Ensuring accessible, quality care through innovative models Sustaining the rural workforce with training, recruitment and retention Implementing population specific, evidence-based projects to “Make America Healthy Again” Investing in rural health infrastructure and partnerships The Idaho Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee created the new Rural Health Transformation Committee via Senate Bill 1453, which the Idaho House of Representatives passed on the final day of the 2026 legislative session. Committee members did not take any formal action Wednesday, but were briefed on the program and will receive monthly updates. The committee tentatively plans to meet next on May 28. “This will be a rewarding committee to be on,” said Sen. Julie VanOrden, a Republican from Pingree who serves as the committee’s co-chair. “We have a lot of work to do very quickly.” Who serves on the Idaho Legislature’s Rural Health Transformation Committee? Co-chair Sen. Julie VanOrden, R-Pingree, Ch-chair Rep. Jordan Redman, R-Coeur d’Alene Sen. Mark Harris, R-Soda Springs Sen. Brandon Shippy, R-New Plymouth Sen. Camille Blaylock, R-Caldwell Rep. Josh Tanner, R-Eagle Rep. Dori Healey, R-Boise Rep. Dustin Manwaring, R-Pocatello SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Idaho Capital Sun
	Davenport police investigating after man found dead near railroad tracks Police were called to the 3300 block of Hickory Grove Road at 9:41 a.m. for a report of a body located near the tracks.
	Have you seen these suspects? Crime Stoppers wants to know! Crime Stoppers of the Quad Cities wants your help catching two fugitives. It’s an Our Quad Cities News exclusive. You can get an elevated reward for information on this week’s cases: BRANDON KUTZMAN, 44, 6'2", 190 pounds. Wanted on a Rock Island Police Department warrant for possession of stolen vehicle. MICHELLE ROE, 43, 5'3", 170 [...]
	Body found near Hickory Grove Road Police said at 9:41 a.m. Wednesday officers found the body of a man. An autopsy is scheduled.
	Bettendorf hotel to convert to Holiday Inn Express with $3M renovation A Bettendorf hotel will convert to a Holiday Inn Express this summer, with a $3 million renovation planned later this year.
	Quad Cities Summer Games return for 35th year with new events, expanded access Formerly known as the QC Senior Games, this year's event runs from May 16-30. A mix of athletic, crafting & performing competitions are open to those 40 and older.
	Davenport police conduct death investigation near railroad tracks The body was found near the 3300 block of Hickory Grove Road. An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the cause of death.
	Field of Dreams to open new ballpark with high school baseball series The Field of Dreams Movie Site will open its new ballpark with a high school baseball series in June featuring teams from eastern Iowa.
	REVIEW: The Charitable Sisterhood of the Second Trinity Victory Church at Richmond Hill Players Fans of the popular “Church Basement Ladies” franchise have a similar but “different” show to add to their compendium of favorites, that being Richmond Hill Players current production of Bo Wilson’s The Charitable Sisterhood of the Second Trinity Victory Church directed by Mike Skiles.
	On Earth Day, environmental and health experts call on EPA to restore protections Gardiner Mayor Patricia Hart speaks about the impacts of severe storms on the municipality, alongside environmental and health experts who are calling on the EPA to restore protections. (Photo by Kaitlyn Budion/ Maine Morning Star)Environmental and health experts joined the Natural Resources Council of Maine to call on the Environmental Protection Agency to restore protective policies. The group gathered in Gardiner on Earth Day Wednesday, to highlight the impacts severe EPA cuts will have on Maine’s environment and residents. “Today is Earth Day, but as we look around Maine, the news isn’t about celebration, it’s about a wake up call,” said Beverly Johnson, professor of earth and climate science at Bates College. When President Donald Trump began his second term, he wasted no time taking steps to block the development of offshore wind, effectively stalling or killing plans to build out capacity in the Gulf of Maine and along the entire eastern seaboard. Maine’s ambitious climate targets had hinged on the state developing 3,000 megawatts of offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine by 2040. Earlier this year, Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin also said they were officially rolling back the 2009 “endangerment finding,” established under former President Barack Obama, that labeled greenhouse gases a threat to public health and gave the EPA power to regulate greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide from cars and trucks. Johnson said when rolling back the endangerment finding, EPA officials said the danger wasn’t clear. “The facts on the ground tell a different story, though,” she said. “According to the Maine Climate Council’s latest scientific assessment, the danger isn’t just clear. It’s undeniable.” Speakers Wednesday also highlighted the more frequent severe storms Maine has seen in recent years. Gardiner Mayor Patricia Hart spoke about the storms in 2023 that caused severe flooding in town and damaged homes and businesses. “And it’s really important that we talk about the mental health impact too, because disaster doesn’t end when the water recedes,” Hart said. “It lives on in the worry every time rain is in the forecast.” And while Gardiner has worked to prepare for future storms, Hart said, the work can’t only be done on a local level. “But we also have to be honest with ourselves, Gardiner and other municipalities can’t solve these problems alone,” she said. “We need federal policies that protect the environment and prepare communities for the reality we’re living in.” Maine’s position in the northeast corner of the country puts it on the receiving end of upwind air pollution from Northeastern cities and Midwestern coal plants. A policy that would have particularly benefited Maine, known as the Good Neighbor plan, is also being rolled back by the Trump administration. Proposed under former President Joe Biden, the plan sought to address interstate air pollution by imposing strict limits on smog-forming nitrogen oxide pollution for 23 states’ power plants. The rule has been delayed by legal challenges, but in January, Zeldin announced the EPA would begin winding down the policy by approving previously rejected plans from eight states to regulate ozone air pollution as they see fit. Tony Owens, an emergency medicine physician at Maine Medical Center in Portland, said that air pollution has a direct impact on the health of Maine residents. “In the emergency department, that doesn’t mean regulations are lifted,” Owens said. “It means more patients needing to breathe.” Owens said that he is preparing for an increase in patients with severe asthma attacks and chronic bronchitis. “These rollbacks are not saving money,” Owens said. “They’re shifting the burden from corporate polluters to the health care system and the public.” He said that more frequent heat waves are already overloading emergency departments with patients with heat stroke and dehydration. And he’s seen an increase in lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses — issues Owens said he didn’t see earlier in his 40-year career. “Some may think that climate change is a distant problem,” Owens said. “Here in Maine, we are seeing real-time impacts of a warming climate.” Courtesy of Maine Morning Star
	Judges overseeing Louisiana's landmark oil cases have financial stakes in defendants Judges overseeing Louisiana's landmark oil cases have financial stakes in defendantsA dozen federal judges have presided over some of the most consequential environmental lawsuits in Louisiana’s history despite having investments in or business connections to the petrochemical companies being sued, an investigation by Floodlight, WWNO/WRKF and Type Investigations has found.Their ties took various forms: holding stock or corporate bonds while presiding over the cases, having previously worked as attorneys for the oil companies, receiving large sums of money from investments in the companies prior to hearing the cases, leasing mineral rights to defendants or having a spouse who was a partner at a law firm defending the oil companies.But even when they appear to have direct conflicts of interest, almost none of those judges broke the ethical rules governing the judiciary.Judges with ties to defendants in cases they directly presided over Floodlight Floodlight Judges with ties to defendants in the series of coastal damage lawsuits (though not to parties in cases they presided over) Floodlight Floodlight Floodlight “To the extent they're following the rules, they can't really be faulted,” said Charles Geyh, a professor at Indiana University Maurer School of Law and an expert in judicial disqualification. “But from a systemic standpoint, do you really want judges to be drawn from a pool of people who have a stake in the industry?”Examples include:Judge Carl Barbier of the U.S. Eastern District Court of Louisiana held over $100,000 of corporate bonds in five oil companies while presiding over four different cases in which one or more of those companies was a defendant.Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown, of the same court, reported that she or her husband traded tens of thousands of dollars of Exxon and Chevron stock while she presided over a case in which both companies were being sued.Judge Jerry Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in favor of oil companies in one of the cases after receiving over $100,000 in mineral royalties since 2013, when the litigation first arrived in federal court.Judges must be impartial in their rulings and avoid even the appearance of impropriety. Yet, in practice, that standard is poorly enforced. The judiciary itself decides in most cases what constitutes a conflict, and its current guidelines state that judges may even receive payments from defendants while a case is ongoing — so long as the judge’s ruling will not impact the amount they get paid.In Louisiana, where many judges profit from petrochemical investments, the question of whether the courts can be trusted to fairly judge the oil industry has enormous stakes.Enormous stakesFor decades, oil companies working in Louisiana dredged canals through wetlands and dumped billions of gallons of waste in unlined pits that leached salts and toxic heavy metals into the surrounding soil and waters. That pollution killed cattle, crawfish, oysters, crops and wetland plants. It has also seeped into aquifers that provide drinking water to local communities and contributed to a land-loss crisis that threatens to wipe southern Louisiana off the map. Courtesy of Veron Bice Now, through a series of about 40 related lawsuits, the state and several parishes are seeking tens of billions of dollars in damages from hundreds of these companies to pay for the cost of cleaning up the mess. The litigation could rank among the most expensive environmental damage cases in U.S. history if the plaintiffs succeed.Last year, a Louisiana jury’s verdict in one of these lawsuits found Chevron liable for $745 million in damages. The oil companies have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to move the cases from state to federal courts, where judges could decide to vacate the jury’s verdict. (Federal courts already dismissed an early case in the series before it ever reached a jury). Garrett Hazelwood with support from SouthWings If the oil companies prevail with the Supreme Court, which is expected to release a decision this spring, the cases will likely wind up back on the dockets of the federal judges named in this story.An investigation by Floodlight, WWNO/WRKF and Type Investigations found that 12 of the 46 federal judges who have already made rulings in the coastal damage lawsuits had investments in or business connections to petrochemical companies that were defendants in the cases.Since 2013, nine of these judges have collected nearly one million dollars in income from their investments in the defendants, according to an analysis of their financial disclosures. That income was gained during the period while the cases were litigated in federal courts, though not exclusively while the cases were on each of the judgesâ€™ dockets. Brad Racino // Floodlight built with Claude It's difficult to determine if and how financial ties influenced judicial decisions — and many of these judges, like Barbier, actually ruled against the oil companies. But even the appearance of impropriety can undermine trust in the rule of law.“It's only natural for the public to be increasingly suspicious about whether those judges are a little too friendly with the industry to be impartial arbiters,” said Geyh.Even beyond the direct ties to the defendants, judges’ investments in the fossil fuel industry more broadly could raise eyebrows. The outcome of these coastal damage cases could impact the industry at large, with the potential to establish a roadmap for anyone seeking to hold oil companies accountable for environmental destruction.Where’s the money coming from?The stakes in these cases are enormous for oil companies and their investors — possibly exceeding $100 billion in liability, said the author and historian John Barry. Christiana Botic // Verite News and Catchlight Local / Report for America The industry’s damage has accelerated the state’s coastal erosion: Since the 1930s, an area about the size of Delaware has slipped into the sea.In response, Louisiana spent decades creating its Coastal Master Plan to repair its wetlands and address the land loss. But enacting it will require tens of billions of dollars over the coming decades.Where that money might come from is an open question, and one that these lawsuits seek to resolve.“Without money, there's no master plan,” said Barry. “The stakes are the existence of Louisiana. It’s pretty simple.” Christiana Botic // Verite News and Catchlight Local / Report for America In his former position on the board of a New Orleans flood protection agency, Barry, pictured above, was an architect of a lawsuit that became a model for the dozens of parish lawsuits that followed it. His team argued their case in front of Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown starting in 2013 — but she dismissed it, finding that the flood protection agency had no standing against nearly 100 oil companies and keeping the case from ever reaching a jury. She later presided over two additional coastal damage cases.Brown and her husband traded tens of thousands of dollars in Exxon and Chevron stock while those companies were defendants before her. She held the stocks for about 18 months, while the price of both increased significantly. She then sold them before issuing any additional rulings — likely keeping her within the disqualification rules. Brad Racino // Floodlight built with Claude At the time, Brown’s husband was one of Entergy’s most senior executives, and the couple held millions of dollars of the company’s stock. Entergy was a defendant in one of the coastal damage cases, though not one over which she presided."I always take great care to ensure that I comply with all judiciary ethics guidance, rules and rule of law," Brown wrote in response to Floodlight findings.The statute has limitationsFederal recusal rules set a high bar for when a judge must step aside — and impose no real penalty when they don't.Congress requires judges to recuse themselves whenever their impartiality "might reasonably be questioned," including when they hold any financial interest in a party. But words like "reasonably" and "financial interest" leave wiggle room, and judges themselves decide whether a conflict exists. The only remedy when they get it wrong is an appeal — a thorny process with a high bar for success. Brad Racino // Floodlight built with Claude However, experts widely agree that if a judge owns any amount of stock in a company that is a party to the case, they are required to step aside.One judge appears to have crossed that bright line.U.S. Fifth Circuit Court Judge Edith Jones held roughly $50,000 of ConocoPhillips stock while voting in 2024 on a case where a ConocoPhillips subsidiary was a defendant.That ruling likely violated the federal disqualification statute and Code of Judicial Conduct, according to three judicial experts.Ways to fix thisLouisiana’s federal judges have so many ties to the oil and gas industry that some cases have led to mass recusals. In one coastal damage case, nine judges recused, including at least five who had investments in the defendants.The judiciary also has a poor record of policing its conflicts. The Wall Street Journal found in 2021 that over 130 federal judges nationwide had failed to recuse themselves despite owning stock in companies involved in cases they oversaw.Relatively simple judicial reforms, like requiring judges to put their holdings in blind trusts, could eliminate many of the conflicts that cause these situations, according to Geyh.“You kind of expect that there are certain sacrifices you need to make in order to preserve public perception of your impartiality, your integrity, and your independence,” Geyh said.In a small step forward in 2022, the courts updated their conflict-screening procedures and lawmakers passed the Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act, which established stricter disclosure rules and a requirement that judges’ disclosures be made available to the public online.This investigation relied in part on those documents.Disappearing communitiesAs the dispute over who should pay to clean up the coast enters its 13th year of litigation, the communities living with the destruction are losing ground fast.“Most people don't have a clue about how extensive the damage can be to landowners,” said lawyer Warren Perrin, who estimates the oil companies have caused hundreds of acres of his family land to disappear into the water.Perrin traces his family roots back to the Acadians, or Cajun people, who settled in Louisiana in the late 1700s. He says the loss of wetlands, increasing flood risk, and pollution caused by oil companies have taken a toll on the close-knit Cajun family and community in Vermillion Parish.“ As we lose the lands, people move away,” he said. “The intensity of the culture is destabilized as more people move away.”If the oil companies get their way, it’s not clear where the money to preserve these lands will come from — or how much longer the coastal parishes can hold on.Despite the odds, Perrin’s family is working to restore the coast in whatever modest ways they can, dumping boulders and rebuilding the coastline to keep their land from becoming open water.“I'm a chronic, hopeless optimist that it will work out and we're gonna save our lands,” he said. “It's a struggle. But I believe in the system of justice, in our laws — usually the right thing happens.”This story was published in partnership with Type Investigations with support from the H.D. Lloyd Fund for Investigative Journalism, and in collaboration with Verite News and WWNO/WRKF.Floodlight is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates the powers stalling climate action.This story was produced by Floodlight and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

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