Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“I think that he probably wouldn’t have died of a heart attack if he would have been in an air-conditioned prison.” — Kerensa Buel, sister of Robert Buel, who died of chronic heart disease at the Anamosa State Penitentiary during a summer heat wave.
Parties for and against a carbon sequestration project shared opinions with the Iowa Utilities Commission Sept. 14, 2026 about a potential hearing schedule for the pipeline. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
The Iowa Utilities Commission proposed hearing dates Monday for a permit on segments of a carbon sequestration pipeline project proposed in Iowa.
Supporters of the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline said the early 2027 hearing dates should be moved up to before the end of 2026, while opponents said the proposed hearing schedule interferes with harvest, winter holidays and calving season.
Robert Buel’s sister said she believes his July 15 death at the Anamosa State Penitentiary was related in part to excessive heat at the prison. (Photo of Buel courtesy of Kerensa Buel; photo of Anamosa courtesy of the Iowa Department of Corrections)
On one of the hottest days of the summer, with temperatures in the 90s, Robert Buel, 57, died at the Anamosa State Penitentiary.
The official cause of death was arteriosclerotic and hypertensive cardiac disease, or chronic heart disease, according to the State Medical Examiner. But Buel’s sister, Kerensa Buel, of Sioux City, believes the lack of air conditioning in the prison contributed to her brother’s July 15 death.
Iowans supporting Josh Turek’s U.S. Senate campaign said at a Monday roundtable they believe the Democratic candidate would be more effective than Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson at limiting corporate influence in politics.
As most of Iowa saw heavy rainfall over the past week, about 2% of Iowa’s corn acres have been harvested, according to the latest crop progress and condition report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Two Iowa private universities are collaborating to provide students interested in making their career in athletic training with a more streamlined educational path.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday kept in place a lower court’s order blocking President Donald Trump’s embattled plan to place new restrictions on mail ballots for this year’s midterm elections.
With the U.S. Senate set to hold a procedural vote in the coming days on a sweeping bill to overhaul college sports, dueling press conferences Monday underscored the fierce debate over how to tackle the biggest issues plaguing that landscape.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will revoke limits on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants that run on coal and natural gas, according to regulatory documents Administrator Lee Zeldin signed Monday.
Department of Homeland Security officers may have broken state laws carrying out the Trump administration’s orders to find noncitizens voting illegally in federal elections, Democratic senators alleged Monday following a whistleblower complaint.
Both chambers of Congress return to Capitol Hill this week for a brief session before heading back to the campaign trail until mid-November.
A multibillion-dollar federal program that helps schools and libraries afford broadband internet is under review by the Trump administration, leaving education officials and advocates worried about potentially significant cuts, Stateline reports.
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