DES MOINES – State Auditor Rob Sand and Governor Kim Reynolds traded public comments criticizing each other on Tuesday, with the state’s only elected Democrat in a state administrative role claiming his attempts to audit Education Savings Accounts have been blocked. Sand made the claims on Tuesday, according to the Des Moines Register, that he’s been blocked by state officials in trying to obtain details about the program expected to cost $314 million next fiscal year. Governor Reynolds criticized Sand as politically motivated and biased against the program.

DES MOINES – Civil lawsuits may be brought directly against school districts and superintendents under a proposal in the Iowa Senate. The Iowa Capital Dispatch reports Senate File 178 would allow county attorneys to bring lawsuits against public schools for not complying with state laws. There is an existing appeals process through the Iowa Department of Education, but Republicans argue it hasn’t been effective in preventing schools from violating the law. The Iowa Association of School Boards counters that schools are complying and that the current appeals process allows for remediation without costing schools thousands of dollars in legal fees.

IOWA – Dangerous wind chills are expected to continue into Friday, according to the National Weather Service. Values as cold as 30 below zero are expected in northern Iowa after some records were broken around the state earlier this week. A dramatic shift into mild territory starts this weekend, as some Iowa communities will reach temperatures into the 50s above zero by next Monday.