Iowa
Laid-off Iowa state IT workers receive offers from private company
The offers come as Iowa transitions oversight of state websites and data to two private companies.
What to know about Iowa’s IT layoffs as it outsources data management
Iowa is laying off roughly 200 state workers as part of a plan that transfers management of state government data and websites from a state agency.
IT employees laid off as Iowa privatizes management of its government data and websites are receiving job offers from a private company contracting with the state, as promised by Gov. Kim Reynolds.
Cognizant Government Solutions, the New Jersey-based company tasked with taking over daily IT operations for Iowa’s executive branch, sent offer letters to state workers whose jobs are being terminated as a result of the transition, according to the governor’s office and a state employee who is part of the layoffs.
Reynolds, who initially announced the transition to Cognizant and Amazon Web Services on June 9, maintained that the roughly 200 impacted state employees would receive “individualized, competitive job offers” from Cognizant by June 25.
State employees have until July 10 to accept Cognizant’s offers before the two companies begin providing the state services on Aug. 3.
The governor has touted the transition as a continuation of her administration’s initiative to consolidate and centralize the state’s IT services, which her office says will save taxpayers more than $525 million over 10 years
“This isn’t easy. Nobody likes to make decisions like that. It’s hard. We are so fortunate to have just the workforce that we have at the state,” Reynolds said in a June 19 interview on PBS’s Iowa Press. “They are providing the services every single day. But I also have a responsibility to the taxpayers of Iowa and Iowa, and we can’t keep doing things the way we did 40 years ago.
“This is where industry is going. This is where government is going.”
A state employee who was part of the layoffs and who asked to remain anonymous for fear of jeopardizing their employment, said they received an offer June 25 that included less expansive health and retirement benefits compared to state plans and a salary slightly higher than their state earnings.
Amid the layoff announcement, multiple state IT workers faced confusion and fear over their employment status as they waited for clear confirmation on future work, wages or benefits with Cognizant.
During one of many meetings between employees, state and Cognizant, employees were told if they accept the Cognizant offer, their job descriptions will remain the same for one year, according to the laid-off employee.
The companies will adjust job descriptions or let workers pick a different contract, the worker said, but there are no guarantees of employment past the first year.
“We are eager to welcome you to the team! You are joining the Company at an exciting time, and we know your fresh thinking and expertise will help us accomplish great things,” a Cognizant offer letter obtained by the Register states.
The state will pay Cognizant and AWS nearly $420 million over the next decade, $80.4 million of which will go to AWS to shift the state’s data from dozens of data centers and thousands of physical servers to a cloud-based system, according to contracts.
Gov. Kim Reynolds: State data is ‘secure’
As Iowa transfers oversight of government websites and data to Cognizant and AWS, Reynolds insisted the information will remain safeguarded.
“It (state data) absolutely is secure,” Reynolds said on Iowa Press. “There are all kinds of contracts and MOU and things that you have to sign. And even when it came to like the HIPAA data, we’ve got a form that you have to sign that you can’t release any of the information. They (Cognizant and AWS) have absolutely no access to any of that data.”
A data privacy framework for Cognizant to deal with customer data and confidential information is laid out in the contract between the company and the state. Under the agreement, the company must keep state data “secure, and not disclose or use it for any purpose other than providing Services under the Agreement,” the contract states.
The company may only retain state data to perform IT services for Iowa or with prior written approval of the state.
Rapid Response Politics Reporter Maya Marchel Hoff can be reached at mmarchelHoff@usatodayco.com. You can find her on X (formerly Twitter) at @mmarchelhoff.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Law enforcement in Johnson County is preparing for hundreds of thousands of visitors this weekend as multiple major events converge on the area simultaneously.
The Savannah Bananas are playing to a sold-out Kinnick Stadium crowd Friday and Saturday. A Big and Rich free concert is scheduled in Coralville Friday night. Downtown Iowa City will host Jazz Fest all weekend.
Residents prepare for the crowds
In University Heights — a small city nestled inside Iowa City — resident Maria Scott said she and her husband moved to the corner of Koser and Sunset eight years ago for the quiet.
“Thought it would be a place to land and raise our family,” Scott said.
During Hawkeye home football games, Scott said, that quiet corner becomes a high-demand parking spot. The family uses their lawn as a parking lot.
“I think we park 35 cars just on this property,” Scott said.
This weekend, the Scott family is preparing for two nights of full capacity on their property.
Police plan for game-day-level crowds
The University Heights Police Department is also preparing. University of Iowa Public Safety posted a message to social media listing the weekend’s events and asking the public to be patient.
University Heights Police Chief Chris Akers said the volume of activity is not typical.
“Is this normal to have this much going on during a holiday weekend? Absolutely not,” Akers said.
Akers said officers will assist with traffic and crowd control and will also work inside the stadium. He said the department plans to treat the weekend like a game day, with tens of thousands of people in the area over two days.
“When you come in to Iowa City, you come in to Coralville, you come in to University Heights, you come to the University of Iowa — be patient,” Akers said. “Realize that after that game, the stadium holds about 70,000 people and everybody wants to get home.”
Scott said community participation helps make weekends like this work.
“Our kids love it,” Scott said. “They always ask, ‘When do the tailgaters come back?’”
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
IOWA CITY, Iowa — An Iowa City man is facing a felony theft charge after police say he was involved in an armed robbery in downtown Iowa City earlier this year.
According to the criminal complaint, 20-year-old Boubacar Dioubate is charged with second-degree theft.
Police say the robbery happened around 12:49 a.m. on April 18 in the 100 block of South Clinton Street.
Court documents allege the victim was approached by three suspects who threatened to stab and shoot him. Investigators say one of the suspects held a knife while demanding the victim’s cellphone.
The victim reported that his $500 cellphone, a $1,000 necklace and $200 in cash were stolen, for a total value of about $1,700.
According to the complaint, security cameras captured the incident. Investigators say the footage shows Dioubate assaulting the victim, repeatedly grabbing the victim’s phone and taking the victim’s necklace.
Police also say the stolen cellphone was tracked to Dioubate’s Iowa City address a few hours after the robbery.
Dioubate was arrested, and the charge was filed in Johnson County District Court. The case remains pending.
High School On SI Iowa recently published polls for the midseason high school softball player of the year in each of the five classifications. Now, it is time to vote for the baseball midseason player of the year in Iowa.
The Iowa High School Athletic Association State Baseball Tournament begins July 20 in both Cedar Rapids for Class 4A and Class 3A and in Carroll for Class 2A and Class 1A. Many of the players you will see listed below are part of teams currently ranked in the High School On SI Iowa Top 25 State Baseball Rankings.
Below are the nominees for the High School On SI Iowa Class 1A Baseball Midseason Player of the Year. Stats listed with the players are from Bound and accurate as of June 28, 2026.
Feel free to vote as many times as you like, with voting set to close on Monday, July 6 at 11:59 p.m. CT.
High School On SI Iowa Class 1A Baseball Midseason Player Of The Year Nominees
Ty Heydon, Coon Rapids-Bayard, Junior
Heydon is hitting .623 with a .710 on-base, blasting six homers with 12 doubles, five triples, 53 RBI and 42 runs scored. He has stolen 24 bases and is 4-0 with a save and 61 strikeouts in just under 33 innings pitched.
Colton Wight, Martensdale-St. Marys, Senior
Wight, a leader for the Blue Devils, has 44 RBI with 18 doubles, nine homers and three triples. He is batting .581 with 56 runs scored. He has stolen 19 bases and struck out 18 in just under 11 innings.
Connor Mullenbach, Saint Ansgar, Senior
Over seven starts and nine games, Mullenbach has yet to allow an earned run, going 8-0 with 41 strikeouts. He has surrendered just three runs total and 23 hits. At the plate, Mullenbach is batting .403 with 33 runs scored and 22 steals.
Colton Moffitt, Baxter, Senior
The Class 1A leader with 109 strikeouts, Moffitt is 9-1 with one save over 53-plus innings. Opponents have just 19 hits and two earned runs off him, as he owns a .106 batting average against and a 0.26 earned run average.
Macklin Loftus, Logan-Magnolia, Sophomore
Just a 10th-grader, Loftus has taken the state by storm, allowing four total hits and one earned run in 32-plus innings, striking out 81 batters. He is a perfect 5-0 on the mound.
About Our Midseason Baseball Player Of The Year Voting
High School on SI voting polls are meant to be a fun, lighthearted way for fans to show support for their favorite athletes and teams. Our goal is to celebrate all of the players featured, regardless of the vote totals. Sometimes one athlete will receive a very large number of votes — even thousands — and that’s okay! The polls are open to everyone and are simply a way to build excitement and community around high school sports. Unless we specifically announce otherwise, there are no prizes or official awards for winning. The real purpose is to highlight the great performances of every athlete included in the poll.
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