Census 2020

2020 population loss/growth of every Iowa town with fewer than 5,000 people

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This chart shows the population of every city, town and unincorporated village with fewer than 5,000 people reported in the 2020 Census. The chart is in alphabetical order. 
IowaWatch conducted a four-month investigation that included visits to 58 towns of 5,000 or fewer people. Its analysis of 2020 census data showed that 636 of the state’s 923 towns with fewer than 5,000 people lost population or made no gains since 2010. Another 41 of the 923 towns with fewer than 5,000 people gained only 1% in population while 246 gained population since the 2010 census. READ THE ENTIRE REPORTING PROJECT HERE
Chart source: U.S. Census Bureau, via the Iowa Data Center.

rural hospitals

COVID-19 hit Iowa hospitals’ income hard, new data show

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Seventy-six of Iowa’s 82 critical access hospitals ended the last fiscal year with negative operating margins, an IowaWatch analysis of their most recently reported financial data shows. Iowa’s situation falls in line with a national report that shows 46% of the nation’s rural hospitals are working with a negative operating margin.

The Lead Story

Citizens Express Concern About The USDA’s Rural Broadband Plan

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Slow speeds, bad coverage and expensive service. These are just some of the concerns contained in nearly 300 public comments on Rural Broadband Pilot Program proposed by the USDA, a review by the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting found.

rural broadband

Business, Education, Healthcare Top Of Mind As Rural Broadband Expansion Inches Forward

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When nearly 300 Americans submitted comments this summer on the USDA’s pilot plan to bring high speed broadband internet to rural America, they mentioned the great opportunities reliable internet connectivity could bring. But they also voiced skepticism over the agency’s proposed plans for the project, which has been in the works for nearly a year.

rural Iowa

Podcast: Dealing With Issues Affecting Rural Iowa

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Rural Iowa is facing several challenges, notably as its population grew a little more than 4 percent from 2000 to 2010, while the rest of the nation grew a little less than 10 percent during that same time. These challenges are being addressed in several ways, as we learn in this IowaWatch podcast.