DES MOINES, IOWA (December 2, 2019) — Governor Kim Reynolds today announced her appointment of Jeffrey Bert as a district court judge in the Seventh Judicial District.

Bert, of Bettendorf, Iowa, currently practices law with the Brooks Law Firm PC in Davenport and Rock Island. He received his undergraduate degree from Iowa State University and his law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law.

DES MOINES, IOWA (December 2, 2019) — Governor Kim Reynolds today announced her appointment of Roger Sailer as a district court judge in Judicial Election District 3B.

JOHNSTON, IOWA (December 2, 2019) — As Iowa Public Television concludes the yearlong celebration of its 50th anniversary, the statewide public-television network is changing its name to better position it for the future. Executive Director and General Manager Molly Phillips announced today that, beginning January 1, 2020, Iowa Public Television will become Iowa PBS. Likewise, the Friends organization which raises funds for the network will now become Friends of Iowa PBS Foundation.

On November 27, US president Donald Trump signed The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. The bill, passed by veto-proof majorities in Congress amid large protests in the "special administrative region," allows the president to impose sanctions on officials who violate human rights there, and requires various US-government departments to annually review Hong Kong's political status with a view toward changing trade relations if the US doesn't like what it sees.