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Iowa is a Midwest State of the United States . GEOGRAPHY See List Of Counties In Iowa , List Of Cities In Iowa , List Of Townships In Iowa and List Of Iowa Rivers Iowa is bordered by Minnesota on the north; Nebraska and South Dakota on the west; Missouri on the south; and Wisconsin and Illinois on the east. The Mississippi River forms the eastern boundary of the state. The boundary along the west is formed by the Missouri River south of Sioux City and by the Big Sioux River north of Sioux City. There are several natural Lake s in the state, most notably Spirit Lake , West Okoboji Lake , and East Okoboji Lake in northwest Iowa (''see Iowa Great Lakes ''). Man-made lakes include Lake Odessa {Link without Title} , Saylorville Lake, Lake Red Rock, and Rathbun Lake. The topography of the state is gently rolling Plains . Loess hills lie along the western border of the state. Some of these are several hundred feet thick. In the northeast along the Mississippi River is a section of the Driftless Zone , which in Iowa consists of low rugged hills covered with conifers—a landscape not usually associated with this state. The point of lowest elevation is Keokuk in southeastern Iowa, at 480 feet (146 m). The point of highest elevation, at 1,670 feet (509 m), is Hawkeye Point, located in a feedlot north of Sibley in northwest Iowa. The mean elevation of the state is 1,099 feet (335 M ). Considering the size of the state at 56,271 Square Mile s (145,743 Km&2 ), there is very little elevation difference. Iowa has 99 ). Areas controlled and protected by the National Park Service include:
Climate Iowa experiences a Continental climate with extremes of both heat and cold. The average annual temperature at Des Moines is 50.0°F (10.0°C); for some locations in the north the figure is under 45°F, while Keokuk, on the Mississippi River , averages 52.1°F. Winters are brisk and snowfall common, the capital receiving an average of 36.3 inches per season. Spring ushers in the beginning of the Severe Weather season, as well as bringing increased precipitation and warming temperatures. The Iowan Summer is known for heat and humidity, with daytime temperatures sometimes exceeding 100°F (37.8°C). HISTORY Main article: History Of Iowa . Highlights:
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DEMOGRAPHICS As of 2005, Iowa has an estimated population of 2,966,334, which is an increase of 13,430, or 0.5%, from the prior year and an increase of 39,952, or 1.4%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 53,706 people (that is 197,163 births minus 143,457 deaths) and a decrease due to net migration of 11,754 people out of the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 29,386 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 41,140 people. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2004, Iowa's population included about 97,000 foreign-born (3.3%). The racial makeup of the state is:
The six largest ancestry groups in Iowa are: German (35.7%), Irish (13.5%), English (9.5%), American (6.6%), Norwegian (5.7%), and Asian-American (1.3%). Iowans are mostly of Northern European origin. There are large numbers of German-American s in the state (1 in 3 Iowans answered that they were of German ancestry on the 2000 Census), as well as people of British, Scandinavian, and Dutch ancestry, among others. 6.4% of Iowa's population were reported as under 5, 25.1% under 18, and 14.9% were 65 or older. Females made up approximately 50.9% of the population. Rural flight Iowa, in common with other Great Plains states (especially Kansas , Nebraska , Oklahoma , North and South Dakota ), is feeling the brunt of falling populations. 89% of the total number of cities in those states have fewer than 3000 people; hundreds have fewer than 1000. Between 1996 and 2004, almost half a million people, nearly half with college degrees, left the six states. ''"Rural flight"'' as it is called has led to offers of free land and tax breaks as enticements to newcomers. Religion Most Iowans are Protestant Christians, with Lutheranism being the largest single Protestant denomination, followed by Methodist. The state has the second largest population of Reformed Christians, both RCA and CRC . The religious affiliations of the people of Iowa are:
ECONOMY by Grant Wood ]] The state's total gross state product for 2003 was US$103 billion. Its Per Capita Income for 2003 was US$28,340. Iowa's main agricultural outputs are Hogs , Corn , Soybean s, Oat s, Cattle and Dairy products. Its industrial outputs are food processing, machinery, electric equipment, chemical products, publishing and primary metals. Iowa produces the nation's largest amount of Ethanol . Des Moines also serves as a center for the insurance industry. Iowa imposes taxes on net state income of individuals and estates and trusts. There are currently nine Income Tax brackets, ranging from 0.36% to 8.98%. The state Sales Tax rate is 6%. Iowa has two local option sales taxes that may be imposed by counties after an election at which the majority of voters favors the tax. They are in addition to the 5 percent state sales tax. The ''regular'' local option tax is imposed on the gross receipts from sales of tangible Personal Property . It usually remains in effect until it is repealed, but the ordinance may include a Sunset Clause . The ''school infrastructure'' local option tax is automatically repealed 10 years after it is imposed, unless the ballot imposes a shorter time frame. Property tax is levied on the taxable value of real property, that is, mostly land, buildings, structures, and other improvements that are constructed on or in the land, attached to the land or placed upon a foundation. Typical improvements include a building, house or mobile home, fences, and paving. The following five classes of real property are evaluated: residential, agricultural, commercial, industrial and utilities/railroad (which is assessed at the state level). Homeowners pay less than half of the property tax collected each year in Iowa. Farmers pay 21 percent, and businesses and industry, a total of 23 percent. Utility companies, including Railroad s, pay 10 percent. Iowa has more than 2,000 taxing authorities. Most property is taxed by more than one taxing authority. The tax rate differs in each locality and is a composite of county, city, School District and special levies. TRANSPORTATION Interstate highways These are the Interstate Highways that go through Iowa: US highways These are the United States Highways that go through Iowa:
LAW AND GOVERNMENT ]] The current Governor is Tom Vilsack (Democrat) and the two U.S. Senators:
The five U.S. Congressmen:
The Code of Iowa contains the Statutory Law s of the State of Iowa. The Iowa Legislative Service Bureau is a non-partisan governmental agency that is responsible for organizing, updating and publishing the Iowa Code. The Iowa Code is republished in full in odd years (i.e., 1999, 2001, 2003, etc..) and is supplemented in even years. Iowa has a liberal populist tradition but now is fairly evenly divided between the two major political parties. The state supported Democrats in the presidential contests from 1988 through 2000. It was one of only two states that supported Democrat Al Gore that switched to supporting George W. Bush in 2004. President Bush narrowly won the state's 7 electoral votes by a margin of 0.7 percentage points with 49.9% of the vote. Democratic strength is concentrated in the eastern region of the state and in Des Moines. Iowa is an alcohol monopoly or Alcoholic Beverage Control State . Iowa Presidential caucus The state gets considerable attention every four years because it holds the first presidential Caucus , a gathering of voters to select delegates to the state convention. Along with the New Hampshire Primary a week later, it has become the starting gun for choosing the two major-party candidates for president. The caucus, held in January of the election year, involves people gathering in homes or public places and choosing their candidate, rather than casting secret ballots, as is done in a Primary Election . The national and international media give Iowa (and New Hampshire) about half of all the attention accorded the national candidate selection process, which gives the voters enormous leverage. Some candidates decide to skip the Iowa caucus, especially those who oppose ethanol subsidies, and use their resources in other early states such as New Hampshire and South Carolina. Those who enter the caucus expend enormous effort to reach voters in each of Iowa's 99 counties. U.S. senators from Iowa List Of United States Senators who have represented Iowa: after regilding]] IMPORTANT CITIES AND TOWNS See Also: List of cities in Iowa
Population > 100,000 (metropolitan area)
Population > 10,000
EDUCATION Iowa has historically placed a strong emphasis on education, which is shown in standardized testing scores. In 2003, Iowa had the second highest average SAT scores by state, and tied for second highest average ACT scores in states where more than 20% of graduates were tested. The national office of ACT is in Iowa City , and the ITBS and ITED testing programs used in many states are provided by the University Of Iowa . An overhaul of the current education system is being discussed. One of the suggested ideas is switching from 180 days to a year-round school system. {Link without Title} State universities Independent colleges and universities
Community colleges
Professional business and technical colleges and universities
PROFESSIONAL SPORTS TEAMS The Minor League Baseball Teams are:
The Minor League Hockey Teams are:
Real Pro Wrestling The Minor League Soccer Teams are:
MISCELLANEOUS TOPICS The state is named for the Native American Iowa people. Famous Iowans The following is an alphabetical list of famous people born in Iowa (who don't necessarily live in Iowa) as well as famous Iowans in general. Animals Some of the wild animals that can be found in Iowa: Iowa is home of 49 endangered & 35 threatened animal species as well as 64 endangered & 89 threatened plant species {Link without Title} . State symbols
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