Final Iowa Senate debate stresses transparency in Lee County steel plant deal
Steel News | 2026-10-14 21:11:50
Hosted by WHO 13 in Des Moines, the discussion featured Republican U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson and Democratic State Representative Josh Turek.
By Paul Ploumis
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The second and final debate in the race for Iowa's U.S. Senate seat took place Tuesday night.
Hosted by WHO 13 in Des Moines, the discussion featured Republican U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson and Democratic State Representative Josh Turek.
Among the topics discussed was the proposed $15 billion steel mill plant in Lee County.
The deal was announced by President Trump at the end of September.
According to Radio Iowa, the company behind the plant, Mesabi Metallics, has not yet acquired land, obtained construction permits, or finalized financing.
When asked who should foot the infrastructure bill if the project had to be scaled back, Rep. Turek said he was proud to vote for the $1.4 billion incentive package, and that it would be transformative for southeast Iowa as well as the entire state.
“I think that we have good protections in place for taxpayers, there's no upfront state money,” said Rep. Turek. “The incentives are only there if they provide the actual jobs and metrics achieved. But I would say on the infrastructure that should be covered by the company themselves.”
Rep. Hinson agreed with Turek.
“Taxpayers should not be on the hook for this kind of investment if it goes awry. I think, to Representative Turek's point, I think we would agree on that,” said Rep. Hinson. “We need definite accountability measures built in, and I think what's important about the policies we've put into place is that they are going to supercharge potential future investments just like this one.”
Both candidates were also asked about Mesabi Metallics’ past, as their predecessor, Essar Steel Minnesota, filed for bankruptcy in 2016. Court records showed it owed more than $1 billion from multiple projects in Minnesota.
“I think it's important to look at the situation in the context of what happened before,” said Rep. Hinson. “They were dealing with Minnesota, which did not want to have any mining happen. So full accountability is important, and full transparency about the context of what happened is also important.”
Rep. Turek also believes there is a concern about the company’s past, but reiterated his support of the incentive package in his response.
Courtesy: www.khqa.com
