(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Board of Supervisors in Cass County (IA) met this (Tuesday) morning at the courthouse, in Atlantic. During their session, the Board discussed consenting to the issuance of a Solid Waste Facilities Revenue Capital Loan Note by the Cass County Environmental Control Agency Board (Landfill). Board Chair Steve Baier..

Supervisor Steve Green explained the loan will be capped at (Authorized up to…) $1.5-million, but is expected to come-in much less than that.

Basically, it involves putting a permanent cap over the current landfill area. A public hearing on the matter will be held at the Cass County Courthouse beginning at 6-p.m., on August 22^nd. It was noted also, that the County is not coming after tax dollars, because it is a loan, and not a bond. The pre-approved loan is through the State Revolving Loan Fund – which has a low interest rate. It will be paid back through revenues generated from the Transfer Station. The term of the loan is 20-years.

The Board also discussed the County use of local banks that contribute to the community for the checking account. Supervisor Bernard Pettinger commented the County currently gets Zero-percent interest on its investment account at Wells Fargo Bank, here in Atlantic.

Supervisor Wendy Richter said the information from County Treasurer Tracey J. Marshall shows the rates at Wells Fargo are not that low.

Pettinger and Supervisor Mark O’Brien recommended the County switch its checking account from Wells Fargo to another, local bank. A specific bank was not mentioned. Ultimately, Tracey Marshall has the final say in whether or not the accounts remain with Wells Fargo. The Board agreed to recommend the County use local banks in its financial transactions.

With regard to the County Employee Credit Card Policy, Deputy Auditor Sheri Karns said she’s been in contact with the County’ accounting firm, who recommended one card each, per county office.

Steve Green said he thinks the County needs to downgrade the amount of credit cards in circulation. After lengthy discussion, the Board agreed to adopt the policy as revised.

The Board of Supervisors, Tuesday, agreed to send a letter of communication to the tenant at 707 Poplar Street (The Cambridge Law Firm), with regard to their share of the utilities on the leased part of the building. The tenant has been paying a flat fee of $420 per month for the past eight-years, for utilities, pro-rated for the square footage of their part of the building, or 60%. Current rates would make that $639 per month. The letter asks the Firm for the amount of utilities they owe according to the lease. That amounts to $17,324.

In his weekly report to the Board, County Engineer Trent Wolken updated the Supervisors on bridge projects. He said they’ve also been adding spot road rock where needed.

DAVENPORT, Iowa – An Iowa City man was sentenced yesterday (Monday) to 15 years in federal prison for receiving child pornography. According to public court documents, and evidence presented at sentencing, 23-year-old William Robert Adams, was identified through a cybertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children after suspected child pornography was found on the social media platform Snapchat. During the execution of a search warrant on Adams and his residence, law enforcement located numerous pictures and videos of children ranging in age from toddler to age 16. Law enforcement also found evidence that Adams was buying and selling child pornography online. Some of the images were determined to be sadistic or masochistic. In total, Adams was attributed with possessing over 5,000 child pornographic images.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Adams will be required to serve 5 years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Adams was also ordered to pay restitution pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 2259. This section requires restitution be paid to victims in an amount determined by the court, but no less than $3,000 per victim.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office.
This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa as part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Childhood” initiative, which was started in 2006 as a nationwide effort to combine law enforcement investigations and prosecutions, community action, and public awareness in order to reduce the incidence of sexual exploitation of children.

Any persons having knowledge of a child being sexually abused are encouraged to call the Iowa Sexual Abuse Hotline at 1-800-284-7821.

(Radio Iowa) – A Pew Research Center study finds this is the oldest-ever U-S Senate, with a median age of 65 years, versus the average age of the U-S population at 39. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is 89 and is the second-oldest member of the chamber. A Minneapolis Star Tribune editorial on Monday refers to the U-S Senate as a “senior living community,” but Grassley says he feels he’s doing a good job of staying in touch with 20-somethings and teens, as well as everyday Iowans. “Well, it’s not hard for me to do it because I’ve been doing it for 43 years in a row now, and that is visiting each of the 99 counties every year to have a Q-and-A with constituents,” Grassley says. “In other words, it’s not like just driving through the county and stopping to get a cup of coffee. It’s actually having a meeting with Iowans and I do that to keep in touch.”

The Republican from New Hartford says he meets with “a few thousand people face to face every year,” but stays in contact with thousands more through email, the U-S mail and phone conversations. Grassley, who’s about five months younger than the oldest serving senator, Dianne Feinstein, says he’s working to stay in shape with a daily exercise regimen and he meets frequently with young people. “Some of my county meetings are with high school students. I try to educate people about the judiciary branch of government by holding a meeting with district judges for high school kids,” he says. “It’s kind of a special seminar.”

The editorial bemoans a potential presidential matchup next year between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump who, by then, will be 81 and 78. Grassley says he’s dedicated to listening to — and serving — Iowans. “Age has nothing to do with it,” Grassley says. “Age is a number and don’t forget, the voters didn’t have an issue with my age last election. I was reelected by something like a 12 or 13% margin.”

Grassley chuckled as he recalled the comment then-73-year-old President Ronald Reagan made during a debate in 1984 after being questioned about his age: “I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit — for political purposes – my opponent’s youth and inexperience.”

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The Iowa Insurance Division has announced that investors that purchased retail precious metals from Los Angeles-based Lear Capital will receive compensation as a part of Lear Capital’s bankruptcy plan. State securities regulators had been investigating Lear for deceptive securities and commodities activities and misleading marketing at the time of the company’s bankruptcy.

“Lear Capital urged investors to liquidate their traditional retirement savings and buy precious metals without proper fee disclosures, and as a result of those deceptive practices, the company racked up millions of dollars at investors’ expense,” Deputy Commissioner Andrew Hartnett said. “The Iowa Insurance Division is always looking out for Iowans to protect them from harmful and deceptive business practices. I encourage any Iowan that may have been affected to get in contact with our office.”

Under the terms of the bankruptcy plan, Lear Capital will provide $5.5 million to be distributed to investors in Lear Capital’s precious metals. Lear Capital investors that filed a timely bankruptcy claim will receive refunds based on calculations determined by Lear Capital’s bankruptcy plan. In addition, Lear Capital will provide a pro rata distribution of the remaining funds to investors who did not file claims. The pro rata distribution applies to investors that bought precious metals from Lear Capital between January 1, 2016 and March 3, 2022.

Iowans that purchased precious metals from Lear Capital during that timeframe should contact the Iowa Insurance Division at amanda.robinson@iid.iowa.gov or at 515-654-6475.

Various regulators had alleged that Lear Capital, which sells and buys back metals through both direct-to-consumer transactions and self-directed IRA transactions, used deceptive business practices, and violated investor protection laws. These actions were resolved as part of the $5.5 million bankruptcy settlement.

As a part of Lear Capital’s bankruptcy plan, the company has also agreed to improve its sales practices and disclosures, including agreeing not to misrepresent its fee, not to offer portfolio assessments of securities holdings, not to hold itself out as an investment adviser in any way, and not to provide investment advice or commit securities or commodities fraud.

(Ames, Iowa) – The Iowa Transportation Commission today (Tuesday) approved $8.8 million for the fiscal year 2024 State Aviation Program, which includes several subprograms. Among the projects approved were those at the Council Bluffs, Creston and Harlan Municipal Airports.

The Airport Improvement Program (AIP) will fund $5.3 million for a variety of aviation safety initiatives, system planning, and air service development activities. It will also provide funding for airport development projects at 17 airports in Iowa. Eligible AIP projects include runway, taxiway, and apron development; fuel systems; navigational aids; maintenance of aviation weather systems; runway marking; windsocks; emergency operational repairs; land-use planning; air service initiatives; and the mitigation of obstruction and wildlife hazards at airports. The AIP program is funded with revenue from aircraft registration fees and aviation fuel taxes.

Among the projects is:

• The construction of a Hangar Site Development Area for the Council Bluffs Municipal Airport ($267,200 from the State toward the $668,000 cost of the project), and,
• Obstruction Analysis and Mitigation Plan at the Creston Municipal Airport ($8,000 from the State toward the $10,000 cost of the project).
  

Aviation vertical infrastructure programs will provide $3.5 million for projects at 11 general aviation airports and eight commercial service airports throughout Iowa. These programs provide funding for the maintenance and development of airport facilities such as terminal buildings, maintenance facilities, and aviation hangars. Vertical infrastructure programs are funded from the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund.

Among the AVIP Projects is the installation of new Hangar Doors at the Harlan Municipal Airport ($125,000 from the State toward the $150,000 cost of the project).

Iowa DOT Aviation Director Tim McClung notes that smart capital investment from state, federal, local, and private funding sources are keeping Iowa’s aviation system competitive.