Governor Terry E. Branstad has proclaimed the week of April as 9-1-1 Education Month in Iowa.  911 Education Month is sponsored by the Iowa 9-1-1 Communications Council and the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEMD). 9-1-1 Education Month is an opportunity to help all Iowans recognize the importance of 9-1-1 and the role they play in ensuring effective emergency response.

Robert Kempf, coordinator for Adair & Guthrie Counties emergency management programs, says “Iowa’s 9-1-1 Education Month is an opportunity to remind citizens of the importance of this powerful safety tool.” Both the U.S. Congress and the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) have recognized April as National 9-1-1 Education Month.

Information and resources about 9-1-1 are available on the Ready Iowa website and also on the NENA website at www.nena.org under the “Education” tab. Kempf says “When calling 9-1-1, remember, stay calm, and be aware of your location so you can help 9-1-1 dispatchers locate you during an emergency.”

HSEMD will post information on 9-1-1 throughout the month of April to its websites, www. homelandsecurity.iowa.gov and www.beready.iowa.gov.

A Republican candidate for U-S Senate from Red Oak got some airtime on N-B-C’s “Tonight Show” last night (Tuesday) and also received something of an endorsement from host Jimmy Fallon. “I saw this on YouTube today,” Fallon said. “It’s a commercial from a woman from Iowa named Joni Ernst who is running for the Senate, I think. Today, she released a campaign ad. Take a look at this.”

The ad plays, and Ernst is heard saying: “I’m Joni Ernst and I grew up castrating hogs on an Iowa farm…” The ad is cut short as the audience howls and applauds, while Fallon — back on camera — cries: “Stop, stop, stop!” As the laughter continues, he adds, “I don’t know what she’s running for but just give her the job.”

Later in the commercial, Ernst said she knows “how to cut pork” and promises to make big spenders in Washington “squeal.”

(Radio Iowa)

Two western Iowa restaurants are among the top 10 finalists in the Iowa’s Best Burger Contest sponsored by the Iowa Beef Industry Council and the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association. Those organizations counted the nominations which were received online, via text and paper ballots. Nominations were accepted between Feb. 12th and March 17th. Among those getting the most votes, was the Elm’s Club, in Creston, and Sam’s Sodas and Sandwiches, in Carroll.

Officials say Iowans submitted more than 9,600 nominating votes. Now in its fifth year, Iowa’s Best Burger contest received nominations for 456 Iowa restaurants. All Top Ten restaurants will be visited by judges who will evaluate the hamburgers based on taste, appearance, and proper serving temperature (160 degrees).

Last year, the 61 Chop House Grille in Mediapolis took home the grand prize. Previous winners include the Coon Bowl III (2012); the Rusty Duck in Dexter (2011) and the Sac County Cattle Company in Sac City (2010).

Giving Iowans a state tax credit for their student loan debt if they earned a degree from a non-profit university, college or community college in Iowa has been discussed at the statehouse, but the scope of the tax break might make it too pricey for legislators to even consider. Representative Greg Forristall (FOR-ih-stall), a Republican from Macedonia, isn’t ready to sign off on the concept yet. “When we get that fiscal note and we decide who qualifies for this, we may need to trim this back a little bit in terms of the portion that qualifies for the tax credit,” Forristall says.

And legislators are under pressure to expand the pool of people who could take the credit, if it is created. For-profit universities argue their students should get the tax break, too. Mike Heller is a lobbyist for Kaplan University.  “We have a concern with the definition of eligible institution,” Heller said. “We think it should be expanded to include students who graduate from for-profit institutions. The debt loan concerns are the same for the student.”

Paula Dierenfeld, a lobbyist for the University of Phoenix, says the bill as currently written would deny the credit to Iowans who earn a degree on-line from the University of Phoenix — or the University of Wisconsin. “It’s kind of a new era of learning in Iowa with these on-line courses…and we believe that those students because they’re residents in Iowa, taxpayers in Iowa, receiving their degrees here in Iowa and working in Iowa should be as eligible for these tax credits as other students,” Dierenfeld says.

Trade schools are clamoring to get their students signed up for the potential tax credit, too. Kent Hartwig is a lobbyist for the Iowa Cosmetology School Association. “We have numerous cosmetology schools in the state and we would like our students to benefit from this as well,” Hartwig said.

An official from the Iowa Department of Revenue also points out there would be “double-dipping” if Iowans could get a tax credit that’s worth to up to half of the student loan payments they make in a year. That’s because there’s already a tax break on the interest paid on student loans. Income taxpayers can claim up to 25-hundred dollars in student loan interest on both their state and federal tax returns today.

(Radio Iowa)