(Radio Iowa) – The annual Iowa State University survey released today (Tuesday) finds the average price of an acre of farmland set a record again at 11-thousand-411 dollars. I-S-U’s Wendong Zhang oversees the survey. “This represents a 17 percent growth over the past year, and this is really phenomenal because that when you’re thinking about over the past few years — last year 2021 Iowa will farmland values rose 29 percent — and so this is a ramp up that is that we haven’t seen since the 1980s, essentially,” Zhang says.

Zhang says the inflation adjusted farmland value was a nearly nine percent increase — which is also a record. He says it is the first time since they since they started collecting information in the 1940s that both the regular and inflation adjust values have set records. He says overall medium quality ground rose the most at 17-point-seven percent, the high quality ground rose about 17 percent, and the low quality ground rose 15 percent. Each county saw an increase. “All 99 counties rose 10 percent or more — so it all rose between 10 percent to about 22 percent,” he says.

Zhang says landowners are happy to see an increase in their land value — but do wonder how long it will last. “There are more growing concerns about the sustainability of the land market growth, and also the elevated entry barriers for beginning farmers and less resource to farmers to enter the market because of the higher prices,” he says. Zhang says commodity prices are the number one reason those in the survey say prices have increased — as everyone was thinking four-dollar a bushel corn would be good — and nobody was expecting corn to get to six and seven dollars. He says there are several reasons for that rise — including the conflict in Ukraine.

Wendong Zhang

“The Russia Ukraine war, the geopolitical uncertainty essentially further pushed up the commodity prices,” he says. “And the strengths and the stability in the U-S market, and the consistency and the quantity of the U-S agricultural markets sort of benefited from that.” He says corn and beans aren’t the only commodities seeing the impact. “This is happening for soybeans and for hay as well. But also this time, we are also seeing tremendous growth in terms of the livestock prices as well. And when you are thinking about especially cattle prices,” Zhang says.

He says this has shown up in the increased growth in land values in the northwest part of the state as there’s a significant presence of cattle producers, and to a lesser extent hogs. He says producers need to have land to spread manure on for nutrient management purposes, so they are more aggressive in bidding nearby grounds.

(Radio Iowa) – Dickinson County Attorney Amy Zenor has resigned after being charged with public intoxication last month. The Dickinson County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously today (Tuesday) to accept her resignation and board chairman Bill Leupold wished her well. “Somewhat sad to do this, but it’s understandable and I wish Miss Zeno just the best in the world from now on,” Leupold said. “Hope her future’s bright.”

Zenor, who is 39, was re-elected as Dickinson County Attorney on November 8th. On November 10th, the county sheriff’s office was notified that someone in the courthouse in Spirit Lake was drunk and Zenor was arrested. She is pleading not guilty to a simple misdemeanor charge and is scheduled for a non-jury trial early next year. It’s now up to the board of supervisors to decide how to fill the vacancy. “To my knowledge, we will now have a choice whether to have an election or whether to appoint a county attorney and I believe we will be doing that in the coming weeks,” Leupold says.

The board has put Assistant County Attorney Steve Goodelow in charge of the office until the decision is made. Zenor had been appointed Dickinson County Attorney since January of 2020. She was appointed to the post when the previous county attorney retired after nearly 39 years in office.

Blakesburg, Iowa – Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety have identified the State Trooper involved in the shooting of a man he was taking into custody. Iowa State Patrol Trooper Jeremy Cole, is a three-year veteran of the Patrol. Per DPS Policy, the Trooper was placed on critical incident leave, following the incident that occurred on December 7th.

On that date, Wapello County law enforcement officers attempted to apprehend 35-year-old Charles Hall, of Ottumwa, who was wanted on a warrant for robbery. Hall fled from officers on multiple occasions and across multiple jurisdictions.

Trooper Cole located Hall near the intersection of 118th Street and Dewberry Avenue in rural Blakesburg. While attempting to arrest Hall, he brandished a weapon. Trooper Cole discharged his duty weapon striking Hall. Law enforcement provided Hall on-scene medical care. He was airlifted to a Des Moines hospital, where he remains in serious condition. Trooper Cole was treated for minor injuries at a local hospital and released.

The Division of Criminal Investigation will forward their investigative findings to the Davis County Attorney for review.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors, Tuesday, approved the re-appointment of several members serving on the Cass County Local Food Policy Council (LFPC). They received a request for the funding for two-years, of a Cass County Tourism Director’s position. Spokesperson Brigham Hoegh said they’re requesting $130,000 from the County’s share of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), split between two full-years.

Hoege said they originally were going to propose a part-time position, but a full-time position would attract a more qualified candidate.

She explained what some of the responsibilities and duties the candidate selected would handle.

Also in attendance at the Supervisor’s meeting advocating for the same topic, was Kenner Baxter, Jennifer McEntaffer and Baily Smith. Hoegh said the group wants first to establish a 501 (c) 6 non-profit, tax exempt organization.

The Board’s consensus was that there aren’t enough steps that have been taken and information gathered, to proceed with the use of ARPA funds at this time. They were also leaning toward favoring the establishment of the position as part-time. At the end of an hour’s long discussion, the Board asked Hoege to put together the specifics needed to make the position happen. Supervisor Steve Green…

In other business, the Supervisors approved appointments to the Cass County Local Food Policy Council Board, and accepted the resignations of: Jennifer Saathoff, from the Compensation Board – effective immediately; Donald D. Edwards, as Trustee of Victoria Township and Linda K. Edwards, Clerk of Victoria Township, both effective Feb. 28. 2023.

(Radio Iowa) – A report from the State Auditor has found the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division wasn’t reviewing payroll journals before forwarding time sheets to the agency that pays state employees. The payroll records were being submitted to a manager, but according to the state auditor’s report no one in the Alcoholic Beverages Division was reviewing the time sheets or signing off on them. The auditor’s report suggests that could let employee errors or dishonesty about their payroll journals slip through. The agency says it has updated and changed its procedures, with the Comptroller of the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division downloading the payroll report and the agency’s Chief Operations Officer reviewing and signing it.

As you may recall, State Auditor Rob Sand’s Republican opponent, Todd Halbur, was fired as the Comptroller of the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division in 2018. This fall, a jury awarded Halbur a million dollars after he sued for wrongful termination and retaliation after he raised concerns about liquor charges. The State Auditor’s report covered all divisions in the Iowa Department of Commerce. It recommended the Iowa Insurance Division ensure credit card payments were not being approved by a person who had access to the cards — and the agency has made that change.

The Iowa Utilities Board has also made changes to ensure one person isn’t responsible for both collecting and depositing payments to the agency.

(Radio Iowa) – Legislation co-sponsored by Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley that targets opioid overdoses, with a focus on rural areas, is headed to President Biden’s desk after winning final Congressional approval last week. Grassley, a Republican, says the bill is the result of bipartisan cooperation in both chambers to tackle a national problem. Grassley says, “The bill will ensure rural communities with high levels of opioid overdoses have resources that they need to respond to this social problem.” Counterfeit prescription pills laced with deadly fentanyl are contributing to historic drug overdose deaths in the U-S, Grassley says, including here in Iowa.  Grassley says, “According to the Iowa Department of Public Health, over 80% of the overdose deaths in Iowa last year were fentanyl-related.”

A state report shows 470 lives were lost to drug overdoses in Iowa last year, while among Iowans age 25 and younger, overdose deaths have surged 120-percent in recent years. Grassley says President Biden will, “without a doubt,” sign the Rural Opioid Abuse Prevention Act into law, but he says another key bill is mired by partisan bickering. “Fentanyl coming into the country is a criminal act. Congress needs to extend the authority designating fentanyl-related substances as a Schedule One drug,” Grassley says. “I tried to extend this authority in March but Democrats blocked it.”

He blames Democrats for the “open southern border” and allowing a “flood” of dangerous drugs into the U-S. That second bill would permanently schedule all fentanyl knock-offs, preventing criminals from tweaking the formula slightly to skirt the law.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports three arrests from the past few days. On Monday (and as reportedly separately), 50-year-old Floyd Raymond Henry II, of Red Oak, was arrested at the Montgomery County Jail, on a warrant for Failure to Appear. His bond was set at $10,000. And, there were two separate arrests on Saturday: 35-year-old Nicole Katherine Spracklin, of Plattsmouth, NE, was arrested on I-29 at Highway 34, for Driving Under Suspension. Bond was set at $300; 47-year-old Bryan James Jirkovsky, of Omaha, was arrested Saturday on Highway 34 in Mills County, on charges that include a Controlled Substance Violation, Used or Expired Drug Tax Stamp, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. His bond was set at $100,000.

The Sheriff’s Office reports also, 23-year-old Mariah Glynn, of Plattsmouth, NE., was driving a 2016 Subaru west on Highway 34 near 295th Street, at around 4:20-p.m. Saturday, when her vehicle struck a stationary, mobile traffic light placed in the area, because of a lane closure on a bridge at that location. The light was pushed into the ditch and ended-up facing an unintended direction. No citations were issued.

(Anita, Iowa) – Members of the CAM School Board, Monday evening, approved a contract with Drew Ticknor, as Head Baseball Coach for Summer, 2023. Superintendent Paul Croghan.

The meeting marked the last for the retiring Board, and the re-organization of the new/incoming Board. That process included the election of President, Vice-President and Board Secretary/Treasurer. Croghan says there were no changes from the past year with regard to those officials, and other, related matters.

The Board approved an SBRC request for a Modified Supplemental Amount (MSA) of $101,900.

And, the approved an SBRC request for a MSA of $94,881 for At-Risk DropOut Prevention. In other business, the CAM School Board acted on approving several Board Policies, including two for emergency medical pen and other substance use.

And, Paul Croghan says the CAM School Board passed a motion to move forward with the process of creating a timeline for the closure of an attendance center.

Their final order of business was to authorize the retention of boundaries for Director Districts, based on the 2020 Census. Those boundaries are unchanged from last year.

(Radio Iowa) – An eastern Iowa recycling operation is investing five-million dollars in three more trash-sorting robots, after earlier successes with artificial intelligence. Since 2019, the Scott Area Recycling Center in Davenport has used an optical sorter to identify materials along a conveyor belt and sort them automatically with high-powered jets of air. Facility supervisor Mike Keppy says the optical sorter has increased the quality of their recycled product as well the value they can receive from selling it in the second-hand market.

The facility processes 40-thousand tons a year, with hopes the new machines will increase that tonnage while decreasing the material that’s sent to the landfill. The new machines will go online next summer.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a combat veteran and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Monday announced that she secured a number of her priorities in the annual defense bill, the FY2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Ernst said also, “This important bill ensures the United States military remains the most lethal fighting force on the face of the planet.”

Included in the FY2023 NDAA is focus on:

Supporting our partners:

• Key parts of the senator’s bipartisan DEFEND Act to create an integrated air and missile defense network with Middle Eastern partners to counter Iran.
• Providing training to Ukrainian forces on how to de-mine the Black Sea.

Ending energy reliance on our adversaries:

• The bipartisan HARD ROCK Act to rebuild the National Defense Stockpile and force DoD to procure critical minerals from the U.S. or our partners and allies.
• An initiative to prevent INDOPACOM from procuring energy from adversaries, specifically North Korea, Iran, Russia, and China.
• A provision to limit DoD’s procurement of electric vehicles with parts sourced by slave and child labor.

Standing with our servicemembers:

• Standardizing how the military diagnoses traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder across all military services.
• Ending the DoD’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate due to readiness and end strength concerns.
• A pay increase for our servicemembers.