DES MOINES – Today, Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster proclamation for four counties in response to severe weather that occurred on May 6. The governor’s proclamation activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program and Disaster Case Advocacy Program for the following counties: Clarke, Marion, O’Brien, and Pottawattamie. 

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food, and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. The grant application and instructions are available on the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management website at homelandsecurity.iowa.gov/assistance. Potential applicants have 45 days from the date of the proclamation to submit a claim.   

The Disaster Case Advocacy Program addresses serious needs related to disaster-related hardship, injury, or adverse conditions. Disaster case advocates work with clients to create a disaster recovery plan and provide guidance, advice, and referrals to obtain a service or resource. There are no income eligibility requirements for this program; it closes 180 days from the date of the governor’s proclamation. For information on the Disaster Case Advocacy Program, contact your local community action agency or visit iowacommunityaction.org.    

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – The Council Bluffs Police Department reports that at around 10:10-a.m. today (May 8, 2024), Pottawattamie County Communications received a phone call from a subject who had found skeletal remains. The caller had found the remains while walking in the area north of Veterans Memorial Hwy and E. Manawa Dr. Officers responded and found a skeletal torso that is believed to be human in nature.

The remains appeared to have been exposed to the elements for some time due to the state they were found in. At this time, there is no means to identify the remains. The cause of death is unknown, and the gender of the remains is not confirmed at this time. This is an ongoing investigation. The remains will be sent to the State of Iowa Medical Examiner’s Office for further examination.

Authorities say it may take several weeks to learn an identity associated with the found remains.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Reynolds has signed a bill into law that raises the maximum tax deduction for contributing to a “College Savings Iowa” account to 52-hundred dollars. That’s 22 percent higher than what was allowed this year. State Treasurer Roby Smith says the higher tax deduction also applies to contributions to I-ABLE accounts which cover expenses related to a disability.

“Today is the biggest day in 26 years for Iowa’s 529 plans,” Smith says. “…This exciting update is a great way to save for others while giving yourself a tax benefit as well.” So-called 529 plans allow for tax-free withdrawals. “529 plan funds can be used on K-12 tuition, apprenticeships and trade schools and other qualified expenses,” Smith says. Among the 43 states that collect income taxes, there are only nine other states that have a higher tax deduction than Iowa’s new 52-hundred dollar amount for tax year 2025.

“It is an exciting time for the state’s 529 plans,” Smith said. “Serving Iowans with their savings goals, our programs continue to grow and lower their asset based fees for the account owners.” Smith, in his second year as state treasurer, proposed the higher tax benefit for deposits in 529 plans. “In addition to the new tax deduction amount, Iowa’s 529 account owners will have the ability to transfer up to a lifetime limit of $35,000 to a Roth IRA in their beneficiary’s name,” Smith says. That change took effect at the federal level this year, as the owners of some 529 accounts worry about having unused funds left in the accounts. This spring Iowa legislators have aligned the state’s tax code with that policy.

According to the state treasurer’s office, there’s six BILLION dollars in over 285-thousand College Savings Iowa accounts today. There nearly 67-thousand tax-free 529 accounts for people with disabilities under Iowa’s Achieving a Better Life Experience or I-ABLE program.

(Atlantic, Iowa) [in an update to an earlier post] – Emergency crews responded to a two-vehicle, injury accident in Atlantic this (Wednesday) morning. Atlantic Police Chief Devin Hogue says Officers responded at around 7:51-a.m. to the collision at Southwest 7^th and West 15^th street, in Atlantic. An investigation into the accident found that a 2021 Toyota Camry had pulled onto Southwest 7^th from the Atlantic Achievement Center driveway, when it was struck by a 2004 GMC Envoy that was traveling Northeast on Southwest 7^th.

The driver of the Toyota was checked at the scene by Cass EMS and taken by private vehicle to be seen for minor injuries. Both vehicles were able to be driven away from the scene. The driver of the Toyota Camry was cited for Failure to Yield upon entering a through highway. Because the accident involved a juvenile, their name and other details are not being released at this time.

If you have information regarding the incident please call the Atlantic Police Department at 712-243-3512. (Photo courtesy of Chris Parks)

(Radio Iowa) – The operators of the historic Webster City movie theater damaged by a fire last November 29th are hoping to get it back open this fall. The Webster Theater and two other buildings in the downtown section of the north-central Iowa town were damaged in the fire. Spokesman Jeff Pingel says they have gutted the theater and started the renovation. “We didn’t get any fire damage from that but we got extensive extensive smoke and water damage and we’re just we just it’s just finished the cleanup the 28th of April so it’s been five months just for cleanup,” he says. Pingel says the work continues, but they discovered something they will have to fix that they didn’t expect.

“The front wall has a six inch lean to it, which we had a structural engineer come in and check it out. It’s not unsafe but we have to pull it back,” Pingel says. “So before we can go begin any reconstruction we have to pull this wall back six inches, which isn’t that’s not an insurance thing, that’s money that we have to come up with on our own.”

The theater was constructed at the turn of the 20th century and had undergone an extensive remodeling more than 10 years ago. It was the subject of a documentary film “Made in Iowa” you can see on YouTube. Monetary donations are welcome to the Webster Theater website.

(Radio Iowa) – Boy Scouts of America will be renamed Scouting America on February 8th of next year. Matt Hill is executive of the Mid-Iowa Council for Boy Scouts of America. “We started allowing young ladies to join our programs about five years ago and so this coincidentally enough coincides with the five year anniversary of that change,” Hill says, “and really reflects our commitment to being inclusive of all young people that want to join scouting.” Hill says he has a unique perspective about the name change. He’s an Eagle Scout who appreciates what scouting meant to him and his buddies growing up AND he’s the father of a girl.

“I don’t know of any parent that would really not want his or her child to have the same opportunities that they did,” Hill says. “…Allowing girls into the program has been phenomenal for us so far.” The Boy Scouts’ Mid-Iowa Council covers 29 counties and Hill says nearly 50 girls in the region have become Eagle Scouts in the past five years. “The integration has really, in many ways, been seamless. The kids are so adaptable,” Hill says. “We’ve just had young ladies that whether their brother was in scouting, their dads were in scouting or another family member, or they just really like our programs, they have really embraces our programs and I think it’s been fantastic for all of us.”

Hill is in Orlando at the national annual meeting of Boy Scouts of America where the name change was announced. Since girls were accepted as Cub Scouts in 2018, six-thousand girls across the country have become Eagle Scouts. About a million U-S kids are in the Boy Scouts today. The Girl Scouts of America still exists and has not commented on the Boy Scouts name change. The Boy Scouts are in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings that have allowed it to keep operating while paying over 80-thousand men who say they were sexually abused when they were Cub Scouts or Boy Scouts.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says prospects for congressional approval of a new Farm Bill are fading. “So what we call the five-year Farm Bill of 2018 last year became a six-year Farm Bill,” Grassley says, “and it could become a seven year Farm Bill.” The Democrat who’s chairwoman of the Senate Ag Committee released a framework for negotiations last week, but Grassley, a Republican, says the most likely outcome is that congress will vote to extend current Farm Bill policies for another year.”The certainty of a five-year Farm Bill is what we really need,” Grassley says. Disagreements over farm subsidies are holding up negotiations.

“It may sound like rhetoric when you say: ‘We want more farm in the farm bill,’ but remember only 15% of the Farm Bill goes to the Agriculture Department,” Grassley says, “and then just a small percentage of that 15% may wind up in farmers’ pockets.” The rest of the Farm Bill is mainly for food stamps and other government nutrition programs. Grassley says Senate Democrats have proposed a five percent increase to potential subsidies to cover rice, cotton and peanut farmers’ losses. However, the so-called reference prices for corn and soybeans that trigger federal subsidies to cover losses would remain the same. “That doesn’t reflect this inflation of seed, fertilizer, chemicals, diesel and higher interest rates,” Grassley says. “We want the new five-year Farm Bill to reflect that inflation.”

The one-year extension of the 2018 Farm Bill expires at the end of September.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – Following a public hearing and considerable discussion, the Adair County Board of Supervisors, this (Wednesday) morning, put on-hold, the third reading of a proposed ordinance that would regulate the placement of Large Scale Commercial and Industrial Buildings. The Board voted three-to-two, with Supervisors John Twombley, Jerry Walker and Jodie Hoadley opposed to the ordinance as presented. Supervisors Matt Wedemeyer and Nathan Baier were yes votes.The next move is to get an outside attorney to review the wording of the Draft Ordinance and keep moving forward with the process of redefining an ordinance for future needs.

At issue is the future of Applied Digital’s plans for a 200 mega-watt data center in Adair County, located in the 1200 block of Fallow Avenue near Adair, adjacent to the NextEra Energy substation. The company is planning two 300,000 sq ft (28,700 sqm) buildings, which will host between 40 and 70 employees. Applied Digital operates several data centers across the US, including a 180MW facility in Ellendale, North Dakota. During the Public Hearing, Dan Dreyer, who lives near the proposed data center, said he’s concerned about the misconceptions, with regard to the current draft ordinance.

He said they can accomplish a compromise that will not have the setback so that a business is “Not on top” of a residence, and vice-versa. Adair County resident Gene Hardisty was concerned about the over-regulation of private industry.

Applied Digital’s Nick Phillips asked the Board to give them a few months to see what other restrictions they may face.

Phillips said later, said their attorney cautioned imposition of the Ordinance as written, would not hurt Applied Digital per se, but it could impact others who may be considering constructing a project in Adair County.

Following the vote, members of the Board said they want to move forward, because they are not giving up on economic development.

In other business, the Adair County Board of Supervisors approved the hiring of an Engineering Intern, and wage rate progressions for two Secondary Roads Department employees. The Board also set the date for a Public Hearing on a FY24 Budget Amendment, as May 29^th at 9:15-a.m. Auditor Mandy Berg explained the reasons for the proposed amendment.

The total budget increase amounts to $11,985.

(Clarinda, Iowa) – The Page County Sheriff’s Office has released a report on arrests:

4/28/2024 Alec James Kalkas (29) of Glenwood Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for driving while suspended, possession of a controlled substance (X2).
4/28/2024 Jeremy Wayne Liford (33) of Clarinda Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for an active warrant for failure to appear. Arrested by the Page County Sheriff’ s Office.
4/29/2024 David Alfonso Clark (44) of Red Oak Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for an active warrant for violation of probation. Arrested by the Page County Sheriff’s Office.
4/30/2024 Michael Lloyd Harms (54) of Shenandoah Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail to serve time.
5/1/2024 Robert Edward Anderson (46) of Essex Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail to serve time.
5/1/2024 Devin Lee Carnes (18) of Clarinda Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for an active warrant for assault. Arrested by the Page County Sheriff’s Office.
5/2/2024 David Alfonso Clark (44) of Red Oak Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail to serve time.
5/3/2024 Clinton Keith Glasgo (47) of Essex Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for an active warrant for failure to appear. Arrested by the Page County Sheriff’s Office.
5/3/2024 Eric Michael Kievit (35) of Essex Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for domestic abuse. Arrested by the Page County Sheriff’ s Office. Assisted by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Essex City Maintenance Crew and Page County Citizens.
5/3/2024 Matthew John Stubbendieck (48) of Essex Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail to serve time.
5/3/2024 Jaylenna Marie Sheperd (30) of Clarinda Iowa. Booked into the Page County Jail for burglary

*A charge is merely an accusation and that the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports four recent arrests:

• Tuesday afternoon (May 7th), 43-year-old Daniel Charles Thomas, of Glenwood, was arrested at the Pottawattamie County Jail, on a Mills County warrant for Violation of Probation. Bond was set at $10,000.
• Last Saturday (May 4th), 35-year-old Joseph Lewell Dale Norton, of Independence, MO, was arrested for Public Intoxication. (Bond $300)
• On May 2nd, 40-year-old Jamie Lee Stephens, of Macedonia, was arrested for OWI/1st offense, with bond set at $1,000.
• And, on April 30th, 29-year-old Alec James Kalkas, of Council Bluffs, was arrested at the Mills County Sheriff’s Office for an alleged violation of the State’s Sex Offender Registry. His bond was set at $2,000.