(Radio Iowa) – The owner of a Cedar Rapids business is in Washington, D.C., urging congress to modernize the Small Business Administration. Sydney Rieckhoff is the C-E-O of Almost Famous Popcorn, a company she co-founded with her brother 10 years ago when she was 14. “Ninety-four percent of small business owners think that congress should join together to reorganize the Small Business Administration and really modernize it to be a tool and a resource for small businesses across the country that fits with the times, fits with the challenges that we feel today,” she says. Rieckhoff’s company received a Paycheck Protection Program grant at the beginning of the pandemic.

Reickhoff says while it helped keep employees on the company’s payroll, it exposed problems in the Small Business Administration. “Kind of outdated procedures and policies that take place in it,” she says. Ernst is the top Republican on the Senate Small Business Committee. Ernst says she and the Democrat who’s chair of the committee plan to work on a bipartisan plan that would lead to a top to bottom review of the Small Business Administration.

“The way Americans did business with Small Business over two decades ago is very different than the challenges and the technology that small businesses have today,” Ernst says. Ernst has invited Rieckhoff to be her guest tonight (Tuesday) in the U.S. House to watch President Biden’s State of the Union speech. Congresswoman Ashley Hinson has invited Sergeant Trent Dirks of Eldora, an Afghanistan vet who trains dogs to be service animals.

Congressman Randy Feenstra’s guest at tonight’s (Tuesday’s) speech is the C-E-O of a company building a 450-million dollar beef processing facility in Mills County.

(Silver City, Iowa) – A chase that began in Omaha early this (Tuesday) morning, ended with a crash in Silver City, and the suspect taken into custody. The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports at around 2:15-a.m., Mills County Deputies were advised Omaha Police helicopter “Able 1” was tracking a reported stolen vehicle that had fled from Omaha Police Officers, earlier in the morning.

A Mills County Sheriff’s Deputy located the vehicle traveling south on 287th Street through Silver City, prior to the vehicle crashing into an embankment at the intersection of Highway 34 and 284th Street. After a short foot pursuit, the suspect, later identified as 24-year-old Donovan Belt, of Council Bluffs, was taken into custody by the Mills County K9 Unit.

Belt was treated by medics and transported to the Mills County Jail, where he faces charges that include:

Donovan Belt

• Theft in the 1st Degree – A Class C Felony
• Eluding – A Class D Felony
• Driving While License Revoked (Serious Misdemeanor)
• and Numerous traffic violations.

Disclaimer: “A criminal charge/citation is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.”

(uPDATED/Radio Iowa) – The Iowa House has sent the governor a plan to provide Iowa’s public K-through-12 schools three percent more in general state support for the next academic year. Republican Representative Craig Johnson of Independence says it’s a nearly 107 million dollar increase. “I think it’s a good news story for Iowans and our educators and our families,” Johnson said. The plan cleared the Republican-led Senate Thursday. Democrats like Representative Eric Gjerde of Cedar Rapids say public schools dealing with escalating costs will have to cut staff and programs.

“The Iowans that I have spoken to say we need to do a lot of things and one major thing is stop strangling our public schools,” Gjerde says. Other Democrats object to providing public schools a budget increase that’s roughly identical to the amount private school parents will start getting in state-funded savings accounts next school year. Representative Sharon Steckman of Mason City says rural schools are in a financial crunch.

“People used to come back to Iowa because…they knew their kids could get a top notch education,” Steckman said. “Maybe that’s why we are the slowest growing state in the union right now.” House Speaker Pat Grassley says Republicans have agreed to spend three-point-seven BILLION dollars on school districts next year. “The total investment that we’re making in public education with the passage of this bill is about 45 percent of the state’s budget,” Grassley says. Four House Republicans joined House Democrats in voting against the bill. Three of them also voted against creating state-funded savings accounts for the parents of private school students.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors today (Tuesday), approved local bids for a Bridge replacement project on Seattle Road. County Engineer Trent Wolken said there were three bidders for the projects: A.M. Cohron & Son, $112,400; Murphy Heavy Contracting, $159, 750, and one from Nelson & Rock, Contracting, for $193,000.

Wolken then provided the Board with an update on Secondary Roads Department maintenance and activities.

He said they’re just trying to get by until Spring. Board Chair Steve Baier had some words of advice for rural property owners with regard to keeping the secondary roads from being torn-up between now and this Spring…

Wolken said also, they have received two pickups, which is “good news.”

In other business, the Cass County Supervisors discussed and tabled action with regard to the County’s updated Investment Policy. Their reason for tabling is so that they can receive answers to some specific questions, especially with regard to a Return On Investment’s (ROI), and frequency of reports.

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Senator Chuck Grassley says President Biden should focus tonight’s (Tuesday’s) State of the Union speech on federal spending plans. “The Biden Administration must change course and move away from the fiscal insanity and partisan politics that dominate Washington,” Grassley says. Resetting the federal budget to pre-pandemic spending levels would be the place to start, according to Grassley.

“During 2020, there was about $3 trillion spent to get us back on track after the government shut down the economy,” Grassley says. “Then we go back to that level of spending in 2020 and add to it whatever needs to be added to it, but we don’t use the present baseline to continue spending.” As lawmakers craft the next federal budget, Grassley says more should be spent to replenish U.S. stockpile of weapons that have been shipped to Ukraine.

Grassley says Medicaid and Social Security benefits need to be restructured, but that should be a separate conversation. “You’ve got to tackle our entitlement programs by themselves and when we do tackle them, we’re got to make sure that people who are on retirement or close to retirement don’t get cut,” Grassley says. Grassley cites the reforms adopted 38 years ago as a guide, suggesting any changes for younger Americans’ Social Security and Medicare benefits be slowly phased in over several decades.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports a woman from Lenox faces a Possession of Contraband/Weapon – inside a Correctional Facility. 44-year-old Cassandra Marlena Davis, who is serving time in the Adams County Jail on other charges, was assessed the additional charge Monday evening. Davis’ bond was increased to $12,000 (cash or surety).