(Des Moines, Iowa)- Iowa’s Auditor of State Rob Sand today (Wednesday) released a report on a special investigation of the City of Hamburg for the period of March 1, 2019 through August 31, 2023. The special investigation was requested by Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) and Homeland Security and Emergency Management Department (HSEMD) as a result of concerns communicated to the Department’s regarding certain grant funds and a forgivable loan received by the City following the March 2019 flood. Concerns were also received regarding City officials, City employees, and their family members and friends receiving direct benefit from the funds awarded to the City.

Sand reported the special investigation identified the following, with regard to the Nuisance Property and Abandoned Building Remediation Loan Program:

• The City did not enter into an agreement with Hamburg Economic Development Council (HEDC) to administer the Nuisance Property and Abandoned Building Remediation Loan Program.
• City officials were unable to provide supporting documents showing the properties acquired under the program were nuisance properties as defined by the Code of Iowa or under the terms of the program. HEDC officials stated that properties were identified by physically driving through the community and selecting lots that would have been favorable for potential buyers.
• Under the program, 6 properties were purchased by HEDC and not the City. However, HEDC was not a party to the grant between the Iowa Economic Development Authority and the City of Hamburg.
• The City provided funding under the program to build two new homes. One home was owned by a City Council member who transferred ownership to a family member. The second home was privately owned. The owner was not related to a member of City government. City officials were unable to provide any support why NPAB funds were used on lots that were not cleared or owned by the City.
• The program allows funds to be used for construction for City owned homes. If the funds are used for projects owned by private citizens, the homeowners are to repay the funds to the City. Under the program the city paid 60% of the construction costs for two privately owned homes. Sand’s office could not determine why the homeowners did not repay the funds to the City as required by the program. For the two homes the construction costs paid by the grant were $86,730.00 and $104,576.50.
• For the two homes constructed there is no evidence the owners repaid any portion of the funds provided under the program.

Sand reported the special investigation identified the following with the Community Catalyst Building Remediation Grant Program:
• The City did not enter into an agreement with Hamburg Economic Development Council (HEDC) to administer the Community Catalyst Building Remediation Grant Program awarded to the City.
• Under the terms of the program, if the building is owned by an entity other than the city, the respective city must provide information regarding ownership and the relationship with the City. The City did not disclose a City Council member was negotiating ownership of 2 buildings which received funding.
• The city was unable to provide support showing two applicants provided the required match in the form of financial or in-kind assistance.
• The city violated Iowa Code 234.7, by quit claiming a deed to a property owned by the City to an applicant who received funding under the program. Under the Code of Iowa, the City should have published a notice on the date a public hearing was to be held regarding the sale. The Code also prohibits the disposal of real property by gift, except to a governmental body for public purpose.

Other issues
• The City made a duplicate payment to HEDC totaling $50,000.00 that was not authorized or explained.
o The duplicate payment was issued on April 29, 2020 for $50,000.00 for the Catalyst Grant. The $50,000.00 was previously paid on February 13, 2020.
• HEDC cashed and deposited donation checks expressly written out to the City totaling $23,690.17.

Sand also reported several familial relationships were identified between recipients of Nuisance/Abandoned Property Remediation Fund (NPAB) funds and City Council member, Kent Benefiel, and the City’s public works director, Alan Dovel. Sand reported that the Community Catalyst Building Remediation Grant Program (Catalyst grant) was facilitated by HEDC, even though there was a prohibition on the transfer or reassignment of the grant funds in the agreement between the City and IEDA. Mr. Benefiel applied for catalyst grant funds related to two properties on Main Street and received the largest share of the catalyst grant funds.

Copies of the report have been filed with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Fremont County Attorney’s Office, the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, and the Attorney General’s Office. A copy of the report is available for review on the Auditor of State’s website at Special Interest Reports.

(Marshall, MN) – Officials with Yelloh, this week, announced the company will cease all operations in November 2024, closing out a storied 72-year history as a Minnesota pioneer in the food home-delivery market. Founded as Schwan’s in Marshall, Minnesota, in 1952, the company expanded to serve people nationwide, delivering frozen meals, food, treats and ice cream to homes. The company has about 1,100 employees and according to Iowa WARN, 53 employees in Iowa are being laid off.

Yelloh CEO Bernardo Santana said in a news release, “It’s with heavy hearts that we made the difficult decision to cease operations of Yelloh. We are thankful to our many loyal customers and hard-working employees for everything they have done to support us. I am deeply grateful for our employees’ tireless and bold efforts, and our customers’ dedication. It has been our utmost pleasure and honor to serve our customers their favorite meals and frozen treats.”

The company cited multiple insurmountable business challenges for the decision, including economic and market forces, as well as changing consumer lifestyles. Yelloh will wind down operations over the next two months, taking care of employees with notice and pay in accordance with the WARN Act. The last day products may be purchased via Yelloh trucks will be Friday, November 8.

(Radio Iowa) – A seventh generation Iowan who’s an agricultural and anti-trust research fellow at Yale University is back in Iowa this week talking about his book that’s focused on monopolies and tycoons in the food industry. Austin Frerick zeroes in on seven corporate giants which he says are “cartoonishly criminal,” raking in billions of dollars disguised as farm fresh, hometown neighbors, while manipulating lax laws for their own tremendous financial benefit. “That Whole Foods consumer wants to think they’re getting a different product than the Dollar General consumer, but it’s really kind of the same product,” Frerick says. “You might see what looks like a competitive marketplace on the peanut butter shelf. It’s actually just one company that has like a 78% market share because they have the different brand points for different incomes, and usually the market share is higher because they do the store brand, too.”

In his book, “Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America’s Food Industry,” Frerick blames a “lack of courage” by our public servants to stand up the these monoliths, with their armies of lawyers. He says he can back up every claim. “That’s why I have almost 1,000 citations,” Frerick says. “You’re going to write book like this, you’ve got to cross your t’s and dot your i’s. My book’s only 200 pages, but I have like 70 pages of footnotes, because I want people to see every little thing. Even though these things might sound outlandish or crazy, I have a piece of evidence for everything I lay out in my book.”

Frerick singles out a former Iowa governor, U-S Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, for giving U-S-D-A contracts to meat processing “baron” J-B-S, a multinational corporation Frerick says was convicted of criminal behavior. Frerick names a lot of names, and was asked by Radio Iowa if he was ever concerned about his personal welfare in writing a book so critical of massive corporations and powerful individuals. “To be honest with you, I wasn’t, and I think that’s the beauty of America, that I can write a book like this and not worry about my safety,” Frerick says. “That’s the beauty of democracy, but on the flip side, part of this book is me grappling with what happened to Iowa in my lifetime, which should be the Tuscany of North America. How does it now have a water crisis, obesity crisis and a cancer crisis?”

Frerick grew up in Cedar Rapids and says he’s saddened by how his home state has been polluted, but he notes, you can complain or do something about it, and the book is his way of doing something about it. He’s very concerned about Iowa’s future, as he says we may be witnessing the last days for corn-based ethanol, an industry worth five-billion dollars a year to the state’s economy. “Ethanol is going to phase out. Cars are moving to hybrids and electric vehicles. What are we going to do with that corn land that will no longer be needed for ethanol? That’s what I want to focus on, is how do we bring back the middle class farmer? How do we stabilize these systems?” Frerick says. “Everyone is just seeing the current system is not working in America, the food doesn’t taste good, and you’re being gouged for it. We’re paying more for junk, essentially.”

What’s a consumer to do? While he advocates buying local, Frerick says personal consumption won’t change these structures, but congressional legislation can. He’s appearing tonight (Wednesday) at 7 PM at the Des Moines Public Library’s central library, as well as at the Harkin Institute at Drake University, and the Des Moines Lyceum (ly-SEE-um) Movement on Thursday night.

(Radio Iowa) – The union representing state corrections officers says two prison workers were assaulted by an inmate Monday at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison. AFSCME Council 61 president Todd Copley issued a statement that says correctional officers across the state are being asked to work under dangerous, understaffed, and under-resourced conditions, and says they’re not seeing the leadership needed from the Governor’s office to address these issues.

The Iowa Department of Corrections issued a statement saying it is aware of the AFSCME statement in regards to an assault at the Iowa State Penitentiary. The statement says the Department doesn’t comment on open investigations and goes on to say “The safety of our correctional officers and inmates is of top importance. We are committed to implementing best practices in security, training, and compliance to create an environment where all individuals can feel safe.”

(Washington, D-C) – The federal Bureau of Prisons mistakenly released an Iowa man from custody before he finished serving his 30-month sentence for storming the Senate chamber during a mob’s attack on the U.S. Capitol, Justice Department prosecutors said in a court filing this week. WHO-TV in Des Moines reports Leo Christopher Kelly of Cedar Rapids was freed last Thursday after an appeals court agreed to throw out one of his convictions stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.

But prosecutors believe Kelly’s release was a mistake because he only served 11 months of his 30-month sentence. In a court filing Monday, they asked U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth for a hearing to address Kelly’s release. The Bureau of Prisons told The Associated Press that Kelly was “inadvertently released” last week after a “misinterpretation of a court order.” The bureau’s statement doesn’t elaborate on the reason for the error, but it says that Kelly, 39, reported to a probation officer “as instructed” and remains free while awaiting a resentencing hearing.

Prosecutors also are asking the judge to schedule a hearing for resentencing now that Kelly’s only felony conviction has been tossed by the federal appeals court for the District of Columbia circuit. In May 2023, a jury convicted Kelly of all seven counts in his indictment. One of his convictions was for a charge that he obstructed an official proceeding, the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress for certifying President Joe Biden ‘s electoral victory over Donald Trump.

In June, however, the U.S. Supreme Court limited the government’s use of that obstruction charge. The justices ruled 6-3 that the charge of obstructing an official proceeding must include proof that defendants tried to tamper with or destroy documents. After the ruling, prosecutors and defense attorney Nicholas Smith joined in asking the appeals court to vacate Kelly’s obstruction conviction. His remaining convictions were for misdemeanor offenses. Judge Lamberth sentenced Kelly in August 2023 and refused to release him pending the outcome of his appeal. Lamberth indicated last month that he was unlikely to reduce Kelly’s sentence.

A Bureau of Prisons database doesn’t specify where Kelly was serving his sentence when he was released last week.

A day before the Jan. 6 riot, Kelly drove to Washington, D.C., to attend then-President Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House. He marched to the Capitol, joined other rioters in entering the building and made his way to the Senate floor. Kelly approached the dais where then-Vice President Mike Pence had just presided over the Senate. He took videos of documents on desks — including a ballot sheet, handwritten notes and a script — before police cleared the rioters out of the chamber.

Approximately 1,500 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes. More than 600 of them have been convicted and sentenced to a term of imprisonment ranging from a few days to 22 years.