(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Senate has sent the governor a bill to ban state and local governments in Iowa from issuing I-D cards that show they got a COVID-19 shot. Senate President Jake Chapman, a Republican from Adel, opposes the idea of so-called “vaccine passports. “We will protect Iowans from being forced by tyrannical governments to inject their body with chemicals that they may or may not wish to have,” Chapman says.

A month ago, Governor Reynolds called on legislators to pass the bill. Iowa employers may still ask employees if they’ve been vaccinated, but the bill forbids businesses, non-profits and other institutions from requiring customers and visitors to provide proof they’ve been vaccinated. Chapman was the only senator to speak before votes were cast yesterday. “Iowans don’t want to be forced to have a chemical injected into their body to be able to go to a baseball game, to go to the grocery store, to live their lives.”

The bill provides an exception so hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities may ask patients and visitors whether they’ve had a Covid shot. Thirty Republicans and two Democrats voted for the bill. The Senate’s Democratic leader has suggested the odds the state would ever issue vaccine passports are about equal to the chances he’ll be the Green Bay Packers quarterback and the bill’s not needed.

(Greenfield) The Adair County Board of Supervisors held a special meeting Wednesday evening in Greenfield, with regard to Solar Energy Systems Ordinance #38. The Board heard from eight persons either in-person or on the phone, who had three-minutes each to express their views and/or concerns. The first to speak was Matt Ott, Project Developer with Mid-American Energy. He had concerns over what he called “excessive setbacks” proposed by the Ordinance.

He included the five-mile airport setback as well.

Ott said Mid-American was also not happy with the 400-acre cap.

Tammy Baier started to speak about her feelings on the subject, but then someone hacked into the conference call with a program where people were discussing child pornography accusations. Board Chair Steve Shelley apologized for the interruption, and County Auditor Mandy Berg reminded callers their phone numbers show up on caller ID, and they will be dealt with appropriately. While other City/County Government conference calls, Zoom or other type meetings open to the public have been hacked into across the country over the past year, as well, this was the first time it has happened in Adair County. Once the interruption was dealt with, Baier continued with her comments.

Lyle Beane said Mid-American does not have a good track record for being “good neighbors,” as evidenced by the installation of their wind turbines.

After Supervisor Shelley read the Ordinance as written, Board voted to approve the first reading and waived second and third readings of Ordinance #38, prior to passing 3-to 2, a Resolution by 2021-38 (to that effect), as written. Supervisors Steve Shelley and John Twombly voted against accepting the resolution.

Board member Jodie Hoadley said the Resolution was needed to protect the County from Mid-American dishonesty.

The Atlantic City Council, Wednesday, set July 2nd, 3rd and 4th, from Noon until 11-p.m. each day, as the dates and times for fireworks celebrations in advance of and on, Independence Day. They also approved certain street closings for special events, to include:

• 6th Street, from Chestnut to Poplar, every Thursday evening from 3-until 6:45-p.m., from June 6th through Sept. 30th, for Produce in the Park.
• 4th Street, from Chestnut to Walnut Street, on July 17th, from 7-a.m. until Midnight, for SHIFT ATL’s Farm-to-Table Fundraiser.

In other business, the Atlantic City Council approved the sale of City-owned real estate at 211 W. 6th Street, to Jeff Pross, in the amount of One-dollar, with the promise that he will build a home valued at $100,000 or more on the lot. Pross said the stick-built home will have wood siding. Earlier, it appeared he had chosen to use steel siding, but after some on the Council objected, the decision was made to use a more traditional appearance in a residential area.

The Council however voted 5-to-2 against accepting a bid from Chuck Templeman, for the purchase of lots at 204 W. 3rd, 202 W. 3rd, and 211 Locust Street, over a desire to see the lots used for a bigger project, such as a possible downtown retirement community, despite the zone apparently being in a flood zone. Templeman was willing to pay $4,810 for the properties, so he can build a garage for his nearby rental properties. Councilmen Dick Casady and Pat McCurdy voted in favor of selling the properties. After considerable discussion and a vote, Templeman withdrew his bid, saying that he thought he was doing the City a favor by purchasing the lots. Casady said “We’re losing tax money.” McCurdy said “We’re passing up a wonderful opportunity.” Mayor Jones said the future of the properties would be sent to a committee for further study and recommendation. And, a recommendation for a bid of $650 for City owned property at 611 Linn Street, from James Hemphill, died for lack of a motion.

In other business, the Atlantic City Council set May 19th as the date for a Public Hearing on an amended FY 2021 Budget. They passed the third and final readings of Ordinance pertaining to the timeframe for removal of snow from sidewalks and vehicles City streets. Both passed by votes of 5-to 2, with Councilmen McCurdy and Behrens opposed. McCurdy reiterated his contention reducing the time from 72-hours to 24-hours following the conclusion of a snow event, was not enough time for his tenants and other citizens. He would have approved 48-hours as an alternative.

And final, Mayor Dave Jones read a Proclamation that says May 2nd through the 9th is Professional Municipal Clerks Week, in Atlantic, as a means of honoring their “Precise organization, record and book-keeping skills,” which without, “The City as a business organization could not function.”

Police in Shenandoah say an Atlantic man was arrested Tuesday night on a theft charge. Authorities say 33-year-old Zane Edward Szeliga was taken into custody at around 10:15-p.m., on charges of Theft in the 3rd Degree, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. His arrest followed a reported incident of theft incident at Casey’s General Store, in Shenandoah. Bond at the Page County Jail was set at $2,300.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Reynolds says she declined 95 million dollars in federal funds for Covid surveillance testing in Iowa schools because the state has nearly 300 million in federal funding available for testing. “We can’t continue to just take this money. There is a cost to taxpayers,” Reynolds says. “And the amount of money that is flowing into these states because of some of the bad decisions that some of the other states have made is unconscionable.”

Public health officials say surveillance testing isn’t about diagnosing individuals, but about collecting data to understand and predict outbreaks. “We haven’t to date had any school reach out to do the surveillance testing,” Reynolds says. “Even when we proactively offered with the Iowa City High School, they declined it or didn’t ask for it because they felt that they had the resources there.” Iowa City schools had a spike in Covid cases last month.

Several Democratic lawmakers have criticized the Republican governor for turning down money congress approved in March, saying the state should accept all the pandemic support it’s offered. The Iowa Department of Public Health has asked the C-D-C if the 95 million dollars could be used instead on vaccine distribution.

(Radio Iowa) – Hamburg marked a major milestone today (Wednesday) in the long fight against Missouri River flooding. Local, state, and national officials were on hand for a groundbreaking for the expansion by eight feet of what is called the Ditch Six levee located along Highway 333. Omaha District Corps of Engineers Colonel Mark Himes saluted local officials for their efforts in pushing for the expansion to 919 feet…

“Hamburg’s resolve to provide additional flood resiliency serves as an example to other communities along the Missouri River and throughout the nation who face similar challenges,” Himes says. “You’ve already done an amazing done, and have made tremendous progress recovering from the 2019 flood event. Today, I along with the U-S Corps of Engineers’ Omaha district team are proud to partner with you in taking another major step in moving forward.”

Hamburg officials agreed to pay the difference between the cost of returning the to the levee’s original design capacity, and the cost of raising it higher. Hamburg Mayor Cathy Crain recalled how the flood impacted the city. “We lost water, sewer, natural gas for 120 days,” Crain says. “Two-thirds of our town was covered in water. Only three of our 44 businesses could open. The other 41 were underwater, and some of them couldn’t even open until September.”

Crain says Hamburg also lost 73 homes to the flooding. Two years later, Crain says the city’s business sector has rebounded, and new housing projects are in the offing. “We now have one more business than when we had the flood,” she says. “We have three new businesses now up and running. We’ve got three more under construction. We’ve purchased two 10-acre plots of land for new subdivisions, and hopefully, if materials for building could just stabilize a little bit, we’ll be able to get those built.”

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst and Congresswoman Cindy Axne co-sponsored the bill which allows the corps to begin pre-construction on levee improvements without waiting for congressional approval if a project is determined to be critical to flood prevention, and costs less than 25 million dollars. Hamburg is the first community to take advantage of the new provision.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds is presenting her fellow Republicans in the legislature with a wide-ranging tax plan that she describes as a compromise.  “We think we’ve landed in a really good spot and we’re excited to move forward with it,” she says. Her plan has the support of Senate Republicans, but Republicans in the Iowa House are unveiling their own plan. The governor’s plan would speed up income tax cuts and get rid of the state inheritance tax — those are both moves that all Republicans in the legislature now support. However, cutting property taxes by 100 million dollars by having the state take over the mental health system has the support of just SENATE Republicans and the governor.

“Iowa has never been in a better position to take tax burdens off the backs of Iowans and invest state revenue to sustain critical and important services,” she says. “Now’s the time to come together and take action and that’s exactly what I’m asking the House and the Senate to do in the remaining days of the legislative session.”

Gov. Kim Reynolds, 5/5/21

House Speaker Pat Grassley says House Republicans are interested in cutting property taxes, but Grassley says they’re not convinced all the questions about how the state would manage the mental health system have been fully answered.

“Okay, we pick up the levee, what does this now look like and how does this play forward, not only for the cost to the state, but the services provided to Iowans? And I think we’re in a position where there’s a lot of unknowns,” Grassley says. “…If we’re going to take on another social program at the state level, we have to do it right.”

The state’s mental health system is managed on a regional basis and, since county property taxes are used to finance the system, county officials are in charge. Iowa is currently the only state that uses property taxes to pay for mental health services.

(Radio Iowa) – Charges are now filed in the kidnapping and killing of a Davenport girl who vanished last summer, whose remains were found in a Clinton County pond in March. Scott County Attorney Mike Walton made the announcement at a news conference this (Wednesday) morning that the man who had been a person of interest all along in the case is the only person charged in the girl’s disappearance and fatal shooting. “This morning, Henry Earl Dinkins was charged in the death of 11-year-old Breasia Terrell,” Walton says. “These charges are the result of a nine-month investigation by the Davenport Police Department and numerous other agencies.”

Breasia Terrell

The 48-year-old Dinkins is accused of first-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping. Walton read the charges, referring to the slain girl by her initials, B-T. “On or about July 10th, 2020, Henry Dinkins did remove a child from 2744 East 53rd Street, Davenport, Iowa, without consent or authority or by deception to secretly confine and inflict serious injury, and as a result of the kidnapping, B.T. was murdered.” Walton also read the murder charge, but would offer no further details beyond the legal document. “On or about July 10th, 2020, Henry Dinkins did remove and confine a child and with premeditation, malice of forethought and intent to kill B.T., shot her with a firearm, causing her death.”

The girl’s remains were found March 22nd by a couple that was fishing at a pond in a rural area north of DeWitt. Breasia had spent the night before she disappeared with her half-brother and the boy’s father, Dinkins. He was already in jail on charges he violated his sex offender registration requirements. The Iowa Department of Corrections reported Dinkins pleaded guilty to third-degree sexual abuse of a minor in 1990. If convicted of Breasia’s murder, Dinkins will face a mandatory life prison term.

DES MOINES – Four of Iowa’s most talented high school seniors have earned an Iowa Scholarship for the Arts to support their college education this fall. Faith De Groot of Alta, Ruby Hummel of Yale, Mikayla Lane of Cresco and Mio Legaspi of Adel are the recipients of the prestigious award from the Iowa Arts Council, a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs. The Iowa Scholarship for the Arts program supports Iowa high school students with proven artistic ability in dance, creative writing, music, theater, traditional arts or visual arts who plan to pursue a major in the arts at an accredited Iowa college or university. Each scholarship winner will receive $2,500 for his or her college tuition and related expenses as a full-time undergraduate student in 2021-2022.

Ruby Hummel of Panorama High School will study music education at Drake University in Des Moines. Inspired by teachers and peers, she wants to continue to perform while studying to become a music educator, so she can help future generations connect with music.

More information about the Iowa Scholarship for the Arts is available at iowaculture.gov.

The pursuit of a semi tractor-trailer that began along Interstate 80 in western Iowa’s Adair County, ended some 40-to mile miles west, in rural Shelby County. Iowa State Patrol Trooper Ryan Devault said the chase began at around 7:10-a.m., near mile-marker 74.

The pursuit continued westbound on I-80 to Exit 51 (The Marne Exit), despite attempts to slow the vehicle by stop-sticks.

Both photos courtesy ISP Trooper Ryan Devault

Trooper Devault said the driver exited I-80 north into Shelby County at the Marne exit to 200^th Street, which is a gravel road. The chase continued on multiple gravel roads in southeastern Shelby County. Eventually, the driver ended-up on M-47, north of Walnut, near Prairie Rose State Park.

During the chase speeds along the Interstate reached 90 mph, and 50-to-70 mph on the two-lane and gravel roads. The driver, 38-year-old Jeremy Samstad, of St. James, Minnesota, was wanted on at least four warrants from as many states. Devault says it’s believed the man led authorities on the chase, because of his warrants.

He was taken into custody without further incident. He was transported to the Adair County Jail, in Greenfield. There were no injuries reported and no damage to law enforcement vehicles. The Patrol was assisted during the incident by the Cass, Pottawattamie and Shelby County Sheriff’s Offices, and Iowa Motor Vehicle Enforcement.