(Radio Iowa) – The latest financial report shows the State of Iowa has a sizeable surplus, but sales tax payments slowed significantly this summer. Jeff Robinson is a senior analyst for the Legislative Services Agency. He says some transactions from the last state fiscal year are still being processed, but the state treasury will wind up with hundreds of millions more in tax payments than state officials had predicted in March.  “At the June 30 conclusion of the cash year, gross General Fund revenue was $435 million above projections,” Robinson says. “Individual income tax produced almost 70% of the excess.”

Robinson says since July 1st, state income tax payments from individuals AND corporations have remained strong. However, sales and use tax payments to the state were down four percent. From July 1st through September 2nd, total state tax revenue increased 13 million dollars. That’s a less than one percent increase compared to the same period last year. The tax CUTS that lawmakers approved this spring will start going into effect January 1st.

(Radio Iowa) – Fall enrollment at the University of Iowa is up slightly, while Iowa State University saw another drop. I-S-U reports a decrease of 739 students for the fall semester, putting overall enrollment just below 30-thousand. It is the sixth straight year fall enrollment has dropped in Ames since enrollment peaked in 2016 at 36-thousand-291 students.

The University of Iowa reports an increase of 106 students to put fall enrollment at 30-thousand-15. It is the first time fall enrollment has increased in Iowa City since 2016. Both schools report an increase in first-year students.

(Radio Iowa) – A federal judge has given final approval to a settlement for employees who lost their jobs when the Flexsteel plant in Dubuque closed in 2020. Employees who worked at Flexsteel facilities in Dubuque and Mississippi filed a class action lawsuit against the company last year. It claimed Flexsteel used the pandemic as an excuse to immediately close the plants and deny severance pay to laid off employees and the company failed to give a 60 day notice of the layoffs.

A federal judge has approved a settlement of nearly one-point-three million dollars that will provide payments to about 300 former Flexsteel workers. The payments will range from at least one-thousand up to 15-thousand dollars and are based on how long the employee worked at Flexsteel and how much they were paid.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – During a meeting of the Atlantic City Council Wednesday evening, City Administrator John Lund wanted to get an idea of what the Council thinks about renewing the City’s agreement with “The Retail Coach,” as the contract is set to expire. Renewing the contract for a second year, would cost $20,000.

The $20,000 price tag that comes with the renewal, was the result of conversations between Councilman Gerald Brink and The Retail Coach Project Director Austin Farmer, who is working with  the Chamber and the City as a consultant to conduct market research and development to further high-impact retail recruitment and development strategies. Last year, the first-year of the program, cost $30,000.

Brink said Farmer told him that it “normally takes two-years to see some success.” He said the main issue the City faces right now, is a lack of location for certain business.

Councilman Pat McCurdy said “The Retail Coach’” price tag could easily be offset by the introduction of a new employer.

John Lund says “very concrete and specific things are being discussed and worked-on,” and, while he’s not at liberty to say what client or clients may be inclined to locate their business in Atlantic, he doesn’t feel the City is being “Strung along,” just to get more money from “The Retail Coach.”

Lund says value of “The Retail Coach” comes from an extensive collection of data that the City would pay much more for if it was gathered by other means.

There was no formal action on renewing the agreement Wednesday. Instead, renewal of the contract will take place by a vote at a near future Council meeting, and then signed by Mayor Grace Garrett.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa is starting to get in shipments of the latest COVID-19 booster shots, and the experts say we should consult with our doctors on the best timing to get vaccinated. The new m-R-N-A booster doses from Moderna and Pfizer are bi-valent, meaning, they protect against two strains of coronavirus. Federal guidance recommends those 12 and older get the shot at least two months after their last dose. Leah Veach, an infectious disease specialist with UnityPoint, says some people may want to wait a little longer between shots if they’ve recently had another booster or a COVID infection. “If you’re right at that two-month point, I surely would have no problem with waiting an additional month or two beyond that,” Veach says, “but I would not wait until say January or February to assess the situation.”

Veach says not to panic and think you need to get in right away for the booster. “Sometimes people hear that two-month interval and think, ‘Oh my goodness, I need to get it right at two months,'” Veach says. “It’s just important to realize that that’s a minimum and that it’s absolutely fine and maybe slightly beneficial to wait a bit longer than that.”

Federal figures show 63-percent of all Iowans have received their initial vaccinations against the virus, but only slightly more than half of this group has received their first booster dose.

(reporting by Natalie Krebs, Iowa Public Radio)

(Radio Iowa) – The suspect in a burglary at a hardware store in Storm Lake has been linked to similar burglaries elsewhere in Iowa and surrounding states. On January 28th, Storm Lake Police discovered around 28-hundred dollars worth of merchandise was missing from Ace Hardware. Similar burglaries and thefts had reportedly occurred around the area. Storm Lake Police eventually obtained a search warrant for a Rock Rapids residence, which was executed on June 15th.

Approximately 14-thousand dollars worth of various tools were located that were allegedly stolen from theft incidents in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Minnesota. 45-year-old Adam Nelson of Sioux City was taken into custody by Lyon County Deputies on drug-related charges, as well as two Sioux County warrants.

Storm Lake Police have filed multiple felony charges against Nelson. He was originally held at the Lyon County Jail pending extradition to Buena Vista County.

Police in Creston (Iowa) report the arrest Wednesday afternoon, of a 74-year-old man, for Harassment in the 3rd Degree. Hyvis Oerlyn Thatcher, of Creston, was transported from his home to the Union County Jail, where he posted a $300 bond, and was released.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – A woman whose vehicle struck and killed a Des Moines East High student and then left the scene, was ordered to serve two years of probation. A Judge, Wednesday, also ordered 38-year-old Terra Jean Flipping to pay a $1,025 associated with the death on April 28th, of 14-year-old Ema Cardenas. Flipping was facing five-years in prison for leaving the scene of a deadly accident. Cardenas was hit near the intersection of East University Avenue and Sampson Street, while she was walking home from school.

Des Moines Police have said Flipping had no way to avoid hitting Cardenas. They said also, that had she not fled the scene, she likely would not faced any charges. Flipping’s father previously told KCCI-TV in Des Moines, that his daughter didn’t stop because people in the area started harassing her. Ana Campos, Ema Cardenas’ mother, said she has grocery store video that shows that claim was untrue, and she plans to release it, soon.