(Radio Iowa) – A new security director will be installed in the Iowa Department of Corrections in response to the March 23rd attack by inmates at the Anamosa State Penitentiary that killed two staff members. In addition to the internal investigation underway, Governor Kim Reynolds says an external investigation is planned. “We’ll address any issues the investigations may reveal and we’ll do what’s necessary to protect our people. Nothing is more important than that,” Reynolds says. “Changes may require additional investment, something that I am fully committed to doing, and this includes making sure that the department and its facilities are adequately staffed.”

Reynolds says 93 percent of full-time positions in the prison system are currently filled. Hiring is underway to fill another five percent, but there is no money in the current year’s budget to cover the remaining two percent of positions. House Republicans are preparing a budget plan that would provide nearly 20-and-a-half million more dollars to the Department of Corrections. Representative Ross Wilburn, a Democrat from Ames, says 20 million seems like a lot, but it doesn’t adequately address the security situation exposed by the attacks at Anamosa. “This entire budget is one that’s been woefully underfunded,” Wilburn says.

Republican Representative Gary Worthan of Storm Lake defends the plan. “We have gotten this budget to the point where maybe it’s not 100% optimal,” Worthan says, “but it’s getting dang close.” Worthan says there is no way to eliminate 100 percent of the risk of working in a prison. “Unfortunately, people are trying to make political hay out of that tragedy. Anamosa is approved for 311 positions; 288 are filled as of the last pay period and 15 are in the process of hiring,” Worthan says. “Anamosa, by any stretch of the imagination, was not understaffed.”

Representative Chris Hall, a Democrat from Sioux City, says the Anamosa incident highlights the dire need for more staff and better security in an overcrowded prison system. “To say that we are playing politics is unfortunate and I would just say it seems to be a two-way street,” Hall says, “so we should all be careful of what we are saying when we point the finger if we have not looked at ourselves directly in the mirror first.”

In January, Governor Reynolds recommended a five million dollar increase in the state prison system budget, for salaries and staffing. Last month, Senate Republicans said they had settled on a four million dollar increase.

(Radio Iowa) – Uber Eats, Door Dash and other services that deliver food would be allowed to deliver beer, wine and liquor from a restaurant, grocery store and other retailer if a bill that’s cleared the House becomes law. Under current state law, bottles of alcohol may only be delivered by people employed by the retailer and that person must be driving a vehicle owned by the store or restaurant when making the delivery. Representative Mike Sexton of Rockwell City says most restaurants and grocery stores that sell wine, beer and alcohol just don’t have enough employees to make home deliveries.

“We’re working through the end of Covid, I hope, if it helps people from staying out of a grocery store, if it helps with an employee shortage that we have in the state of Iowa,” Sexton says. “These are some of the little things we do that I think we make life better for Iowans and, ultimately, that’s the reason why we’re here.”

The legislation requires delivery services and retailers to have written agreements in order to allow a third-party to deliver alcohol. Those agreements, listing names and addresses of the businesses and the delivery services involved, would have to be submitted electronically to the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division. “We were doing Zoom calls with people in California and all over the place in order to make sure we got this right,” Sexton says.

The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration. A year ago, Governor Reynolds temporarily allowed restaurants and bars to sell carry-out cocktails as part of her public health emergency proclamation. Then, last summer, Iowa became the first state in the country to pass a law making to-go cocktails legal.

The Atlantic City Council managed to get through their packed agenda in about an hour, Wednesday evening. Following separate public hearings, the Council unanimously passed Resolutions. Among them:

1. Authorizing Third-Quarter Budget Transfers (a standard practice)
2. Agreeing to apply for financial assistance to USDA Rural Development for a grant to purchase 25 units of 1 1/2-inch diameter fire hose, at $110 per unit. If approved, the USDA will cover 35% of the costs, or nearly $963. The City’s Fire Equipment Reserve fund will provide almost required match of nearly $1,788.
3. The Council passed a Resolution Authorizing an application to be filed with the Rural Iowa Housing Assessment Grant Program, and agreed to commit matching funds in the amount of $5,000, for housing data to be compiled, and for an ISU Extension and Outreach Rural Housing Assessment Readiness Workshop.
4. They passed a Resolution for the Appointment of Bob Camblin as Housing Committee Chair and Committee members.
5. A Resolution Declaring the Bull Creek Restoration Project a Community Priority.” The deadline to apply for federally funded local projects, including Bull Creek, is April 16th.

In other business, the Atlantic City Council approved an application from SHIFT ATL for a Rural Innovation Grant. The organization has proposed a project that would partner SHIFT ATL with the City and Atlantic School District, to rehab a City acquired property at 1310 Chestnut Street. The grant funds would pay for the materials to build a garage on the property. High school tech class students would furnish the labor to build the garage, as part of the coursework.

The Council passed by votes of 6-to 1, the First Reading of Ordinances calling for a limit of 24-hours to remove snow from sidewalks and the moving of vehicles so plows can clear the streets. Pat McCurdy, who owns rental properties, objected because he felt it wouldn’t give his renters enough time to clear their sidewalk. The current Ordinance allows 72 hours to clear sidewalks and move vehicles after the snowfall ends.  And, the Council approved a request from Mike Klocke, with Massena Telephone Company, to begin the process of installing fiber optic line on parts of Atlantic’s east side, and they approved a bid of $215,422 from Henningsen Construction, for construction of the Atlantic Animal Shelter building addition.

A collision early this (Wednesday) afternoon in western Iowa’s Monona County resulted in one person being transported to a hospital. The Iowa State Patrol reports 63-year-old Shirley Klein, of Little Sioux, was transported to Mercy Hospital-Sioux City, by Burgess Rescue, after her 2004 Ford was struck by a 2017 Ford pickup, at the intersection of Monona County roads E-54 and K-45. The crash happened at around 12:03-p.m.

When the driver of the pickup, 24-year old Jerritt Hummel, of Elgin, failed to stop, his vehicle struck the passenger car broadside. Authorities say Hummel was not injured in the crash. The Patrol says Klein was wearing her seat belt when the crash occurred.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports three arrests so far this week. On Wed., April 7th, Matthew Dean Brown was arrested at the Page County Courthouse in Clarinda, on an active warrant for Failure to appear on April 7, 2021 for Violation of Obstructed Snow Removal.

On Monday April 5th, Elsa Antonino Vincent and Paige Jamie Ruthe Vincent, were arrested at 2616 Sumac Ave in Clarinda. Both were taken into custody on warrants for Fraudulent Practice 2nd degree, Ongoing criminal conduct (unlawful activity) and Conspiracy to commit an non-forcible felony. Paige Vincent also faces a Tampering with records charge.

(Radio Iowa) – While hundreds of thousands of Iowans have been vaccinated for COVID-19, with thousands more getting the shots daily, Governor Kim Reynolds says they shouldn’t have to carry a “vaccine passport” to prove it to anyone.

Vaccine passports have already been banned via executive orders by the governors of Texas and Florida. The statement by Reynolds, a Republican, is in tandem with the Biden administration, which announced Tuesday it would -not- create a federal vaccine passport or require travelers or businesses to be inoculated.

The governor says a federal vaccine passport would have privacy implications and might be unconstitutional.

Reynolds plans to meet with lawmakers to discuss whether a bill can be passed before the 2021 legislative session ends this spring, or if she needs to take executive action.

A bill stalled in the Senate this year that would have prohibited Iowa businesses and health care facilities from requiring that employees get vaccinations. The bill also sought to bar health insurance companies from denying coverage based on a lack of immunizations. Reynolds announced this (Wednesday) morning that 44 percent of adult Iowans have had at least one dose and 28 percent of Iowans eligible for Covid shots are fully vaccinated. However, she said vaccination rates among middle aged Iowans are lagging and 61 percent of the people with Covid who are hospitalized in Iowa are in their 40s and 50s and 60s.

Reynolds used a portion of her weekly news conference to highlight efforts in Storm Lake to boost vaccination rates among Latinos. A mass vaccination clinic in Storm Lake is planned for Sunday April 18th.

The Audubon School District’s Board of Education held a public hearing and a very short, special session, Tuesday evening. Superintendent Eric Trager told KJAN News the Board approved the FY22 Budget as proposed.

(Essentially, he said, the budget reduces the tax asking by three-cents, from $11.90/$1,000 assessed valuation, to $11.87/$1,000. It generates an additional $14,500 for the district for the coming year.)

The next step is for the budget to be certified and sent to the State for filing, before April 15th.

(Radio Iowa) – The Cedar Rapids Gazette is reporting Governor Kim Reynolds has given two state agency directors big bonuses this year. The Gazette got documents showing the governor gave Iowa Homeland Security director Paul Trombino a 46-thousand dollar bonus in February, bringing his annual salary to nearly 160-thousand dollars. Debi Durham, the director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority AND the Iowa Finance Authority, got a 50-thousand dollar bonus in January.

Durham had been Economic Development Authority director since 2011, but in 2018 Reynolds fired the Finance Authority’s director, who was accused of sexual harassment, and asked Durham to lead that agency as well. Documents posted on The Cedar Rapids Gazette website show Durham’s salary this year will top 200-thousand dollars.

The Cass County Master Gardeners are excited to announce the return of their annual Spring Plant Sale for 2021. Cancelled last year as the pandemic prohibited public gathering, the 2021 event promises to have a wide variety of spring perennials available for gardeners looking to update their landscape this year. This year’s event is scheduled for Saturday morning, May 8, at the Cass County Community Center, 805 W 10th Street, on the Cass County Fairgrounds. The sale will be open to the public to purchase divided perennials suitable for spring planting, as well as possibly some garden tools and decor.

The sale begins at 8 AM, and will be held in the front parking lot of the Cass County Community Center on the fairgrounds in Atlantic. Interested gardeners are encouraged to arrive early for best plant selection, as the annual spring and fall sales occasionally sell out before 10 AM. Due to the pandemic, several safety measures will be in place for this sale, including recommending the use of masks when interacting with others and completing purchase, spreading out sale items to allow for social distancing, hand sanitizer stations and a one-way traffic flow for shoppers.

Cass County Master Gardeners will be bringing a variety of plants from their own gardens, as well as plants dug from gardens around the community, for this sale. Community members are also welcome to donate plants to this event, and members may even help you dig! If you are dividing perennials in your yard this spring and have extra plants to donate, please call in advance and make arrangements to drop off donated plants before the date of the plant sale. As the event gets closer, the group will be sharing a list of plants expected to be available at the sale. Cass County Master Gardeners use funds from the plant sale to support their scholarships and community grants, as well as projects they do around the county each year.

For more information about these events and about Master Gardener activities in Cass County, please call the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132, or email Cass County Extension Director and Master Gardener Coordinator Kate Olson at keolson@iastate.edu. In addition, you are invited to follow the Cass County Master Gardeners at their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CassCoMG to keep up with local events and tips for gardening. For anyone interested in learning more about the Master Gardener program and becoming a Master Gardener, the next class will begin in August of 2021, with a mix of online and hands-on learning. Find details and sign up on the Iowa Master Gardener website, or call the Cass County Extension office to learn more!

The Adair County Board of Supervisors, during an electronic meeting Wednesday morning, voted against the sale of alcohol during the Adair County Fair. Prior to the meeting, written objections were raised to the idea from Adair County residents Colleen and Jerry Oxley, Barb Kalbach, and LuAnne Shelley. In her statement, LuAnn Shelley said “The county fair is for the children! (If the adults think they need alcohol, there are several places they can go drink.) Please leave this for the children! They don’t have as many places or choices as the adults have for recreation. Please, leave this for the children!”

Fairboard member Joe Herr addressed the Supervisors. He said the Fair Board has discussed allowing alcohol on a nightly basis, from one-hour before events to one-half hour after. The venue for serving alcohol would be restricted.

He said alcohol would not be allowed outside of a fenced-in area. Herr acknowledged concerns over persons having too much alcohol, and then drinking and driving.

Herr said allowing alcohol would be a financial benefit to the Fair.

Supervisors Board Chair Steve Shelley made it clear, that if the sale of alcohol is permitted at the Adair County Fair, he will no longer be in favor of Board financial support for the Fair.

Board member Jodi Hoadley suggested if the Fair Board needs the money that badly, the Supervisors could look at increasing the amount they give to the fair each year. In the end, the Supervisors voted unanimously NOT to support the proposal to allow alcohol at the fair.

In other business, the Adair County Supervisors approved a contract for the mowing of the Grove Cemetery. They also agreed to allow in-person meetings at the courthouse, with the provision masks be worn in the courtroom and as social distancing allows, if the governor does not extend her current proclamation. Department heads would have the final decision on whether masks are required in their individual offices.

Sheriff Jeff Vandewater, spoke Wednesday, with regard to a new vehicle purchase/Trade-in. The current 2017 Tahoe has a lot of miles on it. Vandewater has worked out a deal with Karl Chevrolet for a 2021 Tahoe at $36,216. With a trade-in for $18,500, that leaves a net cost of $18,216. The vehicle is Budgeted for already, and board approved the trade-in and purchase.