DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa’s annual sales tax holiday returns Aug. 2nd & 3rd, just in time for families looking to save a little money while back-to-school shopping. Iowa’s sales tax normally ranges from 6-7%, but that tax is waived on certain items during the tax-free weekend. All businesses open during the holiday must participate, according to the Iowa Department of Revenue, and eligible items purchased online, or by mail order or catalog, are also exempt as long as they’re ordered and paid for during the exemption period. This year’s exemption period runs from 12:01 a.m. Friday, Aug. 2, until midnight Saturday Aug. 3. Sunday, Aug. 4 is not included in the tax-exempt period.

Find the state’s list of sales tax-exempt items — and items that are taxable — here.

Some of the tax-free items include clothing and shoes under $100 (Such as underclothes, sneakers, coats and jackets, belts, jeans, diapers, work uniforms, costumes and bridal apparel).

The exemption does not apply to any item that costs $100 or more. It also doesn’t apply to backpacks, garment bags, watches and jewelry, umbrellas, clothing repairs or alterations, sporting equipment or other special clothing or footwear for athletics. Items purchased online are included in the tax exemption as long as they fit the normal requirements. As long as items are ordered and paid for during the holiday, it does not matter if delivery isn’t complete until after the holiday has concluded.

Image from https://itrfoundation.org/iowas-sales-tax-free-weekend-is-coming-up-but-is-it-good-policy/

The National Retail Federation estimates families will spend an average of $874 this year on back-to-school items. That’s slightly down from last year, but still the second-highest average recorded. Of that spending, families are expected to shell out more than $300 for electronics this year and more than $400 on clothing and accessories. Another $142 is expected to go toward school supplies.

Carol Ehlers, a human sciences specialist in family well-being with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, said families need to plan ahead and budget for back-to-school purchases. In a news release, Ehlers provided these tips to Iowans ahead of the tax-free holiday weekend:

• Plan ahead: Plan for major clothing and shoe purchases before you go shopping during Iowa’s sales tax-free weekend event.
• Set a budget and stick to it: Be careful not to overspend just because the tax-free weekend is occurring.
• Compare prices: Use the sales circulars from your newspaper to compare prices on the items you wish to buy. Visit websites of several stores where you usually shop. If you tend to buy your kids’ jeans or sneakers at national retail outlets, visit their websites during tax-free weekend to find out which store is offering the better deal.
• Know the rules and expect a busy shopping weekend: The Iowa Legislature approved the tax holiday in 2000 to help boost the economy and give consumers a break. Previous tax-free holidays have shown to pump up sales for everyone from big-box retailers to mom-and-pop shops. Some merchants report double-digit increases in sales, compared to a typical August weekend.

AMES, Iowa — The Iowa State University College of Design, in partnership with ISU Extension and Outreach, will host the Iowa Mayors’ Design Workshop (IMDW) July 30–31 on the Iowa State campus. Atlantic Mayor Grace Garrett and Council Bluffs Mayor Matt Walsh, are the only two mayors from southwest Iowa who were invited to the event. Mayors from Cedar Falls, Fort Madison, Marshalltown and Ottuwma were also extended an invitation to attend and present their projects. As we previously reported on KJAN, Mayor Garrett will be working with the College of Design’s team, on projects for Bull Creek and the Schildberg Recreation Areas.

The IMDW will serve as a space to identify and address complex design issues communities in Iowa face, said Erin Olson-Douglas, College of Design associate dean for extension and outreach and director of the ISU Extension and Outreach Community and Economic Development program. The two-day workshop will bring together mayors and community leaders from six Iowa towns to connect with ISU faculty, research and extension staff, and design professionals from local firms to enhance the vitality of their regions for current and future generations. 

Modeled after the 2022 Mayors’ Institute on City Design (MICD) the College of Design hosted in Des Moines, the inaugural Iowa Mayors’ Design Workshop will focus on water-related issues, including opportunities for the enhancement of riverfront areas, resilient flood management, trails and parks for recreation, adjacent development and integration of nature-based remedies, according to Olson-Douglas.

Learn more about the workshop, HERE.

(Radio Iowa) – The group Disability Rights Iowa is celebrating 40 years of advocating for — and protecting the civil rights of — Iowans with disabilities. Catherine Johnson, the organization’s executive director, says job accommodations, access to medical care, and a lack of long term support for people to live in their communities continue to be major concerns. “There is no one specific issue that I think faces Iowans with disabilities,” Johnson says. “It’s many of the same issues we have been addressing for years in and years out.”

The organization has worked to ensure access to public accommodations and voting. More recently, D-R-I filed lawsuits to improve children’s mental health care and to stop the use of certain punishments at the Boys State Training School in Eldora. Johnson says within the next 40 years, she wants the nonprofit to have strong relationships in each of the state’s 99 counties.  “We take it very seriously that we are here for all Iowans with disabilities, which is essentially almost 400,000 Iowans identify as having a disability,” Johnson says. “We want to be known to every single Iowan with a disability so that they know we are the place that they can come to for help and support.”

The group is celebrating its legacy with the 40-34 Equal Access Festival tomorrow (Saturday) in Des Moines, that’ll also recognize the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Then-Iowa U-S Senator Tom Harkin was a key architect of the A-D-A. Johnson made her comments this week on the Iowa Public Radio program “Talk of Iowa.”

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU-TV) — While learning construction and the skilled trades are typically reserved for high school and college students, in northwest Iowa, Girls Inc. participants are wrapping up a building project where they made sheds this summer.

Local contractors and businesses are donating their time and supplies to help the girls build two “She Sheds.” In that process, they learned valuable skills such as plumbing, electrical skills and construction skills. The project is set to finish at the end of summer. With their new knowledge, organizers hope the girls can use what they were taught in their futures.

Girls Inc. of Sioux City Executive Director Mandy Engel-Cartie, says it’s a chance for the organization to help the community, and help the girls grow into independent, economically sufficient adults. She says even if the girls aren’t interested in skilled trades, it gives then a great set of skills to have throughout their lives.

Once the sheds are finished, Girls Inc. plans to hold an event where they will auction-off the sheds to anyone who is interested.

DES MOINES, Iowa – A Kansas man was sentenced Wednesday (July 24, 2024), to 235 months (19 1/2-years) in federal prison for transportation of child pornography.

According to public documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Derek Levi Hendrickson, 33, transported three internet capable computer devices across state lines in September 2022 when he moved to Waukee, Iowa. Those devices – two cell phones and a laptop computer – contained thousands of images and videos of child pornography. At the time of his offense, Hendrickson was a registered sex offender due to a 2015 Kansas state conviction for possession of child pornography.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Hendrickson will be required to serve five years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Hendrickson was also ordered to pay $38,000 in restitution.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the FBI Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Task Force, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Nebraska State Patrol.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department say two people were arrested on drug charges late Thursday night. Authorities says 34-year-old Stewart Russell Anderson and 28-year-old Jeremy Wayne Elbrecht, Jr., both of Creston, were arrested a little after 11-p.m., Thursday, at 507 N. Division Street. Both were charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. They were cited and released from the scene on a promise to appear in court.

And, at around 4:45-p.m., Thursday, police in Creston arrested 40-year-old Yarioska Rondoncama, of Brooklyn, NY, at the Creston/Union County Law Enforcement Center. Rondoncama was taken into custody under the authority of a Union County warrant for failure to appear on an original charge of Driving while license Denied or Revoked. He was taken to the Union County Jail and posted $1,000 bond before being released.