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Keep up-to-date with Fox News Radio, Radio Iowa, Brownfield & the Iowa Agribusiness Networks!
(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City Council in Atlantic, will hold a Budget Work Session 3-p.m. Thursday (Feb. 22), in the Council’s Chambers at City Hall. During their session, the Council is expected to receive a presentation by Produce in the Park President, Bailey Smith, and Produce in the Park Board Member Ciara Hoegh, on Produce in the Park. They’re also expected to receive a presentation from Christina Bateman, on Economic Development for 2024 and 2025.
The Council will discuss Economic Development Goals for 2024 and 2025 before acting on an order to enter into an Exempt Session (under Iowa Code), for Collective Bargaining strategy purposes. At 10-a.m. Thursday, City officials are expected to exchange Collective Bargaining proposals with the City’s Public Works’ Union of Operating Engineers Local 234.
Afterward, in open session, the Atlantic City Council will discuss the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST), including recommendations for a Local Option Sales Tax Allocation Formula. The discussion will also cover: LOST Streets Funds – West 22nd Street Project Update; LOST Progress Funds – City Coalition Update; and other Discussion regarding LOST Funds.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – The body found near Amana Lily Lake over the weekend has now been identified as that of a Marion woman. Investigators say Melody Hoffman, 20, was found Sunday morning near the picnic area of the lake. A man from Hiawatha, McKinley Louisma, 23, is in the Linn County jail on charges of first-degree kidnapping and conspiracy to commit forcible felony.
Court filings detail what investigators say happened after Louisma picked Hoffman up at 11:00 p.m. Saturday. Investigators used data from Hoffman’s iPhone and Apple watch to piece together the story. They determined Hoffman was at Morgan Creek Park in Linn County when her Apple Watch recorded her heartbeat intensify before “it either stopped or the device deactivated.”
Louisma told investigators he and another unidentified person bound Hoffman’s wrists with duct tape, put her in the trunk of the car, and drove to several locations until they reached Lily Lake in Amana. Louisma admitted Hoffman begged to be let go, was beaten, and had numerous stab wounds. The Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office says the preliminary cause of death was strangulation.
Court documents show Louisma was part of two previous investigations involving accusations of violence. One was in Manchester involving sexual assault. The other was in Cedar Rapids claiming Louisma attacked a man, causing serious injury. Louisma was out on bond when investigators say he kidnapped Hoffman.
According to the family, a Memorial Account has been established for donations at Collins Community Credit Union under “Memorial for Melody.” Family members are also accepting donations via Venmo using the account @memorial-for-Melody. Family members say the donations will be used to help pay for funeral services.
DES MOINES, Iowa [KCCI] — The Iowa Democratic Party says more than 19,000 voters requested presidential preference cards by their Feb. 19 deadline — and they’re still working through the final numbers. The cards are a response to changes on the national primary calendar in the wake of slowly reported results in Iowa in 2020. It’s the first time the Iowa Democratic Party is casting their presidential preference ballot through mail.
The party began sending out the preference cards on Jan. 12, and the last batch of cards will be mailed out on Monday. They should arrive within 24 hours, according to the IDP. Iowa Democrats have until March 5 to return their cards. Cards that are postmarked by March 5 will also be accepted. The party said it encourages cards to be returned through the mail rather than be dropped off at the Iowa Democratic Party headquarters or local county party offices.
The Iowa Democratic Party said they will begin the tabulation of preference cards around March 1. Results will be released on March 5, 2024, commonly known as “Super Tuesday.” The exact time of the release will be shared closer to the date.
Iowa Democrats held their caucus on Jan. 15, but did not vote on their pick for a presidential nominee.
(Elk Horn, Iowa) – The Exira-Elk Horn Kimballton School Board met Monday evening. According to the meeting minutes provided by Business Manager, Board Secretary/Treasurer Mallory Meyer, during their session, the Board approved action items on their agenda that included:
In other business, the Exira-EHK School Board passed the first reading of a policy adoption for policies related to Artificial Intelligence, and Responsible Technology Use & Social Networking. They held and approved after the first and final reading, a policy review with regard to Policy pertaining to Parent and Family Engagement District-Wide.
The Exira-EHK Board also approved the hiring of Associates: Nichole (Nicki) Brown, Margaret Haley, and Angela Immel.
(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s Attorney General, Insurance Commissioner and A-A-R-P State Director are holding stops across the state to try and educate residents about scams. A-A-R-P director, Brad Anderson, says the latest scam uses A-I to fool elderly Iowans. “A criminal impersonates a grandchild and uses artificial intelligence to impersonate that grandchild’s phone, or even the grandchild’s voice,” he explains, “and calls a well-intentioned grandparent and then scams that grandparent out of thousands of dollars.”
This is a new version of what are called imposter scams. “Imposter scams, according to the F-T-C had been the dominant scam in Iowa for nine years running. Nine years running, and that beats out credit-based scams, it beats out investor scams, online shopping scams,” Anderson says. Insurance Commissioner, Doug Ommen, says they hope to update Iowans on the issue. “Our effort in this tour is really to get out into communities to talk to people about what it is they can do to spot a scam. But also, once you’ve reported a scam, what you can expect from law enforcement in dealing with that,” Ommen says. He says his office has worked with securities broker dealers and investment advisors in our state for years to help with scams in these areas.
“Our laws allow those financial professionals to report financial exploitation. And that allows us then to make sure that individuals that are being targeted for a romance scam or a charity scam or a gift card scam or any of the number of scans that scammers tried to perpetrate on Iowans — we can we can intervene and make every effort to stop that.” He says their new Department of Insurance and Financial Services has people working with the banking industry and the credit union industry to bring them into this effort to protect older Iowans. Attorney General Brenna Bird says the scammers don;t care how old you are, they just want to get your money.
“We’ve seen people lose their life savings to a scam and that is absolutely heartbreaking. We want to do everything we can to try to help and we always try to get the money back if we possibly can,” Bird says. She says getting the money back is not easy, especially if the scam is run from a foreign country. “Many scammers are overseas. But there are also scammers right here in the state,” Bird says. “And those folks can be very dangerous when they come to pick up their ill gotten gains in person. It makes me very concerned. So we urge Iowans if you think there might be a scam, please call law enforcement, please call our office and we will do what we can to help.”
Bird says nationwide ten billion dollars was stolen in 2023 by scammers, and that’s just the scams that were reported. The three are calling their tour the “Stop the Scammer Roadshow” and held the first one in Des Moines Tuesday. They will also make stops in Ames, Carroll, Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Council Bluffs, Newton, Creston, Davenport, Dubuque, Fort Dodge, Johnston, Marshalltown, Mason City, Mt. Pleasant, Ottumwa, Sioux City, and Waterloo.
Go to iowafraudfighters.gov to find out how you can sign up.
(Red Oak, Iowa) – A woman from Red Oak was arrested Tuesday evening on an assault charge. According to the Red Oak Police Department, 27-year-old Tori Shanelle Bergerson, was arrested at around 6:25-p.m. in the 2400 block of N. 8th Street, for Domestic Abuse Assault/1st offense. Bergerson was being held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail. Red Oak Police were assisted in handling the incident by deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.
(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Senate has passed a bill modeled after the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Senator Jason Schultz, a Republican from Schleswig, says court rulings have infringed on the free exercise of religion and the bill outlines how state courts are to decide cases in the future. “I am proud to do this and actually a little embarrassed it took so long to get to this point,” Schultz said, “along with 25 other states and the federal government.”
Thirty-one Republicans in the state senate voted for it, while the 16 Senate Democrats opposed it. Senator Herman Quirmbach, a Democrat from Ames, says the bill would open the door to all sorts of discrimination. “I believe that bigotry dressed up in religious robes is still bigotry,” Quirmbach said.
Senator Jeff Taylor, a Republican from Sioux Center, says the bill makes it clear the Constitution is the law of the land. ” The courts have eaten away at religious freedom nationally and that applies our state as well,” Taylor says. “This is a defensive mechanism, saying we need to prioritize the First Amendment.”
Senator Janice Weiner, a Democrat from Iowa City, says the bill lets people cite their religious beliefs as they pick and choose which laws to follow. “The Religious Freedom Restoration Act has become a blank check for people to impose their religious beliefs on others and to discrimination against people they don’t like,” Weiner said, “that’s wrong.”
Weiner said it would allow pharmacists to cite their religious beliefs and refuse to dispense birth control or let property owners refuse to rent to same-sex couples. Senator Liz Bennett, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, says the bill slams the door in her face. “I stand before you today as a queer woman and an Iowan,” she said, “…and I am sick and tired of my community being the target of mean-spirited, discriminatory bills written by Republican politicians.”
Schultz, a Republican who’s served in the Iowa legislature since 2009, says Democrats are being overly dramatic about the bill. “But fortunately Iowa has chosen this majority and we’re going to move in the correct direction,” Schultz said.
An identical version of the bill is eligible for debate in the Republican-led Iowa House.
(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Senate has voted to repeal a law that requires state and local boards and commissions to have an equal number of men and women. Iowa was the first state in the nation to pass a gender balance requirement and Governor Kim Reynolds is asking lawmakers to end it. Republican Senator Annette Sweeney of Iowa Falls says she never wants to learn she’s been selected as the token female on a board. “I want to be there because I earned it,” Sweeney said. “I want to be there because I’ve done my homework and I know why I’m on this board.”
Senator Chris Cournoyer, a Republican from Le Claire, says it’s insulting to have someone picked to serve on a board because of their gender rather than their qualifications. “Women who have worked hard to earn their success should not have that success diminished by those that depend on a system that allows them to fall upward,” Cournoyer said.
Senator Herman Quirmbach of Ames was the only Democrat to support getting rid of the gender quota. Quirmbach says choosing people based on merit means some boards will wind up being majority female since more women than men are earning college degrees. “The rising generation of women are better educated and better prepared for public service, as a group, than their male cohort,” Quirmbach said.
Other Democrats argued the gender balance requirement should be retained. Senator Janet Petersen, a Democrat from Des Moines, says having an equal number of men and women on the same board means the discussion is balanced. “You know when we bring different perspectives to the table we’re safer, we’re healthier, we’re happier people,” Petersen said.
Senator Sarah Trone-Garriott, a Democrat from Waukee, says the gender balance requirement is needed because the world still isn’t fair. “Sometimes more qualified women don’t get leadership opportunities until that less qualified man is taken out of the equation,” Trone-Garriott said. Senate Democratic Leader Pam Jochum of Dubuque says the gender balance requirement gets more people involved in their communities. “Boards and commissions are that beginning foundation where we begin to build the bench for our future leaders,” Jochum said, “whether they are men or women.”
A federal judge recently ruled the gender balance requirement for the state commission that nominates judges was unconstitutional.
(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Board of Supervisors met Tuesday morning (Feb. 20, 2024) during a regular session, at the courthouse, in Harlan. According to the meeting minutes provided by Auditor Mark Maxwell:
Ruthann Grimsley was present as a Compensation Board representative to represent the Shelby County Compensation Board for their recommendation to the County Supervisors. The Compensation Board recommended a 1% increase in salary for the Sherriff. A 4% raise plus $1500.00 for the Board of Supervisors Chairperson and 4% for the other Supervisors. It was recommended by the Compensation Board County Attorney, Treasurer, Recorder and Auditor be increased by 4%. Also an additional $2000 to attempt to equalize pay with like population sized counties in Iowa for the Recorder, Treasurer and Auditor. As in the past the employee longevity scale was approved for elected officials also. The Board approved the recommend compensation as presented.
Representatives from the Harlan, Elk Horn and Irwin library boards were present to thank the Supervisors for Shelby Counties contributions from the Rural Basic Fund. A minimum levy amount is required by Iowa Code. Amanda Brewer from the Harlan Library was present to inform the Board of Supervisors that foot traffic has increased over 30% in the last year and checkouts by a similar amount. New improvements to the exterior of the Harlan Library are also being considered. Paulette Madson of the Elk Horn Community Library was also present to report to the Supervisors. The Elk Horn Library holds many after school programs and reading programs for local children as well as adult activities that permit children to attend with an adult. Local organizations lend support to the Elk Horn Library also.
Luke Wolken, Shelby County Environmental Health Director, presented his quarterly department report to the Supervisors, highlighting that his office is currently very busy with passports. Wolken also reported that Shelby County is one of five counties statewide that is eligible for approximately $50,000.00 in well plugging, and well rehabilitation projects.
The Supervisors were then told by Auditor Maxwell that the annex building is in the process of being repaired from a water line burst on the interior of the building. A claim has been filed with the County insurer and repairs are being made. The air conditioning unit at the Courthouse is scheduled to be delivered in March and installed in the April/May time. The Auditor then asked the Supervisors to consider and recommended approval of the following resolution:
Resolution 2024-16; A Resolution to establish future Election Official Pay in Shelby County
Whereas the Shelby County Board of Supervisors is responsible for establishing the rate of compensation and compensation for Election officials nominated by the Shelby County auditor to perform election duties as required by Iowa Code. Whereas changes have not been made in election officials pay for a period of six years and achieving the expected election efficiencies expected of Shelby County election officials that the County has enjoyed in the past is desired to continue. Now be it resolved that the County Auditor will be authorized to pay election officials as certified by said officials by claim or through the County payroll, as applicable to comply with reporting regulations for payment of election officials as follows:
*Precinct officials $12.00/Hour
*Precinct Chairperson and Co Chairperson $14.00/Hour
*Election Night Runners $60.00 per election
Be it further resolved that the above listed positions including be paid mileage at the current mileage reimbursement rate for all travel incurred to perform the above listed services. The resolution passed as presented.
The following resolution was then considered: Resolution 2024-17; A Resolution to Permit Home Working Reimbursements for the Shelby County Supervisors
Whereas the Shelby County Supervisors are elected officials and mandated by Iowa Code to fulfill their duties as County Supervisors. Whereas evolving technology allows for home office and cell phone use to fulfill the duties of County Supervisor. Whereas County Supervisors are currently reimbursed for travel expenses and mileage reimbursement from the county for completing their obligations. Whereas County Supervisors have added personal expenses with cellphones and home office expenses including computers, internet connections and office supplies that Shelby County does not currently provide. Currently no reimbursement program exists for home office work in Shelby County. Therefore be it resolved by the Shelby County Board of Supervisors declare that with receipts presented to the County Auditor’s office by County Supervisors for home office supplies, internet connections, and cellphone billings may be reimbursed up to $100.00 a month from the General Fund if receipts for the expenses are submitted to the Shelby County Auditor’s office within 60 days of the dated expense. The Resolution passed as presented.
Discussion on the budget for fiscal year 2025 was then held. Exploring the many avenues to the budget completion were discussed. The next regular meeting will be used to set the required dates, notices and postings while staying in compliance were discussed. The Board will be advised of the options before any final dates are set.
DES MOINES, Iowa, Feb. 20, 2024 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director in Iowa Theresa Greenfield today announced that the Agency is investing $29,318,797 in 10 rural Iowa projects to expand business opportunities and hospital access and to support waste water sanitation planning.
“From hospitals to fire stations to supporting small businesses, USDA is investing in rural Iowa,” said Director Greenfield. “Under the leadership of President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Secretary Vilsack, USDA is working with local leaders to build and grow their communities.”
The 10 investments were made through several USDA Rural development programs. Locally….
–City of Red Oak received a $30,000 grant from the Water and Waste Disposal Predevelopment Planning Grants program to develop a proposal for sewer improvements. This project will provide a plan, in coordination with engineers, which includes alternatives and recommendations to meet the rehabilitation needs of the city’s waste disposal system. Once completed, this project will support much-needed sewer upgrades to safeguard human health throughout this rural community in Montgomery County.
Four Project Awards From the Rural Business Development Grants program.
Four Project Investments From the Community Facilities Direct Loans and Grants program, including…
–City of Audubon in Audubon County received a $2,800,000 loan to build a fire station. This project will construct an 11,700 square foot pre-engineered metal building with four apparatus bays, workspace for staff, and equipment and supply storage areas. Once completed, the project will allow fire and rescue vehicles direct access to the main highway to minimize response times during emergencies and promote the safety of residents and travelers.
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