(Radio Iowa) — The legal age for buying nicotine-infused merchandise — including cigarettes and “vaping” products — would jump from 18 to 21 under a bill that has cleared its first hurdle in the Iowa Senate. Senate President Charles Schneider of West Des Moines is the Republican who’s sponsoring the bill.

“I’ve got two of the largest, if not the largest public high schools in my district and probably the largest private high school in my senate district and I’ve been hearing more and more from parents and teachers about kids in high school who are using, particularly, vape products,” Schneider said, “and that it’s becoming an epidemic.”

Senator Tom Shipley, a Republican from Nodaway who also supports the move, has a daughter who teaches middle school in West Omaha. “When I told her what I was thinking about doing, she said: ‘Oh, dad, you can’t believe it,'” Shipley said. “‘It’s just pervasive through this place. It’s just everywhere and most of their parents don’t even know they’re doing it. Here at school even.'”

Illinois and 10 other states have already raised the legal age for buying tobacco products. The move has the backing of the company that makes the nicotine pods called JUUL as well as traditional tobacco companies. Jeff Boeyink is a lobbyist for the parent company of Phillip Morris.

“Youth access to tobacco products primarily comes from their social access and their friends who happen to be of age, but they are not,” Boeyink says. “Moving from 18 to 21 removes most of this access out of the high school area, which is what we are trying to target here.”

The owners of the shops that sell E-cigarettes and vaping products oppose raising the nicotine purchasing age to 21. Sarah Linden, the C-E-O of Generation V, with shops in Council Bluffs, Davenport and five others in Nebraska, says  “You have to be 21 to buy alcohol. Thirty percent of teens drink alcohol, so if raising the age to 21 to buy alcohol didn’t fix teens drinking alcohol, it’s probably not going to fix teens vaping.”

Health advocacy groups ALSO oppose the bill. They want lawmakers to make the penalties for selling nicotine-infused products to minors tougher. They want an increase in the state’s tobacco tax AND they want the state to spend more on programs that help smokers quit. Danielle Oswald-Thole is with the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Action Network. “Our goal is to improve upon the current bill and we are asking to be part of the solution,” she told senators.

She pointed to what she called “scary” statistics, like a 2018 survey that found 23 percent of 11th graders in Iowa had used an E-cigarette in the past month.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A storm system known as a “bomb cyclone” churned through the U.S. interior for the second time in a month, unleashing a blizzard that struck the Upper Midwest and creating hazardous fire conditions farther south. The storm knocked out power Wednesday to thousands of homes and businesses in South Dakota, disrupted air and ground travel from Colorado to Minnesota and threatened to swell rivers in the Midwest that flooded after March’s drenching.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — White House hopeful Kamala Harris has nabbed her first Iowa endorsement from a major state Democratic activist. Jean Hessburg is a former Iowa Democratic Party executive director and the current chair of the party’s Women’s Caucus. She tells The Associated Press that she’s endorsing the senator from California because “she’s tough, she’s got heart. She’s quick on her feet, she’s sharp as they come and great on all the issues.”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The state House plans to consider a spending bill that would give Iowa Medicaid an additional $150 million to ensure all obligations are met for this year. The measure is scheduled for debate on Thursday, but critics of privatized Medicaid say it makes no sense that insurance companies claim they’re losing money in Iowa while the state continues to pump more money the program. UnitedHealthcare has said it’s leaving the program because it was losing millions.

UNDATED (AP) — A storm system known as a “bomb cyclone” churned through the U.S. interior for the second time in a month, unleashing a blizzard that struck the Upper Midwest and creating hazardous fire conditions farther south. The storm knocked out power Wednesday to thousands of homes and businesses in South Dakota, disrupted air and ground travel from Colorado to Minnesota and threatened to swell rivers in the Midwest that flooded after March’s drenching.

Atlantic School District Board meeting 4-10-19

The Atlantic School Board, Wednesday evening, held a Public Hearing on the 2019-2020 Certified Budget, during which there were no comments from the public. During their regular session that followed, the Board approved previously mentioned resignations, with the addition of Julie Livingston, Schuler Elementary/Middle School Special Education Teacher, and added contract recommendations for Ethan Pruisman as High School Vocal Music Director, along with Beth Schwarte, Preschool Summer School Teacher.

In his report to the Board, Superintendent Steve Barber said the Board will need to make an amendment next month to this year’s Certified Budget, for the “Other” category. He said there were a few expenses that were not budgeted for this school year, including: Work on fixing a sewage problem at Washington Elementary, paying for lighting for the High School Commons, replacing two small sections of the Middle School Auditorium roof, and replacing a bus transmission, along with some unforeseen technology expenses.

The school board voted to approve contracts with Snyder and Associates Engineers and FRK Architects, for the final plans and specifications pertaining to the District Facilities project. The timeline calls for those plans and specs to be presented to the Board during their meeting May 8th, at which time they are expected to set the bidding letting date as May 9th, and a Public Hearing for the week of May 13th. Bid letting is expected to occur 2-p.m. May 22nd. It’s expected construction would begin in June.

Barber said there is a strong desire to have the Washington portion of the project prior to the start of the first day of school, which requires expediting the bidding process. By doing so, they will be getting architect and possibly construction expenses before the District is able to sell the bonds. A Resolution next month will allow the District to use SAVE dollars to pay those expenses, which will be reimbursed once the bonds are sold.

Superintendent Barber said also, that in the next school year, they will be identifying one teacher in Kindergarten and one in First grade, who will be piloting a concept called “Looping.” Basically “looping” is having the same group of kids working with the same teacher for two-years. The identified KG teacher will be teaching 1st grade during the 2020-21 school year with the same group of kids. This year’s 1st grade Teacher would move back to Kindergarten during the 2020-21 school year.

The Board approved the Certified Budget, which calls for a levy of $14.72/$1,000 property valuation, a decrease of 5-cents from the original published amount. The assessed value in the district increased 3.03%, for a total of 36-cents less than last year, according to Mr. Barber.

(Radio Iowa) — Advocates for the well-being of kids in Iowa are working to boost awareness, as April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. Allie Moerman, is the spokeswoman for Prevent Child Abuse Iowa. Following the starvation deaths of two teen girls in Perry and West Des Moines in recent years, Moerman says the number of child abuse cases being reported to the state has risen.

“Without looking at the long-term trends, it’s hard to say what that means,” Moerman says. “We know that those high-profile cases that we saw in 2016 with Sabrina Ray and Natalie Finn does make a difference in the public awareness about child abuse so that often contributes to the increase that we see and report.”

Moerman says Iowans can work together to help reduce the number of child abuse cases by getting involved in the activities of children and building stronger connections with the kids in our lives. “Maybe it’s something as simple as volunteering to read to a class of elementary students,” Moerman says. “Maybe it’s reaching out to new parents in your community to bring over a meal or helping them out by running an errand or volunteering to get involved with youth activities just to be a positive influence in the lives of children.”

Moerman says the annual Child Abuse Prevention and Family Support Conference will be held in Ankeny next month. “We’ve actually sold out this year,” Moerman says. “We’ve got a full house of support workers and social workers from around the state coming in to learn from nationally-recognized speakers, statewide speakers. It should be a great opportunity to learn and share and network and build those connections throughout our state.”

Learn more about child abuse prevention and how you can play a role at www.pcaiowa.org.

(Radio Iowa) — A bill getting strong bipartisan support in the Iowa legislature would make it a felony to perform female genital mutilation on an Iowa girl. Last year a judge tossed out a FEDERAL law that had banned the practice nationwide, ruling it was up to states to prosecute such crimes. Representative Steven Holt, a Republican from Denison, says this bill is necessary because it’s unclear if current Iowa child abuse laws could be used to prosecute these cases here.  “It is to make absolutely sure that there is no doubt that in the state of Iowa female genital mutilation is not acceptable and is illegal,” Holt said.

The Senate unanimously endorsed the bill in mid-March. The Iowa House now has voted to add an education component to the bill for the medical community — to help doctors treat girls and young women who’ve been cut in this way. The bill also calls for educational outreach to Iowa residents who come from cultures where the practice has been common. Representative Marti Anderson, a Democrat from Des Moines, says it’s time for female cutting to join the list of cultural practices that have been stopped in the United States. “Child marriage, polygamy, stoning, dowry murder, honor crimes, foot-binding,” Anderson says. “Those were all framed as cultural issues that border on human rights abuse.”

Representative Ashley Hinson, a Republican from Marion, says female cutting is about controlling women’s sexuality. “I hope that we’ll take this opportunity as we’re focusing on girls, focusing on health, focusing on bodily autonomy again to think about the ways in our culture that we do not protect women and the ways we could all do better,” Hinson said. “…We can protect many other people and we can root out the evils that are right here in our own culture.”

Hinson mentioned conversion therapy for gay and lesbian children as well as questioning the clothing choices of rape victims. The bill banning female genital mutilation passed the House on a 95-to-four vote. It returns to the Senate for a vote on the educational components House members added to the bill.

Two women have been arrested on separate drug charges in Mills County. The Sheriff’s Office reports 25-year old Myrissa Taylor Comstock, of Coin, was arrested Tuesday night for Possession of Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Her bond was set at $1,300.

And, at around 5:10-a.m. Wednesday (today), 18-year old Monica Nicole Price, of Pacific Junction, was arrested for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Her bond was set at $300.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of a Red Oak woman on a warrant Wednesday. At approximately 1:43pm Deputies arrested 28-year-old Carley Marie Whitaker of Red Oak on a valid Iowa District Court Warrant for Contempt-Resist Order or Process of District Court. Whiteaker was booked in to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 cash bond.

DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate asks Iowans who receive a “No Activity in 4 Years” mailing from his office to respond quickly. This will avoid having their voter registration status changed to inactive. The “No Activity” notices are being sent to voters who have not voted in any election and have not updated their voter registration information in the past four years. The purpose of the mailing is to ensure Iowa’s voter rolls are up-to-date.

“This mailing is part of the routine process we undertake to ensure our voter rolls are as accurate as possible. It’s a crucial component for having clean and fair elections across the state,” Secretary Pate said. The “No Activity in 4 Years” mailing is required by federal law. Iowans who receive the mailing should check the relevant box, sign the card and return it quickly to their county auditor. If the voter no longer lives at that address, the current resident should note that information on the card and place it in the mail.

Inactive voters can update their registration status to active anytime, including on Election Day. A sample of the “2019 No Activity in 4 Years” mailing is available at this link.

(Radio Iowa) — For only the second time in its history, the National Pork Producers Council has cancelled the World Pork Expo in Des Moines. Jim Monroe, the council’s communications director, says the decision was made out of an abundance of caution. “We think the chances that African Swine Fever could spread to the U.S. swine herd by holding the event are very, very remote,” he says, “but we can’t say that it’s zero.”

African Swine Fever is a viral disease that causes high death rates in pigs. It does NOT present human health or food safety risks. Monroe says an outbreak of the disease in the U.S. would be a devastating economic below to the livestock industry. “There’s already a challenging environment that pork producers are operating in and if we had an outbreak of African Swine Fever or Foot and Mouth Disease, for example, that would immediately close our export markets,” Monroe says.

The National Pork Producers Council has hosted the World Pork Expo since 1987. The only other time the annual event was cancelled was in 2001, when Foot and Mouth Disease was detected in Europe. Despite the EXPO’S cancellation, the National Swine Registry, Certified Pedigree Swine and American Berkshire Association are still planning a live hog show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds that typically runs in conjunction with the World Pork Expo. The groups have been working to confirm logistics for the events from June 2nd through the 8th and will provide those to exhibitors once all those details are finalized.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is seeking the public’s help in finding a missing 17-year-old Nebraska boy. Kevin Stewart, a white male with brown hair and green eyes, has been missing from Boys Town since Jan. 3, 2019. He’s described as being 5-foot-8 and 120 pounds and may be in the Carter Lake, Iowa area. If you have any information, please immediately call 911 or NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) or the Boys Town Police Department at 1-402-498-1170.

Kevin Stewart