(Harlan, Iowa) – The Board of Supervisors in Shelby County have several matters to act on during their meeting at 9-a.m. Tuesday, in Harlan. According to Auditor Mark Maxwell, they will take action on approving a MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) between the County and Office of the Chief Information Officer, Iowa Department of Management.

They are scheduled to receive a Shelby County Jail Department report from Jail Administrator Kyle Lindberg, a Secondary Roads Department report from Engineer Brandon Burmeister (Or one of his office staff), and, Mark Maxwell will present several reports for the Shelby County Supervisors, to be followed by Board action. They include:

• A Building & Grounds report (RE: an empty room at Annex- sump pump)
• Building & Grounds – Disposing of a County-owned lot in Earling.
• Building & Grounds – Rent for Juvenile Services at the Annex Building.
• Cost Advisory Services, Inc., contract renewal
• And, approval of Sheriff’s Deputies’ appointments.

The Shelby County Supervisors will also hold a Zoom meeting* with Ryan Pike from the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce, with regard to “Make my Move.”

*Meeting ID: 293 282 6199      Passcode: 4563.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors have a light agenda for the meeting 9-a.m. Tuesday, in Atlantic. According to Cass County Auditor Kathy Somers, the Board will hear a regular, weekly report from County Engineer Trent Wolken. If a candidate is available, the Board will act on appointments for Brighton Township Clerk and Victoria Township Trustee positions.

They’ll go over Board members’ various committee reports, and other, filed reports as available.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – A woman from Glenwood was arrested Sunday, for Driving While Under Suspension. Authorities say 47-year-old Amy Hunter was being held in the Mills County Jail on a $300 bond.

Glenwood Police report one person suffered from possible/unknown injuries, following a collision Friday evening at the intersection of N. Locust and Sharp Streets. The accident happened at around 5:10-p.m., as a 2018 KIA driven by 39-year-old Amy Joanna Leonard, of Glenwood, was stopped at the controlled intersection, waiting for the stoplight to change. Leonard said she felt a car hit them from behind. In speaking with the driver of the other vehicle, a 2007 Lincoln MKZ, authorities say 66-year-old Deborah Rae Wilcoxsen, of Glenwood, told officers that her foot slipped-off the pedal, and that she couldn’t regain control in-time.

Amy Leonard complained of pain following the collision, but was not transported to the hospital. Both vehicles were able to drive away from the scene. The KIA sustained about $500 damage. No citations were issued, but Police noted Wilcoxsen was following too close.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports four arrests over the past few days, and a break-in. Sunday night, 45-year-old Brandon Eugene Rudolf, of Lorimor, was arrested in the 600 Block N Elm. Rudolf was charged with OWI 1st and 2 counts Child Endangerment Substantial Risk. He was taken to the Union County Jail where he was later released on $5,000 cash or surety bond.

Two people were arrested Saturday, in Creston:

• 31-year-old Antonio De Jesus Hernandez Hernandez, of Creston, was arrested for OWI 1st. Hernandez was taken to the Union County Jail where he was later released on $1,000 cash or surety bond
• 27-year-old Christopher Thomas White, of Creston, was arrested at the Creston Union County LEC. White was charged with Driving while Revoked, Theft 2nd Motor Vehicle, Attempted Burglary 3rd Degree, Public Intoxication, and OWI 3rd. White was taken to the Union County Jail where he is being held on $12,000 cash or surety bond.

And, late Friday morning, 40-year-old Wesley Allan Gregg, of Diagonal, was arrested at the Creston Union County LEC. Gregg was charged with a Failure To Appear/Violation of Probation on an original charge of Burglary in the 2nd Degree. Gregg was taken to the Union County Jail and later released on bond.

Saturday afternoon, a man from Madrid (IA) reported to Creston Police, that sometime over the past three weeks, someone forcefully entered his home in the 600 block of W. Adams Street, and stole his work tools. A dollar amount of the loss was not available.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A man wanted on a Fremont County warrant for Failure to Appear at his Contempt Hearing, was arrested Sunday in the 1800 block of E. Summit Street, in Red Oak. According to Red Oak Police, Justin James Smith (No address/city given), was transferred to the Fremont County Jail, and was being held on a $1,000 cash-only bond.

(Washington, D-C) – A statement issued Friday from the White House indicates five Iowans serving federal prison time for methamphetamine charges will be released, soon. President Joe Biden, Friday, commuted the sentences for 31 people convicted of non-violent drug-related crimes across seven states.

In Iowa, Jennifer Chastain of Delhi, Kevin Burdock of Keswick, Bart Hyde of Clinton, Gregory Peasley of Onawa and Ryan Vick of Cedar Rapids had their sentences commuted.

According to a release, they will all be released from federal prison by June 30, but will serve the remainder of their sentences in house arrest.

(Radio Iowa) – Senator Chuck Grassley says he’ll urge the U-S Senate to respond if the U-S Supreme Court sides with pharmacy operators rather than two whistleblowers. In 1986, Grassley led Senate passage of an update of the False Claims Act. It lets whistleblowers who allege a person or company is defrauding the government sue for damages for themselves and the government.

“At the time I didn’t know it was going to be the big fight against the fraudulent taking of taxpayers’ money like it has turned out to be,” but every year it brings in about $3-4 billion dollars and the Justice Department announces that.” At issue now are two whistleblowers who sued, alleging Safeway and SuperValu pharmacies overcharged Medicaid and Medicare for prescription drugs. The U-S Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the companies’ appeal last month. The companies argue they did not knowingly overcharge the government programs.

“And so I filed a brief saying to the Supreme Court exactly what we intended in 1986,” Grassley says, “and, in fact, Justice Sotomayor referred specifically to ‘Senator Grassley’ and ‘Senator Grassley ought to know what he’s talking about because he wrote the legislation.'” Grassley says he hopes the court rules in favor of his view, but if it doesn’t, he’ll prepare legislation. “More or less just say to the judges and the justices: ‘How come you can’t figure out what we meant to do? But we’re going to prove to you what we meant to d by passing legislation that overturns your court cases,'” Grassley says.

Grassley is the top ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa legislature is planning to spend an extra 750-thousand dollars to prepare for a possible outbreak of African Swine Fever. Representative Norlin Mommsen of DeWitt says the virus, which causes severe bleeding and death, has killed pigs in the Caribbean Islands.

“It would be devastating for Iowa agriculture and the Iowa economy if it ever came here, so we’re trying to be as prepared as we can,” Mommsen says. “All we have to do is look at Avian Influenza and how that’s upset the poultry market and how that affected egg prices and food prices.” The Senate has already approved a budget for the Iowa Department of Agriculture that includes 250-thousand dollars toward development of a vaccine and 250-thousand dollars to buy equipment to euthanize pigs. Mommsen says it ensures state officials could quickly respond at the first report of an Iowa herd getting African Swine Fever.

“There comes a point in time when the only response is to euthanize the animals and do it as humanely and quickly as possible to stop the spread, so we want to make sure we have the proper equipment here if that ever were to occur,” Mommsen says. “My hope is it rusts and never gets used.” The House is expected to approve the budget bill this week. It includes another 250-thousand dollar boost to the state’s program for responding to an outbreak of a foreign animal disease.

“We already had $750,000 in a Foreign Animal Disease Preparedness program,” Mommsen said. “There’s a veterinarian hired, running that program, so this is in addition to all of that trying to upgrade our facility and our preparedness.” According to the Iowa Pork Producers Association, on a typical day there are about 24 million hogs in Iowa. African Swine Fever is not a threat to humans, but once a pig is infected it is highly contagious to other pigs — and the mortality rate is 95 percent.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic City Council will meet in a regularly scheduled session this Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023, in their Chambers at City Hall. On their agenda is action on passing a Resolution “Designating distribution of Sales Tax Revenue to various funds for specific purposes,” followed by a Resolution Adjusting the Budgeted amounts in the LOST Progress Fund for FY 2024. The City’s Personnel & Finance Committee met on April 24th and reviewed the funding options for the Community Promotion Commission (CPC), Chamber of Commerce and CADCO. A Deputy Auditor with the Iowa State Auditor’s Office confirmed that contracts cannot be executed by Commissions or Boards of a municipality, even if they were formally delegated with that authority. City Administrator John Lund says that would make the CPC an advisory body when it comes to dispensing funds.

The Personnel & Finance Committee, when given two alternative budget scenarios for Fiscal Year 2024, unanimously decided that Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) dollars be diverted from the CPC to the LOST Progress Fund, and that both the Chamber and CADCO receive increases to their funding. Both organizations, Lund said, have been budgeted $35,000 per year since FY 2009. Adjusted for inflation, the allocation would amount of $47,700 for each organization.

The Council will then act on approving a Resolution “Approving the Updated Cass County Public Safety Commission Articles of Agreement,” which originally was signed on Oct. 4, 1999, but for which no minutes were found indicating the Council’s approval at that time, and leaves unclear under what authority then Mayor Sid Winchell to sign the agreement. John Lund said in his agenda packet to the Council, that …”Further, that City Clerk Deb Wheatley Field did not attest to the agreement, but City Administrator Scott Flory, did, under the City Clerk signature line.” Regardless, Lund says, the agreement was filed with the Cass County Recorder’s Office and signed by all other parties. It was formally accepted by the City Council, on Nov. 16, 2017.

The original 28-E agreement between the City and Cass County has been updated periodically since then. The latest changes, according to Director of 911 Communications Mike Kennon, makes it clear that this is not a County Law Enforcement consolidation, and that “The 911 Services Coordinator” will prepare the budget, due to some minor restructuring within the Communications Center. In other business, the Atlantic City Council, on Wednesday, will hold the Second Reading of an Ordinance amending the provisions pertaining to the Sewer Service Charges. The first reading passed April 19, 2023. The current charges for the wastewater utility in Atlantic have not changed in nearly 10-years, according to John Lund, and “to  ensure the stability of the Wastewater Utility Fund, the City needs to adjust the rates, as population loss has reduced overall customers, and inflation has made sustaining the plant’s labor and equipment needs unsustainable in the 10-year horizon, without a rate adjustment.

If passed, the new, scheduled rate changes will be phased-in over a period of two-years, beginning with July 1, 2024 and again on July 1, 2025. Under the new rate schedule:

• The 1st 3,000 gallons or lesser amount per month will increase July 1, 2023 from $28.50 to $30.00, $31 on July 1, 2024, and $32 on July 1, 2025.
• All gallons over 3,000/month will be billed at $6.00 per 1,000 gallons (up 20 cents from the current rate), effective July 1, 2023, to $6.25 by July 1, 2025.

The Council, Wednesday, will hold the first reading of an amendment to downtown “Special Parking permits.” The changes, if approved after three readings, would change allowed parking hours reduced by two-hours, to 7-p.m., in order to reflect current business hours. It also deletes a subsection of the Ordinance referring to parking downtown being prohibited on the first Wednesday of the month from 5-p.m. until the next day at 8-a.m., for the purpose of street sweeping. Since the City does not have a street sweeping schedule, the Ordinance becomes a moot point. And, an amendment cleans-up the wording pertaining to parking on downtown streets, when the is an accumulation of more than 1-inch of snow.

The Council’s final order of business is to set the date for a Public Hearing on Amending the FY2023 Budget, as their next meeting on May 17, 2023.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Police in Des Moines say a woman reported missing from her home since April 27th, was found deceased Saturday afternoon. Authorities say at approximately 3:41 p.m., Saturday, first responders from Clive and West Des Moines responded to the 12400 block of Woodlands Parkway, Clive, to investigate a report of a deceased person found at a pond.