(Radio Iowa) – With the warmer weather, Iowans are finally starting to launch into their spring cleaning projects, sprucing up both their homes and their work spaces. Jessica Boland, a worksite wellness consultant, says cleansing and decluttering can help to improve your mood and your productivity level while reducing stress, though she reminds, don’t stress yourself out by trying to tackle too much at once.

“Make a plan for maybe doing one room in your home at a time,” Boland says. “Think about cleaning out drawers, closets, cupboards, and maybe organizing things into different piles. So maybe you have a pile for donation, keeping and recycling.” Once you get your space looking like you want it, Boland says you should consider what it will take to maintain that level of organization and to keep the clutter from reappearing.

“Maybe it’s doing a load of dishes every day in your kitchen, and then that will keep our counters free of clutter,” Boland says. “Maybe it’s doing laundry once a day, if possible, and maybe even it’s just sorting through your mail for five minutes every day to keep your counters free.” Once something is stuffed in a closet, some consider if it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind, but Boland suggests you dig into those closets and be realistic about what you’ve saved.

“So if you have clothes in your closet from high school, maybe just ask yourself, ‘Do I really need these?'” Boland says. “Maybe you just think about, ‘These clothes were nice when I wore them in high school but I don’t need them,’ and maybe sometimes even taking a picture so you have a memory of that item.”

Boland is a consultant for Gundersen Health System, which has clinics in Calmar, Decorah, Fayette, Lansing, Postville and Waukon, and a hospital in West Union.

(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – Warm soil temperatures and favorable weather have allowed farmers across Iowa to start planting corn and soybeans this week, according to several field agronomists. Wednesday was the earliest planting date for corn to be eligible for federal crop insurance replanting payments, which cover farmers if their young crops are damaged and need to be replaced. The earliest planting date for soybeans was also Wednesday for the southern three tiers of Iowa counties, and it’s April 15 for the rest of the state.

Most of the state’s topsoil has a temperature of at least 50 degrees, according to Iowa State University data. That temperature is a key threshold for seed germination. Soil temps are predicted to rise into the 60s in the coming days before retreating into the 40s by the end of next week. Air temperatures are expected to peak in the 80s in most of Iowa this weekend, according to the National Weather Service. Heavy rainfall in wide areas of the state in March helped alleviate drought conditions that have persisted for more than three years. Still, available soil moisture is far behind what it has been in recent years.

About 51% of the state’s topsoil and 36% of its subsoil have adequate or surplus moisture, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report on Monday. At this time last year, those figures were 78% and 66%. The depleted subsoil is most worrisome for the field agronomists. About two-thirds of the state is suffering from some measure of drought, according to a Thursday report by the U.S. Drought Monitor. That affected area has declined for weeks and was aided again last week by heavy rainfall in southeast Iowa, which delayed planting in that area.

Those rains have alleviated some of the concerns about available water for livestock along the state’s southern border.

(Radio Iowa) – The top Republican in the Iowa House says there needs to be more review of a bill designed to ensure Iowa men who were sexually abused by Boy Scout leaders decades ago get full payments from a national settlement. Iowa’s current time limit on suing perpetrators of childhood sexual abuse means Iowa victims could get as little as 30 percent of the money victims in other states will receive if the legislature doesn’t act soon. The Senate unanimously passed a bill on the topic this week, but House Speaker Pat Grassley says the legislation could have broad implications.

“We understand that what these victims went through is a very terrible that they’ve experienced,” Grassley says. “While the bill is crafted very narrowly, this is a significant change.” Under Iowa law, survivors of child sex abuse must file lawsuits seeking damages before they turn 20 — or within four years of realizing they were victims of sex abuse as a child. The bill would waive those time limits for former Boy Scouts.

“We recognize that this is a really difficult situation, but the last few weeks of session it’s really hard to be able to find resolution.” Grassley says the bill originated in the Senate committee that writes budgets, and he’s having members of the House panel that considers court-related matters review it.

“This is a much bigger deal than I think it’s being perceived to be and I would say probably everyone would say from all sides it’s a big deal, but changing this is a fundamental change the way we typically do things in Iowa when it comes to statute of limitations, so I don’t think this is something we can just rush though,” Grassley says. “That being said, I understand the clock is ticking as well.”

According to a lawyer who’s familiar with the case, the governor needs to sign the bill into law by April 19th for Iowa adults who were victimized by Boy Scout leaders to get a full payment from the legal settlement. A two-and-a-half BILLION dollar settlement fund has been created to pay 82-thousand men in the U-S who say they were abused by troop leaders. Between 300 and 350 of those men are Iowans.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — [KETV] – Council Bluffs Fire Department said the wind has caused some of the small fires from the weekend that were still smoldering to ignite again. First responders have set up command as the fire continues to burn.The fire is along Interstate 29 near the Pottawattamie County Jail. KETV reports I-29 is still open, but fire officials do not recommend driving on it between Council Bluffs and Crescent.

The 16th Street and N 25th Street, I-29 on ramps have been closed. The fire is on both sides of the interstate. Fire officials said 40 to 60 acres of land have been affected by the fire. The city of Council Bluffs is under a burn ban.

A field fire also broke out in Mead, Nebraska, on Thursday, burning almost 80 acres of land.Another factor in the brush fire is Nebraska and Iowa’s ongoing drought.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Supreme Court heard oral arguments today (Thursday) on the fetal heartbeat law that’s been on hold since the the governor signed the bill. The state’s attorney, Eric Wessen, argued the state has a rational interest in enacting the law and that’s how it should be viewed. “A majority of this court held and Planned Parenthood 2022 that abortion is not a fundamental right subject to strict scrutiny so under its long standing substantive due process jurisprudence this court should apply rational basis,” he says. Wessen says the state has “The right of life, the important value of health and well being of mothers, the integrity of medical profession, each of those can be found in Iowa code section 146 E,” he says.

Wessen says he believes the district court would have to drop its injunction if the High Court follows his argument. “If this court explains and holds that rational basis is the proper standard of review the state is confident that this law which is duly enacted by the legislature and is entitled to the presumption of constitutionality will survive that review,” he says. Peter Im represented Planned Parenthood and the A-C-L-U of Iowa which are seeking to block the law. He says a rational interest interpretation should not be used.

“P-P-H 2022 which is the controlling precedent clearly stated that undue burden quote remains the governing standard unquote. The district court got it right by applying that standard and certainly did not abuse its discretion by committing legal error,” Im says. He says the law block the rights of women.

“Iowans’ ability to make decisions, private and personal medical decisions, to exercise bodily autonomy and to decide what when and whether to have children,” Im says. Justices Christopher McDonald and Susan Christensen asked Im about his argument that women were not properly represented when abortion was banned after Iowa became a state. They asked why a law should be blocked that was passed by a legislature that now includes duly-elected women.

“The level of deference to the legislature is certainly most important I think in issues of policy. But when it comes to individual rights, there is no political question doctrine. There is no doctrine that says that this court should defer to the legislature if the legislature passes a law that rides roughshod over the right of Iowans to exercise bodily autonomy,” he says.

The court is expected to issue a ruling in June.

(Radio Iowa) – The Hoosier State is now banking on its own Caitlin Clark Effect, as the Indiana Fever is expected to pick the University of Iowa star basketball player during Monday’s W-N-B-A draft. Cathy DuBois, dean of the College of Business at Ball State University in Muncie, says Clark is an absolute national phenomenon and the sky’s the limit for the West Des Moines native, wherever she goes.

A Ball State study predicts Clark’s addition to the Fever roster will bring another 12-hundred fans to each game in the upcoming season, many of whom will be coming from outside the region. That means plenty of dollars spent in hotels, restaurants, and other entertainment venues during their stay.

Clark led the Hawkeyes to two consecutive national championship games, including the match with South Carolina this past Sunday which set a record for television viewers.

Clark’s number, 22, was retired during a celebration on Wednesday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on the U-I campus, after a season during which she racked up a long series of awards and national records.

Caitlin Clark signs autographs (UI photo by Tim Schoon)

With the new countrywide focus on women’s basketball, DuBois predicts the entire professional league will benefit as Clark joins its ranks.

Another study done in part at Ball State found more than 162-thousand media stories featured Clark during the N-C-double-A tournament, resulting in 177-billion media impressions valued at more than 2-point-6 billion dollars.

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) –  A Pottawattamie County man was arrested Wednesday evening on charges that include Attempted Murder, 1st Degree Burglary, Harassment in the 1st Degree, and Willful Injury resulting in Bodily Injury. The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports 23-year-old Spencer Steve Prusia, of Hancock, was being held in the Pott. County Jail, on bond amounting to $57,000.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, deputies were sent to 208 Main Street in Hancock at around 5:30-p.m., following a reported home invasion. When deputies arrived, the male victim told them Prusia rang the doorbell. When the victim answered the door, Prusia started inquiring about an individual.

The victim told Prusia the person he was looking for hadn’t lived there for about 10-years. When Prusia told the man he didn’t believe him, the victim tried to shut the door, but Prusia forced his way into the residence and allegedly placed victim in a choke hold.

Spencer Prusia (Pott. County Jail booking photo)

Prusia also alleged told the man “he wanted to kill him.” After the victim escaped, Prusia fled the home. He was located Prusia at his residence in Hancock and transported him to the Pottawattamie County Jail. The victim was treated by medics at the scene.

UPDATE 3:30-P.M, 4/11/24: KEYSTONE, Iowa – The missing person advisory issued for Rhiannon “Rainy” Walter on behalf of the Benton County Sheriff’s Office has been canceled. She has been safely located. Law enforcement thanks the public for their assistance.

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(Vinton, Iowa) – The Benton County Sheriff’s Office (in eastern Iowa) is attempting to locate an 11-year-old girl last seen Wednesday evening in Keystone, Iowa. See the Sheriff’s Office press release below:

(Radio Iowa) – A bill that’s cleared the Iowa legislature would let churches and non-profit organizations that host bingo games as fundraisers offer a gun worth up to $5000 as a prize. The bill cleared the Senate almost unanimously in Febryary without debate, but there was some push back this week before it passed the House. Representative Eric Gjerde, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, suggested any prize worth $5000 should be allowed. “So if an organization wants to give a trip away, they can,” Gjerde said. “If an organization wants to give a canoe or a paddleboat away, they can.”

Representative Shannon Lundgren, a Republican from Peosta, said she “100%” agrees, but that expansion would doom the bill if it was returned to the Senate. “We will continue to work on that next year because I, too, would like to see our church organizations and other non-profit organizations, whether they’re youth-oriented or not earn extra money,” Lundren said.

The bill does raise the entry fee limit for bingo fundraisers to $50. The current limit on bingo prizes in Iowa is $250. The bill raises the value limit on prizes to $900, unless it’s a gun.The bill is headed to the governor for review.

Bingo fundraisers for charity are legal in Iowa as long as the games are run by volunteers.