Red Oak Police report a woman was arrested Sunday night on an active Page County warrant for Violation of Probation. 19-year old Cheyenne Joyce Blank, of Shenandoah, was arrested at around 7:40-p.m., in the 600 block of east Reed Street. She was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $1,000 bond. Blank was later transported to the Page County Jail and held on bond, pending further court proceedings.

Joyce Blank

Atlantic  Assistant High School Principal and Athletic Director Matt Alexander has reportedly been selected to become Superintendent of the Odebolt-Arthur/Battle Creek-Ida Grove (or, OA-BCIG) School District. A message on the OA-BCIG District’s web page says “The OABCIG Board is excited to announce a verbal acceptance from Matt Alexander to be the next Superintendent of the district.  The Board will be approving this contract formally on Tuesday, February 27th meeting at noon.”

Photo from Atlantic School District’s website

Alexander interviewed for the position Feb. 20th. If the verbal agreement is formalized in writing, Alexander would succeed newly re-organized OA-BCIG District, Superintendent Terry Kenealy, who is retiring from education. Other candidates who were interviewed last week and considered for the position include:

• Adam Zellmer, director of teaching and learning at Webster City Community School District in Webster City.
• Marshall Lewis, superintendent of Kimball Community School District in Kimball, Ne.
• John Chalstrom, project coordinator for Alan Gray Associates from Sioux City.
• David Gute, junior/senior high school principal at Riverside Community Schools in Oakland.

A total of 18 applications were received for the superintendent position. Alexander has declined to comment on the offer until after the OA-BCIG Board meets tomorrow (Tuesday) and finalizes the matter.

Matt Alexander has lived in Atlantic for 23-years, and has served in the Atlantic School District for 16-years. He started out as a Math and Social Studies Teacher became the Schuler Elementary Principal and ACSD Curriculum Director and was hired as the High School Assistant Principal and Activities Director in 2013.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:35 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Senate Republicans used a procedural maneuver last week to fast-track votes on a sweeping tax overhaul bill that national experts say could limit transparency and public engagement at the state Capitol. The legislation would reduce taxes by more than $1 billion annually, in part by cutting corporate and individual income taxes and eliminating some tax credits.

NEVADA, Iowa (AP) — Public safety officials are concerned about up to 500,000 bales of flammable stover that are stored across central Iowa and will be left over after a cellulosic ethanol plant is sold. The Des Moines Register reports that the newly merged DowDuPont is selling its $225 million cellulosic ethanol plant in Nevada, leaving many residents asking what will happen to the remaining stover. The plant’s corn cobs, husks and stalks are a fire liability for the city and county.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A 61-year-old Iowa grandfather has been sentenced to five years of probation for molesting his 6-year-old granddaughter. The Des Moines Register reports Dean Hilpipre was sentenced Friday for committing lascivious acts with a child.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — County supervisors in western Iowa have renewed a ban on guns in the courthouse after a dispute over allowing weapons in parts of the building where court services aren’t held. The Sioux City Journal reports that Woodbury County Supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday against permitting guns in non-court controlled spaces of the courthouse. Supervisor Jeremy Taylor says it’s “impractical” to bring guns into portions of courthouse floors, while restricting them on others above and below.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A 61-year-old Iowa grandfather has been sentenced to five years of probation for molesting his 6-year-old granddaughter. The Des Moines Register reports Dean Hilpipre was sentenced Friday for committing lascivious acts with a child. He pleaded guilty last month as part of a deal with prosecutors.

Judge James McGlynn also ordered Hilpipre to have no contact with his granddaughter for five years, and he will undergo sex-offender treatment. He lives in Alden, Iowa.

The girl’s mother criticized prosecutors for failing to send Hilpipre to prison.
The girl’s family said Hilpipre performed sexual acts on his granddaughter and forced her to perform acts on him in return.

The Montgomery County Communications Center received a call at around 2:15-a.m. Sunday, about a rollover accident near Red Oak, with the possibility of multiple persons injured. An investigation determined a vehicle had rolled over near the intersection of Highway 34 and Ironwood Avenue. At the southeast part of the intersection, there were tracks and items from the bed of a pickup truck located. The vehicle, a 2005 Chevy Silverado, was located in a ditch near K Avenue, on 140th Street. The owner, 22-year old Alec R. Thomas, of rural Elliott, was found at his residence. Thomas admitted he had been the driver of the pickup. He told authorities he lost control of the vehicle on  the icy road surface, after swerving to avoid hitting a deer.

The pickup entered the east ditch and overturned, coming to rest on its wheels. Thomas drove out of the field and took his two passengers to a residence in Red Oak. One of the passengers, 22-year old Austin D. Brokaw, of Cavour, SD., was transported from the residence to the hospital, to be treated for minor injuries. He was subsequently released after being treated. Another passenger, 20-year old Colton L. Robinson, of Red Oak, was not injured.

Damage to the vehicle was estimated to be $7,500.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports two juveniles, ages 11 and 14, were arrested Sunday for Criminal Trespass, following an investigation into a report of two people being on the railroad tracks and placing items on the tracks, and leaving them there. The youth were located at 7th Avenue in Villisca on the BNSF tracks. They were brought to the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center and processed before being given Juvenile Referrals, and being released to the custody of family members. Their names were not released due to their age.

If you like to camp during Memorial Day weekend, the three-month window to reserve a state park campsite for a Friday arrival opens today (Sunday).  Those weekend dates are Friday, May 25 through Monday, May 28.

New for the 2018 season, 75 percent of available campsites at each park can be reserved through the online reservation site; the remaining 25 percent are available first-come first-serve at the park.

When visiting the reservation site, please note any closures or renovations taking place at each park. Five campgrounds will be closed for the entire 2018 summer camping season for upgrades and renovations. Those parks will still be open for day-use visitors. The campgrounds that will be closed are at: Ledges State Park, Lacey-Keosauqua State Park, Geode State Park, Marble Beach State Recreation Area and Maquoketa Caves State Park.

NEVADA, Iowa (AP) — Public safety officials are concerned about up to 500,000 bales of flammable stover that are stored across central Iowa and will be left over after a cellulosic ethanol plant is sold. The newly merged DowDuPont is selling its $225 million cellulosic ethanol plant in Nevada because it no longer fits its strategic plan, leaving many residents asking what will happen to the remaining stover.

The plant’s corn cobs, husks and stalks are a fire liability for the city and county, the Des Moines Register reported . The plant’s stover is scattered around 23 storage sites in central Iowa. A few bales catching fire could turn into a major blaze, particularly at the plant’s main site where there are about 200,000 bales within about a half mile.
“Our concern is who will be responsible for the bales once the plant is sold,” said Ricardo Martinez, Nevada’s public safety director.

“What would be my worst nightmare is if DowDuPont shuffles its hands and says, ‘we’re out of here,’ and they walk away, and we still have the problem to deal with,” he said. Nevada firefighters faced two large stover fires two years ago. DuPont also has experienced between seven and eight lightning fires at stover storage areas, though some were believed to be arson.

“DuPont knows our concerns and has been working with us,” Martinez said.
Ray Reynolds, the city’s fire chief, believes a buyer will be interested in the stover, purchased under contracts with area farmers. Reynolds said that if a new plant owner doesn’t want the stover, the company said the crop residue could be ground up and used for livestock bedding or covering landfills.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Senate Republicans used a procedural maneuver last week to fast-track votes on a sweeping tax overhaul bill that national experts say could limit transparency and public engagement at the state Capitol. The legislation would reduce taxes by more than $1 billion annually, in part by cutting corporate and individual income taxes and eliminating some tax credits. The Republican senator who authored the bill said Thursday he didn’t yet have a five-year projection on its fiscal impact to the state’s roughly $7.2 billion budget, but the measure is moving through the legislative process quickly.

The bill was released publicly Wednesday morning. A little over 24 hours later, it had advanced through a tax-writing subcommittee and a full committee. At one of those meetings, lobbyists for various organizations indicated they hadn’t read all of the bill’s roughly 130 pages. A Senate floor vote is expected as soon as this week. Alex Howard, deputy director for the nonpartisan, open-government watchdog Sunlight Foundation, said there are reasons bills can move swiftly if there are emergency circumstances and the legislation is straightforward, but this doesn’t seem to be the case with the Iowa tax bill.

“The more complicated the legislation becomes and the more far reaching it is, the more it makes sense to look at how much time there is for the public to fully understand and digest it,” he said. Sen. Randy Feenstra, a Hull Republican and the bill’s author, defended the move to suspend rules and advance the legislation through a subcommittee and committee on the same day. He told The Associated Press via email: “This procedure is utilized frequently in Senate Committees.”

That argument requires context. Few bills advance so quickly unless there’s a looming legislative deadline known as funnel week, which requires legislation to have a threshold of votes to stay alive for the session. There have been several instances over the years in the Senate and House, under both Republican and Democratic control, where a panel approves a bill in the morning with then a full committee vote a few hours later. There are also instances when lawmakers suspend rules to hold a subcommittee within a committee meeting.

Dan Beverly, executive director of the nonpartisan National Freedom of Information Coalition, said allowing lawmakers to repeatedly suspend existing rules, particularly with same day votes, sets bad precedent. “If you’re not consistent with the rules, you really don’t have rules,” he said.

Sen. Rob Hogg, a Cedar Rapids Democrat, said tax-related bills aren’t even subject to the legislative deadline that drives many of those other scenarios. He also pointed to last year, when the new Republican-controlled Legislature publicly released a 68-page bill on Feb. 7 that eliminated most collective bargaining rights for many public workers. The legislation advanced quickly in both chambers through existing chamber rules. Former Gov. Terry Branstad signed the measure into law on Feb. 17.

“They’ve shown they have the ability to ignore public input and steamroller the legislative process,” Hogg said of Republicans. The Iowa Senate GOP tax bill would cut the state’s top corporate tax rate from 12 percent to 7 percent. The top individual income tax rate would drop from 8.98 percent to 6.3 percent. It’s unclear how the tax cuts would impact government services. The Legislature is currently debating mid-year budget cuts for state agencies and higher education amid lower than expected revenue growth. Lawmakers made similar decisions last year and eventually borrowed about $144 million from emergency reserves. Lawmakers plan to pay that back.

Feenstra said Thursday: “I can assure you the bill is fiscally responsible.” He said there will be a nonpartisan fiscal analysis before a floor Senate vote. Data indicates the state could see some revenue increases soon, in part because of the new federal tax cuts. Details are still being sorted out. Still, the reality of budget constraints is one reason GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds released a tax plan earlier this month that isn’t as expansive.
Reynolds doesn’t cut corporate tax rates or remove tax credits, arguing she’d like to study the issue further. Reynolds also proposes tax cuts of $1.7 billion over several years, a smaller price tag that will also need more review. There are some similarities, like eliminating a longstanding federal deductibility provision. Both bills also expand taxes on online sales and allow tax-free savings accounts for private K-12 education.
House Republicans are expected to slow the process.

House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, a Clear Lake Republican, said Thursday her caucus will work off Reynolds’ bill. Senate Republicans, who argue without evidence that their “bold” plan will spur economic growth, acknowledge they expect negotiations within their party. Neither Upmeyer nor Reynolds’ staff would comment on the legislative speed of the Senate Republican bill. However, Upmeyer said House Republicans could debate tax cuts in the weeks ahead while considering spending cuts and the next state budget. “I think you can do both things at once,” she said. “You just have to be thoughtful about it.”

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 5:15 a.m. CST

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — County supervisors in western Iowa have renewed a ban on guns in the courthouse after a dispute over allowing weapons in parts of the building where court services aren’t held. The Sioux City Journal reports that Woodbury County Supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday against permitting guns in non-court controlled spaces of the courthouse. Supervisor Jeremy Taylor says it’s “impractical” to bring guns into portions of courthouse floors, while restricting them on others above and below.

DANVILLE, Iowa (AP) — A county prosecutor has dropped charges against a southeastern Iowa nursing home operator, saying that a conviction against him would have harmed the facility’s residents. The Des Moines Register reports that Des Moines County Attorney Amy Beavers dropped the felony dependent adult abuse-exploitation charge against 47-year-old Marc Johnson, Hamilton, Illinois, whose company runs the Danville Care Center in southeast Iowa.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Ankeny man whose baby died after becoming wedged between a mattress and a wall has pleaded guilty to child endangerment and other counts. The Des Moines Register reports that 48-year-old Matthew Cohara recently pleaded guilty to child endangerment and possession of marijuana and cocaine in a deal with prosecutors. In exchange, Cohara must attend substance abuse evaluation and treatment and may get deferred judgment.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Flowers and decorations left on graves in several Des Moines city cemeteries must be picked up by the end of the month, or be thrown out by city workers. Des Moines Parks and Recreation staff will begin removing memorial decorations placed on gravesites in municipal cemeteries on March 1. Cemetery visitors have until Wednesday to collect any decorations they’d like to keep.