(Radio Iowa) – A farmer who’s a spokesman for South Dakota landowners who oppose the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline says his state is the firewall that could stop the project. Ed Fishbach spoke at a rally at the Iowa Capitol this week. “Summit has nothing in South Dakota at this point in time that they can claim a victory for,” Fishbach said, “not one thing.”

The Iowa Utilities Commission has granted a permit to Summit, but with the requirement that North and South Dakota regulators approve the pipeline before construction may begin in Iowa. Fishbach lives near the small town of Mellette, about 25 miles south of Aberdeen, South Dakota. “I live in Spink County,” he said, “and by the way, my county in Spink County has the most miles of this Summit pipeline in South Dakota.”

South Dakota’s Public Utilities Commission has denied Summit’s permit application and South Dakota’s Supreme Court has ruled Summit has yet to prove the pipeline is a service to the general public. That limits the company’s ability to do surveys along its proposed pipeline route in South Dakota without landowner permission. “That’s a landmark decision,” Fishbach said, “and I hope your supreme court is listening to what our supreme court said about Summit because it is damning.”

This November, South Dakota voters will decide a ballot question seeking repeal of a law South Dakota’s legislature and governor approved last winter. Supporters say the law is a compromise that provides protections to landowners, while preserving a path for pipeline projects. Fishbach says the law gives state officials authority to overrule county ordinances that regulate where pipelines may be routed.  “There will be nothing to stop Summit from putting that pipeline anywhere they want,” Fishbach said. “…This is what we’re up against, folks.”

Summit and pipeline advocates say the 25-hundred mile pipeline will drive job growth in the Midwest and provide a substantial boost to the ethanol industry and the U-S farm sector by making ethanol carbon neutral. Summit’s proposed pipeline route goes through five states and would connect to 57 ethanol plants, including 30 in Iowa.

(Iowa News Service) – AARP Iowa has released a series of videos asking congressional candidates how they would support Iowans who are unpaid caregivers.

The group traveled Iowa this summer on its “Cruisin’ for Caregivers tour” to not only educate people about the issue but to hear from caregivers about what is important to them. Caregivers from each district sat down with Congressional candidates to discuss the challenges they face and potential solutions. AARP Iowa said unpaid family caregivers in the state provide what amounts to about $5 billion worth of services every year.

Paige Yontz, state advocacy manager for AARP Iowa, said unpaid family caregiving is a top issue for Iowa voters age 50 and older. “The fact of the matter is, these voters are the driving force behind every election,” Yontz pointed out. “In Iowa, voters accounted for 54% of the total electorate in 2020 and 62% in 2022, that’s voters in the 50-plus category.”

AARP polling shows voters in this age group are more likely to choose candidates who have a plan to support unpaid family caregivers. In the videos, Iowa’s congressional candidates have 30 seconds to describe their approach.

Seniors have said aging at home has become increasingly important to them and Yontz argued having the help and care they need to do that is critical.  “In Iowa, there are over 330,000 unpaid family caregivers that assist their loved ones with needs that allow them to remain independent in their homes,” Yontz explained. “That might be medical care and finances to chores, transportation, grocery shopping, you name it.”

AARP said nationwide, unpaid family members provide at least $600 billion in care and services to loved ones and others who need support.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic School Board Wednesday voted 4-to 1 (with Board Member Laura McLean the lone No vote), to forego the hiring of a Superintendent search firm, and instead act on renewing at their next regular meeting, a contract for full-time superintendent with the current, Interim Superintendent Dr. Beth Johnsen.

Prior to their vote, during discussion on the matter, McLean said she had made a promise to the community to make the effort try and hire a search firm, after the Board was rushed into getting an interim superintendent the last time around.

She acknowledged it would take a great deal of time and Board energy to go through the full process, but she wanted to hear more from the public and staff in moving forward. Board member Josh McLaren said he thinks hiring a search firm is a waste of time and money.

In other action, the Board approved a requested extension of the District’s share of Tax Increment Financing (TIF) from 10-years to 15-years, following a request from Vision Atlantic, with regard to the Camblin Edition Housing Project, providing the district’s attorneys look over the agreement and give their blessing. The TIF funds will be used to focus on expanded childcare, quality housing and quality of life amenities. Earlier in the evening, the Board heard from Vision Atlantic President Christina Bateman and Vice President Nicholas Hunt.

Bateman warned of how not approving the TIF extension would impact the project financially, and emphasized how other entities have already passed the extension on their end.

In her report to the Board, Superintendent Dr. Beth Johnsen was pleased to report the District was awarded a Robotics grant that was applied for.

With that having been said, Dr. Johnsen said she would like the Board’s approval during a future meeting, to hire a Robotics Coach. She said she also received a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) from the City of Atlantic, with regard to the SRO (School Resource Officer) position the Atlantic Police Department has received a grant for.

The Board discussed Student Support Services, and approved the following personnel recommendations:

Resignations: Jordan Zarbano, Evening High School Custodian; Lindsey Thomas, Elementary Special Education paraprofessional (Effective Oct. 9th).

Retirements: Jon Peterson, Middle School Teacher (effective the end of the 2024-25 school year). And, recommendations to hire: Harrison Heogh, Volunteer HS Football Coach (Non-paid position); Dan Vargason, Interim HS Girls Soccer Coach; Mackenzie Morris, Elementary Special Education paraprofessional.

And: CTSO sponsors requirement for Perkins Grant Funds; 2024 Volunteer Coaches for Winter Sports; 2025 Spring Sports Coaches. The Board’s final order of business was to approve an FFA Fruit Sales Fundraiser request for Oct. 10th through the 30th.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Department reports six recent arrests.

On Oct. 3rd, 79-year-old Lloyd Lawrence Kolker, of Sioux City, IA, was arrested on two counts Possession of a Controlled Substance (Bond $2,000).

There were three arrests Oct. 7th: 30-year-old Roman Sifuentes, of Glenwood, was arrested for OWI/1st offense, & possession of a controlled substance ($2,000 bond); 60-year-old Michael Robert Aguirre, of Red Oak, was arrested on a warrant for Failure To Appear (Bond $5,000); and, 34-year-old Taylor Christian Shanks, of Omaha, was arrested on warrants for two-counts Violation of Probation (Bond $4,000).

There were two arrests on Oct. 8th in Mills County: 52-year-old Scott Michael Hardman, of Malvern, was arrested for Driving Under Suspension (300 bond); and, 37-year-old Nicole Katherine Spracklin, of Plattsmouth, NE, was arrested at the Pottawattamie County Jail on a Mills County warrant for FTA (No Bond).

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson is defending her social media comments that Americans hit by Hurricane Helene were “left in the lurch” because FEMA funding was used for illegal immigration. The Administration and FEMA have pushed back after criticism of their handling of hurricane relief, saying there is a lot of misinformation and it is confusing for people. Hinson, a Republican from Marion, says she first raised the issue five months ago during a hearing with the FEMA director before the current Hurricanes.

“These were programs that they had to prop up because of a crisis they created. And the contrast here is that I don’t think a taxpayer dollar, a single one should be spent bailing out sanctuary cities or incentivizing illegal immigration,” Hinson says. Hinson says FEMA’s mission should be clear.

“Their mission should be to singularly focus on helping American citizens. But if you roll back the tape on this, isn’t the first time that the administration has put illegals over Americans,” Hinson says. “They tried to divert resources for veterans to the southern border, trying to take doctors from the V-A and healthcare providers, and then they have diverted federal air marshals from protecting Americans on commercial flights to the southern border.”

Hinson says she has first-hand experience on these issues. “I was down at the border twice, and on one of my trips down there, they had employees helping to navigate the situation at the southern border from FEMA and from T-S-A, and those were just the ones I came into contact with on my short border tour. So Americans are tired of this administration putting illegal immigrants first while families are suffering, and that’s the intention behind my tweets,” Hinson says.

Hinson made her comments during a conference call with reporters.

(Radio Iowa [follow-up to previous story]) -Ryan Melton, the Democrat running against Republican Congressman Randy Feenstra, says the U-S should support Israel’s defense and its response to the October 7th attacks — but there should be limits.  “Hamas is horrible. Everything that can be done that still respects the dignity of the Palestinian folks in Gaza, in the West Bank…should be done to try to rid Palestine of Hamas,” Melton says. “However…we should not be providing offensive military funding to Netanyahu.” Melton says the Hamas attacks on Israeli civilians last October were horrible and indefensible.

“But I think Netanyahu has really amplied problems here and has played into the hands of Hamas here,” Melton says. “…There have been tens of thousands of Palestinians that have lost their lives, the dropping of non-precision munitions upon densely populated areas, while Hamas fighters were in the tunnels, unscathed from those.” Melton points to a recent poll showing 64 percent of Israeli citizens favor a cease fire linked with the release of hostages held by Hamas.

“I think it’s hard for anyone to really put together a robust argument that what Netanyahu is doing in Palestine is increasing the likelihood that Israelis will have a longer lasting peace as well,” Melton says. Israel is fighting Hezbollah, another Iranian-based terrorist group, in Lebanon. Melton says Hezbollah is obviously a horrible organization, but that doesn’t mean Netanyahu’s decision-making can’t be questioned.

“Is the person on the Israeli side that’s leading the offensive cognizant and necessarily concerned about minimizing civilian casualties?” Melton asks. “And his track record pretty clearly since October 7 has been no.”

Melton made his comments during a recent appearance on “Iowa Press” on Iowa P-B-S. As Radio Iowa reported this (Wednesday) morning, Congressman Feenstra says the United States must stand with Israel as it roots out terrorism.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowans are being reminded about the life-saving potential of smoke alarms as part of National Fire Prevention Week. Levi Kinnison, the fire prevention specialist with the Red Oak Fire Department, says smoke alarms can provide crucial time for residents to get out of a house or building if there’s a fire.

“Make sure you have smoke alarms, make sure they’re working, and make sure the batteries have been replaced,” Kinnison says. “Test your smoke alarms once a month, but if you can do it every six months to make sure they’re doing good, that’s perfect. When you change your clocks, change your batteries. That’s what we want to stress this year, just having working smoke alarms throughout the house.”

Studies find smoke alarms reduce the risk of dying in a home fire by more than half. Also, roughly three out of five fire deaths happen in homes with either no smoke alarms or no working alarms. Through a partnership with the American Red Cross, Kinnison says Red Oak is among many Iowa fire departments offering free smoke detectors.

“Usually a fire department person can come and install them for you, especially the elderly, we don’t want them climbing up on ladders trying to put in a new smoke alarm, so we’ll come out and do those,” he says. “Also, most local fire departments also have a smoke alarm program they can help with as well.” He recommends installing smoke detectors in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area, and on every level of a home.

Kinnison says strobe light or bed shaking alarms are available for people with sensory or physical disabilities. He also suggests a few other general fire safety tips. “If your smoke alarms are going off and your house is filling with smoke, we want you to ‘get low and go,’ where we crawl below the smoke and the heat and get outside,” Kinnison says. “Also, ‘get out and stay out.’ We never want anybody to go back inside a house or building that has smoke and fire as that’s what the fire department is there for. We’re trained professionals, so we’ll be the ones that go back inside that ‘not ideal’ environment for you.”

The Iowa Fire Marshal’s office says 24 Iowans have died in fires so far in 2024. Last year, there were 37 fire deaths statewide.

(Clarinda, Iowa) — Sheriff’s officials in Page County report a man from Maine was arrested early Sunday morning, for alleged indecent contact with a child. 54-year-old Timothy Alan Groves of Etna, Maine, was taken into custody at around 2:15-a.m.  His arrest occurred at a residence in rural Page County. Groves is being held in the Page County Jail on a $2,000 bond.