DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Legislation that would exempt military pensions from state income tax is moving rapidly through the Iowa Senate. A Senate committee approved the legislation during a brief hearing Thursday. It is expected to soon move to the full Senate for a vote. Sen. Herman Quirmbach, a Democrat from Ames, says the bill honors veterans and may attract more military retirees to the state.

The military pension exemption is a top priority for Republican Gov. Terry Branstad, who has made support for veterans a key part of his budget plan this year. According to the Branstad administration, the pension exemption would cost the state a projected $10 million in lost annual revenue.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports a Cass County man was sentenced Wednesday to more than 9-years in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. 44-year old Old Paul William Jessen, of Atlantic was sentenced in U-S District Court in Council Bluffs, to 122 months in jail followed by 4-years of supervised release.

On September 4th, 2013, Jessen pled guilty to the charge which was the result of an investigation conducted into methamphetamine distribution in and around the Atlantic area. Jessen was part of a drug trafficking group who distributed methamphetamine obtained from a source in Omaha, Nebraska.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County report an arrest has been made in connection with an arson fire set last year at Sunbest-Papetti Farms, in Villisca. 31-year-old Carlton John Dolph, of Villisca, was arrested today (Thursday) on a Montgomery County warrant for terroristic threats and on  two counts of 2nd degree arson. Dolph was brought to the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center where he was being held on $10,000 cash bond.

Several chickens died in a blaze that occurred in one of the barns, in February 2013.

The City of Atlantic may be forced to refund to the State more than $183, 800 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds it received for the rehabilitation of 13 homes, because the full grant amount from has not yet been spent. That was the word during Wednesday night’s City Council meeting, from SWIPCO (Southwest Iowa Planning Council) representative Dave Riedemann.

In his status update, Riedemann said the City received a $484,500 grant last year for the rehab program. The City contributed in-kind funds amounting to $26,000, for a total amount of funds available, of $510,500. So far all but $183, 809 has been spent. Eight of the 13 homes have been completed, with the remaining five in various stages of completion. Riedemann said SWIPCO has requesting an extension from the State for a six-month extension and permission to rehab three additional homes, because there will be leftover funds amounting from about $115-to 125-thousand dollars.

That would bring the total number of homes assisted to 16, if the State grants permission for the City to do so. Riedemann says up until this past Monday, that seemed like a sure thing. He says a similar extension was asked for in Shenandoah, but it was denied, which Riedemann says was “A first” for SWIPCO. He said “Things are tightening-up at the State level and changes have been made in how the CDBG program is implemented. Some of the changes will apparently be “retroactively applied.”

He says he’s hopeful that the State will grant a time extension for expenditure of the funds and completion of three more homes, but that’s hard to predict. The funds must be used by the end of April. If not, more than $100,000 will have to be returned to the State. Regardless, Riedemann said the original 13 houses will be completed as planned. HUD says SWIPCO can’t expend overall more than $37,500 per house, including lead abatement. Hard costs cannot exceed $25,000 if there is no lead removal needed.

Most of the work involves the installation of vinyl siding to enclose lead-based paint, vinyl replacement windows for energy efficiency, high efficiency furnaces and air conditioning, updated electrical and plumbing, and special needs alterations as needed and funds allow.

Following a study by Snyder and Associates Engineers firm in Atlantic of street conditions in the city, Street Superintendent Derald Andersen and Snyder’s Dave Sturm created a list of priorities for fixing the worst streets. City Administrator Doug Harris told the City Council during their meeting Wednesday night, there are six sections of streets in the proposed improvement program, which need to have an asphalt overlay this year, and one section needs to be reconstructed. The plan also calls for the seal-coating of 52 blocks of streets.

Harris says without seal-coating, the road surface begins to oxidize and water seeps into the cracks, which causes the road to quickly deteriorate. He says the City doesn’t have the money to just “Let the roads go and then rebuild them.” Therefore the plan is to use a new process to “micro-seal” 10 blocks and see how effective that is. The roads selected for the micro-seal, should be good for 10-years before milling and an overlay is needed. Harris said the cost of the Street Improvement Projects this year amounts to $945,000.

He said the City has options when it comes to bidding-out the overlay projects. He said the because current contract the City has with PCS Concrete and its asphalt subcontractor Henningsen Construction is not yet complete, the City could ask for a “Change Order” which allows the price to be held, but the engineering for the added projects would need to be done. Harris expects to gather additional information for presentation to the Council during their next meeting, and a possible vote.

During his report to the Council, Harris was asked by Mayor Dave Jones, if there would be a sewer rate increase this year, to which Harris replied “No.”

w/ Ric Hanson

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Officials with the AHST Community School District have announced AHST and the Walnut Community School District will officially begin Whole Grade Sharing of grades 7-through 12 beginning in the fall of 2014. The Walnut School Board approved the 4-year sharing agreement at their regularly scheduled meeting this past Monday. The AHST Board approved the same agreement during their meeting on Wednesday.

The process of Whole Grade Sharing began in Sept. 2013, when both districts passed a resolution to enter into negotiations for sharing. Following  a a period of public comment, a draft Whole Grade Sharing agreement was presented in Dec. 2013, during separate public hearings to patrons of both districts.

All students in grades 7-through 12 will be served at the AHST secondary school. The name of the secondary for extracurricular activities will be AHSTW. The mascot will be the Vikings and Lady Vikes, with the colors remaining blue, red and white. Walnut will reimburse AHST for 80-percent of the district cost per pupil by the state, to educate their resident students.

AHST also approved the expansion of programs and staff. Next year, the AHSTW secondary will have a full-time Agricultural Education and Industrial Technology program. AHST is also adding a full-time TAG (Talented And Gifted) program teacher, a secondary Language Arts teachers, a Student Services Coordinator, as well as increasing staff in the Special Education and Title 1 departments.

Persons with questions about the Whole Grade Sharing agreement may contact AHST/Walnut Community School District Superintendent Jesse Ulrich.

(8-a.m. News)

w/ Ric Hanson

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