(Radio Iowa) – A week from now, the 2023 Iowa legislature will convene and Governor Kim Reynolds has made it clear she’ll ask lawmakers to pass what she calls “school choice.” “It’s critical that we have a robust and strong public school system. It’s inherent for our economy and for our future, but it’s equally as important that parents have a say in where their child should be educated,” Reynolds said during an online forum in December. Over the past two years, Reynolds has proposed a limited number of state scholarships for parents who enroll their child in a private school, but she’s now calling for EVERY parent to be able to get state money to cover private school expenses for their child.

“I made this a key priority of mine throughout the campaign,” Reynolds said, “and it will continue to be one of my top priorities as we moved into the next legislative session.” The previous proposals Reynolds made did not have enough Republican votes to pass in the Iowa House. Last June, the governor backed G-O-P primary candidates who defeated a few Republicans who were “no” votes. House Speaker Pat Grassley says he’s optimistic something will pass in 2023. “This was an issue that was a part of all of the campaigns in some form or another,” Grassley says. “Whether it was the governor’s race or every legislative race, this topic was brought up.” Grassley has created an education reform committee that will consider the governor’s new plan, whatever it may be.

“Whether it’s phased in over time, whether it’s everyone at once — there’s a lot of kind of figuring out kind of what the impacts would be of the decisions we make, ” Grassley says. “We’re kind of at the point where we know that’s what we’re going to look at, but we haven’t necessarily had a bill set in stone.” Grassley says there’s a general blueprint, though. “Ultimately the goal here is to make sure that every parent, literally every parent has that opportunity to choose where to send their kid to school,” Grassley says. Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver says he expects the governor to unveil a “substantial” proposal this month. “That’s something that is important to us. It’s important to the governor. She campaigned on it,” Whitver says. “It was a top priority for her and it’s time for us to deliver on it.”

Senate Republicans passed the governor’s more limited private school scholarship plans in 2021 and 2022. Democrats in the House and Senate oppose spending more state tax dollars on private schools. Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls says the idea is of grave concern to rural residents. “Who have already seen the effects of cuts to school funding resulting in school consolidation and who I think are terrified that will accelerate under this voucher scheme, as families use a voucher to send their kid to a different school,” Wahls says, “and the challenge, of course, is that once you lose your school, you can lose your town.” House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst says 42 of Iowa’s 99 counties do not have a private school — so most rural families wouldn’t benefit from the governor’s plan. “When I hear that the governor’s proposing school choice for every parent, there’s just simply no way that that’s possible,” Konfrst says.

Governor Reynolds will deliver the annual “Condition of the State” address on Tuesday, January 10th and she may unveil her major policy ideas during the speech.

(Radio Iowa) – Key Republican lawmakers are making it clear property tax reform will be a priority for the 2023 Iowa legislature, which starts next Monday. Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver suggests it may take a while to come up with a plan, though. “All options are on the table with property taxes,” Whitver says. “It’s a really complicated issue and so we’re really taking a holistic look at it to see what is the best long-term strategy as far as property tax goes.” Whitver and other legislators say it’s among the least popular forms of taxation. “You can look back at bumper stickers from the 1950s and ’60s and see people that were concerned about property taxes and those concerns still exist today and, with how complicated our system is, it’s not something that gets fixed in one year or one session or even one decade, ” Whitver says, “but we have to try to make progress.”

In 1934, the Iowa Legislature enacted a statewide sales tax and a state income tax as a property tax relief measures. House Speaker Pat Grassley says the property tax is among the hardest taxes to cut. He cites the recent move to have the state rather than counties pay for more than 100 million dollars worth of mental health services — but property taxes didn’t get cut by the same amount. “So I think what you’re going to see in what we’re working on is a combination of making sure we can provide relief through the state mechanisms we have, putting dollars into it, but also making sure that at the local level the taxpayer is seeing that,” Grassley says. More than 40 percent of the property taxes collected in Iowa go to public schools.

State funding for schools is based on a per student formula and House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst notes state law lets schools with declining enrollment raise local property taxes to keep their budgets stable from year to year. “The continual defunding of education across the state has led to an increase of property taxes, so we want to make sure that we’re being fair to the property owners while making sure that all Iowans’ priorities are met,” Konfrst says. In 2013, Governor Branstad approved a plan primarily designed to reduce commercial property taxes. Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls says Democrats favor property tax relief targeted to individuals, not corporations.

“I think that we’re ready and willing to work with Republicans to provide relief,” Wahls says. “What we don’t want is another huge tax giveaway to the ultra-rich and big corporations that leaves communities and middle class families shortchanged.” In 1992, Branstad signed a law that limited annual city and county property tax growth to the rate of inflation through 1995. Iowans for Tax Relief has called for a two-year freeze on property taxes, to give legislators time to come up with comprehensive changes to the system.

(Radio Iowa) – All six members of the leadership team for the 36 Democrats in the Iowa House this year are women. “First of all, it’s history making and I think that’s worth noting.” That’s House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst. After each election, Republicans AND Democrats in both the House and Senate meet privately to choose senators and representatives to serve in leadership positions. This is the first time one of those four partisan groups will have women in every leadership post. “We’re going to continue to make sure that the voices that need to be heard from across the state are heard, including women’s voices, which are sometimes drowned out up here, let’s be honest,” Konfrst says.

Lindsay James of Dubuque is minority whip, the number two Democrat in the Iowa House. The assistant leaders for House Democrats are Representatives Sue Cahill of Marshalltown, Heather Matson of Ankeny, Amy Nielsen of North Liberty and Sharon Steckman of Mason City. Konfrst, who has been House Minority Leader since mid-2021, posted a photo of the group on social media. “I got a letter from a little girl who’s a third grader, that said she was so excited to see all girls in charge,” Konfrst says. “What they see is what they can be and so if we can show that women can lead, I think it’s really important for future generations.”

Republican Linda Upmeyer of Clear Lake is the only women to be elected by her peers to serve as Speaker of the House, a role she held from the fall of 2015 through late 2019. Republican Mary Lundy of Marion is the only women to be elected to be a floor leader in the Iowa Senate. Lundy held the position in 2006 and 2007. After this year’s General Election, Senate Republicans chose Amy Sinclair of Allerton to be Senate President. She’s the second woman elected by her peers to that post.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Red Oak Police, Sunday afternoon, arrested 32-year-old Chloe Marguerite Coburn, of Red Oak. She was taken into custody at around 2-p.m., for Violating a No Contact Order. Coburn ran from officers, but was found hiding in an un-related apartment next to a bed. She was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $300 bond.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports two arrests took place early this (New Year’s Day) morning. At around 1:10-a.m., Deputies, along with Red Oak Police, arrested 32-year-old Dylan Thomas Griffeth, on a Red Oak Police Department warrant for Domestic Abuse Assault/2nd offense, a serious misdemeanor. Thomas was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $1,000 bond. And, just before 3-a.m. today (Sunday), Deputies in Montgomery County initiated a traffic stop in the 1100 block of Highway 71. They ended-up arresting 18-year-old Cole Jacob Thornton, for OWI/1st Offense. He was also being held in the Montgomery County Jail, on $1,000 bond.

Red Oak Police reported also, the arrest at around 1:36-a.m. today (Sunday), of 54-year-old Richard James Linfor, of Red Oak. He was arrested following a traffic stop near 8th Street & Sunset Avenue in Red Oak, for driving while license revoked through the State of Iowa. Linfor was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 bond.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors will meet 9-a.m. Monday, Jan. 2nd, in-person and via telephone conference call. On their agenda is the election of a Board Chair and Vice-Chair person, along with approving Deputy/Assistant Clerk appointments from Recorder, Treasurer and Attorney. There will also be a Public Hearing at 9:15-a.m., with regard to a FY23 Budget Amendment, followed by action on a Resolution to approve the amendment, and action on an Appropriations Resolution.

Here is their full agenda:

9:00 a.m.

• Oath of Office
• Elect Chairman and Vice Chairman
• Organizational Resolution
• Approve Deputy/Assistant/Clerk Appointments from Recorder, Treasurer, and Attorney
• Approve resolution authorizing chairperson to sign documents
• Travel Policy Resolution
• Set holiday closing dates for county offices
• Master Matrix Resolution
• FY23 Audit Services
• Designate official newspapers
• Claims
• Taxable Mileage
• Appointments of Supervisors to area boards/commissions and alternates:

Adair County Safety Committee; Adair County Tourism; Adair County Wellness; Alcohol and Drug Abuse (Zion); Broadband Study, Greater Des Moines Partnership; ATURA (Regional ISTEA); ATURA (Regional ISTEA) alternate; Crossroads Mental Health; DHS Advisory Board-Des Moines Service Area (2 members); De-Cat Governing Board for Creston Cluster; DNR Contact Person; E911 Adair County Board; E911 Seven County Board/Alternate; Emergency Management, Local Comm; Empowerment; Enterprise Zone Commission; Fifth Judicial District Corrections; Fifth Judicial District, Alternate; Hungry Canyons Alliance; Innovative Industries; Integrated Roadside Management; Jensen-Butler Foundation; JTPA-LEO/Workforce Investment Act; Landfill Board & Alternates; Loess Hills Development & Conservation; MATURA; Midwest Partnership; Middle River/North River Watershed; RC and D Committee; REAP; SICOG; Southern Hills CPC 28E Board; Southern Hills CPC 28E Board Alternate; Southern Iowa Trolley Board

• Appoint ADA Coordinator
• Approve Condemnation Board
• Appoint Conservation Board Member
• Appoint Board of Health Member
• Appoint Medical Examiner and Deputy Medical Examiners
• Appoint Civil Service Members
• Appoint RC&D Committee Member
• Appointment of Weed Commissioner

9:15 a.m. Public Hearing – FY23 Budget Amendment

Resolution to Approve Budget Amendment

Appropriations Resolution

Nick Kauffman, County Engineer

• Empowerment of County Engineer
• Designation of County Engineer to Authorize Utility, Telecommunication Permits
• Compensation for Fence
• Title VI Non-Discrimination Policy
• Authorizing Personnel to Issue Permits
• Report Maintenance and Activities

The conference phone will still be used for those who cannot attend in person and can be accessed by using the following dial in information:

Dial in Number: (605) 313-6157           Access Code: 526272#

(Cumberland, Iowa) – Officials with the P.R.I.D.E (Progressive Rural Iowa Development Enterprise) economic & community development organization, have invited area government officials and the public, to a “Pre-session Legislative Forum,” featuring Senator Tom Shipley and Representative Tom Moore. The event takes place Tuesday, January 3rd, from 6:30-until 8-p.m., at the Cumberland Fire Station.

You can listen to what our area Legislators have to say in advance of the January 9th session, and present your topic(s) for discussion.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Lottery plans to move to some more modern methods of payment for prizes in the new year. Lottery spokesperson, Mary Neubauer, says paper checks had been the standard. “It just became obvious pretty quickly that a check, which is the primary form of payment that you will receive, especially if you come to an Iowa Lottery office today, a check just isn’t used as much today, as it once was, ” Neubauer says. She says a working group in the organization studied the options and what Lottery customers want.

“People are looking for options that have, first of all, greater speed, and second of all, more convenience,” she says. Neubauer says cash payments won’t go away, but they do plan to start using prepaid debit cards that allow retailers or Lottery offices to load the prize money onto the card. “So if you go into a store, certainly cash would continue to be an option. But for example, if it’s a store, and it’s late at night, and the store doesn’t have a lot of cash on hand, a lot of times right now that store isn’t able to pay your prize,” Neubauer says. Neubauer says retailers could pay prizes from 20 up to 600 dollars on the cards — while lottery offices could use the prepaid debit cards for prizes from 20 up to five-thousand dollars. They hope to start a pilot project with the debit cards in six months.

The other change would allow prizes that have to be redeemed at Iowa Lottery offices to be made through what’s called an A-C-H payment that goes directly into a person’s bank account. “So the person wouldn’t get a hardcopy check, they wouldn’t have to cash it, they wouldn’t have to, you know, drive somewhere, or do that electronically, the payment would just be made directly into their account,” Neubauer says. “It’s going to take a little bit more time to put that in place, we’re looking at that probably somewhere in the second half of calendar year 2023, or at the end of fiscal year 2023.”

The A-C-H prize payments could go up to five million dollars. Neubauer says they are only making a couple of changes because they have to be very careful about the security surrounding the prize money. “There are so many forms of payment available in the marketplace today, especially when it comes to you know, consumers just paying each other money or sending money to each other. But we have to make sure that the security procedures in place and that whatever payment option we would be looking at that it has staying power,” she says. Neubauer says the large jackpots from lotto games would still be paid out by wire transfer, as that is the safest method.

(Elliott, Iowa) – A traffic stop at around 2:08-a.m. today (Saturday), in Montgomery County, resulted in the arrest of a woman on a warrant. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports the traffic stop was conducted at 5th and Elm Streets, in Elliott. Upon further investigation, Deputies arrested 24-year-old Ashley Nicole Fitzwater, on a Page County Class-D Felony warrant for Possession of Contraband in a Correctional Facility.

(Cass County, Iowa) – Griswold Rescue and Cass EMS crews were paged at around 4:46-p.m. to the scene of a rollover accident. The crash was located near 60100 Yankton Road. A Cass County Sheriff’s Deputy was on-scene with the victim, who complained of pain, but the extent of their injuries was unknown. The driver was out of the vehicle with the deputy at last report.

No other details are currently available.