During his stop in Atlantic Tuesday afternoon, Iowa Republican Gov. Terry Branstad touted the achievements of his time in office since being re-elected to an unprecedented sixth term during the Nov. 2013 elections. If he completes his four-year term, it will have broken the record for a person serving as governor, in U-S History. The old record was held by George Clinton of New York, who served 21 years from 1777 to 1795, and from 1801 to 1804.

Gov. Terry Branstad speaks at an Atlantic Town Hall 10-20-15. Ric Hanson photo

Branstad said looking back at when he was recruited to run for Governor in 2010, “The State was facing some really big challenges. The previous administration [Democrat Gov. Chet Culver] had use of bad budgeting practices, overspent, made promises they couldn’t keep and used one-time money for ongoing expenses and we were faced with a projected $900-million deficit.”

Branstad said his administration cut costs of government by eliminating 1,500 state employees, put together a two-year budget, looked at ways to make government more efficient and more accountable and restore the “rainy day” fund. He says the rate of unemployment is lower now than it was when he took over. As an example, he pointed to numbers showing the unemployment rate in Cass County as 8.2-percent when he became governor again, and the rate now, which stands at 2.9-percent, or a 65-percent reduction in unemployment.

Branstad fielded a question though, about his decision to close the Mental Health Institutes in Clarinda and Mt. Pleasant, eliminating jobs from those two, unaccredited facilities and shifting care to the two remaining facilities in Cherokee and Independence, both of which are accredited and have psychiatrists on-staff. Other clients were transferred to private care facilities or are being served more on the local level. Branstad said the new system is more efficient and brings Iowa up to par with neighboring states.

Branstad said what Iowa is doing now, is what Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois have been doing for the past 20-to 30-years. On the topic of Education, Branstad was asked about what it’s going to take to legislature to set funding levels for K-through 12 education in Iowa in-time for districts to set their budget. The legislature went into an extended session this year and eventually reached a bi-partisan agreement on funding, but in July, the Governor in a line item veto, erased the $55.7 million in additional funding they had approved for the FY 2015-16 school year. Branstad however approved a 1.25 percent increase in per pupil spending.

He said he’s going to work to bring both sides to the table earlier and get the funding level set for next year, but he warned it won’t be easy. He says his recommendation will come out as soon as the legislature is in session, and he’ll ask them to decide “this thing” in the next month. But he concedes, he ‘Can’t force ’em” to come to a decision on k-12 funding.

Iowa Republican Governor Terry Branstad stopped in Atlantic this (Tuesday) afternoon, where he held a Town Hall meeting at the old Rock Island Depot, home of the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce. Prior to the public forum, the Governor signed a proclamation recognizing Thursday, Oct. 22nd, as “Lights on After School” day.

Gov. Branstad (Left) reads the Lights on Afterschool Proclamation, w/Atlantic Mayor Dave Jones to his right.

The proclamation read: WHEREAS, the Atlantic Community, stands firmly committed to quality afterschool programs and opportunities because they:
· Provide safe, challenging, engaging and fun learning experiences to help children and youth develop their social, emotional, physical, cultural and academic skills.
· Support working families by ensuring their children are safe and productive after the regular school day ends.
· Build stronger communities by involving our students, parents, business leaders and adult volunteers in the lives of our young people, thereby promoting positive relationships among children, youth, families and adults.
· Engage families, schools and diverse community partners in advancing the welfare of our children.

WHEREAS, First United Methodist Church, Zion Lutheran Church, Atlantic Public Library, ISU Extension, and Nishna Valley Family YMCA has provided significant leadership in the area of community involvement in the education and well-being of our youth, grounded in the principle that quality afterschool programs are key to helping our children become successful adults.

WHEREAS, Lights On Afterschool, a national celebration of afterschool programs on October 22, 2015, promotes the critical importance of quality afterschool programs in the lives of children, their families, and their communities.

WHEREAS, more than 28 million children in the U.S. have parents who work outside the home, and 15.1 million children have no place to go after school.

WHEREAS, many afterschool programs across the country are facing funding shortfalls so severe that they are being forced to close their doors and turn off their lights.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Mayor Dave Jones urges the citizens of Atlantic Iowa and Governor Terry Branstad urges the citizens of Iowa to ensure that every child has access to a safe, engaging place where the lights are on after school; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Mayor Jones and Governor Branstad enthusiastically endorses Lights On Afterschool and is committed to innovative afterschool programs and activities that ensure that the lights stay on and the doors stay open for all children after school.

Launched in October 2000, Lights On Afterschool (LoA) is the only nationwide event celebrating afterschool programs and their important role in the lives of children, families and communities.

The Atlantic program takes place from 4:30-until 6:30-p.m. Thursday at the Nishna Valley YMCA, and features burgers and hot dogs donated by the Afterschool Alliance and prepared by the Cass County Beef Producers, water from the Atlantic Coca Cola Bottling Company, all sorts of fun events for kids, such as obstacle course competitions, pumpkin painting, glow-in the dark goo, magnet making, coloring, spider web building, a paper airplane competition, and information from Beth Olsen, Hy-Vee Dietitian.

Programs during the event will come from the YMCA, ISU Extension, Atlantic Public Library, Zion Lutheran Church, the 1st United Methodist Church, and Iowa Public Television.

Iowa Workforce Development spokesperson, Courtney Greene, says the September report out today (Tuesday) shows the lowest unemployment rate in Iowa since 2006.  “Iowa’s unemployment rate is down another tenth of a percent to three-point-six percent in September, and a year ago we were standing at four-point-three percent,” Greene says.

The unemployment rate in August was three-point-seven percent. July has been the only month this year where unemployment did not drop or stay the same. It went up a half percent in July to three-point-eight. The U-S unemployment rate remained at five-point-one percent in September. The state did lose 21-hundred non-farm jobs in September, but those losses were offset by the gains.

“Leisure and hospitality added the most jobs in September at about 15-hundred, and that was also bolstered by growth and accommodations in food service which added about 500. Education and health care also added 600 jobs. However, there were some losses in September — with the largest being in manufacturing. Just one of Iowa’s 99 counties went against the trend of falling unemployment in September.

“Cherokee was the only Iowa county to see unemployment rise from three-point-nine percent a year ago to four-point-four percent this September. And that rise is due in part to the closing of the Tyson plant in Cherokee last fall, and the nearby Denison Tyson plant that closed its doors in August,” Greene says. The total number of working Iowans was 26-hundred higher than August, and 27-hundred more than one year ago.

(Radio Iowa)