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Iowa utilities cut funding to weatherize low-income properties

News

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — The state’s three investor-owned utilities will spend half as much next year to help low-income Iowans weatherize their homes. San Wong is director of the Iowa Department of Human Rights, the state agency that oversees the program. “For this next year, we anticipate there will be about a 50 percent cut based on the plan submitted by utility companies,” Wong says. About 12-hundred Iowa homeowners got help last year to make their homes more energy efficient in the winter.

“Once they do that then, obviously, the savings they receive annually — I think the average savings is $262 — but they will realize that savings, obviously, through the life of the home,” Wong says. Last year the federal government provided about 13 million dollars and the state’s investor-owned utilities provided nearly six-and-a-half million for the weatherization program.

A new state law significantly lowered how much utilities may spend on energy efficiency programs. Critics argued electric customers were unaware how much of their bill was being spent on energy reduction efforts.

Shelby County 4-H Staff Recognized

Ag/Outdoor, News

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

AMES, IA – Shelby County Extension Educator Mary Taggs was honored in October when she received the Iowa 4-H Distinguished Service Award. The award is presented to county staff members who have been in their positions between four and ten years and who have made a difference for the Iowa 4-H program.

The award ceremony was held October 30th in Ames, Iowa as a part of the annual YouthFest conference which brings together Iowa State University Extension and Outreach staff from all over the state to celebrate the work they are doing and participate in workshops and educational opportunities in the field of 4-H youth development.

“This event provides an opportunity for all of us to learn about significant impacts our
4-H staff are making in their local communities and to celebrate those accomplishments,” 4-H staff recognition committee chair Brenda Allen said.

Taggs was recognized in part for her work with the Maker Space program which helps 2nd -6th graders develop their problem-solving and cooperation skills.  Maker Space takes place on no school days in the Harlan school district.  Participants engage in challenges each day that encourage thought, design, creativity and a LOT of fun!  Taggs has been instrumental in acquiring grant funding to support the program.  The program began from a grant award from the STEM Scale-up Program sponsored by the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council.  The program continues due to the generous funding from Monogram Loves Kids.

“She encourages life-long learning as she provides youth opportunities to make their own decisions and be creative,” one nominator said.

To find out more about Taggs and the work she is doing for Iowa youth, contact the Shelby County ISU Extension and Outreach office by visiting the county webpage at www.extension.iastate.edu/shelby

Adair County man sentenced in federal crop insurance scheme

Ag/Outdoor, News

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa, reports an Adair County man was sentenced to three-years of supervised release for making a false statement in connection with federal crop insurance. A judge, Friday, also ordered 71-year old Carl Jeffrey Campbell, of Orient, to serve four months of home confinement, and pay a $5,000 fine, plus $100 to the Crime Victims’ Fund, and $32,440 to the United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) as restitution. Campbell was also ordered to serve 160 hours of community service.

Campbell pleaded guilty to the offense on July 6, 2018. In 2014, Campbell obtained crop insurance for two farms from an insurance company that was insured by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. The Federal Reinsured Crop Program is administered by the Risk Management Agency, which is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, which is a wholly-owned government corporation. The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation reimburses insurance companies for the indemnity payments made to policyholders under the Federal Reinsured Crop Program.

Crop shifting occurs when a farmer underreports production in a field in order to reach the percentage of loss required to receive an indemnity from their crop insurance policy. Campbell “shifted” production from one farm to another by reporting that several thousand bushels of grain were harvested from one farm when he knew that those bushels were in fact harvested from the other farm. By reporting the bushels of grain from the incorrect farm, or shifting the production, Campbell received insurance indemnities to which he was not entitled. He also “hid” production by not reporting to the USDA or Federal Crop Insurance Corporation several thousand bushels of corn sold in his son’s name.

By failing to report the bushels of grain sold in his son’s name, authorities say Campbell received insurance indemnities to which he was not entitled. The matter was investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

ALICE B. (McKIBBIN) LAYLAND, 96, of Atlantic (Svcs. 11/25/2018)

Obituaries

November 19th, 2018 by Jim Field

ALICE B. (McKIBBIN) LAYLAND, 96, of Atlantic died Wednesday, November 14th at Atlantic Specialty Care.  A Memorial service for ALICE B. (McKIBBIN) LAYLAND will be held on Sunday, November 25th at 3:00 pm at the Bethany Farm Christian Camp east of Brayton.  Roland Funeral Service in Atlantic has the arrangements.

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A time of fellowship will be held prior to the memorial service on Sunday at 2:00 pm at the Bethany Farm Christian Camp east of Brayton

Condolences may be left at www.rolandfuneralservice.com.

A burial of cremains will be held at a later date in the Atlantic Cemetery.

Memorials may be made to the Bethany Evangelical Free Church or Bethany Farm Christian Camp.

ALICE B. (McKIBBIN) LAYLAND is survived by:

Daughter: Diane Berkley of Exira.

Son:  Dan Layland of Atlantic.

6 Grandchildren

2 Step-Grandchildren

10 Great-Grandchildren

9 Step Great-Grandchildren

3 Step Great-Great-Grandchildren

 

BETTY L. MULLINS, 72, of Atlantic (Memorial Svcs. 11/23/18)

Obituaries

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

BETTY L. MULLINS, 72, of Atlantic, died Monday, Nov. 19th, at Atlantic Specialty Care. Memorial services for BETTY MULLINS will be held 2-p.m. Friday, Nov. 23rd, at the First Baptist Church, in Atlantic. Hockenberry Family Care Funeral Home, in Atlantic has the arrangements.

Friends may call at the 1st Baptist Church in Atlantic from 1-until 2-p.m. Friday.; Online condolences may be left at www.hockenberryfamilycare.com.

A private family burial will take place at a later date.

Cass County Sheriff’s report 11/19/18

News

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports numerous recent arrests. On Friday, 50-year old Kenneth Lee Klindt, of Griswold, was arrested on a charge of Domestic Abuse Assault 1st Offense. Klindt was taken to the Cass County Jail and released the following day on $1,000 bond. Also arrested Friday, was 36-year old Brandon Michael Crees, a homeless man, on a charge of Driving While Barred. Crees was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $2,000 bond.

Last Thursday, 45-year old Robert Joseph Dambra, of Atlantic, turned himself in at the Cass County Sheriff’s Office on a felony charge of Possession with Intent to Deliver/Meth. Dambra was booked at the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $10,000 bond. On November 14th, Cass County Sheriff’s deputies arrested 18-year old Devin Joel Hilliard, of Griswold, on charges of:felony Theft 2nd Degree – Motor Vehicle; Unauthorized Use of a Credit Card; and Theft 5th Degree. Additional charges of Conspiracy to Commit a Forcible Felony (a Class C Felony) and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia were later added. Hilliard remains held at the Cass County Jail on $17,300 bond.

On November 6th, Deputies arrested 35-year old Matthew James Bruns, of Atlantic, on an Atlantic Police Department warrant for Harassment 1st Degree. The following day, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office also charged Bruns with Possession of Marijuana 1st Offense, and Possession of Meth 1st Offense. Bruns was released the following day on $3,000 bond. On November 11th, Cass County Deputies arrested 38-year old Nicholas Gene Paulsen, of Atlantic, on a Sheriff’s Office warrant for Sponsoring a Gathering where Controlled Substances are Used (a Class D Felony) and Prohibited Acts. Paulsen was taken to the Cass County Jail and released on November 14, 2018, on $7,000 bond.

(12:40-p.m. News)

ISU police department responds to concerns after student’s death

News

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — The leader of the Iowa State University Police Department says they got a lot of calls from parents with safety concerns following the stabbing death of a student at a golf course right near campus. Chief Michael Newton gave a report to the Board of Regents on the ways his department has addressed safety issues since the death of 22-year-old Celia Barquin Arozamena September 17th. He says one of the changes involved adding more time for the Safe Ride Program. Newton says the program was on a nine p-m to 5:30 a-m schedule and after the death of Arozamena they got a lot of requests to bump the hours back to six a-m. He says they were able to find the funding to add that time to the program. Newton says they also have been able to add extra safety training for students. “We have a full time unit dedicated to educational efforts. After the death of Celia we saw a huge increase and spike for self defense training, we do a plethora of training,” Newton says. “It’s a really small unit, it was one full time person, it’s now two. Through a partnership this year with the senior vice president of international students and others, we were able to receive funding to fund a full time person who is working strictly with minority students and international students so that we can bridge that gap.”

A man who was reportedly homeless and living in a camp near the golf course where Arozamena was playing is accused of stabbing here to death. Newton says they have continued their efforts to work with the homeless around campus. “We were proactive in this area — we were out moving homeless encampments off campus — we were trying to get folks help, we were partnering with our emergency housing project. We had officers dedicated to that effort. Right after this homicide our partners in the city reached out to us to see kind of how we were doing things. They weren’t taking as proactive an approach, so we started to build that partnerships a little bit differently,” Newton says.

He says they continually survey lighting on campus and try to be sure areas are well lit. And they try to keep a high-profile themselves. “Regularly we are reassigning officers to bike and foot patrol. We’re trying to be more visible on campus, trying to be there so folks can see us,” according to Newton.”It’s hard though…there’s 40 of us. So to see us isn’t always a thing that happens for students faculty and staff.” Newton says they are working on a program called “CyWath”, which is a neighborhood watch type of program for the dorms.”We’re partnering with our department of residence on this project. They’re helping us craft it and mold it and we are going to pilot it in some of the residence halls and see kind of where that goes for us over the next year,” Newton explains.

Newton says they continue working on upgrading the security cameras and coverage on campus and are also working on an app that would allow students to have a guardian walk them home at night.

AP Men’s College Basketball Poll 11/19/2018

Sports

November 19th, 2018 by admin

The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ men’s college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Nov. 18, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last week’s ranking:

Record Pts Prv
1. Duke (53) 3-0 1564 1
2. Kansas (7) 3-0 1510 2
3. Gonzaga 3-0 1437 3
4. Virginia (2) 3-0 1299 4
5. Tennessee (1) 3-0 1281 5
6. Nevada 3-0 1253 6
7. North Carolina 4-0 1246 7
8. Auburn 3-0 1123 9
9. Michigan 5-0 1021 18
10. Kentucky 3-1 980 10
11. Michigan St. 3-1 937 11
12. Kansas St 4-0 889 12
13. Virginia Tech 4-0 849 16
14. Florida St. 2-0 794 14
15. Mississippi St. 3-0 619 17
16. Clemson 3-0 462 19
17. UCLA 3-0 430 20
18. TCU 3-0 388 21
19. LSU 4-0 358 22
20. Iowa 4-0 354
21. Oregon 3-1 325 13
22. Buffalo 3-0 240 25
23. Ohio St. 4-0 222
24. Purdue 4-1 199 23
25. Wisconsin 3-0 150

Others receiving votes: Nebraska 98, Indiana 74, Maryland 56, Villanova 53, Furman 50, Syracuse 29, Washington 29, Texas 23, West Virginia 18, Miami 18, Butler 18, St. John’s 13, Iowa St. 11, Texas Tech 8, Florida 7, Marquette 7, Saint Louis 6, Arizona St 4, Vanderbilt 4, Notre Dame 4, Marshall 4, UConn 3, Loyola of Chicago 2, Temple 2, Loyola Marymount 2, Davidson 1, Arkansas 1.

AP College Football Top 25 Poll 11/18/2018

Sports

November 19th, 2018 by admin

The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press college football poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Nov. 17, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote, and previous ranking:

Record Pts Prv
1. Alabama (61) 11-0 1525 1
2. Clemson 11-0 1455 2
3. Notre Dame 11-0 1412 3
4. Michigan 10-1 1327 4
5. Georgia 10-1 1288 5
6. Oklahoma 10-1 1182 6
7. Washington St. 10-1 1149 8
8. LSU 9-2 1064 10
8. UCF 10-0 1064 11
10. Ohio St. 10-1 1019 9
11. Texas 8-3 856 13
12. West Virginia 8-2 822 7
13. Florida 8-3 707 15
14. Utah St. 10-1 667 14
15. Penn St. 8-3 659 16
16. Washington 8-3 631 17
17. Kentucky 8-3 508 20
18. Utah 8-3 491 21
19. Syracuse 8-3 427 12
20. Northwestern 7-4 307 24
21. Boise St. 9-2 287 23
22. Mississippi St. 7-4 260 25
23. Army 9-2 176
24. Pittsburgh 7-4 129
25. Iowa St. 6-4 123 18

Others receiving votes: Fresno St. 100, NC State 45, Cincinnati 43, Missouri 34, Texas A&M 29, Auburn 11, Stanford 8, Iowa 8, UAB 5, Houston 3, Wisconsin 2, Buffalo 1, Troy 1.

Mills County Sheriff’s report (11/19)

News

November 19th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports three arrests and one, injury accident. 26-year old Daniel Joseph Polan, of Glenwood, was arrested at around 3:10-a.m. today (Monday), at the Mills County Sheriff’s Office. Polan was taken into custody on the warrant for Violation of Probation, and held on a $5,000 bond. At around 4-a.m. Sunday, 27-year old Jose Manuel Munoz-Baeza, of Omaha, was arrested following a traffic stop on I-29 in Mills County. Munoz-Baeza was charged with OWI/1st offense. His bond was set at $1,000.And, at around 1:30-a.m. Saturday, 28-year old Nickolas Wade Pafford, of Glenwood, was arrested for OWI/1st offense. His bond was also set at $1,000.

And, a bicyclist was transported to the University of Nebraska Medical Center by Glenwood Rescue, after being clipped by a pickup truck Saturday afternoon. Officials say 41-year old Takeo Shilzuka, of Tokyo, Japan, was injured when a pickup driven by 93-year old John Dean, of Glenwood, tried to avoid striking the bicyclist by moving over on Highway 34 near Deacon Road, but the right front of the pickup struck Shilzuka. The accident happened at around 4:15-p.m., Saturday.