Iowa Terminates Contract With WellCare of Iowa As A Medicaid Provider
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – An official has terminated Iowa’s contract with a private company that was scheduled to help manage the state’s $4.2 billion Medicaid program.
Iowa Department of Administrative Services Director Janet Phipps released a report Friday night that terminates the Iowa Department of Human Services’ contract with WellCare of Iowa.
Phipps was selected by Gov. Terry Branstad to review an administrative law judge’s recommendation that WellCare be dropped over allegations that it didn’t properly disclose information about fraud or mismanagement during its bid for a contract. WellCare officials have said they disagree with the judge’s ruling.
Phipps’ report upholds the state’s contracts with Amerigroup Iowa, AmeriHealth Caritas Iowa and UnitedHealthcare Plan of the River Valley.
A spokesman for Branstad says the governor’s office is still reviewing the decision.
Iowa Unemployment Rate Drops
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa’s unemployment rate dropped slightly in November, continuing a long-term decline.
Iowa Workforce Development announced Friday the state’s unemployment rate fell to 3.4 percent in November from 3.5 percent in October. That compares to 4.3 percent a year ago.
There were 1,647,500 people working in the state in November, up 3,100 from the number in October.
The number of unemployed residents in November fell to 58,700 from 60,400 in October.
Iowa’s rate compares to a national unemployment rate of 5 percent.
Kum And Go Employees Are Without Paychecks
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A processing error has delayed paychecks for thousands of Kum & Go employees.
Kum & Go spokeswoman Kristie Bell says paychecks mistakenly weren’t issued Friday to all of the West Des Moines-based company’s roughly 4,800 employees.
Bell says the gasoline and convenience store chain will direct-deposit paychecks into employees’ bank accounts on Monday. She says the company will help employees who have a “critical need” for immediate paychecks and will work to resolve additional fees to employees related to the late checks.
Bell says the company has apologized to employees for the delay, which could be especially difficult since it’s during the holiday season.
Kum & Go is working to figure out what caused the error.
ISU Land Value Survey Shows Slight Decline
(Le Mars) — Land values across the state have declined slightly, although in northwest Iowa, land values have remained steady to showing a slight increase. That’s according to a recent survey conducted by Iowa State University. Melissa O’Rourke is a farm management specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. She says the study does show a decrease of about four percent in land values. O’Rourke says it was not surprising to see a drop in the land values, given the fact that farm income is lower, but she says the surprise was how little the farmland values did go down.
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O’Rourke says the average price of land per acre across the state was listed at $7,633 per acre. She says as noted earlier, northwest Iowa saw an increase in land values.
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Scott county has the highest valued farm ground, but O’Rourke points out that O’Brien County in northwest Iowa, is also among the highest priced land in the state.
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The Iowa State University Farm Management Specialist says Sioux County’s land value remained statistically steady and unchanged.
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Sioux County’s land value went from an average of $10,817 in 2014 to $10,813 in 2015.
Broadband Internet Providers Ask For Tax Relief
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Representatives for companies trying to expand broadband in Iowa say the state needs to update its rules for taxing them.
Industry officials told a legislative committee Friday that property taxes are a significant expense for some telecommunications companies in Iowa, and it can affect investments on high-speed Internet.
There are several types of companies that offer telecommunications services in Iowa, and state code taxes them differently. Officials say that’s left some at a financial disadvantage.
An Iowa Department of Revenue spokeswoman says a 2013 state law lessened some property taxes and saved nearly $20 million for telecommunication companies. She says the department is open to exploring options with the Legislature.
A 2015 law includes a 10-year property tax exemption on new broadband projects, but those exemption rules are still pending.
