Governor Reynolds Ask Iowans To Pray
(Des Moines)-– Governor Kim Reynolds is asking people to pray today as she has declared Thursday, April 9th as the “Day of Prayer” in Iowa. Today begins the Passover holiday for the Jewish religion, and it is the start of the Easter Holiday weekend for Christians. Governor Reynolds is urging all Iowans to unite in prayer in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, inviting Iowans
to participate in the 59th annual Iowa prayer breakfast, which is offered entirely online this year.
Reynolds Offers Additional Assistance To Small Businesses
(Des Moines) — Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds updated the coronavirus statistics during her Wednesday morning news conference.
During the daily briefing, yesterday the focus was with assistance for Iowa’s small businesses. Governor Reynolds announced additional state aid would be directed to help small businesses hurt by being closed due to the COVID-19
coronavirus.
Reynolds says all business applicants, in good standing with the Iowa Department of Revenue, will be approved and notified by mail.
During this morning’s briefing, the governor says she will expand the program to meet the needs of small businesses submitting assistance applications.
Iowa Economic Development Director Debi Durham joined the governor at Wednesday’s briefing and says her department has heard the thousands of messages from Iowa’s small businesses.
Durham says her department has received more than 14,000 small business grant applications, and at least 15 from each Iowa county. She says the initial relief forms have been mailed to Iowa’s small businesses.
Durham says the initial round of funding amounted to $10 million dollars with businesses receiving grants between $5,000 to $25,000.
State Auditor Questions Reynolds Methods Of Combating COVID-19
(Des Moines) — State Auditor Rob Sand is asking Governor Kim Reynolds to provide the public more information about the 12-point scale she’s using to monitor the spread of COVID-19 — and decide if, when and where she might order a shelter-in-place order.
Last week, Reynolds and the deputy director of the Iowa Department of Public Health said after 9/11, state officials began developing plans for responding to a variety of disasters — and the state epidemiologist has tailored the tool for this pandemic using Centers for Disease Control guidance. Reynolds yesterday told reporters Iowa isn’t like New York or New Jersey and it would be irresponsible to issue a statewide shelter-in-place order.
Sand, a Democrat, says giving Iowans more information will help them make better informed decisions about their actions during the pandemic. Reynolds, a Republican, has said every Iowan needs to take responsibility for their health and the health of others and stay home.
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Missouri River Flood Risk Still High, But Has Been Reduced
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – The National Weather Service says flooding remains a concern in several states along the Missouri River, even though the weather has been kind so far this spring. The agency says the flood risk is high in eastern South Dakota, eastern North Dakota, eastern Nebraska, western Iowa,
eastern Kansas and Missouri because the soil remains wet. However, a lack of rain and the warm temperatures this spring have allowed snow to melt gradually across the Plains without increasing the risk. Officials have trimmed their forecast for how much water will flow down the Missouri River in 2020, but it is still expected to be a wet year.
Storm Lake Man Sentenced To 25 years For Sexual Assault
STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) – A 32-year-old Storm Lake man has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for sexually assaulting a young child. Nee Htoo was sentenced Wednesday in Beuna Vista County District Court after he entered an Alford plea last month to second-degree sexual abuse, lascivious acts with a child and assault with intent to commit sexual abuse. An Alford plea is one in which the defendant does not admit guilty, but acknowledges there is enough evidence to secure a conviction. Prosecutors
say Htoo sexually abused a girl at least four times in 2016 and 2017, when she was 6 or 7 years old.
