Hail Storm Damages Plymouth County Crops
(Le Mars) — Farmers had been desperately wanting some rain, and unfortunately, when we did receive a rainfall yesterday, it also brought a hail storm. Hail has been reported throughout much of Plymouth County, especially the eastern half of Plymouth County. Thousands of acres of crops have been totally destroyed. Photos posted on Facebook by various farmers show the hail covered the ground that it appeared to look like a snow. Bill Tentinger, who farms east of Le Mars was one of the farmers that had extensive damage done to his crops. He say the area between Remsen and Kingsley had the most damage.
Tentinger says it is too late to re-plant any corn, but he may still try to re-plant his damaged soybeans.
Tentinger is wondering what he will do to find corn, since he feeds most of his corn to his hogs.
Tentinger says there was some structural damage to windows at farmsteads, along with damaged siding, and some tree damage.
(Photos courtesy of Bill Tentinger)
Grassley, Ernst Join Forces To Block Voter Registration Bill
(Washington, DC) — Iowa Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst have joined their fellow Republicans to block debate of a bill that would require automatic voter registration nationwide and at least 15 days of early voting in each election. Democrats have argued their bill is a necessary response to election law changes being made in G-O-P-led state legislatures in Iowa and
other states. Ernst, a former county auditor who oversaw Montgomery County elections, calls the bill a D-C power grab and says she trusts county auditors. Grassley says he voted against debating the plan because it would strip states of key election management decisions. The 100 member U-S Senate
is evenly divided and all 50 Republicans in the Senate voted against allowing debate. Sixty votes are needed before a bill can be debated.
U-S Senate Agriculture Committee To Hold Hearing On Cattle Markets
(Washington) — Demand for beef is high in grocery stores in Iowa and across the U-S as beef prices are sharply rising, but while there’s plenty of supply, many cattle producers are struggling financially. The lack of transparency in cattle markets is the subject of a hearing today (Wednesday) before the U-S Senate Agriculture Committee, where Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is the ranking Republican.
Consumers and producers are being hurt by consolidation of the cattle industry, Grassley says, and he’s called for a hearing on the topic for months.
Grassley says he’s hearing pleas for changes in the industry from members of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association and individual producers who are being negatively affected by consolidation. Farmers claim the big packers are intentionally manipulating beef prices.
Earlier this year, Grassley introduced a bill he says is designed to foster efficient markets while boosting competition and transparency among meatpackers. With this hearing, he says he’s hopeful his legislation will gain support or that a compromise can be reached. Today’s hearing is scheduled for 1:30 PM/Central time.
Governor Reynolds To Appeal Judge’s Decision On Waiting Period For Abortions
(Des Moines, IA) — Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds says she’ll appeal an Iowa district court judge’s decision that blocks a law requiring a 24-hour waiting period for abortions. The law passed in 2020, but it never took effect due to the lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union. Reynolds issued a written statement saying the bill was designed to protect human life and she’s confident her appeal will succeed in making the policy state law. The state Supreme Court declared a 72-hour waiting period unconstitutional in 2018. The justice who wrote the opinion died in 2019 and Republican Governor Kim Reynolds has since appointed a majority of the justices on the court. The A-C-L-U of Iowa’s legal director says she’ll argue the precedent of that 2018 ruling still stands.
Dry Iowa Conditions Raise Level Of Concern About Using Fireworks
(Sioux City, IA) — The dry conditions are raising the level of concern about the use of fireworks during the upcoming Fourth of July holiday. Sioux City Fire Marshal, Mark Aesoph (A-soff) says there is a good reason to be concerned as these are the worst conditions he’s seen since fireworks became legal to use again in Iowa. He says things are so dry that they’ve already had fires started by discarded cigarettes. Aesoph says they are also concerned about trains and people burning garbage in their back yards starting fires.
Personal Information For Clinic Patients May Have Been Compromised
(Marshalltown, IA) — Wolfe Eye Clinic says it will be notifying about 500-thousand current and former patients that their personal information may have been inappropriately accessed as a part of a cyberattack on its systems in early February. Chief Financial Officer Luke Bland says the full impact of the attack was not really known until late May and the forensic investigation was completed earlier this month. Wolfe Eye Clinic is headquartered in Marshalltown and has offices across the state. Bland says they did not pay a ransom and will be sending patients information on how to protect themselves.
