Home News Saturday News – May 21

Saturday News – May 21

Wells tax credit

Wells Enterprises will add product lines in their Le Mars facilities.
The Iowa Economic Development authority board has approved $70 million dollars in capital investment project tax benefits through the high quality jobs program.
The company plans to add new product lines and upgrade equipment at their facility.
tTe project is expected to create 135 jobs, of which 82 are incented at a qualifying wage of $23.94 per hour.

Carbon pipeline bill

Iowa Senators are scrapping a moratorium that would have prevented developers from seeking eminent domain authority to seize property for carbon pipelines before next February.
The Iowa House attached the plan to a budget bill in march but the Senate Appropriations Committee passed a similar budget bill with no reference to the carbon pipelines.
Senator Dennis Guth (gooth) of Klemme called the temporary moratorium meaningless.
he says he’s been assured by the Iowa Utilities Board that it’ll be after February when the process of seeking eminent domain to seize land along pipeline routes can start.

Tulip Festival

The 81st annual Tulip Festival is wrapping up at Orange City, celebrating the Dutch heritage of the town.
Spokesperson Jennie Droog says they expect a big turnout this year:

 

Displays, tours, and museums open at 9 a.m.
A street festival and street scrubbing occurs each day at 1 pm, with the afternoon parade at 2 :15.
There is also an evening parade at 6:30.
The evening is capped with the performance of Mamma Mia! at the Orange City Town Hall at 8 p.m.

Ia Planting

Cold, wet weather has delayed farmers from getting into the fields this spring, but Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig says they have been quickly working to catch up.

 

This past week farmers have kept planting after dark.

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Naig says the U-S-D-A reported a 43-percent increase in corn planting last week and a 27 percent increase in bean planting.
The numbers for this week will be released Monday.

Bird flu relief

The Iowa Department of Agriculture has lifted bird flu restrictions for three commercial poultry sites in Franklin, Hamilton, and Humboldt counties.
The Iowa Turkey Federation’s Gretta Irwin calls it the start of a recovery, saying the farms have completed their sampling and the infected premises no longer have the virus on the farms.
Bird flu restrictions had kept poultry and poultry products from being moved in or out of a farm with an outbreak of Avian flu.
Farmers at those sites will now be able to bring turkeys and chickens back to their barns and get back to production.

Ia Dem debate

The three candidates competing for the Iowa Democratic party’s U-S Senate nomination say college student debt is a problem, but they disagree on how to provide relief to borrowers.
During a debate Thursday night on Iowa P-B-S, Mike Franken of Sioux City questioned what constantly wiping out student loan debt would do to the costs of going to college.
Abby Finkenauer of Cedar Rapids suggests college debt relief could be offered as an incentive to get college grads to settle in places where there’s been population loss.
Glenn Hurst, a physician from Minden, supports not only wiping out current college loan debt, but paying back people who paid off their loans.
All three candidates agreed that congress should pass a law guaranteeing access to abortion nationwide.