VILSACK NOT RULING OUT ANOTHER TERM AS AG SECRETARY
Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack isn’t ruling out another stint as U-S Agriculture Secretary if Kamala Harris wins and asks him to continue in the role.
Vilsack served eight years as U-S Ag Secretary during the Obama Adminsitration and has been President Biden’s Secretary of Agriculture since 2021. The nation’s longest serving Ag Secretary was from Iowa. “Tama Jim” Wilson, a farmer from Traer who served in the Iowa legislature and the U-S congress, was ag secretary for 16 years, during the administrations of Presidents McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt and Taft. Vilsack, who is 74, was elected mayor of Mount Pleasant in 1987, then served in the state senate before he was elected to two terms as Iowa’s governor.
HINSON HOPEFUL OF GETTING BILLS COMPLETED DESPITE ELECTION
Iowa’s Congressional delegation has been back in Iowa for a work period to meet with people in their districts. This is an election year, but Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, a Republican from Marion, hopes they can get some work done when they return to Washington. Hinson says they will not be in session next week, but are in session the next three weeks and she hopes they will be able to move forward with legislation Hinson says one of the key things they have to address is the Farm Bill.
FOUR DISASTER RECOVERY CENTERS TO CLOSE
FEMA says the Disaster Recovery Centers in Sheldon, Sioux Rapids, Emmetsburg, and Council Bluffs will close permanently today, August 30 at 6 p.m. The DRC in Pottawattamie will also close on Friday, Aug. 30 and reopen in alternate locations after Labor Day. Several DNC’s remain open at Sioux City, Rock Valley, Rock Rapids, Spencer, and Spirit Lake.
ROCK VALLEY READY FOR SCHOOL AS FLOOD RECOVERY CONTINUES
Governor Kim Reynolds visited Rock Valley Thursday and announced the opening of a temporary school for middle school students. Reynolds stood in front of the new building and spoke of the devastation that greeted her on her first visit to the community after the June flood.
Rock Valley Community School Superintendent Matt Van Voorst says he looked at the devastation knowing they had only two months before school would start again.
Van Voorst says that lonely feeling didn’t last long as volunteers started arriving along with contractors.
Rock Valley Christian School Principal Marcus De Jager echoes the sense of community.
Rock Valley Mayor Kevin Van Otterloo says it’s been 68 days since the flood. He expressed his gratitude to the Governor and her staff, the emergency personnel that worked tirelessly during the disaster, and the sheer number of volunteers that showed up.
He says he received a text early on in the recovery from the governor telling him to never give up. He says the community hasn’t and won’t, and is confident the community will heal. Tours of the new classrooms were held after the event. The classrooms will be repurposed into a daycare for Rock Valley, once the school recovery is complete. Classes in Rock Valley begin September 5th.
All the public school buildings were hit by flooding and are still under repair. The new modular school will house 150 students in six classrooms, and includes bathrooms, offices, and a common area. Some elementary students will go to class at a local church.
Tours of the new classrooms were held after the event. The classrooms will be repurposed into a daycare for Rock Valley, once the school recovery is complete. Classes in Rock Valley begin September 5th.
ENGAGE LE MARS’ 2024 CONCERT BASH
Engage Le Mars has planned a free live concert in mid-September. Bash Live Concert at the Olson will take place Saturday, September 21st. It all starts at 4 pm. This is a family-friendly event featuring three bands, food trucks and a beverage garden. People can bring their lawn chairs to take in the concert on the green space at the Olson Cultural Event Center. Engage Le Mars is a non-profit organization formed two years ago. This event is funded through sponsorships, grants, donations, and funding from the city’s Hotel/Motel Tax.
THEFT ARREST
A Paullina woman was arrested for theft in Orange City. Police received a complaint of theft from a grocery store in the city. The arrest of 39 year old Abby Jane Hansen came late Wednesday night. Investigators determined that over a period of months, 971 dollars had been stolen from the grocery. Jansen was charged with Theft in the 3rd Degree. She was later released on bond.
DEMOCRATS SAYS AEA HURT BY LEGISLATIVE CHANGES
Iowa Democrats says changes made by the Iowa Legislature and approved by the governor have left Area Education Agencies short staff as the school year gets underway. Representative Lindsay James of Dubuque says there’s a drop of more than 400.
The reorganization plan of the governor gives the school districts the same amount of money and the Department of Education is taking over some services. James and other Democratic lawmakers say they don’t know how many of the A-E-A employees have left to take other education jobs in Iowa.
The Governor’s spokesperson issued a statement that says: “While the Governor and her team were in Northwest Iowa celebrating getting students back to school after a natural disaster, the Democrats were looking backward and telling Iowans half-truths about special education reform. They are stoking fear, but these are the facts: no funding has been cut for special education or any educational services-it’s been given to the local school districts to control.”
LAW ENFORCEMENT WILL ZERO IN ON SPEEDERS, IMPAIRED DRIVERS
For the last time this summer, law enforcement agencies are ready to launch a STEP, or a Selective Traffic Enforcement Program. Iowa State Patrol spokesman Trooper Paul Gardner, says STEP will put dozens of extra law enforcement officers on the roads during the upcoming holiday weekend, and they’ll be seeking out speeders, impaired drivers and other lawbreakers.
Garner implores Iowans who are hosting events for the holiday to make sure their guests don’t drive impaired by calling them a taxi or Uber, giving them a ride home or offering them a place to crash.
The three-months between Memorial Day and Labor Day are considered the “100 Deadliest Days” in Iowa, when there’s typically a rise in teen crashes and deaths. During that period, the patrol says Iowa often averages 30 deaths of drivers and passengers between 14 and 18 years old.
