SUSPECT ARRESTED IN LOCKDOWN INCIDENT
A northwest Iowa police chief says there is no threat to the public, but a suspect has been identified in connection to the lockdowns in Sioux County schools late last week. Mark Buss reports.
FRIDGE ACT
U.S. Fourth District Representative Randy Feenstra last week visited Nor-Am Cold Storage in Le Mars to highlight a bill he included in the House Ag Committee’s Farm Bill. In an effort to expand exports to third world countries, Feenstra introduced The Fortifying Refrigeration Infrastructure and Developing Global Exports (FRIDGE) Act. This would develop the infrastructure – including cold-chain storage and port improvements – to ship Iowa beef, chicken, turkey, pork, grains, specialty crops, and other perishable goods worldwide and diversify our trading partners.
Feenstra says it’s tough to export products to counctries which do not have the infrastructure in place to store perishable foodstuffs.
Another bill introduced by Feenstra wouild allow USDA to negotiate agreements whereby livestock, Poultry, and other animal products can be safely exported in case of an animal disease outbreak.
LIBERTARIANS TO APPEAL BALLOT FIGHT TO IOWA SUPREME COURT
A Polk County judge has upheld a state panel’s decision and ruled Libertarians running in three Iowa congressional districts did not qualify to have their names printed on the ballots for this November’s election. The Libertarian Party held its caucuses and county conventions on the same night. Republicans from the first, third and fourth congressional districts filed paperwork with the State Objection Panel, arguing that timing violated state law. The panel agreed and kicked Libertarians running for three of Iowa’s U-S House seats off the ballot. A district court judge upheld that decision Saturday. The Iowa Libertarian Party plans to appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court.
LE MARS COMMUNITY SCHOOL BOARD MEETS
The Le Mars Community School Board meets tonight. They will hear end of the year reports from the building principals. There will be a review of the Annual Progress Report on reading, math and science in each class. Action items include approval of contracts for new hires. The board will also go into closed session to discuss the district’s Emergency Operations Plan. After the closed session, the board will consider approval of the plan.
FIRE-RESCUE REPORT
Le Mars Fire Rescue responded to 149 calls in the month of August. 114 of them were 911 calls, in-town and out-of-town transfers, and 2nd calls. The rest were staff calls or investigations, special operations calls, or requests for services. Other activities included stand-by for the area CERT team, conducting CPR classes, pump testing on the fire trucks, the annual Fire-Rescue picnic, and one retirement: Firefighter Don Bocklemann retired after ten years of service.
SIOUX CITY WARMING SHELTER CLOSING
The Board of Directors of the Sioux City Warming Shelter announced they will close the doors on October 1st due to a lack of community support and declining resources. Board member Dave Ferris says shelters in nearby cities get support from several sources. He says they received 50-thousand dollars from the city this year after asking for help for many years.
The shelter was founded more than a decade ago to provide a place for the homeless during the winter, and has been open more recently in the summer as well. Ferris says it has been busy.
Ferris believes the city will see more expenses with the shelter closing.
Shelter staff will be working to help those residents transition to alternative housing and no new clients are being accepted.
PASSENGER FALLS OUT OF WINDOW OF MOVING BUS
The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office responded was called early Saturday to a 9-1-1 report of a person who fell out of a window of a moving bus on Highway 18, two and one-half miles west of Hull, IA. 67 year old James McDonald, of Ocheydan, IA, was driving an “All 4 Fun” party bus eastbound on Highway 18 when passengers alerted him that a passenger on the bus, Levi Koopmans, age 21, of Ireton, IA, had leaned against an unlatched window, fell through it and struck the roadway; the bus was reportedly traveling at approximately 50 MPH at the time of the accident. Koopmans was transported by Hull Ambulance to Sioux Center Hospital; he was later flown to Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center in Sioux Falls, SD, for treatment of serious injuries.
HOUSE SPEAKER: 2025 FOCUS SHOULD BE ON PROPERTY TAX REFORM
House Speaker Pat Grassley says if Republicans retain the majority in the Iowa House after the November election, his focus will be property tax reform.
Grassley says over the past six years Republican lawmakers have focused heavily on cutting income taxes, but the property tax bills Iowans are receiving from local governments also require response from state policymakers.
Grassley admits previous attempts at significant change in the state’s property tax system have stalled, but Grassley says Republican lawmakes have a recent track record of accomplishing tough things.
Back in 2003, legislative leaders from both parties formed a working group to tackle property tax reform, but were unable to come up with an agreement. In 2013, then-Governor Terry Branstad signed a bill designed to limit commercial property tax growth. During the 2023 legislative session, lawmakers passed an estimated 100-million in targeted property tax relief — including a new property tax credit for Iowans over the age of 65.
LIBERTARIANS TO APPEAL BALLOT FIGHT TO IOWA SUPREME COURT
A Polk County judge has upheld a state panel’s decision and ruled Libertarians running in three Iowa congressional districts did not qualify to have their names printed on the ballots for this November’s election. The Libertarian Party held its caucuses and county conventions on the same night. Republicans from the first, third and fourth congressional districts filed paperwork with the State Objection Panel, arguing that timing violated state law. The panel agreed and kicked Libertarians running for three of Iowa’s U-S House seats off the ballot. A district court judge upheld that decision Saturday. The Iowa Libertarian Party plans to appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court.
