LEMARS SCHOOL BOARD MEETS
The monthly meeting of the Le Mars Community School Board is tonight. Their agenda ijcludes an open enrollment update and several personnel items. Several items related to the upcoming school bond issue will be considered. This includes approval of a resolution authoritzing the issuance of up to 49.9 million dollars in General Obligation School Bonds, and levying a tax for payment. The bonds will pay for the districts new elementary school. The board will also go into closed session to discuss the performance of the district superintendant, who requested the closed session; and to discuss the purchase of real estate.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT
Tha National Weather Service has placed a Winter Weather Advisory into effect from noon today until midnight. 24 Iowa Counties, including Plymouth County and all of northwest Iowea, could see total snow accumulations between 1 and 5 inches, 1 to 3 inches locally. Plan on slippery road conditions. The hazardous conditions could impact the evening commute.
SITZMANN ANTICIPATES TWO BILLS FOR CONSIDERATION IN THE HOUSE
House District 13 Representative Travis Sitzman of Kingsley anticipates House attention soon to a pair of bills that advanced last week, one in the Senate, and another in the House.
A bill which addresses inmates housed in Cherokee County passed an Iowa Senate committee last week.
Rep. Sitzmann of Kingsley submitted a similar bill in the House. He says the bill would reimburse the Cherokee County Sheriffs Office for inmates housed in that county.
Other counties in Iowa would be affected by this bill, too. Sitzmann is confident the measure will eventually pass both chambers of the legislature.
Currently, Cherokee County pays the costs of housing state Inmates, until a bed is open at the State Civil Commitment Unit in Cherokee.
The House Higher Education Committee has passed a bill that would prohibit the state universities from requireing students to enroll in courses related to DEI or critical race theory. St Rep Travis Sitzmann says he expects the bill to come before full chamber soon.
Sitzmann says the bill does not eliminate such courses, but it doesn’t require them for all students.
FEENSTRA BACKS TRUMP BUDGET PRIORITIES
Iowa 4th District Congressman Randy Feenstra says restoring the economy and cutting spending are two of the top priorities for congress and the Trump administration.
Feenstra says extending the tax cuts from President Trump’s first term in office are part of that strategy::
The Hull Republican sits on the House Ways and Means committee:
Feenstra is also a member of the “doge” caucus in the U.S House that is looking to cut federal spending.
He commented on the effort to offer buyout retirement to federal employees who don’t want to return to their office because they prefer to work at home like they did when covid began around four years ago:
Rep. Feenstra says the caucus hopes a hundred thousand workers accept the offer as part of the effort to “drain the swamp”
The deadline for federal workers to accept the buyout was extended to at least Monday.
INJURY ACCIDENT
A two vehicle crash in Sioux County Saturday injured three people. The Iowa State Patrol says the vehicles collided at the north junction of US 75 and 18, northwest of Hull.
A northbound vehicle driven by James Kooima, 83, of Rock Valley was attempting in the turn lane turning left onto US Highway 18, when it was struck by a southbound vehicle driven by Gaylene Hultman, 63, of Cherokee. Kooima’s vehicle rolled once after impact, coming to rest in a ditch. Kooima and a passenger, Margene Kooima, 83 of Rock Valley, and Hultman were injured in the crash, The two drivers were taken to local hospitals for treatment of injury. Margene Kooima was flown by helicopter to Avera Sioux Falls for treatment of injury.
HOUSE GOP INTRODUCES 6 BILLS TO ADDRESS CARBON PIPELINE ISSUES
A group of Republican lawmakers has introduced six bills that would strengthen landowner rights in response to the potential use of eminent domain for a carbon capture pipeline. The Iowa Utilities Commission has given conditional approval for Summit Carbon Solutions to move forward with pipeline construction in Iowa to capture carbon dioxide from ethanol plants — IF South Dakota regulators approve construction of that segment of the pipeline. Republican Representative Charley Thomson of Charles City says the commission made several errors that must be addressed.
Greene County Attorney Thomas Laehn says the pipeline the biggest boondoggle in Iowa history.
House Speaker Pat Grassley says the six bills may be combined into one or two packages, but each of the six will get a subcommittee hearing first.
The House has passed several bills about eminent domain and pipelines that carry a hazardous substance like liquid carbon dioxide — but none have passed the Iowa Senate. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association criticized this latest group of House bills as the wrong policy at the wrong time. Monte Shaw, the associations executive director, says the bills would prevent Iowa-made ethanol from competing in markets where low-carbon or no-carbon fuels are favored.
BILL WOULD NEED PARENTS’ OKAY TO GET HPV SHOT
An Iowa Senate subcommittee advanced a bill this week that would require parental consent for minors to get a vaccine to prevent H-P-V. The shot helps protect against strains of the virus that can cause six types of cancer. Senator Sandy Salmon, a Republican from Janesville, says parents should have a say over all their children’s vaccinations. Senator Janet Petersen, a Democrat from Des Moines, says she agrees with health care providers who spoke out against the legislation. She says the vaccine is safe and effective and the choice gives adolescents autonomy over their own bodies. The Centers for Disease Control recommends the H-P-V vaccine as a routine vaccination for 11- and 12-year-olds. Iowa is one of just a few states that does not require parental consent to get the vaccine.
GOVERNOR RECOMMENDS DEMOLITION OF WALLACE STATE OFFICE BUILDING
Governor Kim Reynolds is recommending that a prominent state-owned building that’s been in poor condition for decades be torn down. The 48-year-old Wallace State Office Building — just across the street from the state capitol in Des Moines — has a southern facade that reflects the image of the capitol building. The windows and roof leak and some employees have said they’ve suffered from “sick building syndrome.” The last group of employees still working in the building are relocating to another building this spring. Reynolds has sent the legislature a bill that would authorize disposal of the building, but she’s made no recommendation about what should happen to the property after it’s cleared.
