NORTHWEST IOWA SMALL BUSINESS GROUP VISITS CONGRESSMEN
(group with US Senator Joni Ernst)
Eight Iowans, including two from Orange City, were among 60 small business owners from rural communities brought to Washington, D.C. this week by Goldman Sachs 10,000 small businesses voices.
Martina Hoogland of the Woudstra Meat Market is one of the two Orange City business people meeting with members of Congress on capitol hill:
Hoogland has one particular issue she is concerned about to grow their meat market:
Aaron Lenz owns The Roadhouse sports bar in Orange City, and has concerns regarding inflation:
Lenz says tariffs being imposed by the U.S. and other countries against each other is another concern:
Lenz says the small businesses want consistency in regulations:
Hoogland says her business also works with many area farmers to provide an outlet for their products:
Hoogland and Lenz were to meet with 4th District Congressman Randy Feenstra Wednesday afternoon.
The small business group comes from 16 different states, and were joined by Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler to participate in over 35 meetings with federal lawmakers.
IOWA COULD LET 8TH GRADERS PLAY ON ALL HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS TEAMS
Iowa school boards could decide to let eighth graders play high school sports *during the school year* under a bill that’s passed the House. Representative Skyler Wheeler of Hull is the bill’s sponsor. Wheeler, who is a high school baseball coach, says a couple of high schools in his area didn’t have enough players to field girls basketball teams this past season. The bill passed the House on an 89 to two vote and goes to the senate for consideration. Groups representing rural schools, urban schools and Catholic schools have registered as undecided on the bill, while the Iowa Association of Christian Schools is in favor of it. The Iowa High School Girls Athletic Union and the Iowa High School Athletic Association, which governs boys sports, have not weighed in on the proposal. Thirteen states currently allow eighth graders to compete at the varsity level during the school year.
TRAFFIC STOP LEADS TO MULTIPLE CHARGES
A Le Mars man faces multiple drug and driving violations after a traffic stop last week.
A Plymouth County Deputy made a traffic stop at Hawkeye and 12th St SW. The driver, Ian Ellington, 31, was driving while his license is barred. A search of the vehicle revealed marijuana and prescripiton drugs. A drug recognition expert with the Sheriffs Office determined he was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the stop. Ellington was charged with several drug counts, including felony OWI. He was also charged with driving while barred, and operationg a motor vehicle without an ignition control device. He was freed on posting bond.
SURVEY SHOWS MONARCH NUMBERS ARE RISING AND IOWANS CAN HELP
The latest population report on monarch butterflies finds conservation efforts in Iowa and elsewhere are starting to show promising results. Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium program specialist Mykayla Hagaman (mah-KAY-lah HAG-ah-mun) says researchers track the progress of the vital orange-and-black insect by measuring how much land the pollinators take up when overwintering in Mexico. This winter, they covered four-point-four acres, which is nearly double last year’s count, but scientists say they need to occupy 15 acres to be sustainable. Hagaman says Iowans can help by creating more monarch habitat, which includes planting native milkweed and flowering species that bloom from early spring to late fall, to help provide nectar resources for monarchs during their migration.
DAIRY INNOVATION GRANTS
Two northwest Iowa dairy farms are among 15 operations to receive Choose Iowa Dairy Innovation Grants.
Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig says the grant program helps Iowa dairy farms “by offering cost-share grants for new processing equipment or labor-saving technologies”..
A 100-thousand dollar grant was awarded to Cornbelt Dairy of Marcus, toward the purchase and installation of two robotic milkers. The total project budget is 422-thousand dollars. Another 100-thousand dollar grant was awarded to Knapptime Dairy of Larchwood, toward construction of a compost barn and a 24-stall rotary milking parlor. This project’s budget is 507-thousand dollars
A total of 750-thousand dollars was spread among the 15 projects which received awards, and leverages 4.1 million dollars in total investment.
EPA ADMINISTRATOR ANNOUNCES WOTUS REVISION
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced that EPA will work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to review the definition of “waters of the United States’.
Administrator Zeldin was joined by Senator Joni Ernst, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brook Rollins and Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall for the announcement.
The definition of “waters of the United States” guides Clean Water Act implementation, including whether farmers, landowners and businesses must secure costly permits before they can pursue a project. To date, EPA has failed to follow the law and implement the Supreme Court’s holding in Sackett vs. the Environmental Protection Agency. The Supreme Court’s decision stated that the Clean Water Act’s use of “waters” encompasses only those relatively permanent, standing or continuously flowing bodies of water forming streams, oceans, rivers and lakes. The Sackett decision also clarified that wetlands would only be covered when having a continuous surface connection to waterbodies that are “waters of the United States” in their own right.
INJURY ACCIDENT NEAR AKRON
A South Dakota couple was injured in a single vehicle accident Tuesday afternoon in Plymouth County. The Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call reporting a motor vehicle accident on Highway 12 near mile marker 22. Two people were in the vehicle. The driver was identified as Leslie Kephart, age 78, of Vermillion, South Dakota and the passenger was identified as Anita Kephart, age 83, of Vermillion South Dakota. Kephart was traveling north on Highway 12 when he veered off the road, went into the ditch, and struck a tree. Mr and Mrs Kephart were transported to the Vermillion, South Dakota hospital by Akron EMS with minor injuries. The vehicle had an estimated 10-thousand dollars damage. Akron Police assisted the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office at the scene.
SENATE SUBCOMMITTEE APPROVES GOVERNOR’S BILL TO REDUCE AN IOWA BUSINESS TAX
A bill that’s cleared an Iowa Senate subcommittee would cut taxes that businesses pay to cover unemployment benefits when people get laid off from their jobs. Governor Reynolds says Iowa’s Unemployment Trust Fund has too much money in it and she wants to provide more tax relief. Reynolds, who made the same proposal last year, is asking lawmakers to lower the top unemployment tax rate and reduce the taxable wage base by half. Ryan Sempf with the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce says the bill is an opportunity to improve Iowa’s competitiveness with neighboring states.
Peter Hird with the Iowa Federation of Labor says the bill won’t benefit working people.
The same bill stalled last year over concerns that the state might have to raise business taxes if there’s a recession and Iowa’s unemployment rate soars. This year a Senate Republican has proposed adding a surcharge on the bill for businesses that have seasonal layoffs, to cover the unemployment benefits workers from those businesses collect during the winter. An Iowa Workforce Development official says that would cause a one-year delay in implementing the tax cuts for businesses.
IOWA COULD JOIN 13 STATES THAT LET 8TH GRADERS PLAY ON ALL HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS TEAMS
Iowa school boards could decide to let eighth graders play high school sports during the school year under a bill that’s passed the House. Under current law, eighth grader may play on varsity softball and baseball teams during the summer. Representative Skyler Wheeler of Hull, who is a high school baseball coach, says a couple of high schools in his area didn’t have enough players to field girls basketball teams this past season and letting 8th graders play on the varsity could help. The bill passed the House on an 89 to two vote and goes to the Senate for consideration. Thirteen states currently allow eighth graders to compete at the varsity level during the school year.
