Newton Independent

Area Vietnam War vets invited to recognition ceremony

The Iowa National Guard will hold a command retreat at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 23, at the Camp Dodge Pool complex. During the ceremony, they will recognize and honor Vietnam veterans as part of the Department of Defense's recognition of the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War. All area Vietnam War veterans and their families are invited to attend. Refreshments will be served immediately following the program.

Senator Hogg bringing book tour to Newton on Monday

Newton Independent

State Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids is bringing his tour for his new book, America's Climate Century, to Mattingly Music and Books in downtown Newton at 4:30 p.m. Monday.

"America's scientists have concluded that climate change is real, is primarily caused by human activity, and poses real dangers for our future," Hogg said. "This is the defining historical issue of the 21st Century. It is time for Americans to move beyond the slogans to understand why this issue is so challenging and what we can and should do about it."

In the 120-page book, Hogg contends that science leaders, business leaders, faith leaders and citizens across the country are ready for America to embark on a new national mission of climate action and lead the world into a new global alliance for sustainability.

In a book review published in the Cedar Rapids Gazette last month, columnist Jennifer Hemmingsen called the book "a 120-page overview" that will "help you get from zero to well-informed in a matter of hours."

"I am especially excited to be coming to Newton on my book tour," Hogg said. Newton is a national leader in the clean energy solutions that help us fight climate change and work for our economy."

The book will be available for sale at Mattingly Music and Books for $10.95. Hogg will also be donating a book to the Newton Public Library. The book is also available on Amazon.

 

MidAmerican announces huge wind energy expansion

Newton Independent

Mid-American Energy Company announced its plans this afternoon to make a $1.9 billion investment to add up to 1,050 megwatts of wind generation through an additional 656 new wind turbines in Iowa by the end of 2015.

The announcement was made during a press conference called by Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad to announce the single largest economic development investment ever in Iowa.

The expansion is being planned to be built at no net cost to the company's customers and is designed to help stabilize electric rates over the long term by providing a rate reduction totaling $10 million per year by 2017, starting with a $3.3 million reduction in 2015.

The wind energy expansion will also create more than $360 million in additional property tax revenues over the next 30 years. Landowner payments totaling $3.2 million per year are expected as a result of the expansion.

"As a leader in wind generation, the state of Iowa welcomes the opportunity to expand our renewable energy portfolio," Branstad said in a release. "MidAmerican Energy's proposed project will be the largest economic development investment in the history of the state, bringing needed jobs to Iowa, as well as significant economic benefits."

The project is expected to create approximately 460 construction jobs over a two-year period and an estimated 48 permanent new jobs.

MidAmerican began building wind projects in 2004. To date, 1,267 wind turbines have been installed in Iowa representing a total investment of approximately $4 billion.

Because of the recent extension of the federal production tax credit for wind energy, MidAmerican decided to expand its wind energy portfolio. When completed, MidAmerican estimates that it will be capable of generating approximately 39 percnet of its retail generation output through wind.

MidAmerican did not indicate the exact locations for the new wind turbines or the companies that will be involved in their manufacture.

Branstad to announce large economic development investment

Newton Independent

Gov. Terry Branstad will announce the largest-ever economic development investment in Iowa at a press conference set for 4 p.m. today.

The announcement will be livestreamed here.

Food Bank of Iowa, Newton prison team up to provide produce to food banks

The DM Register has an interesting story today about how the Food Bank of Iowa partnered with the Newton Correctional Facility last year where prisoners cultivated and grew more than 100,000 pounds of fresh produce that was distributed to Iowa food banks. They plan to do it again this year. You can read the story here.

Governor orders flags to half-staff for Iowa Peace Officer Memorial Ceremony

Newton Independent

Gov. Terry Branstad has ordered all flags at the Capitol complex to be flown at half-staff from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday in observance of the Iowa Peace Officer Memorial Ceremony to be held at 10 a.m. Friday at the Oran State Office Building of the Iowa Department of Public Safety.

The memorial ceremony is open to the public. Individuals are invited to attend the 30-minute ceremony to pay their respects to Iowa police officers killed in the line of duty.

The governor's directive applies to all flags at the state capitol though other government subdivisions, businesses and organizations are encouraged to fly flags at half-staff as a sign of respect.

 

Governor orders flags to half-staff for fallen Vietnam soldier

Newton Independent

Gov. Terry Branstad has ordered all flags in the state to be flown at half-staff from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday to honor Vietnam War Aviation Antisubmarine Warfare Technician Donald P. McGrane of Waverly who was laid to rest today at Arlington National Cemetery.

McGrane had been missing since July 19, 1967.

On that day, McGrane was among a crew of four that took off from the USS Hornet aboard an SH-3A Sea King helicopter on a search and rescue mission for a downed pilot in Ha Nam Province, North Vietnam. During the mission, an enemy concealed 37mm gun position targeted the helicopter as it flew in. The helicopter was hit by the anti-aircraft gunfire, causing the aircraft to lose control, catch fire and crash, killing all four servicemen. Additional information on how the remains were located can be found here.

The governor's order applies to all flags under state control though other government agencies and organizations are encouraged to follow suit as a sign of respect.

Regional Alliance providing fraud prevention tips

Newton Independent

The Regional Alliance, a consortium of a variety of Poweshiek County development organizations, inclluding Poweshiek Iowa Development, recently held a lunch and learn event for area businesses owners on fraud prevention.

Experts in the field provided a variety of tips on how business owners can prevent being taken by fraudulent activities.

In an effort to alert other business owners in the area on the prevalence of fraud, the Regional Alliance is providing this link on how to safeguard businesses and organizations.

Study shows impacts of competing property tax reduction plans

Newton Independent

Big box retail stores like Wal-Mart would benefit most from the Iowa House version of commercial property tax reform while mom and pop shops like Domino's Pizza and Mattingly Music in Newton would fare better under the Senate version of the plan, an analysis on the competing proposals indicates.

The Iowa Fiscal Partnership released a study on Wednesday that shows the real-world impacts of the different property tax reform proposals on different size businesses throughout the state.

"We found that big box stores benefit disproportionately in the House bill, while the Senate bill benefits lower-valued properties - smaller businesses - more than larger, high-valued properties," IFP research intern Heather Milway said.

The difference is due to the approaches each Chamber takes toward property tax reform. The House bill applies a rollback to commercial properties in much the same way as is currently done for residential properties. The Senate version provides a tax credit based on values to achieve reductions.

When fully phased in, the House version would reduce all commercial property tax payments by 22.2 percent, the analysis found. Under the Senate version, any small business with $323,000 or less in taxable value would see a 42.8 percent reduction. The break-even point is a property valued at $622,500. Properties valued higher would see a bigger break under the House version and properties valued lower would see more savings under the Senate version.

The IFP takes issue on the need to subsidize big box retailers. The report notes that just seven national retail chains in Iowa - Wal-Mart, Target, Lowe's Home Depot, Menard's, Kohl's and Sears - have mover thn $1 billion in taxable value in the state.

"No economic reason exists to subsidize these national companies, which know they must locate in Iowa to sell products to Iowans," the report says. "They also compete with local businesses."

 

Workers Memorial Day ceremony set Friday

Newton Independent

Iowans will pay their respect to Iowa workers who lost their lives while working during the annual Workers Memorial Day ceremony set for 11 a.m. Friday at Iowa Workforce Development, 1000 E. Grand Ave., in Des Moines.

"Workers Memorial Day is a day to honor and remember Iowans who in the past year have died in Iowa's workplaces and serving in our military," said Iowa Labor Commissioner Michael Mauro. "This is also a day to reflect on the lives that wer lost and to renew our commitment to workers safety and health in the workplace."

During calendar year 2012, 46 Iowans died from injuries sustained while working and five Iowans lost their lives while serving their country in the military. Additionally, untold numbers of Iowans are injured from exposures in the workplace.

The family and friends of the deceased have been invited to attend the annual ceremony, as well as representatives from various labor unions. In case of rain, the ceremony will be held in the Wallace Building Auditorium located west of the Iowa Workforce building at 502 E. 9th St.

 

Facebook makes it official; data center coming to Altoona

Newton Independent

Facebook officially announced today that it would build a new, state-of-the art data center in Altoona after state and local incentives packages were approved this morning.

Earlier today, the Iowa Economic Development Authority board approved $18 million in tax benefits through the High Quality Jobs program to Facebook to create at least 31 new jobs at a qualifying wage of $23.12 per hour. Sales and use tax refunds of $8 million are included in that total. The project will have a minimum capital investment of $299.5 million. The City of Altoona also agreed to local incentives this morning.

The first phase of the project on a 194-acre site in Altoona will result in a 476,000 square foot data center that will feature an outdoor-air cooling system and the latest in Open Compute Project server designs. The facility will be built to LEED Gold standards.

"We're thrilled to become part of the Altoona community, and especially appreciative of all the partners who helped make this project happen," said Jay Parikh, vice president of infrastructure engineering for Facebook. "Facebook's mission is to connect the world. Thanks to Iowa, we're building the global infrastructure to bring the next billion people online."

The tract in Altoona could accommodate up to two additional data center buildings that may be constructed in future phases of the project.

Gov. Terry Branstad was holding a press conference in regard to the announcement in Altoona late this morning.

"Today's announcement further solidifies Iowa's position as a destination for tech companies - from major data center operations like Facebook's to the innovative start-ups we continue to see popping up around our state," Branstad said. "Our productive workforce and our overall cost of doing business help us to win great projects like this."

Facebook is hosting a thank you luncheon today at at Jethro n' Jake's Smokehouse in Altoona for local and state elected officials and others involved in the development.

 

 

Iowa's unemployment rate, nonfarm employment both fall in March

Newton Independent

Iowa's unemployment picture was a mishmash in March as the jobless rate fell from 5 percent to 4.9 percent last month though total nonfarm employment fell by 5,500, the first loss since December.

Iowa Workforce Development released statistics today that showed Iowa's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 4.9 percent in March was below last year's rate of 5.4 percent and well below the U.S. average of 7.6 percent in March.

The estimated number of unemployed people decreased to 80,700 in March compared to 82,300 the month before. A year ago the figure stood at 88,500.

Total employment reached 1,562,200 in March, up from 1,555,100 in February but just 1,000 more than a year ago.

The number of nonfarm jobs totaled 1,517,200 last month, down 5,500 from February's level. The decrease was attributed to weak hiring in seasonal industries, especially construction, professional and business services, and leisure and hospitality. Even so, nonfarm employment is 11,000 higher than a year ago.

Local unemployment data will be released next week.

The full news release on the state's unemployment picture can found here.

Adventureland offering free admission to armed services members over Memorial Day weekend

Newton Independent

Adventureland Park in Altoona is again saluting all members of the Armed Services the Memorial Day weekend with an invitation to attend the amusement park free of charge.

All current members of all branches of the regular military and current members of the National Guard and Reserve will admitted free to Adventureland on May 25, 26, and 27 with their military photo ID.

Retired military members will also be admitted free with a retired military photo ID.

In addition, all members of the military may purchase up to six admission tickets to Adventurelands during the period at a savings of $10 off each ticket.

Iowa DOT small equipment auction April 27

Newton Independent

A public auction of state-owned equipment will be held at the Iowa Department of Transportation's grounds in Ames beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 27.

The auction, which includes equipment for offices and shops, automotive supplies and other items, will be held in the auction building south of the Iowa DOT's sign shop on South Fourth Street.

Items for sale may be inspected at teh sale site from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, April 26, and from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Saturday, April 27. Payment must be made the day of the sale.

A listing of the sale items is available here.

State lawmakers approve sales tax exemption for Lake Red Rock hydroelectric plant construction

Newton Independent

State lawmakers on Tuesday voted nearly unanimously to exempt the sales taxes for the construction of a $224 million hydroelectric plant at the Lake Red Rock dam.

Lawmakers in both chambers of the Legislature approved House File 630 that allows Missouri River Energy Services to be exempt from sales taxes as it begins construction 36 megawatt hydroelectric plant later this year.

An amendment offered by Rep. Dan Kelley, D-Newton, to require the Iowa Utilities Board to conduct studies on other potential sites for hydroelectric plants in Iowa failed.

Missouri River Energy Services announced two years ago its plan to construct the hydroelectric plant to provide power to Pella.

A study on the regional impact of the construction project on the four-county region surrounding the site - including Jasper County - indicates it will have a significant positive effect on the economy during the three-year construction time frame. Estimates show it bringing an average of 448 jobs over the period with the number ramping up to 732 jobs in the peak construction year of 2014.

Once operational in early 2016, the Red Rock hydroelectric plant will be the second largest in the state of Iowa. The largest is in Keokuk on the Mississippi River.

Missouri River Energy is a not-for-profit agency that provides long-term power supply to 60 municipally-owned electric distribution utilities in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. The City of Pella previously became a member of the agency and announced plans to retire its steam generation facility in conjunction with purchasing power from Missouri River Energy. The Pella steam plant uses coal as its fuel source.

 

Newton minister leads state lawmakers in moment of silence for victims of Boston bombings

State Sen. Dennis Black, D-Lynnville, left, and State Rep. Dan Kelley, D-Newton, right, greet the Rev. Jessica Petersen-Orwenyo of the Congregational United Church of Christ in Newton after she delivered the opening prayer in the Iowa House and Senate chambers today. Her opening prayer corresponds with the national "Call to Prayer Day" marked at the State Capitol today. The Rev. Petersen-Orwenyo led a momnent of silence for those affected by the terrorist bombings at the Boston Marathon on Monday and called on lawmakers "to be free from fear" when conducting the work of the state.

Guest commentary: Governor's health plan cripples Iowa's mental health redesign

By BILL PETERSON
Executive Director
Iowa State Association of Counties

One of the building blocks of the redesign process for Iowa's mental health and disability services (MH/DS) system managed by Iowa's counties is Medicaid expansion. Medicaid expansion is expected to save up to $60 million annually in mental health care costs for persons with incomes at or below 138 percent of the federal poverty level, an estimated 110,000 to 180,000 Iowans.

The county property taxes currently used to fund these services would be freed up to meet the requirements of MH/DS redesign. Workgroups have outlined new mental health services that must be provided statewide and services for persons with developmental disabilities and brain injury are to be added when funding is available.

The Governor's plan will only cover an estimated 89,000 Iowans with fewer services, thus leaving the counties to provide for both the individuals and the services not provided under his plan.

While ISAC would be opposed to the Governor's plan solely based on the comparison of coverage, the financing of Healthy Iowa with $85 million in county property tax dollars is unacceptable. The $43 million in mental health levies from each county in Iowa are already budgeted to fund the county-managed mental health system in the coming fiscal year and beyond. By adding $42 million from the Broadlawns Hospital property tax levy, the property tax payers in Polk County bear an inordinate percentage of the Governor's proposal.

Beginning in 1996, the state and counties have worked together to move the cost of mental health and disability services off of property taxes. There was an agreement at that time that property tax was not the appropriate funding stream for these services. By the same token they are not an appropriate funding source for a state-wide health insurance program.

Iowa's counties are willing to work with both sides in coming to a proposal that best meets the health care needs of Iowans in poverty, but we cannot jeopardize the success of the redesigned regional MH/DS system by allowing the scooping of local property taxes to fund Healthy Iowa. The success of the redesigned system is dependent on adequate state funding going forward and taking $43 million of the resources supporting the new system is exactly the wrong thing to do.

Medicaid expansion will serve an estimated 21,000 -91,000 more Iowans than the Governor's Healthy Iowa Plan. Medicaid expansion will not direct local property tax dollars from their intended purpose. ISAC urges the legislature and the Governor to pass Medicaid expansion in order to ensure adequate resources for Iowa's MH/DS system.

State lawmakers look at sales tax exemption for Red Rock hydroelectric plant

Newton Independent

The Iowa House of Representatives is expected to take up a measure today that would exempt sales taxes on the construction of hydroelectric plant at the Lake Red Rock dam.

House File 630 provides a sales tax exemption for the $224 million project slated to begin construction later this year.

On Thursday, Rep. Dan Kelley, D-Newton, filed an amendment to the bill that would require the Iowa Utilities Board to conduct studies on other potential sites for hydroelectric power plants.

Missouri River Energy Services announced two years ago plans to proceed with the planning and development of a hydroelectric generating facility at the Red Rock Reservoir located on the Des Moines River south of Newton.

"The Red Rock Hydroelectric Project gives Missouri River Energy Services another generating resource in our on-going efforts to diversify our resource portfolio," said Tom Heller, CEO of Missouri River, at that time. "The long-term life of a hydro facility such as Red Rock allows Missouri River to spread the costs over an extended period of time to enable us to keep our costs reasonably stable through the addition of a base load, renewable resource. This project also will provide significant economic benefits of nearly $250 million to the four-county region during construction from 2013 through 2015. During that three-year time frame, our economic analysis finds that the project will bring an average of 448 jobs to the area ramping up to 732 jobs in 2014 and slowly decreasing until completion in late 2015."

David Swenson with the Iowa State University Department of Economics produced this study on the regional economic impacts of the hydroelectric project, including those to Jasper County.

The design of the hydroelectric plant will be approximately 36 megawatts, but the project will be capable of generating up to 55 megawatts at certain times of the year when water is plentiful.

Once operational in early 2016, the Red Rock hydroelectric plant will be the second largest in the state of Iowa. The largest is in Keokuk on the Mississippi River.

Missouri River Energy is a not-for-profit agency that provides long-term power supply to 60 municipally-owned electric distribution utilities in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. The City of Pella previously became a member of the agency and announced plans to retire its steam generation facility in conjunction with purchasing power from Missouri River Energy. The Pella steam plant uses coal as its fuel source.

DNR firearms auction set for May 4

Newton Independent

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources will hold the 2013 spring firearms auction on Saturday, May 4, at Jester Park Equestrian Center, 1117 NW 103rd Court in Polk City. Doors will open at 7 a.m. and the auction will begin at 8 a.m.

Items up for auction include approximately 700 firearms, bows and tree stands, traps and related gear. The items are sold "as is" with no guarantee or warranty.

The public may view the items for sale and pre-register for the auction from 3 to 6 p.m. on Friday, May 3.

Any person interested in purchasing a firearm at the auction must have either a valid Iowa permit to acquire pistols or revolvers, a federal firearms license, or a professional or non-professional permit to ccarry concealed weapons. The Iowa permit to acquire can be obtained from a county sheriff's office, though it takes two to three weeks to process the permit.

Payment must be made the day of the auction. All sales are final. All items must be removed from the site within one half hour after the completion of the sale.

A sale bill of the items up for auction can be found here. It will be updated if inventory is added. The DNR will not be mailing any sale bills.

 

Update: Inmate attacks officer at Newton prison; union head, administration, issue statements

Newton Independent

An attack on a guard at the Newton prison today was the result of the state shortchanging prison operations the head of the union representing state correctional officers said today, while administration official say the cause of the attack remains under investigation.

"Today, a correctional officer was repeatedly punched in the face by an inmate at the Newton Correctional Facility," AFSCME Iowa Council 61 President Danny Homan said in a statement issued today.

"The officer was taken to off grounds to seek medical attention," he said. "The inmate was stopped with pepper spray and then segregated from the general population. Our thoughts are with the officer and we wish the officer a speedy and full recovery."

Fred Scaletta, assistant director of the Iowa Department of Corrections, confirmed the assault but said it was an isolated incident and required no general prison lockdown.

"DOC can confirm there was an inmate assault on a correctional officer (today) at the Newton Correctional Facility," Scaletta responded following an inquiry from the Newton Independent. "This was an isolated incident, therefore there was no lockdown. The inmate has been placed in segregation. The incident investigation and review continues, therefore additional information is not available at this time."

The correctional officers' union chief said the attack was due to the Newton prison being understaffed.

"Newton Correctional Facility is dangerously understaffed. Newton Correctional Facility was designed to hold 1,014 inmates. Today, it holds 1,290 inmate (27 percent over design capacity). There were 33 Correctional Officers, 5 Senior Correctional Officers, and 3 Trip Officers (who are off grounds) on duty today. On grounds, that is a ratio of 33.9 inmates per correctional officer. And that was on a day with slightly higher staffing levels than normal.

"On the unit where the officer was attacked, there were four officers on duty but one officer was off the unit handling another task. Lately, staffing on this unit is typically three officers. In the past, this unit was run with six officers.

"Director John Baldwin's attempt to run corrections on the cheap is imperiling the safety of inmates, staff, and the community. While his 'hear no evil, see no evil' policy will likely result in a statement from him that everything is fine, such statements are dishonest. The staff who work in our prisons know staffing levels are dangerously low. Inmates know from observation that staffing levels are dangerously low. Director Baldwin's policies are a disaster waiting to happen."