(Radio Iowa) – The temporary paper licenses on newly-purchased vehicles in Iowa are now digitized. The cards hang inside the back window of a vehicle, indicating the vehicle’s new owner has submitted the paperwork to the Iowa D-O-T to register the vehicle as their own. As of January 1st, auto dealers have been providing cards that can be scanned by law enforcement officers. Jazmine Sneller, the general manager of Ver Hoef Automotive in Sioux Center, says each card has an embedded number from the Iowa D-O-T, so the driver can confirm they own the vehicle. “So if you get pulled over, they can run that number and it will automatically show up in your name,” Sneller says.

Sneller says the change is providing reassurance to customers who’ve been wary of leaving the dealership with the temporary tag in the rear window. “If they had to cross state lines, they were worried about getting pulled over and not being able to provide enough documentation,” Sneller says. Dealers issue the temporary tags for a vehicle after tax, title, and license fees are paid and all paperwork is now handled electronically.

Iowa D-O-T officials say the updated system makes it easier to verify legitimate vehicle registrations.

(Des Moines, IA) – Week three of the Iowa Legislative schedule concluded Friday, and District 21 Republican Representative Tom Moore, in his weekly summary of Iowa House legislation, said House Republicans released a slate of tough-on-crime legislative proposals to ensure Iowa does not become a haven for career criminals. The first bill, which is awaiting a bill number, is the House Republicans Career Criminals bill. Moore said “We are implementing a “Three-and-Done” Strike System. If you choose a lifestyle of crime, you choose to lose your ability to live freely in our society.”

The second bill, which will run through the Public Safety Committee, is a pretrial accountability and bail reform act.

The third bill, HSB631, will create a dashboard to provide Iowans with objective data on how judges exercise their discretion.

Representative Moore said also, this past week the Education Committee passed 6 bills out of committee:

HSB 555 – Clinical experiences for all students must include 15 practicum hours focused on differentiation of instruction and support for special populations including ELL, special education, instructional implementation and IEP progress monitoring. Students in teacher prep programs must take an assessment to measure mastery and give the chance for remediation. Vote 15-7. Moore said “I was a NO vote. I am not against instruction for the ELL, but I am against the portion that makes the assessment mandatory.”

HSB 558 – Establishes a seal of civics excellence program to recognize student excellence in Civics. Vote 22-0

Thursday’s (1/29/26) HHS Appropriations Subcommittee meeting. Tom Moore is the Vice Chair of the committee. (Photo from Moore’s electronic newsletter)

HSB 594 – Changes the 1/2 unit of U.S. government requirement to 1 unit of U.S. government. Moore said “This was a bill I introduced last session.” Vote 16-6

HF 2079 – A public school must accept legal tender as a form of payment for entry to an interscholastic athletic contest. Over the past years Republicans have begun to hear about Iowans being turned away at the gate if they wanted to pay with cash. Moore said “House Republicans do not want to take away the ability of someone to walk into a game with cash to support their school and their community.” Vote 22-0

HF 2012 – Allows Iowa residents to receive a tuition grant for attending a CTP program. Vote 19-3

The Health and Human Services Committee passed 5 bills out of committee:

HSB 503 – Broadens the ability for the court to determine a child to be a CINA if the parent is unable to secure treatment and their efforts have been exhausted and unsuccessful. Vote 12-5

HF 2072 – Prohibits non-compete agreements for physicians at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Vote 17-0

HF 2094 – Requires the state to double the number of inpatient psychiatric beds at each state mental health institute and to apply for a waiver of the federal IMD exclusion. Vote 17-0

HF 2125 – Revises the professional title of a physician assistant to a physician associate. Vote 17-0

HSB 501 – Changes the references in Iowa Code from “pregnant person” to “pregnant female.” Vote 12-5.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture visited the new Career Ag Academy on the Hamilton County Fairgrounds in Webster City over the weekend. Mike Naig says high school students there can receive dual-credit courses with Iowa Central Community College and with Iowa State University.  “I’ve been able to tour some really good models around the state,” Naig says, “bringing livestock, bringing that opportunity to get our high school students a hands-on opportunity. I know I learned better where you match that in classroom with the experiential learning. Of course, it’s one of the things that we love about ag education and FFA in particular.”

The academy has been active since the start of the current school year, working to educate students about agriculture.”We really need to create these pathways where it’s not just farm kids that are getting a chance to do these types of things and be around livestock and get the experience of doing chore, but any kid, any student, regardless of where you come from, can get to do that,” Naig says. “We need more people working in ag, and if we’re going to get more people working in ag, we need students from all backgrounds to learn about those opportunities.”

Naig says he’d like to see more such career ag academies pop up all over Iowa. “You got to learn to do chore and you got to learn what’s the right feed ration and how do you create the right environment for those animals? But then, of course, you’re going to connect the dots and you’re going to talk about, well, where’s that feed come from? What’s the grain side of it? Oh, also, how about the meat side of it, the nutrition side of it, the culinary arts?” Naig says. “I mean, you really start to string this together and it’s just a farm-to-fork kind of experience.”

Ground was broken on the facility last March. It houses classrooms, a dedicated livestock learning area and meat lab. A date has not yet been announced for its official grand opening and open house for the public.

• Atlantic: Cass County Fairgrounds, 1000 Fair Ave., Atlantic, IA 50022 | 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.
• Massena: East side of Massena City Park, 500 5th St., Massena, IA 50853 | 4:30 – 5:00 p.m.

The new system, called Service Insights, will be used at the Mobile Food Pantry beginning February 11. The Atlantic, Anita, and Griswold Food Pantries are expected to transition to the same system in the future; however, no implementation dates have been set at this time.  Once a household completes the initial intake at any participating location, future visits will be much quicker—neighbors will only need to state their name to be checked in at their respective pantry. Service Insights securely stores information in a shared network used by Food Bank partners while keeping individual visit details private to each agency. The system replaces paper forms and outdated databases with a modern, web-based platform that can be accessed on nearly any device.

Cass County Mobile Food Pantry and Food Pantry volunteers complete training on the new Food Bank for the Heartland intake system to better serve individuals and families across the county. (Courtesy Grace McAfee)

• A slightly longer check-in during their first visit as intake information is entered.
• Faster service at future visits with no need to repeat the full intake process.
• Secure handling of personal information, with private data remaining with the serving agency.
• No documentation is required.
• Answering intake questions will not disqualify anyone from receiving food or participating in the mobile pantry.

• February 11, 2026
• April 8, 2026
• June 10, 2026

• March 18, 2026
• May 13, 2026

• February 11, 2026
• April 8, 2026
• June 10, 2026

(Creston, IA) – Police in Creston report a man was arrested at around 2:40-a.m. Saturday, on weapon, drug and other charges. 22-year-old Rory Allen Davis, of Creston, was arrested at the intersection of Park and Stone Streets. He faces charges that include: Possession of a Firearm or Offensive Weapon by Domestic Abuse Offender; OWI/1st-Offense; Carrying a Weapon While intoxicated (OWI); and Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd or Subsequent Offense (All Marijuana). Davis was transported to the Union County Jail and held without bond until seen by Judge.

At around 5:50-p.m., Saturday, Creston Police arrested 34-year-old Juan Carlos Troconiz Atencio, of Creston, following a traffic stop. Troconiz Atencio was charged with Driving Under Suspension/Driving While License Denied, Suspended, Cancelled or Revoked. Atencio was cited at the scene and then released on promise to appear in court. And, at around 8:35-p.m., Saturday, police in Creston arrested 62-year-old Randy Ferrell Crocker at his residence in Creston.  Crocker was taken into custody under the authority of an Outside Agency Warrant.

He was transported to the Union County Jail, posted a $100 cash-only bond, and was released.

(Radio Iowa) – As NASA prepares to launch the Artemis Two mission to the Moon as soon as this coming weekend, researchers at the University of Iowa are tackling a challenge future astronauts may need to deal with — how to drive safely on the Moon. Chris Schwarz, director of engineering and modeling research at the U-I’s Driving Safety Research Institute, says they’ve developed a lunar rover simulator which he’s “driven” multiple times on the computerized mockup moonscape. “The gravity on the Moon is only one-sixth of the gravity on Earth, so it has a few effects that make it drive differently,” Schwarz says. “Of course, the vehicle is going to feel a lot lighter and more bouncy. When it leaves the surface of the Moon, it gets slippery, so the handling gets really squirrelly.”

The team has created what Schwarz says is a realistic simulation of lunar-surface driving, complete with reduced gravity and lunar dirt, or regolith. He says the biggest challenge for roving astronauts will be the lighting conditions where the Artemis missions will eventually go — to the lunar South Pole. “Since there’s no atmosphere, the shadows will be darker than anything you’ve ever experienced on Earth,” Schwarz says, “and then if you drive outside of the shadow, you’ll be in bright sunlight that’s brighter than anything you’ve ever experienced on Earth that can blind you if your eyes are not protected.” Developing the technology so control panels can be easily visible in both sets of extreme lighting conditions will be complicated.

The rover project was developed under a grant from the National Science Foundation, but he says NASA officials are being kept in the loop. “We have had them out to visit us at the simulator and we’ve talked a lot about some of the challenges that we think — and they think — they’re going to face on the Moon,” Schwarz says. “We think that having the capability to simulate the lunar rover could be a great tool for them to use to have an astronaut come in and actually drive the rover.”

It’s hoped the U-I research could eventually help NASA address critical challenges with lunar driving — traction loss, vehicle instability, and the deep shadows that fill the moon’s polar terrain, making it difficult to detect hazards and choose safe routes. While Artemis Two will be doing a fly-by of the Moon, the program’s third mission will land on the Moon, perhaps next year or in 2028. Schwarz says it’s possible rovers will be rolling in moondust again later this decade or early in the next. The last time a rover was used on the Moon was during Apollo 17 in December of 1972.

(Radio Iowa) – A program in Sioux City provides families a way to track “at risk” members. Project Lifesaver is offered by police and the Woodbury County Sheriff provide a tracking system for those who are prone to the life threatening behavior of wandering due to Autism, Alzheimer’s Disease, dementia or other conditions. Shana Michalski’s son Trey is non-verbal and has had a monitor since 2010. She says it provides peace of mind for her family. “Because if anything were to happen and we couldn’t find him, Trey’s not going to respond to his name. He’s not going to really go with anybody. He could be wandering and there’s absolutely nothing anybody could do because if you’re shouting for Trey, he’s not going to say, ‘I’m here, I’m here’, “she says. She says it has been a concern for some time.

“He did have some issues when he was a lot younger, where he didn’t like where he was at, so he’d up and go,” she says. Those enrolled in the program wear a transmitter on their ankle or wrist that emits a unique radio signal that officers and deputies can pick up with a transmitter. Emily Myers’ 13-year-old Zoey is also on the spectrum and she says Zoey is verbal, but prone to talking to people while not recognizing potentially dangerous situations.”One of the things that we have found is that the thing that causes you to sense that there’s danger or that someone is a dangerous person is not there,” Myers says. “And so when we get into a situation where we feel like we want to go off somewhere, there’s a concern that maybe we would go with someone we shouldn’t go with.”

Officers say search times have been drastically reduced from hours to minutes with Project Lifesaver.

(Atlantic, IA)  – Produce in the Park is hosting their annual Sweetheart Market on Valentine’s Day, Saturday, February 14, from 10 AM to noon. The market will be held at the Nishna Valley Family YMCA, 1100 Maple St. Atlantic, IA 50022. This holiday farmers market will offer favorite area vendors, all-you-can-eat pancakes from The Pancake Man, face painting, and a free bounce house provided by the Nishna Valley YMCA.

Sweetheart Market will feature the “sweetest” winter vegetable–the sweetpotato. Brun Ko Farm and Bridgewater Farm will both be selling sweetpotatoes at the market. Healthy Cass County will be hosting a “Sweetpotato All-Stars” booth featuring a mini basketball game and sweetpotato snacks. Cass County Conservation will be partnering with vendor Lori’s Unique Cards & Crafts to offer a free Valentines-making craft station featuring sweetpotato stamps, sewing, and more.

Vendors at Sweetheart Market will be selling produce including leafy greens, sweetpotatoes, butternut squash, onions, garlic, carrots, and more; local meats such as chicken, pork, lamb, and beef; farm-fresh eggs; local honey, jellies, and jams; breads including sourdough; and a variety of freeze-dried snacks. Valentine’s Day wouldn’t be complete without dessert, and vendors won’t disappoint. Shoppers can expect heart-shaped cookies, cupcakes, kringle, cinnamon rolls, and additional sweet treats.

Sweetheart basket by Noble & West including body cream, lip balm, soap, and sugar scrub

Craft vendors will be selling bath and body products including goat milk soaps, body creams, lip balms, sugar scrubs, and beard oils, as well as crocheted stuffies, candles and wax melts, seasonal decorations, gifts, and potted plants.

The Pancake Man will be serving all-you-can-eat pancakes during the market. Atlantic Hy-Vee is donating milk and orange juice, and Produce in the Park sponsor Cass Health is donating coffee. Proceeds will be donated to Cass County food pantries. The cost of the meal is $8/adult (age 19+) and $5/child (18 and under).

Admission is free and all are welcome at Produce in the Park farmers markets. The market accepts SNAP/EBT and Double Up Food Bucks for all qualifying food items. Produce in the Park farmers markets are sponsored by the City of Atlantic, First Whitney Bank & Trust, Gregg Young Chevrolet of Atlantic, Cass Health, Cass County Tourism, Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, and Nishna Valley Family YMCA. Produce in the Park continues to accept applications for vendors and sponsors for their 2025-2026 Holiday Market Series. For details and applications, see www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com.

For the latest market updates, follow Produce in the Park on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ProduceInThePark or Instagram at www.instagram.com/produceintheparkatlanticia/, or sign up for the Produce in the Park email newsletter at www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill introduced in the Iowa House is sparking a discussion of how to designate and regulate vertiports — take off and landing fields for electric aircraft. Republican Representative John Wills of Spirit Lake says Iowa needs to prepare for battery powered aircraft that can carry people and cargo.

“This is going to be the transportation of the future and if we don’t get in front of it, we’re going to be well behind it,” Wills said. “and we want to be a state this is welcoming to business.” Tim McClung is the aviation director for the Iowa Department of Transportation. He says Iowa’s part of a 37-state group talking about electric aircraft that take off and land vertically as well as battery powered fixed-wing planes that need a runway to take off and land.

“It’s a new generation of aircraft that are being developed with new materials, manned or unmanned,” he said. “Primarily right most of these right now are expected to be electric. It’s expected that they’ll start getting their certifications the next two or three years, then we’ll see a slow ramp up in that arena.” These aircraft will also need battery charging facilities. McClung says Iowa’s smaller airports could be a critical part of the infrastructure for what the manufacturers call advanced mobility aircraft.

“They’ll be electric powered,” McClung said. “They will be flown by trained pilots and initially they will rely on airports as their center of operation.” Jim Obradovich is a lobbyist for the Iowa Public Airports Association, which is monitoring the concept. “We just want to have well-regulated airspace and when you add new technology to traditional technology to technology that’s developing and then to the stuff we can’t even in our minds think of that will be out there in the future that we can’t even think of, we just want to make sure it’s well integrated and safe for everyone,” Obradovich said.

One company that’s producing a battery-powered aircraft that operates like a helicopter may start service in Dubai as soon as this year. A company called Archer is looking to do vertical take offs and landings from O’Hare Airport for travel to and from downtown Chicago.