(Radio Iowa) – Republican Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says it’s hard to negotiate solutions to rising health care costs when the government is shut down. “The president and the administration are doing what they can to lower the cost of prescription drugs for the American people. I applaud them for doing that,” Hinson said. “And I’ve had Iowans tell me they want lower costs, but they’re frustrated that the government is shut down, so I think most people see through what’s happening here, so we need to get the government open so we can continue those conversations.” Republican Congressman Randy Feenstra, who is running for governor, has criticized continuing the Affordable Care Act insurance subsidies for Americans with incomes above 400% of the federal poverty line that were extended during the pandemic. Hinson — who’s running for the U-S Senate — says Democrats put the subsidies in place to mask the rising cost of insurance premiums.

“We can all agree that health care costs are way too high,” Hinson says. “It’s the Unaffordable Care Act. It’s not the Affordable Care Act…I want to work on solutions to lower the cost of care, expand access.” Hinson has proposed a bill she says would improve access to breast cancer screening tests in rural areas. It calls for a 25 percent increase in the amount the U-S-D-A pays in a cost-share program for rural facilities that purchase mammograms, C-T scanners and other equipment used to test for breast cancer. “Early detection gives hope a head start and saves lives,” Hinson said. “And I’m very proud to help introduce this bipartisan legislation that would strengthen federal resources for cancer prevention.” Hinson says the shutdown is preventing discussion of this bill and other topics in congress — and she rejects the idea congress needs to pass any stop-gap measures to fund SNAP benefits or address flight delays at airports by paying air traffic controllers.

“If we get the government open, the air traffic controllers and the TSA agents will get paid and they’ll get their backpay for all of the weeks they have been working unpaid,” Hinson says. “…This is about Democrats using these people as leverage and now they’re putting the safety and security of Americans flying through our airports at risk.” Hinson made her comments this (Wednesday) morning during a conference call with Iowa reporters. Iowa Democratic Party chair Rita Hart says Republicans are in total charge of the federal government and are failing to do their jobs. The Republican-led House passed the temporary spending plan that has stalled in the Senate six weeks ago and hasn’t reconvened since then.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors, Wednesday morning, received an update from Jim Richardson with the County Secondary Roads Department, while Engineer Karen Albert was attending the 2025 Traffic and Safety Forum, in Ames.

The Board also received an Information Technology (IT) update from Beau Boeye (Boeye Tech and Design) – IT Point of Contact for Montgomery County – with regard to AI (Artificial Intelligence) Pilot Project. He said anywhere you go, in any industry, the big topic is AI. At a IT Director conference last month, the topic of discussion was with regard to having an AI policy in-place. That sparked discussions between his department and Montgomery County Auditor Jill Ozuna.

He said as the directors at the conference discussed, “You can’t block AI.”

He said they especially want to have a policy in-place in Montgomery County to help protect any sort of PII (Personally Identifiable Information).

He said they want to use the tools correctly to protect the data correctly and give useful information to the other department heads.

(Radio Iowa) – The current president of North Dakota State University is being named as the only other finalist in the search for the next president of Iowa State University. David Cook has been president of NDSU since 2022, and while he got his master’s and doctorate degrees at the University of Kansas, Cook earned his B-A at Iowa State in 1992. Much of his previous work experience was at Kansas, most recently as vice chancellor. Cook will visit the Ames campus on Thursday to meet with faculty, staff, students and community members, as well as to take part in a public forum. The other finalist is Benjamin Houlton, dean of the College of Agriculture at Cornell University. The state Board of Regents will meet in closed session next Tuesday to hear from the search committee co-chairs, interview the finalists, and pick a new president to replace the retiring Wendy Wintersteen.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – By a vote of four-to-one, with Supervisor Mike Olson voting No, the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors today (Wednesday), approved a contribution of $500 to ISAC (The Iowa State Association of Counties), for an Amicus Brief presentation to the U-S Supreme Court, with regard to a case over local control of carbon pipeline projects. In October, Shelby and Story County officials filed a petition in their case against Summit Carbon Solutions, seeking to appeal the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling in June that upheld a lower court’s ruling barring counties from implementing ordinances regulating carbon sequestration projects–such as the proposed Midwest Express CO2 pipeline.

MC BOS 11-5-25

Prior to his No vote, Supervisor Olson reasoned that no one has ever sponsored a fundraiser for Montgomery County to help pay for matters of repeated litigation.

Board Chair Charla Schmid was in favor of the consortium’s effort. Supervisor Bryant Amos said he had mixed feelings about the matter. He said he does believe in local control, but he thinks the whole matter of carbon sequestration is scientifically unproven.

Supervisor Alex Burton agreed. On a related note, the Adair County Board of Supervisors, during their meeting this (Wednesday) morning, in Greenfield, also approved an ISAC funding request in the amount of $500, to support the appellate review involving Shelby and Story counties.

In other business, and after considerable, sometimes heated discussion, the Montgomery County Board voted 3-to 2, to keep the County Compensation Board. Supervisors Bryant Amos and Mike Olson voted in favor of a resolution to dissolve the Comp Board. Supervisors Schmid, Burton and Peterson voted against the move.

The decision comes with the understanding the Supervisors are responsible for record keeping from this point forward. Board Member Burton will handle the communication aspect of the effort.

(Radio Iowa) – A northern Iowa organization called “Hunting with Heroes” is gearing up for an annual pheasant hunt later this week in Kossuth County. Bernie Becker, a spokesperson for the group, says six veterans from other states who’ve been wounded in combat will go hunting and four veterans who’ve been guests of the group before will be mentors. “We have probably about 1500 acres lined up that’s never been hunted just for these guys to hunt this year and we’re really looking forward to it,” Becker says. “We’ve got a great bunch of guys coming. We’ve talked to them and they’ve been chosen by people that have been here before and they are capable of doing the hunt because it’s kind of strenuous for combat wounded guys.”

Becker says they try to make sure the wounded vets are comfortable handling new shotguns. “The first day they come in we take them to a sporting club and get them used to shooting these new shotguns that we provide for them and we donate them to them to take home,” Becker said. “We try to hunt about two hours and then we take a break. Everybody has to catch their breath, even me, and then we go back at it again.”

The wounded veterans participating this year are flying in tomorrow (Thursday) and they’ll be hunting in Kossuth County this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. On Veterans Day, they’ll participate in an annual food distribution event in the small Kossuth County town of Lakota. Last year, the group provided over 500 complete Thanksgiving meals to area veterans and the widows of veterans. Becker says this year they’re planning on handing out over 600 meals for the upcoming holiday.

(Atlantic, Iowa) SHIFT ATL, a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Atlantic, has announced they will be hosting their 7th annual “Turkey Trot” in Atlantic, on Thursday, November 27, 2025, beginning at 8:00 a.m. This year’s event will have both an in-person and virtual option to participate. The in-person event includes a 5K route and 1-mile route option, both leaving from the The Depot, Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, at 8:00 a.m. sharp!

Attendees can grab some warm eats and drinks from inside the Chamber meeting room post-race. The virtual event can take place at the registrants discretion. Cost to register is $25 (kids 10 & under race for free) with the option to add on various race-day gear including youth sizes. Orders including any of these apparel items need to be submitted by Tuesday November 11th to ensure items are here before race day. Registration for just the race will continue until the day of the event.

Prizes will be awarded for first and second place for both male and female runners for the 5K. To get registered, visit getmeregistered.com/AtlanticTurkeyTrot or shiftatl.org/turkeytrot to view full event details! All funds raised through this event will be split between Sunnyside Range and Faith’s Friends.

For more information about SHIFT ATL or the Turkey Trot, visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/shiftatl, their website at shiftatl.org or by email at shiftatlantic@gmail.com.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – Officials with the Glenwood Police Department report 46-year-old Anton Joshua Pedersen, of Glenwood, was arrested Tuesday evening, for Violation of Probation. Pedersen’s bond was set at $2,000.

(Radio Iowa) – One year after a narrow defeat, voters Tuesday in Iowa Western Community College’s 13-county region overwhelmingly approved a 55-million dollar bond issue for a long list of facilities improvements. Iowa Western President Daniel Kinney says he was “blown away” by the referendum’s margin of victory, which easily cleared the 60-percent super-majority needed for passage. Last year’s bond issue attempt fell less than one-percentage point short.

“We did a lot better job this time around talking about it, sharing the dreams that we had for southwest Iowa, and what we can do at Iowa Western Community College,” Kinney says. “A year ago tonight, I was pretty disappointed, being less than a half-percent away, but knowing that, I know that we can get it out there. So, I have to thank the voters for getting out there.” Proceeds from the bond issue will cover construction of so-called “flexible industrial training space” at Iowa Western’s Clarinda campus, and centers in Shenandoah and Atlantic for Career Technical Education, or C-T-E courses. Also planned is construction of a transportation logistics center at the school’s Council Bluffs campus.

Kinney says training provided by the new facilities will provide a workforce southwest Iowa businesses and industries need. “The jobs that we are going to create or train for that comes out of this money is what we need to turn this economy around in southwest Iowa,” he says. “To keep the good factories and businesses in our communities, and to grow those businesses. That’s what they need. I hear it from business leaders every day — produce me more diesel techs, auto techs, welders, HVAC — whatever it may be. We continue to hear that.”

Unofficial results from Tuesday’s city-school elections show the bond issue passing with 70.54% — that’s 15,374 yes votes to 6,420 no votes.

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – Officials with AgriVision Equipment and PrairieLand Partners have announced the Next-Gen Tech Expo will take place this Saturday, November 8, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., at the WeLead Training Center in Council Bluffs. The event provides a unique opportunity for high school juniors and seniors interested in becoming agricultural technicians to showcase their mechanical knowledge, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills, all while engaging with industry professionals.

Throughout the day, students will take part in a series of interactive challenges. Top performers for the day, will not only earn prizes but also be considered for a spot in the 2026 class of the WeLEAD Tech Institute, a program dedicated to developing the next generation of highly skilled service technicians. While students compete, parents will have the opportunity to explore the many ag tech education and career pathways available through partnerships with AgriVision Equipment and PrairieLand Partners.