March 17, 2021 — The new round of stimulus checks are on their way. Direct deposit payments are hitting Americans’ bank accounts now, and checks will be mailed out in the coming weeks. Previously, BBB Scam Tracker received numerous reports from people who were contacted by scammers through text message, email and phone calls about their COVID-19 stimulus checks. BBB believes many of these same tactics may be used again.

Is that call or text a con or the real deal?
Watch out for an email or text messages instructing you to click a link to “request benefit payments.” The link connects to an application prompting the entering of personal information in order to “make sure you are getting all the payments owed to you.”  Beware! This “application” is really a way to phish for personal details and commit identity theft. In a phone variation of the con, the scammer pretends to call from a government agency. The con artist insists on being paid immediately – or confirmation of personal information – before a stimulus check is sent.  Other times, scammers claim additional funds are available or that the consumer can receive funds immediately once a small “processing fee” is paid with a pre-paid debit card. These are all red flags and should be reported to BBB Scam Tracker at bbb.org/scamtracker.

Tips to Spot a Government Imposter Scam:

• Stay calm. Resist the urge to act immediately, no matter how dramatic the story is. Scammers try to get people to act before thinking about the situation.
• Don’t reply directly. Don’t respond to unknown calls, texts, or emails. If you think the message may be real, find the government agencies’ contact information on the Internet and contact them directly.
• Check for look-alikes. Research to see if the government agency or organization that contacted you actually exists. Scammers often make up names of agencies and/or grants.
• Do not pay any money for a “free” government grant or program.  It is not really free if there is a fee involved. A real government agency will not ask for an advanced processing fee.  Instead, find out if the agency is legitimate by checking grants.gov.

For more information about scams related to the coronavirus, see BBB.org/coronavirus. If you’ve spotted a scam (whether or not you’ve lost money), report it to BBB.org/ScamTracker. Your report can help others avoid falling victim to scams.

Atlantic Rising, along with Atlantic Parks & Recreation, are hosting Easter at Sunnyside Park, Saturday, April 3rd, from 9:00 AM-11:00AM. Atlantic Rising Social Chair Kelsey Beschorner says “Last year’s Easter Egg Hunt event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year we wanted to provide kids a safe way to celebrate the holiday.” Located at the Kiddie Korral, children will have the opportunity to take a socially distanced picture with the Easter Bunny and receive a goodie bag that includes coupons and eggs filled with candy. Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company will have a pop stand in the park to provide a free refreshment to all in attendance.

The event is in conjunction with Atlantic Parks & Recreation’s Second Annual Easter Egg Cruise. Children and adults alike are encouraged to pick up, paint and return a provided wooden Easter Egg by Friday, March 26th. The decorated eggs will be used to decorate Sunnyside Park on Easter weekend. On April 3rd, residents are encouraged to cruise Sunnyside Park and vote for their favorite egg.

According to Bryant Rasmussen, Parks & Recreation Director, “Each wooden egg has a number attached. Families that choose to cruise on Saturday from 9:00AM & 11:00AM will be encouraged to cast their vote with the volunteer stationed at the end of the route.” The winner of the contest will be announced on the Atlantic Parks & Recreation & Atlantic Chamber of Commerce Facebook page.

For more information, including a map of the activities, visit www.atlanticiowa.com or call the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce at 712-243-3017.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports a man from rural Essex was arrested Tuesday night on an assault charge. 42-year-old Shane Michael Farley was taken into custody for Domestic Abuse Assault, following an investigation into a domestic disturbance at a residence in the 1200 block of 130th Street, or about three-miles northwest of Essex, at around 7:50 PM.

Shane Farley

Farley was transported to the Page County Jail where he is being held without no bond, pending further court proceedings.

Cass County Auditor Dale Sundermen, today (Wednesday), issued a statement says there appears to be a misunderstanding among the public, on what a ‘tax levy’ is.  A property ‘TAX LEVY,’ he says, is the simply the amount in dollars that is to be generated  by taxing real estate property after all other sources of revenue/funds have been considered

[Total Expenses – All other sources of funds/revenues = amount to be raised by Real Estate Property Taxes]  (See the PDF link below to see data/spread sheets)

Levy Info.

See the line titled “Total Tax Levy’ on the first page of the attachment as an example.  [Note: The Maximum Proposed Property Tax Levy only covers the ‘regular’ levies;
which means it does not include voted levies, debt service levies, ag land levies, capital project levies, etc.]

The line below that line is ‘Tax Rate’ or the rate that is calculated by dividing the ‘Tax Levy’ by the “Regular Taxable Valuation/1,000”. When the valuation increases, the ‘Tax Rate’ goes down.  Note column three compared to column 2.

Column 4 of line ‘Regular General’ shows ‘TAX LEVY’ increased (but the tax rate is still 8.10000).

Why is it showing increased tax dollars: The regular general levy for cities must be at 8.1 before the supplemental levies (such as FICA and IPERS) may be used. To calculate whether or not the ‘TAX LEVY’ increased or decreased compare column 3 to column 4 for each individual tax levy (column 1). In this example: Column 5 ‘Annual % CHG’ reports that the combined ‘TAX LEVY’ increased a little more than 2.87% and the tax rate increased from 12.42 dollars per $1,000 of taxable valuation to 12.45 dollars per $1,000 of taxable valuation.

Summation: to decide whether or not the TAX LEVY has increased, decreased or remained the same: compare column 2 Current Year Certified Property Tax 2020-2021 of the NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING- CITY OF ATLANTIC – PROPOSED PROPERTY TAX LEVY to column 4 Budget Year Proposed Maximum Property Tax 2021-2022; or compare column (A) on current year ending June 30, 2021 Adoption of Budget and Certification of City Taxes (page 3 of attachment) with the column headed Request with Utility Replacement (page 2 of attachment).

The 8:09-a.m. report with Ric Hanson.

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(Radio Iowa) – Fundraising is underway to help refugees settle in central Iowa this year. The U-S Committee for Refugees and Immigrants field office in Des Moines is expecting an influx of refugees in the area after President Biden promised to increase the refugee cap. Even though he hasn’t signed the determination yet, the state should still prepare, according to Kerri True-Funk, the committee’s Des Moines director. “Due to the pandemic, things have been a little bit slow,” True-Funk says, “but we are anticipating as vaccination efforts worldwide are being undertaken and the determination ceiling goes up, that we will get new arriving refugee families.”

True-Funk expects they’ll help settle more than last year’s 75 refugees in central Iowa, but doubts they’ll reach the record of more than 660 refugees set in 2016. “But I do anticipate that, especially as vaccinations roll out and mitigation efforts continue, that the numbers will start to come up,” she says. The organization is raising money to buy mattresses for the expected refugees and ten-percent of the goal has been met so far.

(reporting by Kassidy Arena, Iowa Public Radio)

The CAM School District’s Board of Education, Monday, opted to discontinue a Business Manager with the Atlantic School District for the upcoming school year, and instead share the position with the Nodaway Valley Community School District. The agreement, effective for the 21-22 School Year, is a 50/50 cost share, at $58,328.

Also during their meeting, Monday, the CAM School Board set April 12^th at 6:30-p.m., as the date and time for a Public Hearing on the 2021-22 School Calendar, which has the first day of school set for Aug. 23^rd 2021, and Graduation as May 25, 2022. The hearing will take place in the Superintendent‘s Office.

The Board also approved a 21 member school facilities committee, which will be tasked with reviewing the discussion process that began over a year ago, with architects. The committee will set the dates for community meetings on the facilities project. Community input will be received during the process to help the district in make sound decisions for students’ future education.

Police in Creston, Tuesday afternoon, arrested a man at his home, on a Union County warrant. 20-year-old Montell Mario Rivers was taken into custody on a warrant for Child Endangerment with Serious Injury. Rivers was being held in the Union County Jail on a $10,000 bond.

The 7:07-a.m. report from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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Grow Another Row Cass County invites local farmers and gardeners to plant a few more rows of produce to share this year. According to ISU Extension, the 13 best produce donations are:
tomatoes, winter squash, zucchini, potatoes, onions, peppers, cucumbers, melons, broccoli, cabbage, sweet potatoes, carrots, and beans. The Grow Another Row leadership team requests
additional potatoes, carrots, melons, and green beans because these were the items that were in highest demand last year, and the team knows these items will get used in Cass County.

Grow Another Row Cass County is a Healthy Cass County campaign started in 2020 by a group of local growers to encourage residents to grow and share more food. After a successful first
year with lots of positive feedback from people who enjoyed produce, the planning team is excited to continue the project in 2021.

Emily Paulsen, with Brun Ko Garm, a Grow Another Row leadership team member, says “We know some folks are already planting seeds in greenhouses and others will start gardens later. We invite any grower—big or small, seasoned or green–to join us.” She noted, “You don’t have to sign up for the email newsletter to participate in the program, but you might want to.” Growers can sign up for the Grow Another Row newsletter by emailing Cass County Wellness Coordinator Brigham Hoegh at bhoegh@iastate.edu or visiting https://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass/content/grow-another-rowcass-county.

Grow Another Row is seeking a Program Coordinator for 2021. This temporary position is made possible through AmeriCorps funding. The coordinator will manage produce donations and distributions throughout Cass County. Cass County ISU Extension is seeking to fill the position immediately. Interested individuals should visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass/ for more
information and to apply.