Sheriff’s Deputies in Page County, Saturday, arrested 35-year-old Jose Manuel Huerta, of Clarinda. Huerta was arrested at his residence on a Page County Bench Warrant for Failure to appear on an original charge of Driving while License is barred. He was transported to the Page County Jail and held on on $2,000 bond, pending further court proceedings.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds will deliver the annual “Condition of the State” address at 6 p.m. tonight (Tuesday). During a speech early Monday morning, Reynolds may have given a preview of her evaluation of the state’s status. “This past year has been challenging, it’s been unprecedented, and it’s been unpredictable: a global pandemic; civil unrest; a drought; derecho; a contentious, hard-fought election cycle,” Reynolds said,”and every day I continue to be inspired by the strength and tenacity and the compassion of Iowans.”

The governor told her fellow Republican the pandemic has exposed some vulnerabilities, but she did not cite specifics. “If 2020 has taught us anything it’s that leadership matters,” she said. “It matters at the local level, the state and the federal level, so let’s continue to lead with bold ideas, creative solutions and results.”

Reynolds starts 2021 with a larger Republican majority in the legislative branch. During her speech at yesterday’s (Monday’s) G-O-P fundraiser, she emphasized the importance of Republicans continuing to work together as a team.  “Keep fighting. Get out there,” said Reynolds, who is likely to seek reelection in 2022. “Let’s keep the ground game going and let’s keep showing not only Iowans, but this country that Iowa will continue to lead and do the right thing.”

Reynolds will be presenting her proposed budget to lawmakers as well. She has been emphasizing the status quo budgets lawmakers have approved over the past two years as the reason the State of Iowa didn’t face massive budget shortfalls during the pandemic. “Because of conservative budgeting (practices), a diverse economy, and our decision to keep over 80% of our businesses open and our workers working, we closed Fiscal year ’20 with our cash reserves full and a $305 million surplus,” Reynolds said.

That was Reynolds speaking to Republicans on Monday. The scheduling for tonight’s prime time “Condition of the State” address is a departure from precedent. The speech is traditionally delivered to a joint session of the House and Senate at 10 a.m. Reynolds says she hopes to reach a larger audience with the evening time slot.

The Atlantic School District’s Board of Education will meet 6-p.m. Wednesday, in the High School Media Center. The meeting will stream live on YouTube. On the agenda, is action on approving the resignation of: Mike McDermott, Head H.S. Football Coach; School-to-work Coordinator JoAnn Runyon, and Achievement Center Custodian Lindsay Williams. The Board will also act on contract recommendations for: Laura Juhl, Preschool Paraeducator; Adam Smith, MS Wrestling Coach, and Tracy Purkapile, Car Driver.

The Atlantic School Board will also discuss, and act on Superintendent Steve Barber’s recommendation for, an extension of the Mask Mandate that was first implemented Nov. 26 and renewed three times thereafter, for 30-days each. According to agenda details, Barber will tell the Board “It appears that COVID will be with us for some time yet, although having some vaccinations is encouraging. I think it would be helpful to stay with a policy for the remainder of the school year.”  Barber has previously stated the Mask Mandate they’ve had in-place has benefited the District by not having to quarantine persons who are to determined to have had close contact, with both parties wearing masks. The Policy states “Face coverings will be required when social distancing is not possible.”

On a related note, the Atlantic School Board will discuss and act on Superintendent Barber’s recommendation with regard to Emergency Sick Leave for COVID-19. Barber recommends an option that says:

• [An] Employee is subject to a Federal, State or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19;
• [The] Employee has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19;
• and [The] Employee is experiencing the symptoms of COVID-19 and seeking a medical diagnosis.

COVID leave balances would not “Start over” for those employees who have already used all or a portion of this leave, and sick leave can only be used for those who have exhausted the 10 days of COVID leave. Barber notes the Federal COVID sick leave expired Dec. 31st. In other business, the Board will act on a recommendation to change the current school calendar to have a Professional Development day on Feb. 22nd, instead of a regular school day. And, they will act on setting Feb. 20th (2021) as the date for a Public Hearing on the 2021-22 school calendar, which is a requirement of Iowa law, along with publishing the proposed calendar 10-to 20- days ahead of the hearing.

(Radio Iowa) – Many Iowans will soon be starting the process of filling out their state and federal tax returns, as those W-2 forms should be arriving in our mailboxes by the end of the month. Urbandale C-P-A Jeff Strawhacker says there are very few major changes for the 2020 filing season and this round of tax forms is much like those from the 2019 season. Still, Strawhacker notes, 2020 was no ordinary year — for virtually anyone. “A lot of people were receiving unemployment benefits during the shutdowns and the pandemic and they may still be receiving those,” Strawhacker says. “Unlike stimulus payments, unemployment benefits are taxable and if taxes were not taken out of those benefits, they may have a little bit of tax to pay when they file their returns.”

The latest round of federal stimulus checks, as with the first round, are -not- considered taxable income for federal or Iowa purposes, Strawhacker says, so “it’s tax-free money.” However, some people didn’t get a first stimulus check last March or they didn’t get as big a check as they should have received. “On the 2020 returns, there’s a reconciliation process where you calculate the amount that you were eligible to receive, based on your 2019 income, and then you compare that to what you actually received,” Strawhacker says. “If there’s a difference, you may have a little extra money that you can claim as a credit on your 2020 tax return.”

With the pandemic, more people are spending more time working from home which may afford them more flexibility with their daily activities. Will many Iowans be using that extra time to tackle their taxes? “I’m hoping more people will do them earlier because they’ve had some time at home to maybe gather documents or organize things a little bit differently,” Strawhacker says, “but nobody likes to file their taxes before they’re actually due, so I would anticipate we’ll see kind of a normal process with a lot of people pushing that deadline as close as they can.”

While the deadline to file federal tax returns was extended to July 15th last year, it’s currently scheduled on the standard day in 2021 of April 15th, with Iowa taxes due April 30th.

(Radio Iowa) – A researcher at Des Moines University is trying to prove that spaces in skulls should be used as another legal identification technique for skeletons. Lauren Butaric is an associate professor of anatomy. “We have air spaces in our skull, and the only time we really think about them is when we are sick and think our head is about to implode, you get all that sinus pressure,” Butaric says. “That’s what I look at — I look at how they vary and why they vary.” She says there is a particular set of sinuses she’s exploring.

“If you put your finger right above your nose bridge and on either side of your eyes, this sinus space is actually really individualistic. It’s called the fingerprint of the skull for this reason,” according to Butaric. “Even identical twins have different sizes or different shaped sinuses.”  Butric says identifying people by the sinuses in their skulls has been used for many years. But she says there are many different methods for doing this and she says there needs to some questions answered to have the process hold up in court. “Are the methods you are using reliable? Have they been scientifically tested and validated?. As to date, there’s numerous methods for using the sinuses — but they are as widely validated — they haven’t been tested over, and over, and over again,” Butaric says.

She says using sinuses won’t replace D-N-A, but would add another tool for identifying bodies — especially those which have decomposed.  “What we’re really looking at is just general aspects about how the sinus varies in individuals — particularly individuals of different ages. Just preliminary data in trying to determine how different factors might affect certain methods,” according to Butaric. She says there needs to be an x-ray or scan taken of the victim before they died to be used to make an identification, but says that has become more common.

Butaric has received a two-year grant from the National Institute of Justice for nearly 358-thousand dollars to fund her study.