(Radio Iowa) — Proposals being considered in the Iowa House and Senate would clarify who gets to be governor AND lieutenant governor if there’s a vacancy. Senator Roby Smith of Bettendorf says the plan is good insurance for the state. “When you buy insurance, you hope you never have to use it,” Smith said. “This is something that’s insurance that we’re putting in the state constitution. I hope we never have to use it, but it’s there…if we need it or the next generation needs it.”

Questions arose when Terry Branstad resigned nearly 20 months ago and Kim Reynolds took over as governor. Iowa’s attorney general ruled Reynolds did not have authority to name a new lieutenant governor. Pete McRoberts worked for Governor Chet Culver a decade ago and he’s been working with legislators since last year to craft a constitutional response. “This is obviously not something that is limited to any one governor, but the good news is when questions like this gets in the news, constitutional defects and constitutional opportunities become very obvious,” McRoberts says.

A year ago legislators overwhelmingly endorsed a proposed constitutional amendment on the topic, but the secretary of state failed to publish the plan in newspapers last fall, which is required by law. Senator Smith is working to change that. “In general, if a secretary of state does not want a constitutional amendment to go on to the voters, he or she could just pocket it and not publish it in the newspaper,” Smith says. “I don’t think that’s what we wanted when we set this up years ago.”

Smith envisions having a non-partisan legislative agency submit proposed constitutional amendments to newspapers for publication AND have the proposals posted online. 2022 is the earliest THIS constitutional amendment about gubernatorial succession could be voted upon by Iowans.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Former Attorney Gen. Eric Holder said Tuesday he is in the final stages of deciding whether to seek the 2020 Democratic nomination for president and plans to decide in about a month.
“I’m going to sit down with my family very soon and decide whether this is something we’re going to seek,” Holder told reporters after headlining a voting rights forum at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.
Holder met privately with Democratic legislative leaders to discuss voting rights and legislative redistricting, key areas of Holder’s concern, before the 90-minute back-and-forth with former Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Marsha Ternus.

Asked by reporters whether there is a place for him in a Democratic field that already includes nine declared candidates and many others exploring the race, he said, “I’m going to decide whether I’m going to try to find that space in the next month or so.” Holder said he has met with former President Barack Obama, in whose administration he served from 2009 to 2015, to discuss a presidential candidacy.

Holder, the nation’s third longest-serving attorney general, has been active since leaving the Justice Department four years ago. As chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, Holder has sued states over voting rights issues and legislative redistricting.

Police in Council Bluffs were called at around 3:46-p.m., to assist paramedics at 43 Wenwood Drive. Upon arrival, officers learned there was a man inside the residence needing both medical and psychological care. He had barricaded himself in the house and was in possession of firearms. Emergency Services Team (EST) and Crisis Negotiators were called in to assist.

Negotiators spoke with the man on the phone for roughly two and a half hours before he peacefully surrendered. He was then taken to a local hospital for evaluation. Due to his needs being medical in nature, authorities are not releasing his identity at this time.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:35 a.m. CST

OSCEOLA, Iowa (AP) — South-central Iowa authorities are investigating after dozens of head of cattle were found starved to death on property near Osceola. The Des Moines Register reports that the farmer who was supposed to be caring for the cattle could face charges. The Clarke County Sheriff’s Office says about 40 to 50 dead cattle were found Friday on a property about 4 miles west of Osceola. Chief Deputy Lucas Darby says a local veterinarian told authorities the animals appeared to have starved to death.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa has repaid $1,900 to the Office of Tax and Revenue after a newspaper questioned her about a tax break she had been claiming on her condo in Washington for years. The Des Moines Register, which brought the issue to Ernst’s attention, reports that she wrote a check to the agency’s Washington, D.C. office last week. An Ernst spokesman says the homestead tax credit claim was made in error and immediately returned when it was brought to the senator’s attention.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says she favors current state law that requires gun holders to obtain a permit but is monitoring a legislative proposal to eliminate the requirement to obtain a permit to buy or carry a handgun. Reynolds, when asked Tuesday about the bill moving its way through the Senate committee process, said she was in the Senate when she voted for the 2010 bill that updated the state’s gun permit process, which includes background checks and requires weapons training.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa House has approved an education funding measure that provides a 2 percent increase in state per-pupil funding for the budget year beginning in July. The bill approved Monday night would boost per-pupil support from the state general fund to nearly $3.3 billion, but education advocates say at least a 3 percent increase is needed to keep up with inflation. The Senate hasn’t yet approved an education funding bill.

OSCEOLA, Iowa (AP) — South-central Iowa authorities are investigating after dozens of head of cattle were found starved to death on property near Osceola. The Des Moines Register reports that the farmer who was supposed to be caring for the cattle could face charges. The Clarke County Sheriff’s Office says about 40 to 50 dead cattle were found Friday on a property about 4 miles west of Osceola. Chief Deputy Lucas Darby says a local veterinarian told authorities the animals appeared to have starved to death.

Darby says the farmer was tending to the property but did not own the land on which the cattle were found. Officials say someone reported the dead animals to authorities.

The Atlantic School Board will meet 5:30-p.m. Wednesday in the MIDDLE SCHOOL MEDIA CENTER. During their open session, the Board will discuss a Collective Bargaining Proposal from the Atlantic Education Association for the 2019-2020 School Year. Immediately following the AEA’s initial proposal, the Board of Directors will enter into an exempt (Closed) session for “Negotiating session, strategy meetings of public employers or employee organizations, mediations and the deliberative process of arbitrators, as allowed under the Iowa Code.

When they reconvene in a public session at 6-p.m., the Board will act on the resignation of Ann Hinton (Bus monitor & Special Education Driver), as well as approving contracts for:

• Pamela Klar (a change from Class II Para to Class I para)
• Tony Sunderman, Substitue Bus Driver
• Jill Miller, Schuler Elementary Special Ed teacher (transfer – 2019-20)
• Oran Perkins (9th grade Baseball Coach and Head Boys Soccer Coach
• and Robert Hansen (JV Baseball)

They’ll also discuss the 2019-2020 School Calendar, which tentatively calls for Teacher In-Service Aug. 20-22, and the first day of school on Aug. 23rd, 2019. Spring Break is proposed for March 23-27, 2020, and the last day of school as May 27, 2020. Other, scheduled breaks include: Labor Day (Sept. 2nd, 2019); Thanksgiving, Nov. 28-29, 2019; Christmas 2019/New Years 2020, 12/23-1/3; Feb. 20-21, 2020 (Following Parent-Teacher Conferences on Feb. 19th); and Good Friday (April 10, 2020).

It’s expected the Board will set the date for a Public Hearing on the 2019-2020 Calendar, as during their regular meeting in March.  Immediately following adjournment of their regular meeting, the Atlantic School Board will enter into a closed session for negotiations strategy and related matters.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says she favors current state law that requires gun holders to obtain a permit but is monitoring a legislative proposal to eliminate the requirement to obtain a permit to buy or carry a handgun. Reynolds, when asked Tuesday about the bill moving its way through the Senate committee process, said when she was in the Senate she voted for the 2010 bill that updated the state’s gun permit process, which includes background checks and requires weapons training. She says background checks are needed but she’s watching the current bill that would do away with permits to see how it develops.

Supporters of the proposal say requiring permits and fees to own a gun contradicts the constitutional right to keep and bear arms. Opponents say it’s dangerous to eliminate permits and the accompanying background checks for gun show and person-to-person handgun sales. The Republican governor says she doesn’t have a permit to carry a handgun but would like to get one when she finds the time.

The Atlantic City Council will hold a special session 6:15-p.m. Wednesday at City Hall, to make a decision with regard to ownership of the Atlantic Senior Center. City Administrator John Lund says the Council has three options to consider before making their decision.

Option 1 – Eliminate the 13.5-cent per $1,000 property valuation tax levy from the budget, and Solicit Sealed bids for the building “As-is”. (Under this option, the Council cannot later change its mind and sell the building without leaving the roof to deteriorate, until July 2020).

Option 2 – Maintain the tax levy; Solicit sealed bids for the building with a repaired roof; Repair the roof in July 2019; collect taxes to repair the roof throughout the FY 2020 cycle; and sell the building in July 2020. Lund notes the Council cannot deactivate the levy or sell earlier than July 2020 under Option 2, but they can choose to reject all bids and keep the building without consequence.

Option 3 – Maintain a Tax Levy; Choose to keep the building; repair the roof in July 2019; and Collect taxes to repair the roof through the FY 2020 cycle. The Council may choose to sell the building anytime after July 2020, but may not sell it sooner, under this option.

Not an option: Eliminate the tax levy from the budget AND decide not to sell the building OR solicit bids…but reject all bids and reconsider the sale. Expect roof to be repaired by the City prior to July 2020 if the levy is not activated (Which is a decision that must be done Feb. 20, 2019).

Lund says “If the Council remains uncomfortable committing to the sale of the property, no action needs to be taken, but the budget will retain the property tax levy and the earliest date the City could sell the property if it reconsiders the decision, would be July 2020. Lund will recommend the Council act on Option 1, which will restore the Employee Benefits Levy to its current rate. If a motion to that effect fails, he will interpret it to mean the City wishes to maintain ownership and wishes to see the roof repaired. If the Council wishes to sell the building but fix the roof first, that will bind them to that decision, as the levy will remain intact and the sale delayed until repairs are completed.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County say they were notified at around 5:45-a.m. today (Tuesday), about a County Secondary Roads dump truck that had rolled over on 200th Street, about one-quarter of a mile west of Q Avenue. The driver had been clearing snow from the north shoulder of the road and got too close to the ditch. As the driver nearly stopped all forward motion, the truck tipped over into the ditch and came to rest on the driver’s side.

When the truck was removed from the ditch, it was determined that the snow had prevented any significant damage to the truck, and there was minimal damage to a fence, due to the fact sand was dumped onto it from the truck’s box. Damages amounted to less than $1,000.

The Harlan Police Department reports three people were arrested on drug charges last Thursday: 29-year old Brett Fredrick Mohr, of Harlan, was arrested following a traffic stop. Mohr was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with driving while barred, prohibited acts penalties, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia; 38-year old Brianna Lynn Shinrock, of Elk Horn, NE, was arrested following a traffic stop. Shinrock was transported to the Shelby County Jail where she was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia; and, 35-year old Jason R Hutfless, of Omaha, NE, was arrested following a traffic stop. Hutfless was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and carrying weapons.

This past Sunday, 32-year old Blake Ashley Behrens, of Omaha, NE, was arrested in Harlan, following a call for a disturbance. He was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with public intoxication.