DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Senate Democrats have given preliminary approval to legislation that would boost school funding above the level sought by the governor. A set of education funding bills received subcommittee approval in the Democratic-majority Senate Wednesday. Under the proposal, school aid would increase by more than $200 million for the upcoming school year. That’s more than double the amount supported by the Republican-controlled House and by Gov. Terry Branstad. The legislation will now move to the full Senate Education Committee for review.

Lawmakers say the schools need more support. Sen. Tod Bowman, a Democrat from Maquoketa, says the state must do better for students. Legislators will have to work to find a compromise. House Republicans contend the state cannot afford a significant increase for schools, given existing budget commitments.

A two-vehicle accident that took place Tuesday afternoon near the Griswold High School caused $3,500 damage, but no one was injured. The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says they were notified of the incident at around 3:30-p.m.

Officials say the accident happened on Highway 48, as a 1999 Chevy Silverado driven by 22-year old Nolan Ryan Nielsen, of Walnut, was stopped in a line of traffic headed northbound. 18-year old Brody Adam Main, of Griswold, was attempting to exit the parking lot from the high school, when the 1994 Ford Mustang he was driving slid through the stop sign, and struck Nielsen’s vehicle in the driver’s side.

Icy road conditions were to blame for the accident. No citations were issued.

The Union County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on Tuesday, of 38-year old Sara Nicole Exline, of Afton. She was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center in Creston at around 10:30-a.m. Tuesday, on a Union County warrant charging her with 5th degree theft. Exline plead guilty to the charge and was released from custody.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office is reporting citizens in the county have been receiving phone calls from someone claiming to be from the Page County Sheriff’s Office or another Law Enforcement entity. The number on caller ID sometimes even shows that it is from the Law Enforcement entity. The caller claims there is a warrant or some type of criminal / civil litigation against the person and they need to call back to another number right a way to avoid jail and/or prosecution. If the number given is called back, the person on the line will request some sort of payment via any type of payment method. Authorities say THIS IS A SCAM.

Law Enforcement does NOT call if there is a warrant or litigation to obtain money. We serve papers and warrants in person and do not handle these matters over the phone.

Sheriff Lyle Palmer warns against falling victim to the scammers. He says if you do it is very unlikely that you will ever get your money back as the caller is usually from out of the United States. Tracking the culprits down is virtually impossible. If they can show that they are calling from a Law Enforcement entity, they can change to whatever number they want. If you do receive those type of phone calls,  call your local Law Enforcement agency.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office has released more information about an injury accident that took place late Tuesday morning near Council Bluffs. Officials say the Sheriff’s Office received a call about at around 11:27-a.m. about a two vehicle head on collision that occurred on Highway 6 near the intersection of 238th street in rural Pottawattamie County.

Deputies arrived within minutes to find a 2005 Ford E250 Econoline van spun and in the middle
of the highway and a 2001 Subaru Legacy down an embankment in the south side ditch. An early
investigation of the accident indicated that the west bound Econoline van driven by 34-year old Tommy Manheim, of Ralston, NE., encountered a slick portion of roadway, fishtailed then crossed the center line of the highway striking the east bound Subaru Legacy driven by21-year old  Stephen Formhals, of Hastings, Iowa.

Formhals was extricated from his vehicle and flown to University of Nebraska Medical Center, where h was listed in critical condition. Manheim was said to have been uninjured. The accidentremains under investigation.

The Superintendent of the Nodaway Valley School District was disappointed that an $8.8-million dollar bond measure failed to garner the necessary percentage of voter approval, Tuesday, but Dr. Casey Berlau told KJAN News the need for a more modern building remains, and will likely be brought up for a vote at a later date.

Dr. Casey Berlau, Superintendent at Nodaway Valley

He says in the months to come, they will talk with district patrons and get a better feeling for what concerns they have and how they might address them, along with making any adjustments to the plan before the next time the measure is put before the voters.

The bond would have been used to build and equip a new elementary building and improve the site in the Nodaway Valley School District. Unofficial results from the Adair County Auditor’s Office show that while there were 397 “Yes” votes to 283 “No” votes for the $8.8-million dollar referendum, the measure needed 60-percent approval in order to pass. It received 58.4-percent. There were a total of 680 votes cast out of the 3,004 registered voters in the district, or about a 23-percent turnout.

Berlau said a couple of informational meetings were held prior to the vote, and the necessary information was available on the district’s website, but there wasn’t much in the line of concern from the public over the cost and taxation. He said there was a good turnout at the last meeting in Greenfield, and the questions they received tended to lean toward the design and location of the building.

Berlau said the building will still need to be replaced or undergo extensive renovations, sometime soon. He said “We have to do something in the coming years whether it’s build new or address the needs that our current building has. At this point I think our board probably still stands behind their position that it makes more sense to build new, then to dump significant money, over 6-million dollars…which is probably pretty conservative…into a 1955 building.”

In fact, officials have said it would cost $6.5-million to renovate the existing facility, which is not energy efficient, is difficult to maintain, and not ADA compliant. The new structure would have included a safe room/storm shelter, and met all energy efficiency and ADA requirements.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Any disciplinary action taken against two Iowa State Patrol supervisors for highly publicized missteps while off-duty did not affect their pay. Iowa Department of Public Safety spokesman Alex Murphy said Wednesday the internal investigations into Lt. Kelly Hindman and Capt. Ken Clary have been concluded.

Hindman faced scrutiny after joking on Facebook that he wished a sniper would shoot ESPN basketball announcer Dan Dakich in the head. He leads the patrol’s Fort Dodge office. Clary was investigated after being pulled over by a trooper for driving 92 miles per hour in a 70-mph zone and initially let go without a ticket. Murphy said both matters were addressed, but that he couldn’t elaborate because they’re confidential. He confirmed their pay wasn’t cut.

Clary earned $97,000 while Hindman earned $94,000 last year.

An accident this morning on eastbound Interstate 80 just west of Walnut, has traffic reduced to one-lane this morning. The Iowa DOT reports the left lane is blocked between Exit 40 (U-S Hwy 59) and Exit 46 (County Road M-47) , near Walnut. (update 9:16-a.m.)

More area news from Ric Hanson.

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(update 8:58-a.m.)

Police in Creston report a car that was stolen in the community Tuesday afternoon was recovered this (Wednesday) morning at 8:30-a.m. in an alley located in the 400 block of south Cherry Street. A resident had reported to authorities his 2006 Chevy Malibu was stolen from 406 Union Street sometime between 4-pm and 8:20-p.m., Tuesday. The keys were in the car and the tank was full of gas.

And, a resident at 315 south Walnut Street in Creston told police that “The Can Place” at 202 Russell Street had been broken into sometime between 5-p.m. Monday and 10-a.m. Tuesday. Quarters and dimes were stolen. The loss was estimated at $25.