Democrat Governor Tom Vilsack says the republican budget plan that cleared the Iowa Senate late last night isn’t sufficient. Vilsack calls it “a work in progress” while republicans say it is their final offer, and the House will next week endorse the plan without making any changes. Vilsack says changes are in order. Vilsack says he wants to “get as much resource for education as we possibly can.” And he accuses republicans of providing only half as much money as is necessary to provide state-paid health care to poor, disabled and elderly Iowans who get Medicaid benefits. Vilsack says the G-O-P Medicaid budget is a six-month, not a 12-month plan.The Governor signed a bill into law this morning that creates an Iowa Commission on Asians and Pacific Islanders. Vilsack says the move shows Iowa is an “inclusive” place. Vilsack says today in the world, there are places where a single religion, a single philosophy, a single thought-process dominates and young people are educated to believe there is only one way to think, believe and act. He says because of that, the world is a much more dangerous place than it needs to be.Vilsack says “America is strong enough and tolerant enough to have groups from different cultures, from different parts of the world become part of the American fabric.” Vilsack wore a suit he purchased in Taiwan for the event. While the bill created the new commission, it did not provide the money for its operation. Vilsack says finding the money is the next challenge. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are 1,009 native Hawaii and other Pacific islanders living in Iowa and 36,635 natives of Asia are residents of the state.
Western Iowa housefire may be due to meth lab
Authorities say an explosion and house fire in western Iowa yesterday may’ve been caused by criminals making illegal drugs. The rural home was located between Charter Oak and Denison in Crawford County. Investigators say the blast and fire last night may have been caused by a methamphetamine lab, though no one was reported hurt and no arrests have been made.
Adubon County approves sales tax
Audubon County voters have approved a one-cent local option sales and services tax for area schools. More than 600 people voted yesterday with the measure passing by a margin of 518-to-104. The tax will be in effect for ten years and is expected to generate more than four-and-a-half million dollars for use in financing rebuilding and other projects in the following school systems: Audubon, Exira and Elkhorn-Kimballton.
Measles outbreak shows need for vaccinations
State Health officials say the outbreak of measles in the state is a prime example of why they preach proper vaccination for all Iowans. State Epidemiologist Patricia Quinlisk says the person who brought measles in had been traveling in India, and then spread it to two other people who hadn’t already had the disease, or been vaccinated. She says that’s about the only way measles would spread as measles has been irradicated in the U.S. Dr. Quinlisk says if your vaccinations are up-to-date, it won’t matter if someone brings in measles from outside the country. Quinlisk says the last known case of measles in Iowa five or six years ago died out quickly because everyone who came into contact with the victim had been vaccinated. Quinlisk says if you were born in 1957 or later you should check your records to see if you’ve been vaccinated. And she says it won’t hurt you if you’ve been vaccinated and do it again.She says when she went out on her first measles outbreak she called her mother to see if she’d been exposed. Her mom wasn’t sure, so she had the vaccination. She says all an extra dose will do is give you more protection. She says they aren’t worried about the vaccine supply. She says since all schoolchildren are vaccinated, the vaccine is readily available. She says they did have to get more immune globulin — or antibodies given to people who’re pregnant or have another type of illness and can’t take the vaccine. She says you need at least two doses to ensure you’re safe from contracting the disease.
Some plants California plants banned for fear of disease
The head of Iowa’s state agriculture department is banning the importation of some plants, to try and keep a serious tree disease from making its way into the state. Ag Secretary Patty Judge says it isn’t really her ban, she says it’s a federal quarantine in fact, as the U.S.D.A. has banned the movement of certain stock from California nurseries because plants may carry a fungus that causes a disease called sudden oak death. If you weren’t planning some landscaping, you may not notice the quarantine. It’s a long list, 59 products from camellias to hazelnut trees, and even poison oak though she can’t imagine why you’d import that. Judge says local dealers know about the ban and are complying. Judge remembers the terrible toll Dutch Elm Disease took in Iowa years ago, and says this quarantine on imported plants, shrubs and trees is to make sure we don’t go through the same loss with oak trees. For the full list of quarantined plants, visit the ag department’s website at http://www.agriculture.state.ia.us/newsroom.htm
Statewide tornado drill scheduled for today
There will be a statewide tornado drill this morning (Wednesday) as part of Severe Weather Awareness Week in Iowa. Tornadoes are most likely to form during the late afternoon and early evening hours during the months of April, May, and June. National Weather Service warning coordinator Jeff Johnson says tornadoes can spawn with very little warning when the atmospheric conditions are just right.Johnson says less than 10-percent of thunderstorms have the capability to create tornadoes. Johnson says many storms produce multiple tornadoes.He says when the atmospheric conditions are favorable, they have what’re called outbreaks of tornadoes. The statewide tornado drill will start at 10 o’clock this morning (Wednesday) with a test tornado watch, followed shortly by a test tornado warning. Johnson says it’s a good reminder for emergency managers and the general public to get ready for severe weather season. He says its a good time to test out systems for warnings and make sure everyone knows what to do in the case of a tornado. Sixty-two Iowans have been killed and another 11-hundred-35 have been injured as the result of a tornado since 1960, but the state has been very fortunate in the last few years. In 2002 and 2003, there were 59 confirmed tornadoes, but none of those caused an injury or death. That was after 105 tornadoes touched down in 2001, killing two and injuring 12.
Protection against cold weather power shut offs is almost over
The deadline’s upon you for paying past-due power bills. Jerry McKim’s Chief of Iowa’s Bureau of Energy Assistance Bureau says the first of the month means the end for clients who signed up for low-income energy assistance hoping to avoid shutoff. As of April 1 the moratorium ends, so people will be facing disconnection and the only way to avert that is set up some kind of payment plan with their local power company. McKim says the number of people in LIHEAP, the low-income heating energy assistance program, is approaching the all-time record marked in the winter of 2001. As of February there 23,688 LIHEAP recipients who were behind on bills totaling more than 7-point-six-Million dollars, highest in the last half-dozen years, disconcerting since the numbers always rise more in March. More bad news — McKim says analysts all predict high heating prices for the next few years. The best-case scenario is record numbers of households entering into payment plans with their utilities, but they’re likely to still be carrying significant debt when they head into the next heating season. McKim says it’s worth signing up for the LIHEAP program, even though it offers only a once-a-year payment for part of a power bill. There may be people who are eligible and haven’t applied, and they can still do that through April 15 — though it won’t protect you from disconnection but it’ll get you a little extra money to put toward your past-due amount.
