May 16, 2012

You are here: Home / 2006 / June / Archives for 16th

Iowa’s unemployment rate drops in May

June 16, 2006 By

The latest numbers show Iowa’s unemployment rate continues to edge down — hitting its lowest level in nearly five years. Ann Wagner is a labor analyst with Iowa Workforce Development. She says the seasonally adjusted rate for the state dropped to three-point-four percent — the lowest rate since September of 2001 when it hit the same rate.

That rate is down from three-point-six percent in April and well below the four-point-six percent rate of one year ago. Wagner says Iowans headed to work in record numbers in May as the number of working Iowans hit a record of one-million-622-thousand-200. Wagner says the number of non-farm jobs also hit a record of one-million-504-thousand-700.

Wagner says there appears to be a variety of new jobs that helped to push down the unemployment rate. She says the largest gain was in manufacturing, followed by trade and transportation, government and finance jobs.

Wagner says the growth in jobs this year has been slow but steady. Wagner says non-farm jobs were up a little over 26-thousand. She says construction, education and health, manufacturing, professional and business services made up the areas with the largest gains. The U.S. unemployment rate slipped to a five-year low of four-point-six percent in May.

Filed Under: Business Tagged With:

U-N-I to hold graduation in Hong Kong

June 16, 2006 By

A first-ever graduation ceremony for the University of Northern Iowa will take place this weekend — in Hong Kong. The College of Business Administration at U-N-I provides a Master of Business Administration in the Wan Chai district of Hong Kong. Several U-N-I faculty members teach an on site course that can be completed in about a year.

Forty-five students will participate in this year’s ceremony which will be held Sunday in Hong Kong. More than 60 students have graduated from the internationally-accredited program since it started in May 2003. Although new U-N-I President Benjamin Allen assumed the duties of president June fifth, retiring President Robert Koob will be on hand as his last official presidential duty.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With:

West Nile Virus found in three counties

June 16, 2006 By

The state Health Department says it has confirmed the West Nile Virus in three dead birds found in Johnson, Linn and Lyon Counties. Health Department spokesperson

Nicole Peckumn says they’re asking you to take some steps to “Fight the Bite” of mosquitoes to help prevent the spread of West Nile. She says you should use insect repellent with the chemical “DEET” , avoid being outdoors at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active, and remove standing water from around your yard and home to get rid of the mosquito breeding grounds.

Peckumn says West Nile usually causes no symptoms in most people, but approximately 20 percent will have mild to moderate symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches and vomiting.

Peckumn says older Iowans are more susceptible to the virus. She says people over 50 have an increased risk for complications from the virus, and people of that age or older should take all the appropriate precautions.

Peckumn says West Nile can be deadly in some cases. Peckumn says two Iowans died from West Nile last year and 35 people got sick from the virus. The Iowa Department of Public Health has a toll-free hotline with West Nile information. The number is 866-WNV-Iowa (1-866-968-4692).

Filed Under: Health & Medicine

Grinnell man charged with seeking underage sex on the Internet

June 16, 2006 By

A Grinnell man is facing a charge for allegedly using the Internet to arrange sex with a minor. Cedar Falls police say 38-year-old Kenneth Johnson Junior used a chat room to contact a girl, who he thought was 15-years old, for the purpose of having sex. The girl was an undercover Cedar Falls police officer conducting an on-line investigation.

Police say several messages Johnson wrote were sexual in nature and he arranged to meet the girl in Cedar Falls. Police arrested Johnson Thursday at the pre-arranged meeting place. He’s charged with enticing away a minor.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

Man arrested after standoff in Grinnell

June 16, 2006 By

A man wanted on drug charges in the Des Moines area is jailed after a standoff in Grinnell. Police say the incident started last night about 6:30 at a home in Grinnell when a bail bondsman needed to locate a man wanted on arrest warrants. On arrival, officers saw 39-year-old David Abbott of Urbandale flee from the garage and into the house.

Police contacted the owner of the home, who wasn’t in the house. He told police Abbott could be armed and depressed. Nearby houses were evacuated and a tactical team was brought in. About an hour and a half later, Abbott came out, unarmed, and was taken into custody. A search turned up a weapon and drug paraphernalia.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

A-G says veto override may be illegal in special session

June 16, 2006 By

As pressure mounts on statehouse Democrats to override the governor’s veto on a property rights bill, the Attorney General’s office warns it would probably be illegal. The Iowa Farm Bureau has been calling democratic lawmakers all week, urging them to return for a special session.

But Iowa Deputy Attorney General Julie Pottorff says a legal opinion issued in 1998 says the Legislature cannot override a veto once the session is over. “They could take it up again in a special session. The distinct here…is that they can’t over-ride the prior veto,” Pottorff says. “They could reenact the bill, and the governor has the option of vetoing it once again.”

Legislators would have the option of passing the same bill, but the attorney general’s advice is that the governor could just veto it again. Opponents want the legislature to override the governor’s veto of a bill that restricted local governments’ ability to seize private property for economic development.

If the Legislature re-enacts the bill and the governor does veto it a second time, lawmakers could then vote to override that veto as long as they remain in special session. “This is the advice and position of our office,” Pottorff says. “We would hope officials act in accordance with it, but we cannot force them to do so.”

The earlier opinion, however, may signal that it wouldn’t be wise to try an override now adjournment has passed. “If that happens then ultimately a court will decide” the dispute according to Pottorff.

House Republican leaders sent out letters earlier this month asking House members to return for special session and House Democrats will announce their decision at a news conference late this (Friday) morning. The property rights bill was initially approved with broad support from both parties.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts Tagged With: ,

Des Moines based magazine expanding to China

June 16, 2006 By

Iowans with award-winning gardens could soon find themselves getting e-mail from admirers in China. Des Moines-based Meredith Corporation is publishing a 300-page Chinese edition of the magazine Better Homes and Gardens. It’s being launched this week on newsstands across China, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Meredith spokeswoman Megan Boettcher says it’s a natural expansion for the publishing house. Boettcher says almost everyone in the U.S. knows the magazine but there’s a lot of content and home and family expertise that’s very easily applicable to people in other countries in Asia, Latin America or Europe. She says “We try to target what would be the greatest growth opportunity for us and there’s just a whole world out there that could use the content that we have.”

Boettcher says Meredith has partnered with a Chinese media company to launch the magazine in the world’s most populous nation. She says that company creates a lot of its own local content so people in China can read about trends and styles in their own country, but they also have information and content that comes from the parent company here in the U.S.

Boettcher says that means the fragrant flowers and luxurious landscapes some Iowans create in their backyard gardens could end up being seen by a much wider audience. She says “Yes, it’s very possible that images you see either from our own Better Homes and Gardens or gardens that we go out to here in the United States, especially Iowa, could appear across the world over in China.”

The magazine already has nearly 40-million monthly readers in the U.S. Boettcher says Meredith has branched out in the past year into several international markets and is now publishing magazines like Better Homes and Gardens Australia, a French version in Canada, Parents China and Fitness China. For more information, surf to “www.meredith.com”.

Filed Under: Business
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »