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Iowa gas prices continue to fall

July 16, 2009 By

The latest survey from the state shows motorists are saving around a quarter per gallon compared to one month ago when they top off their gas tank.

Jessica Zopf is a spokesperson for the Iowa Office of Energy Independence . She says regular unleaded fuel with 10-percent ethanol is averaging $2.31 per gallon in Iowa. That’s down 25-cents from the survey in mid-June.

Gas prices have been falling across the U.S. for three straight weeks, with Midwest states like Iowa seeing the biggest drops. Zopf credits recent reports predicting a slow economic recovery. She says the news that the economic recovery may be slower than once thought has led to a dip in demand for fuel.

July is an usual time for gas prices to be falling. "We typically see an increase (in July) because of the summer travel," Zopf said. The average price for a gallon of E-10 gas in Iowa right now is down 41% from one year ago. In July 2008, motorists were paying $3.93 per gallon.

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Audit finds families fudged addresses, got cheaper tuition

July 16, 2009 By

A special audit concludes the Malcolm Price Laboratory School at the University of Northern Iowa failed to collect a quarter of a million dollars in tuition from parents who enrolled their children in the school.

An internal audit of the Price Lab School in Cedar Falls identified concerns. State Auditor Dave Vaudt says the review of accounts his staff conducted found the school should have collected over $250,000 more in fees from families — including the family of a state representative. According to the auditor, Representative Kerry Burt’s family owes about $37,000 to the school.

It appears the school should have charged the families more because they lived outside of the basic attendance zone for students enrolled in the school. The school’s own director reported an incorrect address for his family for the last school year. As a result, his family as charged nearly $15,000 less than it should have paid, according to the auditor. 

The Des Moines Register reports that Dave Smith was director of the Price Lab School until last month when he took over as superintendent in Spririt Lake.

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Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Education, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Report: minorities have tougher time getting insurance

July 16, 2009 By

A report from the Iowa Citizen Action Network concludes the current health care system is discriminating against minorities.

State Senator Jack Hatch, a Democrat from Des Moines who is leading a White House group of state legislators working on health care reform, says a government-run "public option" is crucial if minorities are to get insurance coverage.

"The insurance company is not marketing to the uninsured. They’re not marketing to the low income and so a public option insurance plan is the only way for minority communities and lower income Iowans to have a choice and the option of being covered."

According to Hatch, minorities have fewer options when it comes to getting insurance.

"Their unemployment rate is higher and their jobs usually aren’t covered by health care benefit packages," Hatch says, "so by the very culture of the economics, minority communities have a disproportionate share of insurance options."

Hatch represents an area of Des Moines which has a high minority population. Hatch apologized earlier this year for using a racially-charged word as he talked with a fellow lawmaker, using the n-word to express frustration with legislative leaders.

Filed Under: Business, Health & Medicine, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Five counties make pitch for a casino license

July 16, 2009 By

Folks from five Iowa counties who hope to land a casino in their area made a pitch to state gambling regulators today, but there were critics, too, who said current casinos would see their profits slide if new casinos open in Iowa.

Boosters The largest contingent of casino boosters came from far northwest Iowa to support a proposed Lyon County casino. Twenty-eight people wearing bright green t-shirts boarded a bus in Larchwood at 1:30 this morning to attend the Racing and Gaming Commission meeting in suburban Des Moines.

Jeff Gallagher of Larchwood is president of the Lyon County Riverboat Foundation. "This project would have a significant impact on tourism and would be by far the most relevant project proposed for the state, "Gallagher said. "…The Lyon County resort would provide an opportunity to significantly increase Iowa’s (tax) revenue from an out-of-state source."

Mike Hobart The proposed casino would lie near the Iowa/South Dakota border and would be just one mile from the Minnesota border. Sioux City Mayor Mike Hobart suggested a casino in Lyon County would create an "imbalance" in northwest Iowa and eat into the profits of the casino in Sioux City.

"We are in a depressed economy right now, especially in northwestern Iowa. Casino Omaha is currently undergoing some financial problems," Hobart said. "I believe that we are saturated in that side of the state."

Gallagher, the casino-backer from Larchwood in Lyon County, offered a rebuttal.

"When looking at the market studies, the market strength of this project is not to the south, but to the west and to the north," Gallagher said. "To the south, the closest Iowa casino is an hour and a half away." That would be the Argosy casino, in Sioux City.

Sioux City’s mayor told state regulators that if Lyon County becomes home to a new casino, South Dakota might retaliate and put one a short drive away in Sioux Falls.

"South Dakota already has casino gaming in their state," Hobart said. "It’s not a stretch of the imagination to see that they would easily be able to create competition in the Sioux Falls area."

Debi Durham, president of the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce, argued a new casino in northwest Iowa would "saturate" the market and depress profits for the Argosy-owned casino in Sioux City.

"There’s been an attempt to minimize or even downplay the impact," Durham said. "…What clearly cannot be denied is there will be an impact, an adverse impact, to Argosy, Sioux City, Woodbury County…At a time when balancing governmental budgets is challenging enough, further reduction in revenues will most likely lead to either a decrease in services and/or higher taxes."

Other casino backers got to speak during a public comment period at this morning’s Racing and Gaming Commission meeting. Karen Mitchell represents Franklin County Development Association which lobbied back in 2004 for a license to open a casino near the Dows exit along Interstate-35.

"Franklin County has been waiting patiently a very long time for this opportunity and this opportunity is needed now more than ever," Mitchell said. "We have had two plant closings…We have had severe contractions in other manufacturing industries, so we need these jobs."

Seven people from Webster County spoke to the commission, lead by Fort Dodge Mayor Terry Lutz.

"As you can see from the people we have here today, Webster County is all in for gaming," Lutz said.

Webster County contingent Don Woodruff is chairman of the Development Corporation of Fort Dodge and Webster County.

"We cannot hope to compete for degreed individuals that we so desperately need to work and manage our new economy without improvements in entertainment and dining," Woodruff said. "For these very reasons we support the additional license (for Fort Dodge) as we feel, if done properly, it will provide us with good restaurants and entertainment beyond just gambling."

Ottumwa Mayor Dale Uehling was the last in the group of potential casino applicants to address the commission this morning.

"Ottumwa and Wapello County are still very much interested in a casino license," Uehling said, "and we think that there are some things that make us a prime candidate. We think we fit the criteria."

A representative of Tama County also addressed the Racing and Gaming Commission, asking for "an opportunity to tell (their) story" this fall when regulators consider new license applications.

The five-member Racing and Gaming Commission this morning set October 1st as the deadline for counties to submit casino applications.

Click on the audio link below to listen to all of those who spoke during the "public comment" period at this morning’s Racing and Gaming Commission meeting.

AUDIO: Public comment period…MP3 50 min.

Filed Under: Business, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , , ,

Braley discusses health care reform

July 16, 2009 By

Iowa Congressman Bruce Braley opened a conference call with reporters today by describing his life right now as "all health care, all the time." The Democrat from Waterloo serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee that’s taking up the massive health care reform bill this afternoon.

Braley says he’s spent the past several days working on plans to improve the bill. "Foremost among them is to improve the performance of Medicare – and in direct relation to that – the performance of any public plan," Braley said.

The plan House Democrats unveiled this week would make the federal government responsible for ensuring that all Americans have access to an affordable insurance plan. Braley was asked if private insurance companies would be able to survive the competition provided by a public government run system. "The harsh reality is the reason why we have nearly 50 million Americans without health insurance is because the private health insurance market has not been able to meet those needs," Braley said. "Many states, including Iowa, have a very limited number of private insurance plans that are available. Two companies make up 80-percent of the private insurance market in Iowa. In some states, one company has a monopoly on the private insurance market."

It’s believed the House Democratic plan would cost about $1.5 trillion over 10 years. A different health care reform bill is under consideration in the Senate.

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With:

Regulators warn they may decide against new casinos

July 16, 2009 By

The five-member Racing and Gaming Commission has unanimously decided to accept applications for new casinos in the state, but there’s no guarantee any applicant will get a license.

It’s likely the five Iowa counties which have already approved gambling referendums will apply to get casinos in their areas. Commission chairman Greg Seyfer of Cedar Rapids says it’s possible the commission will decide not to grant any new licenses in order to protect the profits of the current state-licensed casinos.

"I think TouchPlay taught us something, that the State of Iowa does not want gambling in every location," Seyfer said. Legislators pulled the plug on the Iowa Lottery’s TouchPlay machines after complaints.

According to Paul Hayes of Urbandale, another member of the commission, studies have shown there is "some marginal benefit" to adding new casinos, although the state is reaching a "saturation" point.

"I think that it means that it’s going to be a much more complicated process to granting new licenses than it has been in the past," Hayes said. "It’s not going to be as simple as pointing out all the wonderful economic development benefits to those counties that are seeking to have licenses granted in their county."

Commissioner Toni Urban of Des Moines was even more blunt, listing what she considers the drawbacks in each of the five counties which are likely casino applicants.

"And I believe that this commission is going to be very protective of the casinos that they have already opened," Urban said.

Commissioner Kate Cutler of Council Bluffs was a member of the commission in 2005 when regulators granted licenses for four new casinos.

"I obviously am supportive of opening the whole process up so we can look at what appears to be five applicants, maybe more," Cutler said. "…We don’t know what we’re going to see."

Commissioner Andrea Rivera-Harrison of Des Moines indicated "balance" would be important to her.

"A balance between those communities, a balance between the citizens of Iowa," Rivera-Harrison said, "and a balance and the sensitivity we need for those people who are potential victims of gambling addiction."

Click on the audio link below to listen to all of what the commissioners said on this subject during their meeting this morning.

Representatives from Lyon, Webster, Tama, Wapello and Franklin counties spoke briefly before the commission this morning, making a pitch for their projects. Voters in each of those counties have approved gambling referendums.

Applications from counties which have passed a gambling reference and which hope to land a new casino are due October 1.

AUDIO: Commissioner comments…MP3 17 min

Filed Under: Business, Politics & Government, Recreation & Entertainment Tagged With: , , , , ,

Mason City native charged in wife’s murder near KC

July 16, 2009 By

A murder late Tuesday in suburban Kansas City has left a Mason City native dead and another Mason City native jailed on a murder charge. The Kansas City Star newspaper reports that court records show that 37-year-old Michael Adams Junior is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 36-year-old Amber Hartwig. Both were 1991 graduates of Mason City High School.

Court records say that Hartwig’s 18-year-old daughter found her mother dead on the floor of the couple’s house with her father sitting next to her smoking a cigarette. Adams was also shot in the incident at about 10:30 PM in Belton, Missouri, which is about 20 miles south of downtown Kansas City. Police say they think Adams also shot himself and sustained a superficial wound to his chest after shooting Hartwig in the head with a 45-caliber handgun.

The court records say that on the night of the shootings, Adams attempted to jump from the car during a family trip to the grocery store and was restrained by his daughter. After returning home, Hartwig told the children she was leaving for the night and would take them with her. The daughter said that moments later she heard gunshots, called 9-1-1 and stated that Adams had shot Hartwig, with the dispatcher telling her to get her brother and get out of the house.

Adams apparently for a year or two had been considering a sex change operation as he was dressing as a woman, taking hormones to grow breasts, and was using the female name of Mischelle Sabrina Adams on his Facebook account.

 

Filed Under: Crime & Courts
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