The senior guard averaged 27 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals in a pair of wins. Paige scored 37 points on 14-of-22 shooting, added seven rebounds, four assists and eight steals in a win over Waterloo Columbus.
Class 2A: Mackenzie Small, Hinton
January 20, 2010 By
The junior guard averaged 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in a pair of victories. Small scored 20 points and added seven rebounds, six assists and eight steals in a win over West Sioux. She connected on 12-of-14 from the free throw line.
Governor signs three education bills into law
January 20, 2010 By
Governor Chet Culver (file photo)
The governor has signed three education-related bills into law. The first forces the state’s K-through-12 public schools to dip into their cash reserves first before they hike property taxes to cover a reduction in state aid.
That reduction is the result of the 10%, across-the-board spending cut Governor Culver ordered in October.
“We think this is a fair requirement during these challenging fiscal times to ask the 361 school districts to spend down a portion of their cash reserves before they look at any option related to property tax increase,” Culver says.
Class 1A: Susan Kies, Newell-Fonda
January 20, 2010 By
The senior guard averaged nearly 26 points and six rebounds in three wins. Kies posted a double-double in a victory over Estherville/Lincoln Central with 32 points and 10 rebounds. For the week she connected on nearly 70 percent from the field.
Atlantic man charged in baby’s death
January 20, 2010 By
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation is looking into the death of an infant from Atlantic Saturday at a hospital in Omaha. The investigation began following an emergency call to a residence in the community, about a two-month old child who was not breathing.
The infant, Oren T. Ashby, was brought to the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic, before being transferred to Nebraska Children’s Hospital, where he died. Doctors at the hospital found evidence of abuse, and notified Atlantic Police. Medical reports and interviews with the child’s father, 24-year old Mathew Donald Ashby, of Atlantic, resulted in his arrest on felony charges that include Child Endangerment and Assault.
Ashby was brought to the Cass County Jail and held pending an appearance before the magistrate.
By Ric Hanson, KJAN, Atlantic
Governor says closing of Morrell plant is “heartbreaking”
January 20, 2010 By
Governor Chet Culver uses the word “heartbreaking” to describe the closure of the John Morrell Plant in Sioux City. Culver says the news is heartbreaking to him, “to northwest Iowa, and especially to the 1,400 workers” at the plant who’ll be losing their jobs.
“We will be working with the employees at John Morrell. Obviously, we’re concerned with the announcement,” Culver says. “The Department of Workforce Development will deploy any and all resources to assist and our director, Liz Buck, is already working with the personnel team at the Morrell plant on doing all we can to help.”
Smithfield Farms, the Virginia based company that is the world’s largest hog producer, purchased John Morrell in 1997. In a prepared statement, Culver said Smithfield still employs 3,500 people in Iowa and, as governor, he will “continue to do everything in (his) power to ensure these employees have a good-paying job for themselves and their families.”
The John Morrell plant in Sioux City slaughters about 10,000 hogs per day. It’s set to close April 20th. Smithfield executives have said declining pork prices were a factor in their decision. State officials indicate the age of the facility was another factor in the closure. The governor spoke briefly about the Sioux City plant closing this morning after a formal bill signing in his statehouse office.
“And I will be traveling there (to Sioux City) in the near future to do what I can to assist personally in this matter,” Culver said. “And I’ll also be going to Webster City to meet with the Electrolux employees.” Chiquita — a previous owner of the John Morrell plant in Sioux City — announced in 1993 that it would close the plant, but city leaders arranged a loan for the company to buy new equipment and the plant did not close.
The plant began slaughter operations in 1957 as Sioux City Dressed Pork. Morrell bought the facility in 1986.
Lawmakers consider early retirement payout to state employees
January 20, 2010 By
Long-time state employees who choose to retire early could receive a $25,000 bonus under legislation being considered at the statehouse. The incentive package approved by the Senate State Government Committee on Tuesday would provide those who choose to retire early with five years of health insurance as well as a payment to cover all their unused vacation.
Those who’ve been on the job more than ten years would get a $1,000 bonus for every year of service, up to 25 years. Senator Staci Appel, a Democrat from Ackworth, is chair of the committee which has given its approval to the early retirement plan. “We’ve got 2,261 employees that are eligible to go and this helps them make a decision to move on,” she says.
A consultant hired by the governor estimates the incentive package would save the state 60 million dollars a year. Democrats on the committee supported the package, while all the Republicans on the panel voted against it. Senator Jerry Behn, a Republican from Boone, suggests the savings are overstated.
“If you allow, for example, a prison guard (to retire), alright, you have to replace a prison guard. You can’t do without him,” Behn says. “So if you allow them to retire early and they just replace that position, you don’t get a fraction of the savings that are projected here.” Critics of early retirement plans of the past pointed to the number of state workers who retired, but then were rehired to do the same work. Senator Appel says the new plan forbids that.
“And it states right in the bill that you cannot be rehired by the state and you can’t come back as a consultant or as a contractor,” she says. “We’re very strict in this bill.” The consulting firm the governor hired predicts about half of the state employees who would be eligible for the early retirement incentives would take the offer.
