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State on pace for low number of traffic deaths

December 30, 2011 By

The state of Iowa is on a pace to have one of the lowest highway death rates in years. As of Thursday (December 29), state numbers show there were 352 deaths,  or 32 below the total for 2010. It would be the fourth consecutive year the state has been below 400 traffic deaths.

Iowa State Patrol Captain, Mike Winter, says a lack of snow and ice have helped. “The weather has really cooperated with us this year, it looks like good weather this weekend and I think the same thing is going to prevail. I think the roads will be good, the weather’s going to be good. Everybody just needs to keep an eye on everybody else and hopefully drive safely,” Winter says.

He says the state patrol doesn’t have any special efforts planned for the holiday weekend. “The nice thing is over the last few years, the word usually gets out through the media, and it seems like everybody uses designated drivers over the New Year’s Ever holiday,” according to Winter.

Winter says the officers that are out will be on the lookout for people who are drinking and driving or committing other violations. “We just encourage everybody to drive safely, make sure you have a designated driver, and watch out for the other driver,” Winter says.

Today is expected to be a busy travel day with two Iowa teams playing in bowl games, according to Winter. There were 384 traffic deaths in the state in 2010, 368 in 2009, 398 in 2008 and 2007 was the last year over 400 with a total of 425.

Filed Under: Featured Story, Fires/Accidents/Disasters, News Tagged With:

$14 million lottery ticket claimed, winner remains mystery

December 30, 2011 By

Iowa Lottery CEO Terry Rich holding winning ticket

An Iowa Lottery ticket worth over $14 million was claimed Thursday — just a few hours before it would’ve expired. But, a mystery remains.

Iowa Lottery C.E.O. Terry Rich held the ticket in his hand as he spoke at a press conference. “This little baby, we’ve been looking for a while. An hour and 50 minutes before it was to expire, this came in,” Rich said.

The identity of the actual winner or winners, however, is still unknown.

The Hot Lotto ticket, purchased one year ago at a Des Moines gas station, was presented to the lottery by a representative of a Des Moines law firm on behalf of a trust. It’s unclear when officials might learn more about who bought the ticket and why the holder waited until the last day to claim the prize.

“We have no reason to believe that this has any implications of impropriety, except we just got it and we don’t know,” Rich said. “We just want to make sure we keep an open process and keep the integrity as high as possible.” The trust is identified as Hexam Investments Trust with Crawford Shaw, of Bedford, New York listed as the trustee.

The winning ticket now carries an annuity value of $14.29 million and a cash value of $10.75 million. Iowa Lottery Vice-President of Security Steve Bogle is in charge of an investigation into the ticket’s history.

 ”It’s our intention to find out that this ticket was legally purchased, legally possessed and legally presented,” Bogle said. “To do that, we will attempt to follow the trail from when it was brought in (Thursday) all the way back to the person who purchased it.”

Rich said the money won’t be awarded until that security process is complete. The winning ticket was presented at 2:10 p.m. Thursday. It would’ve expired at 4 p.m.

Filed Under: Featured Story, Human Interest, News Tagged With:

Predicting 2012 Caucus turn-out

December 30, 2011 By

About 120,000 Iowans participated in the Republican Party’s Caucuses in 2008. Iowa GOP chairman Matt Strawn has been asked many times in the past week if turn-out for the 2012 Caucuses will match that.

Strawn cites a variety of variables, like data that shows there are more registered Republican voters in Iowa today compared to four years ago. Strawn also points to the attendance at this summer’s Iowa Republican Party Straw Poll as an indicator.

“You didn’t have Romney, you didn’t have Perry, you didn’t have Gingrich participating at the Straw Poll, yet we had the second-largest turn-out ever,” Strawn told Radio Iowa. “Many people were predicting before the Straw Poll that it was going to be a lightly attended event. It was far from that.”

Finally, Strawn suggests Republicans, in general, are a motivated lot.

“The fact of the matter is it’s the first chance anywhere that Republicans have a chance to cast a vote to start replacing Barack Obama,” Strawn said. “So I think, all things being equal, the potential exists for a strong Republican turn-out.”

Craig Robinson, operator of the for-profit www.IowaRepublican.com, was the Iowa GOP’s political director in 2008. He is offering a prediction on turn-out. “I expect turn-out to be strong, around that 120,000 mark, but maybe not beat last caucuses’ totals.”

Strawn, the party chairman, concedes the barrage of negative campaign advertising on Iowa’s radio and television stations may “turn some voters off,” but Strawn says attendance at the Iowa Republican and Democratic Party Caucuses on Tuesday night is “one of the strongest arguments” Iowans can make for retaining the state’s lead-off status in the presidential selection process.

Iowa Democrats are holding Caucuses on Tuesday night, but with an incumbent president, the Democratic meetings have not garnered as much attention. President Obama’s campaign, however, has had eight offices operating throughout the state for months and Obama is scheduled to connect with Caucus-goers in a live video address on Tuesday night.

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

Tabulating the results at an “undisclosed location”

December 29, 2011 By

The Iowa Caucuses are just a few days away and while the candidates are engaged in a final flurry of campaigning, Iowa Republican Party officials have been hustling to lay final plans for the 1,774 precinct meetings on Tuesday night. 

Protesters have been showing up at the offices of Republican presidential candidates and the Iowa Democratic Party’s headquarters this week. An online video from “Anonymous” calls on protesters to “peacefully shut-down the First-in-the-Nation Caucuses on January 3.”

Iowa Republican Party officials say they’re been in contact with local law enforcement about security procedures at each Caucus site. The party also announced the tabulating of Caucus results has been moved to an “undisclosed location.” Craig Robinson, the political director of the Iowa GOP back in 2008, shares this perspective about that announcement. 

“It was kind of a new way in which to say, ‘Look, it’s secure and we’re taking it to an undisclosed location,’” Robinson said. “But to be honest, it’s always been undisclosed.”

The results of the 2008 Iowa Caucuses were tabulated out-of-state. The paper votes cast at each Caucus site are counted in front of representatives from each campaign, to monitor the process, then that same group of monitors watches and listens as the designated person at each site phones-in the results to an automated system.

Filed Under: Featured Story, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: ,

Red Cross ready to close the book on a busy 2011

December 29, 2011 By

A very busy year is drawing to a close for the American Red Cross chapter that covers western Iowa and eastern Nebraska. Agency spokeswoman Danelle Schlegelmilch says they were on their toes all through 2011.

“We responded to over 400 disasters in our area and we also sent 200 local volunteers out throughout the country to help out with the 137 big disasters that we had,” Schlegelmilch says. “Tornadoes, flooding, hurricanes, earthquakes and a little bit of everything under the sun this year.”

She says by far, the largest and longest disaster they had to deal with was the four-month Missouri River flood which socked the region.

“That really did hit us hard,” Schlegelmilch says. “We had 11 shelters open. We served over 23,000 meals and snacks and gave out 13,000 clean-up kits and clean-up items so it definitely kept us busy this summer.”

The Red Cross provided nearly 300 people with overnight lodging at the shelters during the flood. Also during the year, Schlegelmilch says they responded to several tornadoes that plowed through neighborhoods and towns. “We had volunteers respond to Mapleton, Iowa, Alabama, Arkansas, pretty much all over the South wherever those tornados hit, we had local volunteers who stepped up and put on their Red Cross vests and went out and served,” she says.

“We really want to thank everyone for all of their hard work and dedication this year.” Schlegelmilch says the region is very fortunate so many people volunteer their time to those needing assistance. The Omaha-based chapter has more than 1,000 active volunteers.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, News Tagged With:

Coalition calls for bigger tax break for working poor in Iowa

December 29, 2011 By

Iowa State Capitol

Advocates for the working poor are calling on state lawmakers to increase a tax credit provided to low-income Iowa families. Larry Davis is a volunteer with the United Way of Central Iowa and offers free tax preparation services for low-income Iowans. He wants the state legislature to increase the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).

Currently, Iowa contributes a 7% match of the Federal Earned Income Tax Credit. Davis says the average Federal Earned Income Tax Credit in Iowa this past tax season was about $2,000. That means the 7% match provided qualified Iowans with a $140 return.

“That’s a significant amount of money. It represents a weeks worth of groceries for folks, but increasing it to 20-percent would triple that amount and make a meaningful difference in the lives of these folks who are struggling to survive on the earnings they do have,” Davis said. He spoke at a statehouse news conference today organized by several groups that want the EITC raised to 20%.

Davis said the average annual earnings of the clients he serves is under $19,000. Davis said those individuals and families use the EITC to purchase necessities and pay bills. “This is a lifeline to these folks. There isn’t a single one of them that ever said they were going to take this money and buy a big screen TV or take a vacation,” Davis said. “These folks are thinking about the basic necessities like catching up on utility bills and paying off credit card debt.”

Lana Ross is executive director of the Iowa Community Action Association, which provides assistance to low-income families in all 99 Iowa counties. She said many Iowans who qualify for the EITC use the money to buy beds, clothes, shoes or diapers for their children.

“These are the things that most of us take for granted,” Ross said. “But, families who would benefit from an increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit see these as basic needs and something that they want for their children.”

Last year, the Iowa Legislature approved a hike in the EITC from 7% to 10%. Governor Branstad vetoed the measure saying he wanted to pursue “comprehensive” tax reform that would spur job creation.

Today, the governor’s spokesperson – Tim Albrecht – issued the following statement in reaction to the request for an increase in the EITC to 20-percent: “Governor Branstad will review any proposal before coming to a final decision. The governor looks forward to focusing on job creation in the upcoming legislative session and will support any policy that creates jobs in Iowa. The governor has not made a final decision with regard to the Earned Income Tax Credit.”

Filed Under: News, Politics & Government

Candidates criss-cross state for Caucus votes

December 29, 2011 By

Six GOP candidates are touring the state today, making a final pitch for votes in next Tuesday’s Caucuses. Mitt Romney began his day at a restaurant in Cedar Falls.

“This is not just about changing a president. It’s about saving the soul of America,” Romney told the crowd. “Are we going to change America into something most of us wouldn’t recognize or are we going to restore to America the principles that we have loved since the beginning of this nation?”

Ron Paul drew applause from a crowd in Perry for his stand on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“What about this unique idea about not going to war unless the people have their members of congress vote and declare the war and do it that way?” Paul said.

Rick Santorum has been telling Iowa audiences his candidacy can get a “spark” from the Caucuses and he made that case again today to a crowd in Coralville.

“There’s plenty of tinder on the ground that will start burning in these other states if we become the clear alternative, as I hope we will be in the Caucus — the conservative alternative to Mitt Romney, there’ll be a lot of folks who will rally to our side in New Hampshire,” Santorum said. “We’ll have a strong showing there. I’m not suggesting we’ll win New Hampshire. I haven’t run one television ad in New Hampshire.”

Rick Perry urged a crowd in Cedar Rapids not to “settle for anything less than an authentic conservative.”

“Listen, I’ve got all the respect in the world for those men and woman I’m on the stage with…but you’ve got to ask yourself: if we replace a Democratic insider with a Republican insider, you think Washington’s going to change any?” Perry asked, getting a few responses of “No” from the crowd.

Perry replied: “I agree with you.”

Michele Bachmann sounded a similar theme during a news conference in Des Moines.

“We can’t preserve liberty if the choice a year from now is between a frugal socialist and an out-of-control socialist,” Bachmann said. “We can’t afford to have a ‘big government’ Republican take the place of a ‘big government’ socialist.”

Newt Gingrich campaigned in northwest Iowa today, joined on the trail by an economist who had helped Herman Cain craft his popular 9-9-9 tax plan. Gingrich has proposed an optional flat tax and called for lowering the corporate tax rate to equal international competitors like China and Brazil, where the corporate tax rate is 25 percent.

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