Thursday, February 6, 2025
Vol. 160, Issue 6 www.decorahleader.com
Decorah, Iowa 52101 email: editor@decorahleader.com
One Section phone: 563-382-4221
Federal funding freeze causes uncertainty for local nonprofits BY ZACH JENSEN STAFF WRITER Several Decorah area nonprofits began the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 28 with confusion and concern after the Office of Management and Budget — part of United States President Donald Trump’s executive office — released a memorandum freezing all federal funding effective as of 5 p.m. that afternoon. As of press time, two federal judges had issued orders which temporarily halted the freeze. The OMB memo, which said Social Security and Medicare were not included in the freeze, would affect a total of 38,000 active grants in the U.S., totaling $714.5 billion, according to the bipartisan lobbyist group Thorn Run Partners. “It caused a lot of chaos,” said Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission Executive Director Rachelle Howe. “We were getting many,
many calls from folks — especially on Section 8, our housing authority. I had one lady call in and was like ‘How do I know my rent is going to be paid?’ I couldn’t help her, because I really did not know if Section 8 — if HUD — was included. There’s always room for betterment, but you can’t shut people off tomorrow and expect them to be okay. Especially low-to-moderate-income people. How can she save up her rent payment in a week? We service 444 families on rental assistance. If that goes away, there is no landlord around who is going to let them stay in their homes.” Howe went on to call the hypothetical situation a potential travesty for the region, later noting it could be detrimental for Upper Explorerland. “We might not exist,” Howe said. “It’s hard to say, because we don’t know exactly what programs he’s talking about. If it’s HUD, we’re going to have
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Decorah School District issues guidance regarding immigration and customs BY ROZ WEIS STAFF WRITER
President Donald Trump’s order to freeze federal spending could temporarily halt the Northeast Iowa Transit system, a federally-funded program offered by the Northeast Iowa Community Action Corporation. NEICAC CEO Trisha Wilkins said the system gave 63,185 rides to northeast Iowa residents in 2024, and she said many who use the service are disabled and/or elderly and rely on the system for transportation to medical appointments and to buy groceries. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
a problem.” Trisha Wilkins, chief executive officer at Northeast Iowa Community Action Corporasaid she was most conALL HOUSING PROGRAM FUNDING tion, cerned about the uncertainty surrounding which programs SPENT PER COUNTY IN 2024 would be impacted and when. NEICAC serves approximately 10,000 residents in Iowa’s seven most northeastern counties — all of whom would be in jeopardy if the funding freeze occurred, Wilkins said. “Our agency is 75 percent funded by federal grants,” she said. “It’s difficult to answer what that might look like. If the freeze lasts a longer period of time, that would create more of a concern. But, if federal funding is lost, there are no additional dollars for these programs.” This chart shows the total housing funds spent by each counThe Trump administration ty in 2024. UERPC Executive Director Rachelle Howe said, later added that Medicaid and without federal funding, much of this assistance wouldn’t be Head Start were also exempt from the freeze, according to possible. (Graphic submitted)
the Associated Press, which was somewhat of a relief to Wilkins, who added that nearly all NEICAC services are federally funded and state allocated. Still, Northeast Iowa Behavioral Health Director Charlie Woodcock said last week’s federal announcement made for a tense day at his office. “Our first concern was Medicaid,” he said. “Verbally, they said Medicaid wasn’t going to be touched, but it wasn’t in the memorandum. We (were) really concerned about that, because we are the safety-net provider for the region — five counties in northeast Iowa. A large portion of the clients we serve are on Medicaid, Medicare or both. So, worst case scenario, 75-80 percent of our revenue could
In a letter to families early this week, Decorah Community School Superintendent Tim Cronin shared policies the school has in place regarding immigration and customs enforcement. The letter came less than two weeks after federal officials rescinded guidelines which had prevented personnel with Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as Customs and Boarder Protection from conducting enforcement actions in what was referred to as sensitive areas. “Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” acting U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman said in a Jan. 21 statement. “The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common -Tim Cronin, Decorah sense.” Community School U.S. Press Secretary Karoline Superintendent Leavitt indicated during a Jan. 29 press briefing that ICE would prioritize deportation of individuals who have committed significant crimes, but she said “that doesn’t mean that the other illegal criminals who entered our nation’s borders are off the table.” Cronin stressed the district’s recent letter to families was not in response to any specific local happening. He said the district’s aim is simply to share facts regarding current law. “I think people are just aware that things are going on…It’s on everybody’s radar,” Cronin said. The superintendent said the law firm of Ahlers & Cooney,
“I think people are just aware that things are going on…It’s on everybody’s radar.”
District issues guidance continued on page 7
Funding freeze continued on page 11
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Decorah looks at expected income, projects in drafting FY26 budget BY SETH BOYES NEWS EDITOR Officials with the city of Decorah are finalizing the city’s proposed budget for the coming fiscal year. The city of Decorah plans to levy approximately $3.45 million for its general fund in Fiscal Year 2026, which begins on July 1, 2025. Decorah City Manager Travis Goedken said Decorah’s taxable growth actually increased by 3.6 percent compared to the previous year, and the city added roughly $91,000 in property taxes to its general fund, which helps cover city services such as the police and fire departments as well as the city library and the parks and recreation department. Goedken noted that total would have been more, but a recent state bill — specifically House File 718 — restricted the city’s property tax revenue growth to 2.6 percent. Goedken also noted the city established a residential tax
Officials with the city of Decorah are preparing the city’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The city’s property tax levy is expected to decrease by approximately 10 cents under the drafted budget, but city staff stressed residents will likely still see an overall increase in property taxes due to levies set by other local taxing entities. (Photo by Denise Lana) abatement program a number of years ago, offering 100 percent tax abatement for a period of five years as an incentive aimed at increasing the city’s overall tax base. However, he said the
state bill — which was signed into law in 2023 — essentially prevents the city from now collecting on the growth it cultivated years before. “We’re being disincentivized
for any form of growth other than organic growth,” Goedken said. Goedken said the city’s property tax levy is actually decreasing for FY26, but he stressed that the city is not the only taxing entity in the community and residents’ overall property tax bill will likely still increase if levy amounts set by the county or local school district increase — Decorah voters approved a $38 million bond in November to fund the construction of proposed by to fund a new elementary school. For the city’s part, Goedken said Decorah will be levying a little more than $16 in property tax per $1,000 of valuation — a decrease of about a dime, Goedken said — and the funds will help fund a number of projects and purchases. Capital improvement proposals presented to the Decorah City Council
City budget continued on page 8
Winneshiek County Supervisor Shirley Vermace was supportive of granting Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging’s funding request, but supervisors Steve Kelsay, Mark Vick and Dan Langreck were against the funding for a number of reasons. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
Supervisors approve first run of funding requests BY ZACH JENSEN STAFF WRITER
The Winneshiek County Board of Supervisors approved the first run of Fiscal Year 2025-26 funding requests from 21 area nonprofit organizations on Monday. The requests total $516,115. All but three groups were awarded the amounts they requested. The first organization to not receive its full requested amount was the Emergency Medical Services Association, which asked for $10,000 for the FY25-26 budget year. The association had requested $5,000 each of the preceding six fiscal years. Winneshiek County Auditor Ben Steines explained the EMS Association is considering calling for a vote to declare EMS an essential county service, which could open up another levy rate or be an income tax surcharge. He said the increase in the association’s funding request was related to educational efforts regarding the potential vote. County Supervisor Shirley Vermace said she was comfortable
Supervisors
continued on page 11