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County tax levy lower for 2013-14 By JAKE WADDINGHAM CNA staff reporter jwaddingham@crestonnews.com
Union County was able to vacate their top position as the highest county tax levy in the state of Iowa. Residents can expect to pay 13.79575 percent for the 2013-14 county levy, trailing Wayne and Lucas counties. A lower county tax does not mean total taxes are lower for 2013-14. The county tax is just a piece of the larger puzzle of taxing entities. Depending on the taxing district, there are several factors like school district, hospital, township and/or city that influence how much the total tax is going to be. “Also, if your valuation (on land)
goes up, there are more dollars at the end of the year,” Union County Supervisor Ron Riley said. For example, if an individual purchases a $100,000 Riley home and the next year the valuation of the property increases to $110,000, just lowering the county tax levy may not result in less total dollars spent on taxes. One of the contributing factors for a lower county tax levy in 2013-14 is the decrease in Union County’s debt. Supervisors have cut the total almost Please see LEVY, Page 2
Top 10 county levy percentages 1. Wayne — 14.67010 2. Lucas — 14.06489 3. Union — 13.79575 4. Clarke — 13.40919 5. Taylor —12.47361
6. Monroe — 12.36090 7. Des Moines — 12.34152 8. Appanoose — 12.06340 9. Montgomery — 11.98903 10. Calhoun — 11.56321
Rep. Latham visits Creston Tuesday world is not with us?” Congress will go back into session Monday, during which time a vote will occur concerning what the U.S. government should do.
Syria, health care considered top priorities during townhall meeting held at Crest Ridge Estates. ■
Health care
By BAILEY POOLMAN
CNA staff reporter bpoolman@crestonnews.com
Syria and health care were at the forefront of people’s minds Tuesday when Rep. Tom Latham, R-Iowa, visited Creston Tuesday. The meeting, held at Crest Ridge Estates, allowed Latham’s constituents to ask questions of their congressman.
Syria In August, the Syrian government was suspected of using chemical weapons against its people. This came after the country had been at civil war for two and a-half years, when in 2011 the Syrian people began protesting President Bashar al-Assad and his government. “With regard to Syria, I’m surprised that the administration has not moved toward the international bodies and, if this person is in fact using lethal gas on his own people, I would think that
CNA photo by BAILEY POOLMAN
Congressman Tom Latham explains different aspects of the Syrian civil war crisis during a townhall meeting at Crest Ridge Estates Tuesday.
we would pursue a war crimes avenue to go after this person and bring the world into it. But, lobbing missiles into Syria, I don’t think that’s the way to go,” said Joe Owens of Creston. Several other people also said the American government should stay out of the Middle Eastern country. President Barack Obama has shown interest in taking action
against the Syrian government. However, he has left the decision to Congress, as is stated in the Constitution. “With this indecisiveness that we’re seeing today, it’s giving Assad plenty of time to move his assets,” said Latham. “That’s the thing that has not been explained. What is the end result? What does this accomplish? Are we then isolating ourselves if the rest of the
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act, was signed into law in 2010. The act focuses on increasing the number of insured Americans, lower costs and increase quality of health care. “There’s about 50 million people, maybe a few more, that do not have health insurance today,” Latham said. “After all this, there’ll still be 30 million people without insurance. The idea supposedly is to get more younger people buying insurance that don’t normally have it.” The House Appropriations Committee approved the fiscalyear 2014 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill in July. The bill cuts federal spending by $4.3 billion. “There will be a vote on the Financial Services Appropriation bill that will prevent Health and Human Services from transferring
QUICK NEWS City council highlights
■ Creston City Council unani-
mously approved a salary increase from $15.22 to $17.25 per hour for John Anderson, assistant park and recreation director. The raise equates to about $4,200 more annually. During Tuesday’s meeting, City Administrator Mike Taylor said one of the main reasons for the raise is the Taylor committee that hired Anderson started him at a much lower salary than the person he replaced was earning. Taylor added, Anderson’s salary now is equivalent to the starting salary of a public works department operator. ■ Robin Sevier with Greater Regional Outreach Public Health informed the council about National Preparedness Month being observed this month. Sevier said her plans are to create a coalition/partnership with other surrounding cities to develop, enhance, sustain and implement plans and procedures to prepare for, respond to and recover from short or long-term incidents within the Union County jurisdiction. To read more about National Preparedness Month, see PAGE 4A for a letter to the editor by Union County Emergency Management Coordinator Jo Anne Duckworth.
Kidnapper Ariel Castro dead in jail cell
COLUMBUS, Ohio (MCT) — Ariel Castro, the man who had been sentenced to spend his life in prison for holding three Cleveland women captive for a roughly decade, was found hanged in his cell Tuesday night, Ohio officials said. Castro, 53, was found hanging at 9:20 p.m. at the Ohio Correctional Reception Center in Orient, according to the Ohio Department of Corrections. Prison medical staff began performing life saving measures and Castro was transported to a hospital where he was
Please see QUICK NEWS, Page 2
Please see LATHAM, Page 2
Wild bunch:
The Creston High School student section shows enthusiasm during the volleyball team’s victory over Norwalk Tuesday night. For more on the Panthers’ season opener, see page 8A.
CNA photo by KYLE WILSON
Accident on Townline: Medical staff help lift
CNA photo by LARRY PETERSON
Everett Hoskins onto a stretcher after a motorcyle accident Tuesday afternoon on Townline Street. For a full accident report, see page 3A of today’s Creston News Advertiser.
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Volume 130 No. 60 Copyright 2013
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Contents
Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Crossword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Deaths. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Farm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Food. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Local . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Thursday weather High 89 Low 62 Full weather report, 3A