Newton
Serving Newton & Jasper County Since 1902
Daily News
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Wednesday, April 2, 2014
www.newtondailynews.com
County to add generators to two county buildings
OBITUARIES Janet (Weir) Clemens, 64
INSIDE TODAY
By Ty Rushing Daily News Staff Writer
Local
Kelley welcomes Hansen to Capitol Page 2A
Collin Hansen/Daily News Intern Tuesday’s election for the Newton Community School District to renew its Physical Plant and Equipment Levy went in the district’s favor as 133 people voted “Yes” on the measure.
Sports
PCM teams ready for 2014 Page 7A
PPEL passes with 82 percent of vote By Ty Rushing Daily News Senior Staff Writer Although turnout was low, it was a good April Fool’s Day for the Newton Community School District as 82 percent of voters approved renewing the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy. Unofficial results from the Jasper County Auditor’s Office indicate 133 people voted “yes” and just 29 voted “no.” NCSD Board of Education President Andy Elbert was relieved the measure passed and commented on the matter. “I’m glad that the community went and approved it again,” Elbert said. “It’s obviously important for our kids and our staff to continue to have the facilities to (attend) and learn in. It’s definitely needed, otherwise, the money would have to come out of the general fund and that affects the students and everybody else.” The PPEL’s passing will also alleviate some of the worry Business Manager Gayle Isaac displayed at Mon-
Religion
Church present ‘God’s Not Dead’ Page 12A
Weather
Thursday
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Friday
Weather Almanac
Tues., April 1
Senior staff writer Ty Rushing may be contacted at (641) 792-3121, ext. 426, or at trushing@newtondailynews.com.
Monday night’s power outage in Newton gave Sheriff John Halferty all the talking points he needed to convince the Jasper County Board of Supervisors of the county’s need for two additional generators. The generators would be located at the Jasper County Emergency Command Center and the Secondary Roads Department. Halferty said Jim Sparks, Jasper County’s Emergency Management Coordinator, had secured grant funds to pay for each individual generator. Newton-based Van Maanen Electric was selected to provide the generators at a cost of $2,994 a piece. “It’s kind of a two-fold project,” Halferty said. “We have radio towers at the county shop and at the annex building here that run the radio channels. They are repeated channels, so they require electricity or power to them at all times.” Halferty also requested, and received approval, for Van Maanen to install the county’s new generators. The generator at the EOC will be placed upon the roof, and the project will cost $3,666.33. The instillation at Secondary Roads will cost $3,158.80. After making those requests, Halferty also proposed the board consider hiring two part-time, as needed, transport officers. He said the two current transport individuals have been very busy and with his department being down two deputies, this could provide a needed service. “It’s not really adding positions,” Halferty said. “The number of transports that we have to prison or to mental commitment or substance abuse commitments sometimes come all at once.” The board approved this, and Halferty said he and Jasper County Human Resources Director Dennis Simon were drafting a plan of the job description. Simon also received approval for the hiring resolutions of a part-time SUPERVISORS See Page 5A
‘Root of the Matter’
By Bob Eschliman Daily News Editor
High 44 Low 28 No Precipitation Also: Astrograph Page 11A Classifieds Page 9A Comics & Puzzles Page 6A Dear Abby Page 6A Opinion Page 4A Obituaries Page 3A Police Page 3A
Our 112th Year No. 222
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day’s school board meeting, where he stressed the importance of it being renewed. “That dollar levy there (PPEL) is very important to the district,” he said. “We’re minimizing the use of sales tax for infrastructure, and we are using that PPEL money for roof replacements, boiler replacement, just an ongoing number of projects.” He went on to say the district’s maintenance staff is projecting $200,000 worth of repairs for the Berg Complex next year and the district plans on using PPEL funds for that project. The district collects between $650,000 to $750,000 annually through PPEL and uses those funds to purchase vehicles, provide facilities maintenance and update technology, as well as perform other actions. At 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 8, the Jasper County Board of Supervisors will canvass the elections results.
Grassley goes to bat for wind energy tax credit
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Newton, Iowa
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No one in Washington, D.C., is a bigger champion of the wind energy production tax credit than U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). He created the legislation that led to the incentive, which has driven manufacturing jobs felt right here in Jasper County. “Wind energy supports thousands of jobs and generates billions of dollars in investment across the country using a natural, non-polluting resource,” he said. Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee is set to take up a proposed package of “green” energy tax extension provisions — called an “extender bill” — that will not include wind energy. As the Ranking Member of the committee and former Finance Committee Chairman, Grassley is throwing his weight behind the legislation. “There’s no fair rationale for leaving wind energy out of the chairman’s mark,” he said Tuesday. “There’s a significant amount of bipartisan, bicameral support for the wind tax provisions. Just last month, 26 senators and 118 House members urged restoring the lapsed provisions.” In a brief interview last Thursday, Grassley had said he suggested senators who are opposed to any part of the extender bill should remove those parts, allowing the legislative process to move forward. He said those in support of wind energy, like himself, could then add it back in as an amendment. He’s sticking to his guns on that plan. “I’ll file an amendment and work with my colleagues to get the wind energy provisions restored in the tax extenders package moving through the Finance Committee,” he said Tuesday. Also on Tuesday, Grassley joined U.S. Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colorado) and U.S. Reps. Steve King (R-Iowa) and Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa) to author a commentary on wind energy. That commentary will appear in tomorrow’s Daily News on the opinion page.
Submitted Photo The Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge will present Nature Tots from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday for local children ages 3 to 5. The program topic will be “Root of the Matter,” and a refuge naturalist will lead participants in reading stories, going outside, making nature crafts and more. The program is free and open to the public. Nature Tots programs are educational programs designed for young learners. Lessons focus on engaging children’s senses and use hands-on and interactive activities. To register or learn more, contact Megan Wandag at (515) 994-3400 or megan _wandag@fws.gov. The next Nature Tots program will be on Saturday, May 10.