Jason Parrott

A potential legislative candidate in southeast Iowa must find another way to get on the November ballot.

Republican Jim Steffen of Argyle announced in late May his intention to run a write-in campaign in Iowa’s 83rd House District.

Lee County Election Coordinator Denise Fraise says Steffen received 107 votes.

She says that would normally be enough votes to move him on to the general election, but the redistricting process has changed that.

The state of Iowa is really getting behind the development of a sports complex in western Fort Madison.  The site will feature multiple football/soccer fields and baseball/softball diamonds.

The Vision Iowa Board’s Community Attraction & Tourism Committee recently wrapped up negotiations with the complex committee on the size of a grant.

The panel announced during its meeting on Wednesday morning that the sports complex would receive $766,000.

The complex committee’s initial request was for more than $900,000. 

Lee County wants to make sure its residents are aware of new farm operations that can be considered controversial at times.

The Board of Supervisors has stayed out of the discussion about hog confinements in the past. 

Lee County has been one of the few counties in Iowa to reject the state DNR’s Master Matrix, which is a scoring system for such facilities.  It has also avoided making a ruling on permits because the DNR has the final say.

It will soon cost a little more to own a cat or a dog in Keokuk as the city council has agreed to increase the cost of the annual license.

Owners currently pay $5/animal each year. 

The cost of the license will increase to $10 on July 1 if the animal is spayed or neutered. A three-year license would also be available for $25.

Mayor Tom Marion says the license would increase to $25 for one year and $65 for three years if the animal is unaltered.

Upcoming changes to Iowa’s mental health system may not impact Lee County in the short term.

The state will start covering the cost of Medicaid-endorsed services in July.  That means there will be no more reimbursements for counties, which will drastically shrink budgets for mental health and other developmental disabilities.

What is left in the budgets will be primarily used to pay for services not covered by Medicaid.

Ryanne Wood oversees Lee County’s MHDD department.  She says that is why efforts are underway to shift county-funded clients to Medicaid.

State Senator Brian Munzlinger (R-Lewis County) says the 2012 legislative session was average in nature. 

In fact, he initially thought the session would yield little as lawmakers could divisive stands on a variety of issues.

Sen. Munzlinger says the focus of the session was the state’s roughly $24-billion budget.  He says it relies on gaming and lottery revenue to fund education and veterans’ issues.

Sen. Munzlinger says income projections are on the rise, so he hopes the budget will be solid.  He says that is needed to turn Missouri’s economy around.

The Tri-State Development Summit has formed in 1996, following the historic Flood of 1993. 

The organization brings together communities leaders from several dozen counties in west-central Illinois, southeast Iowa, and northeast Missouri.

One of its standing committees focuses on housing needs in the tri-state region.  To assist in its efforts, a special day-long summit was held on the campus of Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri.

Burlington will need to take out a very short-term loan to get through the current fiscal year, which ends June 30th.

The city council has authorized the borrowing of up to $2-million to cover payroll and operations through the end of the month.

City Manager Jim Ferneau says the city will need about $700,000 to cover the final payroll of the year, so he does not anticipate needing to borrow the full amount.

He says it is good to have the authority to do so, though, in case an ongoing capital project runs into trouble.