I am writing in response to Mr. Engle’s letter of November 14 in which he attempted to defend the Republicans’ massive tax give away to corporations and the wealthy. Although corporations did face a top federal tax rate of 35%, given the loopholes and exemptions the corporate lobbyists had already written into the tax code, the actual rate corporations paid before the new tax bill was much lower.
One study of 280 of the largest corporations found they had pretax profits of $1.4 trillion, but the maximum any one of these corporations paid was about 28.5%, and some paid nothing at all. Overall, the average rate was 13% to 15%.
by Jeremy Leitz, Allamakee County Executive Director (563) 568-2148
Upcoming Deadlines and Important Dates
• January 15: Last day to apply for the Market Facilitation Program
County Committee Election
Producers in Iowa, Lansing, Center, LaFayette, Paint Creek, and Taylor Townships should have received their county committee voting ballots last week. The final day to return completed ballots to the FSA office is December 3. Committee members are a critical component of the day-to-day operations of FSA. They work to make FSA agricultural programs serve the needs of local producers.
The recent spread of African Swine Fever (ASF) in China has elevated the importance of biosecurity to reduce the risk of a domestic or foreign animal disease entering the farm. The no-cost workshop “Biosecurity Best Practices for Pork Producers” is for swine producers, employees, veterinarians and industry partners to learn, develop and prioritize biosecurity practices.
Derald J Holtkamp, ISU Vet Diagnostic and Production Animal Medicine associate professor, said “Biosecurity can become complex and overwhelming. In the workshop we focus on carrying agents and risk events to help individual operations evaluate their own situation. Operations are different; the workshop may help identify the “low hanging fruit” which can reduce the entry or spread of disease.”
Advanced Calving Clinic will provide in-depth information for dairy and beef producers.
Register today for the Midwest Dairy Day: Advanced Calving Clinic for Dairy and Beef to be held Thursday, December 6 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Iowa’s Dairy Center located at 1527 Highway 150 S, in Calmar, Iowa.
This event is a collaborative effort between Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, the Northeast Iowa Dairy Foundation and Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC). This year’s event will provide an array of sessions on advanced calving, including a unique opportunity for a hands-on experience with a life-sized cow model. Participants choose to attend one of two different blocks of sessions: one block focuses on dairy cows and the other block focuses on beef cows. Dairy and beef producers, students and industry members are encouraged to attend.
Sessions in both the Dairy and Beef block will include:
Residents and visitors of Allamakee County will have two opportunities to see the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train this year, as the holiday spectacle on rails will make its way to northern Iowa Wednesday, December 5 to make a pair of stops within the Allamakee County borders. The Holiday Train will be stopping in Lansing that December 5 afternoon, at approximately 4:50 p.m., and again in New Albin a little over an hour later, at approximately 6:15 p.m.
The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train is adorned with hundreds of thousands of lights and serves as a stage for live musical performances. Both stops are scheduled to include performances by The Trews, the innovative, prolific and electrifying rock music recording artists based out of Hamilton, Ontario, and contemporary rock singer and musician Willy Porter, who has shared world stages with music icons Jeff Beck, Tori Amos and Paul Simon.
There has been little to update from official sources regarding the November 13 single-vehicle accident involving Christopher Mirich, age 38, of Waukon, husband of Allamakee County Attorney Jill Kistler, and an ensuing investigation the following day involving search warrants being executed by Iowa State Patrol officers at the couple’s home and Mirich’s place of employment first reported in last week’s issue of The Standard.
Sergeant Jewel O’Rear, Assistant District Commander of Iowa State Patrol’s District 10 headquarters located in Oelwein, did confirm in a Monday, November 26 telephone interview that the investigation is still in progress and initially said there is no further information about the case or the continuing investigation that can be shared at this point.
Becky Rea, Allamakee County K-12 Program Coordinator, was recently recognized at the annual Iowa State University Extension Office staff in-service: Youth Fest by the Iowa 4-H Program. Rea was a recipient of an Achievement in Service Award, being selected for this award by being in her position for three years or less and making a difference in the Iowa 4-H program in that short time.
The Waukon High School Choir, under the direction of Sarah Palmer, will be sharing its music with the area church community during its 24th Annual Tour of Churches this Sunday morning, December 2, according to the following schedule:
St. John's Lutheran 8:30-8:45 a.m.
Old West Lutheran 9:05-9:20 a.m.
First Presbyterian 9:35-9:50 a.m.
St. Patrick Catholic 10:00-10:15 a.m.
First Baptist 10:25-10:40 a.m.
Zion United Church of Christ 10:50-11:05 a.m.
Zalmona Presbyterian 11:20-11:35 a.m.
The annual tour allows choir members to serve the community by singing several pieces of music at various church services. At each stop, the choir takes a freewill offering to be donated to the Allamakee County Relief Office, the Allamakee County Food Shelf, the Backpack Program in the Allamakee Community School District, the Allamakee Giving Tree and the Waukon Community Meal program.
The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, November 26 to discuss items on a short agenda including the Fiscal-Year 2018 audit for the North Iowa Juvenile Detention Services Commission, the Quarterly Report for the Allamakee County Relief Office and setting meeting dates for the end of 2018 and beginning of 2019. Chairperson Larry Schellhammer called the meeting to order with approval of the current agenda and meeting minutes of November 19.
The Allamakee County 4-H Council is composed of energetic and positive high school students who serve as ambassadors for 4-H. October 27, the Council hosted a Junior Halloween Party for youth in fourth through sixth grades (pictured above). The event was held at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon and 40 youth participated in Halloween games, activities, a haunted hike and ended the night with a costume contest. Admission into the party was a canned food item. In addition to the Halloween Party, the Allamakee County Clover Kids (pictured below) also collected canned food and other items at one of their recent sessions, and together both events donated a total of 79 pounds of food to the Allamakee County Food Shelf. For more information about the Allamakee County 4-H Program, contact County Youth Coordinator Morgan Bjerke at mlheim@iastate.edu or at 563-568.6345. Submitted photos.
