From the KCRG-TV9 Newsroom:
The proposed multi-year federal Farm Bill was shot down in a Senate Committee yesterday, with Republicans blaming Democrats for defeating the bill. The Senate Agriculture Committee’s 10 to 11 vote failed because Republicans needed one Democrat to agree to it in the absence of Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell, who is absent due to health issues. Democrats are primarily opposed to changes in the SNAP benefit program, or food stamps. The proposed bill creates a two-year delay to a requirement that states share the cost of providing the benefits. The Chair of the Ag Committee has said he could call Senators back from a planned recess to vote on a Farm Bill by September, when the current one is set to expire.
Johnson County voters will be asked to approve a new jail and sheriff’s office when they go to the polls this November. The proposed facility would cost $94 million and include 120 beds initially. Because of space limitations at the current jail, inmates are being housed in neighboring counties. That increase in beds would prevent those transfers. The project would add $88 per $100,000 in property value to taxpayers. That tax increase would last 10 years.
Jury selection will continue today in the murder trial of 24-year-old Kaleek Lewis. Court documents show Dedric Arnold and Morris Gray approached a home on 27th Street Northeast in Cedar Rapids to ask about lost property. That’s when authorities say Lewis opened fire, killing Arnold. Gray was not hurt.
After a year and a half of renovations, the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum has re-opened to visitors. Those renovations include updated and interactive displays that detail Hoover’s presidency. It’s a day many West Branch business owners say they’ve been waiting for, as well. Leaders with Main Street West Branch say they’re expecting a rush of visitors in the upcoming months.
Volunteers with St. Jude Catholic Church in Cedar Rapids had a big day yesterday. They shucked corn in preparation for the annual Sweet Corn Festival. That festival starts today, and features things like bingo, a silent auction, and of course, lots of corn.
