I recently had a great opportunity to join some members of the Iowa House for an "Economic Development" tour of Dubuque and rural Jackson County.  Thanks to Representatives Chuck Isenhart and Tom Schueller and to Senator Pam Jochum for hosting Jan, myself and the several other legislators.

I’m extremely impressed by what the Greater Dubuque Economic Development team is doing in Dubuque.  It’s hard to believe that in 1984 Dubuque had the highest unemployment rate in the U.S. (about 24%). Today the community is growing strong. IBM recently chose to locate in the old Rosheck Building in downtown Dubuque; that means 1,300 jobs for the community. But, if you really take a good look at what the economic development pros are doing in Dubuque, you see that their first priority is taking care of the businesses they already have. That’s something to be proud of!

Congratulations to Chad Blanchard of Parkersburg, Edwin Blanchard of New Hartford, Brian DeBower of Aplington, James Hansel of Parkersburg, Jesse Lamp of Grundy Center, and Connie Reynolds of Aplington.

They were awarded the Governor’s Lifesaving Award for their selflessness in rescuing Karen and Dana Anderson from their Parkersburg home after the 2008 F-5 tornado.

The Governor's Lifesaving Award recognize Iowans who have performed a courageous act in an attempt to save someone's life or who have unselfishly assisted in an emergency situation.

On July 9, I attended the 2009 Governor’s Award for Quality Care in Health Care Facilities in Allison. This award recognizes the Rehabilitation Center of Allison and its staff for going the extra mile to care for residents. Those on hand for the ceremony included Director of the Iowa Department of Inspections & Appeals Dean Lerner, Kathy Meyer-Allbee, Richard Allbee, Kathy Miller, administrator of the Rehabilitation Center of Allison, and  J. Bennett, Health Facilities Division Administrator.

I participated in the Shell Rock 4th of July parade. Thanks to my great crew who helped me pass out brand-new State of Iowa Transportation maps.

New Hartford and Parkersburg benefited from this year's passage of House File 64 and Senate File 478. These disaster recovery bills have been crucial to the rebuilding of our local communities after last year's disasters. General Ron Dardis, head of the Rebuild Iowa Office, recently announced that New Hartford received a total of $322,821.74 and Parkersburg $962,290.41.

Isaiah Krull is 17 and attends Waverly-Shell Rock High School. He was injured in an auto accident on July 27, 2008 and suffered brain damage. He was in a coma for 2 weeks and at University of Iowa Hospitals for a month. He was then moved to the Chicago Institution of Rehabilitation for two months. There, they taught him how to walk, talk and feed himself again.

Since January 2009, Isaiah has been attending school and continues on his rehab journey. As part of his English class, he has decided that he will become an advocate for passage of a "backseat seatbelt" law, since he was riding in the backseat of the car and did NOT have his seatbelt on.

As a result of our meeting, I will be working with other legislators this coming session to look into passage of a mandatory backseat seatbelt law. If possible, I will have it called the "Isaiah Krull Law" in honor of the hard work and dedication Isaiah has demonstrated in this effort.

Local students participate in Boys State

The 71st annual American Legion Hawkeye Boy's State took place in June at Camp Dodge in Johnston. Post 9. Cody Michael, son of Tim and Fannie Michael of Oelwein, Bret McShane, son of Gerd and Tracy McShane of Oelwein, and Dan Rediske, son of John and Susan Rediske of Waverly, competed in a week of government role-playing and athletic competition with more than 550 students from across the state.

Every participant is elected or appointed to a government position during their week at Boy's State. Dan Rediske was elected Boys State Governor, and Oelwein was well represented when Cody Michael was elected State Attorney General by a vote of 368 to 155. Brett McShane was appointed by the Boy's State Governor to direct the Department of Corrections.

Oelwein's Cody Michael (right) and Bret McShane (center) visit with National American Legion Commander Dave Rehbein.

Candidate for State Attorney General Cody Michael gives his campaign speech to the 71st class of American Legion Boy's State.

State Corrections Director Bret McShane explains budget requests with Governor Dan Rediske at the Boys State Capitol.

Andy Corcoran, of Sumner, chairman of the Boy's State Hanna County Board of Supervisors, sits at Representative Andrew Wenthe's desk while visiting the State Capitol in Des Moines.

I and several of my colleagues in the Iowa Legislature took questions from constituents at a recent meeting in Luana. The event was hosted by the Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission, which includes the five Northeast Iowa counties of Allamakee, Clayton, Fayette, Howard and Winneshiek. The discussion focused on stimulus money, how it can be accessed and used in our area.

On May 28, I spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony for a new residential complex at the Bartels Lutheran Retirement Community in Waverly. I was on the Board of Directors and the Bartels Foundation for several years, so it was an honor to be invited to participate in this event.

On May 26, Governor Chet Culver signed four bills that will benefit Iowa veterans and servicemembers:

** House File 503 expands the definition of “veteran” to include those who were on active duty during peacetime, making more of those who’ve served eligible for benefits.

** House File 706 protects active-duty military from foreclosure and keeps them from losing their homes.

** Senate File 186 gives preference to veterans in state, county, municipal and school hiring.

** Senate File 451 allows veterans and their families to pay in-state tuition at community colleges and at Regents’ universities while they live in Iowa.

On hand for the bill signing were Bremer County Veteran's Affairs staff, Jan Heidemann and Nancy Edwards, pictured here with me and the Governor.

I had the pleasure of visiting with veterans on Friday, May 15 and Thursday, May 21, as I held 8 public forums throughout Senate District 9. Joining me at the forums was Sen. Jeff Danielson of Cedar Falls, who is a U.S. Navy veteran and a member of the Iowa Senate's Veterans Affairs Committee. In Bremer County, County Veteran's Affairs personnel Jan Heidemann and Nancy Edwards also assisted us at the forums. It was great to have them with us to address specific veteran's concerns.

Over the two days, we met with Veterans from Aplington, Clarksville, Allison, Waverly, Readlyn, Tripoli, Sumner, West Union and Oelwein.

Pictured with me at the Aplington forum are veterans Marlin Deboer, Bob Morck and Paul Weber.

I had the opportunity to visit with five young people from Italy who were touring northeast Iowa as part of a Rotary International Study Exchange program. During our casual meeting at the Waverly Hy-Vee over breakfast, I shared with them some information about Iowa government, the Legislature and what it is like to be a State Senator. I really appreciated my good friend Kent Hawley of Waverly and the Waverly Rotary Club for inviting me to participate in this special event.

Pictured with me are: Luca Carante, Stefano Piola, Carolina De Negri, Paola Ferrari and Marco Masselli.

On a personal note, our middle son, Andrew, graduated from the University of Iowa on Sunday, May 17. As you can see by this photo, Jan and I are awfully proud parents. Andrew graduated with a degree in Business Marketing and a degree in Psychology and got them both done in four years. My checkbook says "Thanks" too!!

Governor Chet Culver signed House File 311 at the Statehouse on April 24. This new law will help Iowans with disabilities by making sure insurance covers their prosthetics. In recent years, insurance coverage of prosthetics has declined, leaving many Iowans to pay substantial costs entirely out of pocket. This legislation will reverse that trend, and ensure prosthetic coverage for all Iowans who need it. On hand for the bill signing were, from left: Governor Chet Culver; Senator Pat Ward; Rod Cheney of American Prosthetics & Orthotics; Senator Bill Dotzler; Drew Wall, a 12 year old from Cedar Rapids who lost his leg last year due to cancer; Gary Cheney of American Prosthetics & Orthotics; Representative Bob Kressig; Representative Janet Peterson; Representative Dave Jacoby; Senator Steve Warnstadt; Senator Bill Heckroth; and Senator Amanda Ragan.

Senate President Jack Kibbie of Emmetsburg (right) and Senator Bill Heckroth of Waverly (left) congratulate Joyce Oldfather of West Union for her generous land donating during "Gift to Iowa's Future Day" at the Statehouse April 6.

Joyce donated 200 acres to the Fayette County Conservation Board for a conservation easement. The easement protects the land from parceling or building and requires forest management to be conducted under a conservation plan.

Also recognized for land gifts during "Gift to Iowa's Future Day" were Frederick Heery Kurth; Catherine Fitch; Margaret Chmielewski; Fred and Catharine Folsom; John and Joan Conroy; Patrick and Patricia Watkins who donated 12 acres to the Iowa DNR for an addition to Heery Woods State Park in Butler County.

In addition, the Union Pacific Railroad donated 412 acres of the Rolling Prairie Trail corridor in Franklin and Butler counties to the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation. The recreational trail will connect Beeds Lake State Park in Franklin County and Heery Woods State Park in Butler County, and it will link users to the larger Tri-County Trail System in north central Iowa. More information is at www.inhf.org/rollingprairietrail-08-news.htm. 

Pictured, from left: Larry Huinker, plant manager for ITW Signode in West Union, I and Dennis Lichty,  manager for ITW Paslode in Oskaloosa.

Click here for photos from the community bus trip to the capital

On March 25, Governor Chet Culver signed Senate File 197, making Iowa the first state in the nation to enact new federal guidelines modernizing our unemployment insurance system. As a result of this legislation, Iowa’s Unemployment Insurance Fund stands to receive $71 million in federal aid to make these changes. Iowa is the first state in the nation to fully comply with the law. The bill provides for more unemployed Iowans to claim benefits in the quarter they first become unemployed; provides for an additional 26 weeks of benefits for workers who enroll in high-demand or high-tech training programs; and makes it easier to rehire returning veterans. Senate File 197 passed House and Senate with broad bipartisan support.

I met with John Cashman, Maggie Moss, both from Waverly-Shell Rock High School, and Taylor Schipper, from Dike New Hartford High School, while they were participating in the Capitol Project at the Statehouse.  After lunch, the three students were able to attend a formal bill signing by Governor Culver, which provided me with an opportunity to present to them one of Governor Culver's "Bill Signing" pens as a souvenir.

The Capitol Project, co-hosted by Governor Culver and Secretary of State Mauro, gives ninth- through twelfth-grade students the chance to learn first-hand about their government over the course of a week in Des Moines.

Rep. Andrew Wenthe is pictured in the House chambers with students from Tripoli High School and their instructor, Ray Carlson. Tripoli students made their annual trip to the Statehouse on March 24. I enjoyed talking to the students over lunch and have since become Facebook friends with two of them.

On March 17, 42 people from various towns in my district accepted my invitation to take a bus trip to the State Capitol for the day.

Their first stop was a visit to the Governor's office and a visit with Lt. Governor Patty Judge.

For lunch, we had an extended question and answer session with legislative leaders, including Senate President Jack Kibbie, a farmer from Emmetsburg.  Jack was dressed in green in honor of Saint Patrick's Day.

After the group was recognized by the Iowa Senate, and spent some time watching Senate debate, they toured the building.  One group went to the very top of the historic statehouse--and then stepped outside on a beautiful day.

On February 25, a group from Waverly representing the Iowa Hospital Association visited with me in the Senate chambers.  It's always a pleasure to meet with constituents and discuss local concerns and ideas.

Students from Iowa's three state universities were at the Statehouse on March 9 for "Research in the Capitol." The students presented research on topics related to their area of study. Amanda Harms, a UNI student from Waverly, told me about her research on the emotions and credibility involved in spreading rumors.

Planned Parenthood had their annual "Prevention First" lobby day on the hill on Wednesday, March 4th. I had the opportunity to meet with a group of activists from my area in the Senate chamber.

L to R: Jake Blitsch of Oelwein, Olga Jung of Waterloo, Senator Heckroth, and Peggy Sherretts of Oelwein.