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The Union County Treasurer’s Office will be closed on February 14 for the installation of new motor vehicle software, reopening on February 18. Additionally, the Board of Commissioners appointed Robert Ballard as District 3 Commissioner amid personnel changes and discussed various issues, emphasizing transparency and compliance with open meeting laws. Continue reading Ballard named to vacant county commission seat
Iowa’s licensing boards may now keep secret the alleged misconduct tied to charges of professional incompetence, ethical violations, patient abuse, and criminal convictions, restricting public access to information. Disclosure of charges against practitioners has been greatly limited since October 2021, following a ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court to keep investigative information confidential until final rulings. This has led to inconsistencies in public disclosure by various licensing boards, prompting concerns about transparency and access to information. Continue reading Iowa’s licensing boards shut off access to information on charges
Standing next to a row of bookcases in the Mitchell High School library, South Dakota’s lieutenant governor was asked about taking the reins of state government.
It’s a sensitive subject for Larry Rhoden, who has embraced his supporting role as Gov. Kristi Noem’s second-in-command since entering office in 2019 following 16 years in the state Legislature.
“I try not to bring it up,” said the Union Center rancher when asked by News Watch about how his duties might change if Noem is chosen as Donald Trump’s vice presidential nominee on the Republican ticket. “I don’t want to make it look like I’m thinking about it.”
Despite that political prudence, the subject is hard to avoid.
I dropped my lovely passenger off behind the Baxter Building at the corner of 5th and Jones Streets in downtown Sioux City — a city that’s not as bad as it sometimes smells. My wife waved goodbye as I let our 2021 Hyundai Venue coast down the driveway to the alley where I turned right and half a block later, I dodged a homeless fellow looking for cans then I turned left onto Jones. I drove to 3rd Street and hung a right going by the post office, a parking ramp, the cancer center, Milwaukee Weiners, and the Hard Rock Hotel. I caught Wesley Parkway to the service road which brought me to the I-29 north entrance ramp.
In six minutes I was free of Sioux City, out of Iowa, and back into the Land of Infinite Variety, South Dakota. Tourism folks call South Dakota the Rushmore State now, but I prefer to call it by its old nickname. I think it’s far more accurate.
But I digress.
It was 8:07 a.m. Tuesday, December 12th and I was headed for Elk Point, the County Seat of Union County, South Dakota for the regular meeting of the County Board of Commissioners. Continue reading Courthouse Chronicles: ‘Now Where the Hell Is That State’s Attorney?’
The Siouxland Observer 