The primary election is over but another one is right around the corner for Henry County residents and it promises to be an important one. Mark your calendars for Tuesday, September 10th, for a special election regarding the proposed EMS tax, which is a rate of 75 cents per 1000 dollars of assessed value. Townhall meetings have been promised in the future so that constituents have the opportunity to be informed.
Department heads from all over the county met with the Henry County Supervisors on Thursday morning for their monthly meeting and update.
Walt Jackson with Emergency Management made note of Iowa placing number one in a category that no one wants to be first in. By May, 81 tornadoes have ripped through the state, which puts Iowa in first place, with Texas hanging behind in 2nd with 74. The governor has signed 18 disaster proclamations so far this year, with around 3/4ths of counties impacted by them. We certainly don’t want to see a tornado on the 26th of July when RAGBRAI comes through Mount Pleasant for an overnight stop, but if we do, the Emergency Management department is finalizing a plan if things go awry.
The county auditor, Shelly Barber, mentioned the primary election vote totals, with only 8.7% of registered voters (1159 out of 13,326) in the county submitting a ballot. This is less than half of the voter turnout for the primaries 4 years ago. Barber only has a handful of monthly department meetings left, as Robin Detrick ran uncontested in the primaries. The canvass of votes will take place next Tuesday and the public is invited to the post-election audit on Wednesday. Jackie Myers with the County Attorney’s office spoke about new equipment that she hopes will cut down costs and allow for more remote hearings.