With the primary election date rapidly approaching on June 2, the Times-Republican sent out a questionnaire to the four Republican candidates seeking the party’s two nominations for four-year seats on the Marshall County Board of Supervisors — incumbents Jarret Heil and Carol Hibbs and challengers Tony Reed and Bill Schendel. Heil served as the Marshall County Treasurer for 12 years before running for his current position in the 2022 election and, along with Hibbs, emerging victorious out of a four-way GOP primary and then winning easily in the general election.

Hibbs, the retired CEO of the Marshalltown YMCA/YWCA, is also seeking her second term in office. Reed, the former director of the Central Iowa Juvenile Detention Center (CIJDC) in Eldora and the owner of All-American Property Management in Marshalltown, unsuccessfully ran for an Iowa House seat in 2020, and Schendel, the owner of Schendel Pest Control in Marshalltown, narrowly lost a 2024 Republican primary for supervisor to the late Kevin Goodman.

The two winners of the June 2 primary will be on the ballot alongside Democrat DeMorris Dean, a retired Marshall County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) deputy, who is running uncontested in his primary.

Goodman’s son Christian, who was appointed to his father’s seat earlier this year, is running to serve out the remainder of that term in November as a Republican against Independent Kyle Hall, a former GMG school board member.

The responses of the candidates who are running in the competitive GOP primary are printed in their entirety below and arranged in alphabetical order by the last name of the candidates. This is part 1 of the questionnaire, and part 2 will be printed in the weekend edition of the T-R.

1.What is your personal, professional and educational background, and why are you running for a seat on the Marshall County Board of Supervisors?

Jarret Heil: I grew up on the family farm in rural Haverhill, where I reside today with my wife and four children. I’m a proud Bobcat, graduated from Marshalltown High School in 1999. I earned a BA in Business Management with an emphasis in Finance, and a Spanish minor from Central College. I’ve worked in Washington DC with U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley in the Senate Finance Committee and with Congressman Tom Latham. I was the Marshall County Treasurer for twelve years and I am in my first term as County Supervisor. I also work as the Director of Financial Operations at St. Francis of Assisi Parish and Catholic School in Marshalltown.

I am running for re-election to serve the people of Marshall County with a steady hand, protecting the pocketbooks of the property taxpayer, while adequately funding our roads and public safety. I want to help pave the way to make Marshall County an even better place to grow and raise our families.

Carol Hibbs: I grew up on a farm in southeast Marshall County, number six of seven children. I graduated from SEMCO High School, which is now part of the East Marshall School District. I graduated from Iowa State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in communications with an emphasis in science and technical writing. As a new college graduate, I worked as a reporter for the Times-Republican. I married Rusty Hibbs, and we farmed in the Albion and Bangor areas of northwest Marshall County. Rusty later became the manager of Crop Production Services (now Nutrien) at Bangor. We have a son and a daughter that are both married and live in Marshall County, along with three grandchildren.

In 2015, we moved to Marshalltown from Conrad. Rusty passed away in 2018 after battling cancer. For 26+ years I worked at the Marshalltown YMCA-YWCA in various roles. I served as the CEO of the organization from 2007 through the end of 2022. In addition to a long career at the Y, my background includes serving on several local boards over the years that have supported efforts throughout Marshall County.

I am running for re-election to continue the work that is underway, particularly in the areas of economic development and planning for a sustainable future for emergency services for Marshall County residents.

Tony Reed: I moved to Marshall County in 1994 after graduating from the University of Northern Iowa. At UNI I earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Community and Human Service Agency Administration. I am married to my beautiful wife Sara and we have our children in Marshall County. I’m running for the Marshall County Supervisor as a means to give back to the community that has been so good to myself and our family. With over 35 years of leadership experience in 6 different positions, I can bring the knowledge that I have gained to help benefit the citizens of Marshall County.

Bill Schendel: I was born and raised in Marshalltown. My parents had gone through the depression, and I grew up watching them save money and work hard to build a future here in Marshall County. Both of my parents were very involved in the Marshall County Republicans as well as our church. You could say I had a bit of a drug problem — I was drug to church and drug to republican meetings. I have been married for 34 years, and we have 5 kids and seven grandchildren. I have an associates degree from MCC and a bachelors degree from Buena Vista right here in Marshalltown. With parents that were very involved in local politics, government has always held an interest for me. Friends and neighbors encouraged me take on a township trustee position. After that, I was asked to be township clerk. Becoming a supervisor would be the next step.

Heil: Marshall County is heading in the right direction. In my first three years as Supervisor, we’ve improved the county’s net position by $16.9 million which is an average increase of 7.6% per year. We’ve protected the property taxpayer by reducing our overall tax levy, kept property taxes below our valuation growth and the inflation rate. We’ve reduced our overall budgeted expenditures by $8.3 million which is 4.5% per year. We’ve wiped out over half of the county’s debt, maintained strong yet responsible ending fund balances all while investing record funding to secondary roads and public safety. We will certainly have challenges that come our way, but I’m going to continue to apply these practices to future challenges.

Hibbs: Overall, I believe Marshall County has been moving in a positive direction during the past three and a half years. I will continue working on creating an environment that fosters open communication and collaboration. Many positive things are happening in Marshalltown and around Marshall County, and I am always looking for opportunities that will improve services for our residents and manage spending in a responsible way. Diverse opinions are respected, as we work together to solve problems.

Reed: I feel Marshall County can do a lot more for the benefit of the taxpayers. We need Supervisors who are willing to put in the time and work hard to find strategies to improve services efficiently.

Schendel: While Marshall County is doing better than many other counties in the state there is always room for improvement.

3. Do you feel that the current county tax rates are appropriate, and how would you look to prioritize spending in light of the state legislature’s recent property tax reform package?

Heil: The current tax rates are appropriate for today, but you can never rest on what you’ve done yesterday. You have to adjust each year according to the needs, changes in the economy and rules set by the Iowa Legislature. The legislature passed a bill with a 2% revenue cap for county government. In our budget we just passed, our tax revenue increase is 2% to match the legislation. The 2% is below our valuation growth of 2.98%. The 2% is also under the current inflation rate of 3.8%. These are the parameters local governments must stay within to keep property taxes under control. If your tax rate goes above the county’s growth or inflation you are doing harm to the taxpayer. This is one of the key formulas I follow in my budgeting for the county and I will continue to do so to protect you, the taxpayer!

Hibbs: Each level of local government has a responsibility to use the limited resources available in the most prudent way possible. Residents rely on county leaders to work together to maintain the infrastructure (bridges, roads, buildings, etc.) needed in their daily lives. Maintaining our infrastructure has been priority. Good stewardship also means bringing people together to listen to their needs and plan for the future.

In this current term, the Supervisors have worked to keep the tax rate as low as possible while still maintaining a high level of county services. We have invested in infrastructure and economic growth as a means to increase our financial resources. We have asked all department leaders to prioritize their needs within the limited resources available to us, and we have worked as a team to strike a balance in managing spending and setting the tax rate. We were able to keep the overall tax increase to just 2% for this next budget year, which is less than the projected growth included within the proposed budget. This aligns with what the state legislature recently passed in their property tax reform package.

Reed: I feel property tax rates in Marshall County are too high. There are a lot of people who are adversely affected by rising property taxes every single year. Our supervisors need to be strategic and prioritize spending efficiently like we all have to do with our own personal budgets.

Schendel: I am not sure that anyone is ever satisfied with tax rates. The more important issue seems to be what our taxes are spent on. 39 counties in Iowa already keep property tax revenue at the new 2% rate or lower. That should be achievable here.

4. How would you assess Marshall County’s current economic development efforts, and what would you do to attract new residents and businesses to the county if elected to the seat you are seeking?

Heil: We’ve had a great approach to economic development in Marshall County. First, we have a contract with the Marshalltown Area Chamber of Commerce. Within that contract, the Chamber added a new position that focuses on economic development in the rural areas and small towns. Alex Ferneau has done a wonderful job working with our small-town leaders to help develop growth plans or small projects to improve their communities. We’ve set economic development funds aside to support small projects in the county, the homebuyer’s incentive program, and the Marshall County Veteran Relocation Assistance Program. Lastly, we have utilized the Iowa Economic Development and Finance Authority and networks across the county and state to obtain the RISE (Revitalize Iowa’s Sound Economy Program) funding to improve the road infrastructure near a local dairy farm that allows their operation to expand to produce the milk necessary for the new Daisy plant in Boone County. I believe our multi-faceted approach to economic development will benefit Marshall County for both the short term and many years to come.

Hibbs: The County has been working to promote economic growth in our communities through a partnership with the Chamber of Commerce. Two Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) presentations were held in Marshall County this past March, which included downtown walkarounds throughout the county, visiting State Center, Rhodes, Melbourne, Haverhill, Albion, Le Grand and Gilman. Participating communities learned about the Catalyst Grant as a potential funding tool.

County economic development representatives also continue to work through the process of bringing the Homes for Iowa program to Marshall County communities. And, for the first time, Marshall County will be utilizing RISE funding to help offset road construction costs that will improve access to/from Highway 30 in conjunction with the expansion at Marshall Ridge Farms west of State Center.

My focus will continue to be on working with others to increase the number of people living and working in our county.

Reed: I think currently our Economic Development efforts at the county level could definitely improve. We are not seeing many NEW businesses coming to town. We also need to provide a climate to ensure retention of current businesses. We need to ensure we are a business friendly county with high quality of life for our citizens. We need to collaborate with all of the cities within the county to ensure a strategic push for increased Economic Development. We need to network with the State of Iowa to ensure any Economic Development opportunities for our county can be realized.

Schendel: To attract new residents, and in turn new businesses, I believe we have to keep the cost of living low. In a survey done by Debi Durham from the Iowa Economic Development Authority, Durham points out that keeping the cost of living low is the number one reason younger families would move to an area.

5. What is your stance on new renewable energy projects such as wind and solar, and how would you approach a request for a data center within the county if it comes up in the next four years?

Heil: I am in favor of renewable energy projects, but I am in favor of a balanced approach that promotes economic development, protects the environment, protects agricultural lands and protects private property rights. Currently there are wind and solar companies looking into additional projects in Marshall County and many Marshall County landowners interested in leasing their land to these companies. These projects, depending on their scale, could bring up to $100 million or more in revenue to Marshall County. Iowa law allows these revenues to be locked into infrastructure projects in the county. While we are running efficiently in our operations as a county, we are limited on funds available for future infrastructure improvements and conservation projects to stimulate economic development. Renewable energy projects would benefit the county in keeping taxes low while paying for our future infrastructure needs.

With the advancements in AI and demand for high capacity cloud computing, data centers are popping up around the country. As more information comes out, we are learning more about them every day. Data centers can bring in significant tax revenue to the county and help the local economy with construction and permanent jobs. But data centers utilize a lot of power and water. Should Marshall County get a request for a data center, I’ll study the proposal and try to negotiate the maximum revenues to the county as possible while getting reassurance in the deal that our local resources are protected. I am not in favor of our local energy or water bills increasing to pay for the needs of a new data center. Any data center proposal must have the tax revenue and boost to the local economy to justify any local dollars spent on any infrastructure improvements to accommodate the data center. As more studies come out, I will also be reviewing the environmental impact of data centers and add these impacts to the equation while reviewing any request for a data center.

Hibbs: I recognize the importance of renewable energy generation, such as wind and solar, to our local economy and environment. Residents expect a reliable and sustainable local power grid. I am in favor of fostering responsible development by establishing clear zoning regulations that include reasonable setback requirements and aesthetic guidelines. I believe the rights of property owners should be protected. Planning and development must also safeguard the investment Marshall County has made in our parks and conservation areas.

On the topic of data centers, they differ from traditional industrial developments in scale and economic structure. As a county leader, I believe we should set realistic expectations that align within all the municipalities and the unincorporated areas. This is a rapidly emerging area of development for Iowa’s rural areas and smaller municipalities, which includes decisions about land use, energy and water needs and documenting if, where and how these facilities can be sited through local ordinances. I am working to learn as much as possible about the development of data centers. I want my decisions going forward to balance projected economic benefits with community priorities and long-term community well-being.

Reed: Renewable energy is a very complex topic. There are many benefits and many disadvantages to wind and solar power. As a County Supervisor I would look into each project to ensure it is viable but also not disadvantageous for the citizens of Marshall County. I would take a similar approach with data centers. Technology is the future, whether we agree with it or not. We do not want to let our County fall behind in this race, but at the same time we do not want to promote projects that don’t make sense for the people that live here.

Schendel: I would focus on the energy producers we already have here. We have Alliant here, and we have the space for them to grow. They are planning on developing the new Bobcat Energy Station to support a center in eastern Iowa. Why not keep that production here instead of sending it out of the county?