Wednesday PM Daily | July 5, 2017

The Iowa Supreme Court has named Todd Nuccio state court administrator for the Iowa Judicial Branch, effective Sept. 18. He will begin in the position one day after the retirement of current administrator David Boyd, who has served the office for 40 years, according to a release.

Todd Nuccio

Nuccio brings more than 30 years of court administration experience, starting as the assistant court administrator in the 7th Judicial District of Iowa and most recently completing 25 years as the trial court administrator for the 26th Judicial District of North Carolina.

Nuccio is from Downers Grove, Ill. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Northern Illinois University, a master's degree in judicial administration from the University of Denver and a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina. He was an adjunct professor at UNC Charlotte.

As court administrator, Nuccio will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the state court system, in addition to serving as executive secretary to the Iowa Commission on Judicial Qualifications and the State Judicial Nominating Commission and as administrator of the Iowa Judicial Retirement System.

Screening device for diabetic eye disease in clinical trials
An Iowa City-based medical technology company says it's on track to complete a clinical trial this summer for a device to more effectively screen patients for diabetic eye disease. Michael Abramoff, an ophthalmologist at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and president of IDx LLC, said in a release that the automated screening device, IDx-DR, will enable primary care providers to provide early detection and refer patients to a specialist for treatment earlier. The clinical trial is taking place at 10 sites across seven states and will involve more than 850 patients with diabetes. Participants agree to have images of their eyes captured and submitted to the IDx-DR software, which uses an algorithm to scan for signs of diabetic retinopathy, one of the leading causes of blindness among working-age adults. Nearly half of adults with diabetes are not regularly screened for diabetic retinopathy.

Report: Iowa has cheapest office space for startups
Iowa has the cheapest average annual rent for office space, $12.08 per square foot, which is less than half the rate in New York, the most expensive state at $26.66 per square foot, according to a new study by WalletHub. Overall, Iowa landed in the middle of the pack at No. 23 in the Best and Worst States to Start a Business report, which compared 20 weighted metrics evaluating business environment, access to resources and business costs. Iowa's total score on a 100-point scale was 45.62. By comparison, the top-ranked state, North Dakota, had a 69.38 score and the lowest-ranked state, New Jersey, had a score of 34.54.

BerganKDV acquires Minnesota niche firm
BerganKDV announced it has acquired Beltz, Kies, Darling & Associates, an accounting firm in Farmington, Minn., that has a strong niche in serving charter schools. The acquisition, effective July 1, furthers Cedar Rapids-based BerganKDV's vision of providing business, financial and technology solutions under one roof, the Cedar Rapids-based firm said in a release. "We're looking forward to learning from the BKDA team on how they've built such a strong niche in charter schools," BerganKDV President Loren Viere said. The firm has five offices in Iowa, including a Johnston location.

Iowa DNR eliminates jobs, dissolves forestry bureau in response to budget cut
Des Moines Register: The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has responded to a $1.2 million budget cut by eliminating several prominent positions and shuttering its Bureau of Forestry.

Iowa's public pension funds owe billions; lawmakers plan to study fixes
Des Moines Register: Iowa's public employees' pension funds face billions of dollars in long-term unfunded liabilities and state lawmakers are planning to review whether they are still sustainable. The review is raising concerns among Democrats and union leaders, who worry the Republican-controlled Legislature is laying the groundwork for major changes that could hurt public employees' retirement plans.

FTC approves Bass Pro's $4.2 billion purchase of Cabela's
The Street: Outdoor apparel retailer Cabela's said today that the Federal Trade Commission had approved Bass Pro's $4.2 billion acquisition of the company. Cabela's shareholders will vote on the deal July 11.

The Iowa Index is an unweighted average of all 23 Iowa-based public companies. Below is a live look at those 23, plus 14 additional companies with large operations in Iowa.