SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A western Iowa nursing home plans to challenge a $5,000 fine and the potential loss of federal funding after the state issued a negative report about the quality of its dietary program. The Sioux City Journal reports that Touchstone Healthcare Community in Sioux City was cited for multiple violations with its food program and two unrelated infractions.

Touchstone is a 125-bed care facility that has operated in Sioux City since 1978 but has been run under a variety of names and owners. It is currently owned by Welco Healthcare of Minnesota. Facility administrator Katilin Thomas says the home is working with the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals to make improvements, but plans to dispute the citation.

State officials observed the facility and interviewed dietitians, staffers, residents and family members.

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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OTTWUMA, Iowa (AP) – Torrential rain has brought flash flooding to parts of eastern Iowa. The National Weather Service in Des Moines says it issued flash flood warnings Thursday morning for Wapello and Jefferson counties. Meteorologist Brad Small says his office received two reports Thursday of more than 5 inches of rain in Wapello County, which includes Ottumwa.

Ottumwa police reported as much as 1 foot of standing water at one intersection and have shut down several roads because of flooding.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – Authorities have arrested an Iowa woman accused of abducting her three daughters. Police say 25-year-old Danica Noel Arzaga was arrested in Sioux City Wednesday afternoon. Authorities had been searching for Arzaga since she allegedly abducted her three children from Royal, Iowa, on Tuesday morning. An Amber Alert was issued and then canceled after the three young girls were found abandoned in Sanborn, in northwest Iowa, late Tuesday.

Arzaga faces three counts of third-degree kidnapping. The children were taken to an undisclosed location by the Iowa Department of Human Services. They had previously been removed from Arzaga’s custody and placed in another relative’s care.

Atlantic Police Chief Dave Erickson reports anyone interested in bow hunting within the Atlantic City limits for the 2017-18 hunting year, may receive a permit application from the Atlantic Police Department during their regular business hours (8-a.m. to 4-p.m., M-F). The permit will allow you to harvest antlerless deer, and once you have reported the harvest to the Atlantic Police Dept., you will be allowed to harvest a buck.

Bow hunters who qualified last year with the P-D do not need to do so this year, but you still need to pick up the permit application, fill it out and return it to the Police Department. New Hunters will have to contact the A-PD and set up a time with Chief Erickson, in order to qualify. Land owners who wish to allow bow hunters to hunt on their land, should contact the Police Department at 712-243-3512 during regular business hours, in order to sign-up.

Erickson said the number of deer causing damage to plants and vegetation inside the Atlantic City limits have been down in recent years, due to the success of the Urban Deer Control program.

Iowa 3rd District Congressman David Young continues his schedule of hosting open meeting events with his constituents with four more Open Office Hours events in September. Open Office Hours are a resource for Iowans who reside in the District to meet one-on-one with the Congressman to discuss opinions, concerns, and ideas about the issues being discussed in Congress or to get casework assistance with problems they may be having with a federal agency or program.

Scheduled Open Office Hours:

Friday September 29, 2017: 10:30am to 12:30pm – Stanton Viking Center – Viking Community Room, 501 Elliott Street, Stanton, IA 51573

Friday September 29, 2017: 2:30pm to 4:30pm – Afton Community Center, 240 N. Douglas Street (Hwy 169), Afton, IA 50830

Saturday September 30, 2017: 12:30pm to 2:30pm – Panora Public Library – Meeting Room, 102 N. First Street, Panora, IA 50216

The Congressman says “Being an elected official is about accessibility, listening and acting in the best interest of the people you are honored to represent. Over the past three years I have had the honor of hosting hundreds of meetings with thousands of Iowans. These Open Office Hours serve as an additional resource for my bosses who want to petition their government, or seek assistance with government red tape, in person.”

Residents of Iowa’s Third District who are interested in meeting with Congressman Young are encouraged to attend any of the Open Office Hours events. Individual, ten-minute meetings to discuss personal concerns, opinions and possible casework needs will take place with constituents in attendance on a first-come, first-serve basis. Participants must be residents of one of the 16 counties of Iowa’s Third Congressional District.  Those counties include: Adair, Adams, Cass, Dallas, Fremont, Guthrie, Madison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Polk, Pottawattamie, Ringgold, Taylor, Union and Warren.

Atlantic City Administrator John Lund, Wednesday, reported to the City Council, that he has been working a lot on the Fiscal Year 2019 Budget, and that “Things are proving to be not as much fun as it’s been in the past. By that he means “Our Capital Expenditures have been going up. We have new Operational Spending. A loss in the General Fund….Our Debt limit Capacity will be just below [the] limit set in the City’s Financial Policy. And, the actual Debt Levy is very high, which makes for a lower score on the Standard and Poors when it comes to bond rating.

Lund said he’s only in the preliminary stages of putting together the Budget, and hopefully things will improve. But he warned City leaders need to be aware the amount of money the City takes in from the Local Option Sales Tax, is based on what the State takes in. And those numbers he said, are looking a lot worse. He said “I thing we’re starting to reach the limit of what we can do with our current revenue and fee structures. New “needs” or “wants” in the future that are outside the budgeting process, will involve in increasing fees, finding new fees, or we’re gonna  be running down the reserve balances.

Lund said also “We can’t just raise property taxes to solve the problem.” The bottom line, he said, is “We should be cautious in spending, here.”

Cass County Public Health and Loess Hills Safe Kids Coalition are teaming up to offer free car seat inspections on Saturday, September 23rd from 9 am to noon at the Ann W. Wickman Child Development Center parking lot. Multiple certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians will be on hand to inspect car seats, help parents install them correctly, give tips about car seat safety, and answer any questions.

There is no cost to attend, but appointments are needed. Please make an appointment by calling Cass County Public Health at 712-243-7475.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has taken the unusual move of hearing a small claims case stemming from a speeding ticket. The court Wednesday heard a case brought by 67-year-old Marla Leaf. She says her constitutional rights were violated after an automated camera ticketed her for speeding on a freeway in her hometown of Cedar Rapids. Attorneys for the city say its system abides by state law. After the hearing, Leaf said she pursued the case because, “Why should I pay for a ticket I didn’t do?”

MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) — A North Iowa man serving life in prison for killing two people last year is appealing his conviction. The Globe Gazette reports that 31-year-old Peter Veal, of Lake Mills, filed the appeal in Cerro Gordo County District Court on Wednesday. Veal was convicted and sentenced for shooting Caleb Kavars and stabbing Melinda Christensen to death last year and trying to shoot a witness, Ron Willis.

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine’s two senators are part of a push to increase funding for American agriculture promotion programs. Republican Sen. Susan Collins and independent Sen. Angus King say a bill they are helping to introduce would help American farmers get an edge in the world market. They say the bill aims to revitalize the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s export promotion programs.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A man accused in a deadly shooting on Iowa City’s pedestrian mall plans to use Iowa’s new “stand your ground” law in his defense. The Iowa City Press-Citizen reports that 23-year-old Lamar Wilson is charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder and intimidation with a dangerous weapon in connection to an Aug. 27 shooting that killed one man and injured two others. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. His trial is scheduled for Nov. 7.