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

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(Radio Iowa) — An organization representing Iowa’s largest businesses plans to conduct new research to find ways to “attract diverse populations” to the state. The Iowa Business Council warns a lack skilled workers and slow population growth are major threats to Iowa’s future. Mary Andringa, chairwoman of the board at Vermeer in Pella, is the Iowa Business Council’s chair. “The state is not keeping up with the talent demand of today,” Andringa says, “and not also properly preparing the workforce needs for the future in the state of Iowa.”

Terry Handley, C-E-O of Casey’s General Stores, is the Iowa Business Council’s vice chair. “We have phenomenal career opportunities in communities across Iowa and our state offers excellent quality of life,” Handley said. “Nevertheless, we struggle to attract people to our towns and we don’t see the gains in population needed to support Iowa business.”

Iowa Business Council leaders held a news conference at the statehouse Monday. to release what it calls the competitive dashboard signals in Iowa’s economy. It shows that in 2018 the productivity of Iowa’s businesses grew, as did the average household income of Iowans. But Andringa says the percentage of Iowans who have a college degree or some kind of training beyond high school was still “outpaced” by other states. She says Iowa businesses need more workers “from other states or other countries.” “We just need to tell our stories to elected officials at the federal level, at the state level and what the needs are,” Andringa says, “because I think most of our elected officials are willing to listen and incorporate that into their thinking.”

Handley says the U.S. immigration system needs to be modernized and provide certainty to businesses, workers and their families. “Employers’ ability to recruit and retain talent from other countries is a key factor for both business and population growth,” he said. “…We feel it is absolutely critical for the business community to help our elected officials to understand Iowa business needs for workers in order to grow our economy and one way to meet this need is to thoughtfully bringing people into this country and into this state.”

The Iowa Business Council’s dashboard rated the ethnic diversity of Iowa’s population as “poor.”

(Updated 7:20-a.m.) DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Dangerously low temperatures and wind chills have prompted several Iowa universities to call off classes. The National Weather Service’s wind chill warning says wind chills as low as minus 50 degrees could occur Wednesday in much of Iowa.
Officials for Iowa State University say all classes have been canceled and university offices closed all day Tuesday and Wednesday and through noon Thursday. The University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa say classes will be canceled starting at 5 p.m. Tuesday. Classes are scheduled to start again noon Thursday.
Drake University says classes will be canceled after 5 p.m. Tuesday and all day Wednesday.
Iowa State says basketball games at Hilton Coliseum on Tuesday and Wednesday would be played as scheduled. The Drake men’s basketball game against Illinois State also will be played Wednesday night.

(Radio Iowa) — The National Weather Service has been warning Iowans of “life-threatening” wind chills blowing across the state this week. The worst conditions are expected late tonight (Tuesday) into Wednesday with wind chills of 40-to-50 below zero. Lorrie Mortensen, with Floyd Valley Healthcare in Le Mars, says frost bite can happen very quickly when skin is exposed to this kind of cold. “It can just be a matter of minutes, particularly if you’re not taking the right kind of precautions and bundling-up appropriately for it,” Mortensen said. “It does not take long at all.”

The first symptoms of frost bit involve a “prickly” feeling, followed by numbness. “From there, you’re going to start seeing redness. It’s your body trying to react and get circulation going,” Mortensen said. “From there, it almost turns into that white color. When it starts to look that kind of pale white, you know you’re starting to get into some danger zones.”

Forecasters predict this will be Iowa’s coldest snap in more than 20 years. In addition to protecting yourself from this extreme cold, Mortensen says pets should remain indoors.

Police in Red Oak cited a juvenile into court Monday night, for Operating (a vehicle) without Owners Consent. Officers were flagged-down by a motorist at around 8:40-p.m., after witness said they believed a tired or intoxicated driver had just pulled into the Cubby’s parking lot, where officers were already on scene. Police saw the vehicle pull in and made contact with the male juvenile, who was not old enough to drive. Officers escorted the boy back to his residence, where his mother told Police her son had no right or privilege to take the vehicle. The boy was cited for the aggravated misdemeanor and then released to his parents.

Red Oak Police report also, 48-year old Shelby Joann Olivares was arrested at around 10:17-p.m. Monday, for Public Intoxication, 3rd or subsequent offense. Olivares was transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where her bond was set at $2,000. Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies assisted Red Oak Police in handling the incident.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris defended positions she took as California’s attorney general that are unpopular with some Democrats, saying they reflected her duty as the state’s top law enforcement officer.

Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., center, speaks to reporters at Drake University, Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, in Des Moines, Iowa. Harris formally announced on Sunday that she was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

During a CNN town hall-style event Monday night at Drake University, Harris was asked about prosecuting death penalty cases as well as legislation in California to require her office to investigate all police-related fatal shootings. Harris, who was attorney general from 2011 until she took office as a U.S. senator in 2017, said she enforced the death penalty despite opposing it.

“It’s a flawed system. It is applied unequally based on race and based on income,” she said in answering student Riley Fink’s question in the school’s Sheslow Auditorium in Des Moines. Harris said she chose not to take a public position on the fatal shootings legislation in 2015 because her office would write the law and enforce it. She did say at the time, however, that she did not support the notion of superseding local prosecutors.

Fatal shootings by police of unarmed black men have become a rallying point among a swath of Democratic-leaning voters. Harris has faced scrutiny of her background as a prosecutor early in the 2020 presidential discussion. The town hall Monday night was her first public event in Iowa — the state will host the first presidential caucuses of the primary season — since she declared her candidacy.

Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who have taken steps toward presidential bids of their own, also have been confronted with questions about potential liabilities during appearances in Iowa this month.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest following a traffic stop Sunday night, of Rodney Pogge. The Council Bluffs man was placed under arrest for Driving Under Suspension and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Surveillance camera still-frame images from the Adams County S/O

Sheriff’s officials said also, that at around 8:50-p.m. Monday, a car was traveling northbound on Davis Avenue passing by the Sheriff’s Office when it crashed into the back of a parked SUV. Disabling damage was done to the SUV, but the car did not stop.

Paint was left at the scene and it was determined the car is maroon/purple. Both headlights were functioning when the car drove off, so it will likely have extensive damage down the passenger side.

If you see a car with heavy front end damage on the passenger side, please call the Sheriff’s Office at 641-322-4444.

Sheriff’s officials in Adams County say that a little before Noon last Thursday (January 24th), Adams County Dispatch received a call from Southwest Valley High School with regard to an individual conducting a false school fundraiser around the city of Corning and getting money from individuals. An investigation led deputies to the Riverview Apartments. There, they made contact with a resident inside the apartment and the following charges ensued:

• 19-year old Lacey Goodnight, of Corning, was arrested and charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance 1st Offense, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.,
  
  

  Lacey Goodnight

• A 14 year old female juvenile was charged with Conspiracy, and Possession of a Controlled Substance 1st Offense.
• A 15 year old female juvenile was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance 1st Offense, and Fraudulent Practice in the 5th Degree.
• A 15 year old female juvenile was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance 2nd Offense, and Fraudulent Practice in the 5th Degree.
• And a 16 year old female juvenile was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance 1st Offense, along with four counts of Fraudulent Practice in the 5th Degree.

All five subjects were also cited for Gathering where a controlled substance is unlawfully used.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:00 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Republican-led Iowa House has voted to reject 29 absentee mail ballots cast in a northeast Iowa House district handing a Republican who won by nine votes the seat in the first contested election to go before the Legislature in 27 years. The ballots have been confirmed by a U.S. Postal Service scan of a barcode on the envelopes as having been sent to election officials on time but Republicans insist those barcodes can’t be used to validate ballots.

NEW LONDON, Iowa (AP) — A southeast Iowa school has turned a conference room into a food pantry for students and their families. The Hawk Eye reports that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Bank of Iowa and local community groups helped launch the food pantry at New London School District in December. Families in the district with a student in kindergarten through 12th grade can use the food pantry, which is open on Thursdays. About 30 families have used the resource so far.

ROSSIE, Iowa (AP) — Authorities are investigating the fatal shooting of a man by another hunter in northwest Iowa. The Iowa Natural Resources Department said Monday that sheriff’s deputies responded to a shooting report around 11:15 a.m. Sunday. The shooting occurred about 4 miles west of Rossi in Clay County. The department says Granville resident Kirk Struve was struck by a bullet believed fired by another member of his party while hunting coyotes. The name of the other hunter hasn’t been released.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — Police say the death of a man whose body was found in a western Iowa apartment was a homicide. Council Bluffs police identified the man in a news release Monday as Adam Angeroth. Angeroth’s body was found Thursday in Council Bluffs by officers sent to check on him. The cause of his death isn’t being released yet. No arrests have been reported.

COUNCIL BLUFFS – As the temperature plummets, the risk for cold weather exposure emergencies increases. Shelters and Human Service organizations in Pottawattamie County are preparing for the arctic blast impacting the area. Currently, the Salvation Army will be operating warming centers at their Lakin Campus office at 715 N 16th St. Hours of operations will be 9am-2pm Monday, 9am-3pm Tuesday, and 9am-3pm Wednesday. The Red Cross has also placed a shelter on stand-by should there be a need to open a community shelter. Mohm’s Place in Council Bluffs will be open 24 hours to assist those in need of shelter from the elements.

Pott. County EMA

The extreme low temperatures and wind chills present a very real danger for those exposed to the elements. Everyone is advised to limit their activities outside over the next couple of days as much as possible.

Parents should take extra precautions to protect children waiting for school bus pick-up and adults who must work out in the elements should limit their time outside, remain hydrated and take frequent breaks in a warmed area. You should dress warmly, in layers, and ensure to limit skin exposure. Motorist should have an emergency kit that includes a blanket or sleeping bag in case you become stranded.

For more information on winter weather preparedness, visit the Winter Weather page at www.beready.iowa.gov. To receive emergency weather warnings and community emergency alerts sign up for free alerts from Pottawattamie Alert, part of the Alert Iowa Network, at www.pottcounty-ia.gov.