(Radio Iowa) — The 2020 census will begin with a mailing starting in mid-March. Census Bureau spokesperson Maureen Schriner says it’s important that everyone looks for and completes the census form to be counted. Schriner says the census determines our legislative representation and also determines how much money communities get from the federal government. She says the federal government decides every year on how to hand out 675 BILLION dollars in funding for services in communities.

Schriner says some people are concerned that the information they provide on the completed census forms will be readily available. She says that in information is kept confidential.”Your individual information is never shared. For 72 years it is locked down, it is confidential. It is not shared with any other governmental entities,” according to Schriner.  She says the information is only released in an aggregate form. Schriner says that would be numbers like the population of the state. “So the 2020 Census tries to go out and record the entire population. That’s what it is used for — so it is not reported out on an individual basis,” she says.

Additional information about the census can be obtained by going on-line at www.2020census.gov

A woman from Red Oak was arrested at around 3:30 this (Monday) morning, in Red Oak. Authorities say 30-year old Sara Ann Billie-Kier was taken into custody for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, a simple misdemeanor. Billie-Kier was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $300 bond.

A traffic stop at around 12:10-a.m. Sunday in Adams County, resulted in the arrest of a man on a drug charge. Joshua Strange, of Clarinda, was taken into custody for Possession of a Controlled Substance, after a baggy of methamphetamine was found inside his vehicle.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:05 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say an investigation into animal treatment at an Iowa state lawmaker’s hog farm found no evidence that animals were being abused despite video that a group posted that appeared to show otherwise. Two people with California-based Direct Action Everywhere entered a hog farm last spring owned by Republican Iowa state Sen. Ken Rozenboom. Mahaska County Sheriff Russell Van Renterghem says an investigation didn’t find any abuse. Rozenboom said he decided in December to lease the hog building to a different farmer. He has said veterinary records show the herd was being treated for a respiratory infection that contributed to the problems Direct Action Everywhere documented.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A student is suing Drake University in Des Moines, along with a fraternity at the school and several fellow students for an unspecified amount after he said he nearly died from a hazing incident. Court documents filed Feb. 7 show Marcus Shields is suing the school, Theta Chi fraternity, its Drake chapter and others. The lawsuit says Shields was a 19-year-old freshman last year and a Theta Chi pledge when the fraternity engaged in hazing, included coercing and forcing him to drink excessive amounts of alcohol. Shields says he pleaded with his fraternity brothers that “he didn’t want to die,” and had to be taken by ambulance to a hospital for acute alcohol poisoning.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Democratic Party has selected a new interim chairman to replace Troy Price, who resigned this week following a meltdown in the state’s lead-off presidential caucuses. The Des Moines Register reports that the party’s State Central Committee voted Saturday to install Iowa state Rep. Mark Smith, of Marshalltown, as interim chairman. The vote came a day after party officials agreed to hire two high-profile lawyers to investigate the factors leading to the problems that hamstrung the Feb. 3 Iowa Caucus, when problems with a mobile app and other issues prevented it from releasing results.

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say two people suffered minor injuries in a fire that destroyed a Fort Dodge towing and auto business. Television station KCCI reports that the fire broke out Friday afternoon in Mid Iowa Towing. Firefighters arrived to find a large fire in the company’s shop area, with flames reaching the roof. The building is not served by the city and did not have fire hydrants, requiring the firefighters to use 500-gallon water tanks. Officials say the lack of water and presence of a large amount of flammable liquids, coupled with high winds, caused the fire to grow and spread quickly. Two of the business’ employees were treated for burns on their hands.