OSAGE, Iowa (AP) — A funeral service has been scheduled for an airman of the Iowa Air National Guard who drowned while stationed for duty in Guam. The Iowa National Guard says a service for Drew Bellairs will be held Thursday at 10 a.m. at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Osage. His burial will be held at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis at a later date.

The 20-year-old Bellairs, of Osage, was a member of the Iowa National Guard’s 185th Air Refueling Wing based in Sioux City. He drowned on July 25 while swimming at Marbo Cave on the eastern shore of Guam. He was temporarily assigned to the 506th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam at the time of his death.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – Towers that welcome visitors to Council Bluffs will shine a little brighter at night thanks to the installation of new LED lights. The Daily Nonpareil reports that the LED lights are more energy efficient than the tower’s original neon lights and allow for more colors. The structures were built in 2002 as part of an Iowa West Foundation project.

The retrofitting process took around four months, and Iowa West switched tower lights back on in late July. The tower lights currently feature red, yellow, orange and green as part of a summer theme. It’s scheduled to remain until Aug. 15, when it will be followed by a rainbow theme until the end of the month.

Clarinda Police Chief Keith Brothers reports his officers responded to a disturbance late Monday evening, and arrested a man on drug charges. At approximately 8:30 p.m. officers were called to 301 N. 14th Street where the male and female residents of the home were arguing. Taken into custody was 27-year old Brandon Donald Akers,  who resides at that location.

Akers was arrested for illegal possession of controlled substances without a valid prescription and possession of drug paraphernalia commonly used for the ingestion of illicit substances.  He was booked into the Page County Jail in lieu of $1,000 bail pending an initial appearance before a magistrate.

NEW YORK (AP) – Deere is recalling more than 2,000 lawn tractors because the brake arm can fail and cause a crash.  There have been no reports of injuries, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said Tuesday. The recall is for John Deere models D110, D125, D130, D140, D155, D160 and D170 with serial numbers beginning with 1GXD. They were sold at Home Depot, Lowe’s and other stores since May. They cost between $1,700 and $2,700. About 1,700 were sold in the U.S. and 370 in Canada.

Deere & Co., based in Moline, Illinois, said customers should stop using the tractors and contact the company for a free repair.  Owners can call (800) 537-8233 or go to http://www.deere.com and select “Recall Information” from the Services & Support menu.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – The University of Iowa graduate student union is praising a legal decision requiring the university to bargain over student fee reimbursements. The union, which represents 2,300 teaching and research assistants, said Tuesday the ruling strengthens its campaign to have members reimbursed for their mandatory student fees.

In its new two-year contract, the union negotiated a provision reimbursing members 25 percent of fees – about $250 out of $1,000 a full-time student pays annually. The union will push for additional reimbursements in future contracts. During negotiations, the Iowa Board of Regents argued that student fee reimbursements were not a mandatory subject for bargaining. The Iowa Public Employment Relations Board ruled that they were.

District Judge Karen Romano rejected the regents’ appeal Friday, saying reimbursements are “supplemental pay” that must be negotiated.

Iowans paid over a quarter of a billion dollars in personal income taxes to the State of Iowa last month. There are a record number of Iowans in the workforce now and that amount of personal income taxes paid to the state last month was nearly six-and-a-half percent more than Iowans paid in July of last year. Many Iowans have their income taxes withheld from their paychecks.

There was a four percent increase in withholding payments in July, along with a big surge of nearly 21 percent in estimated income tax payments to the state. Estimated payments come from farmers, retirees and self-employed Iowans who do not have a regular paycheck and must estimate their annual income and the income taxes they’ll owe the state.

The monthly report from the Legislative Services Agency also shows corporate income tax payments to the state were down this July compared to July of 2014. Sales tax collections were up about two percent. A panel of experts has predicted corporate income taxes will not be as robust this year, but the panel IS predicting a five percent increase in sales tax collections for the entire 12-month fiscal year.

(Radio Iowa)

Officials in Atlantic say a portion of the building that houses City Hall will be open to the public for the first time since the 1970’s. City Administrator John Lund says the “Atlantic City Hall will host an open house during AtlanticFest on Saturday, August 8, 2015 from 10:00 – 1:00 so the public may visit the large multi-purpose room on the second floor.”

The Atlantic City Council is considering renovating the multi-purpose room, and Lund says the public is invited to take advantage of this rare opportunity to visit it and provide input about a possible remodel project.

The building that houses the Atlantic City Hall, City offices and Police Dept.

The second floor is not accessible by elevator, which is one reason it has been closed to the public. City Hall is located at 23 E 4th Street, at the Intersection of 4th and Walnut Streets.

The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce has announced Atlantic Motor Supply (NAPA) is the new premier partner of the AtlanticFest Car Show, which will be held rain or shine on Saturday August 8th.

The cars will enter at 3rd and Poplar Street, registration will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Judging will begin afterwards, with the trophy presentations at 4pm. There are 26 different show classes available, including specialty classes, such as Teen, Rat Rod, and Tri-Five. Day-of registration for $15 will be accepted from 8 a.m. to noon.

AtlanticFest is brought to you by presenting sponsor First Whitney Bank & Trust and will be held Saturday August 8th, with activities for everyone. For more information about the AtlanticFest Car Show, or additional AtlanticFest information visit www.atlanticiowa.com or call the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce at (712)243-3017.

PELLA, Iowa (AP) – A 33-year-old man has been accused of leaving his infant daughter inside a hot car in a central Iowa parking lot. Court records say Trent Steinhart, of Sigourney, is charged with neglect or abandonment of a dependent person.  He was arrested Saturday in Pella, where police say a passer-by spotted the baby alone in the locked car. Police say the heat index at the time was 92 degrees and that she’d been in the car for at least 15 minutes. Officers used a special tool to unlock a car door and rescue her. Police say Steinhart told officers he’d been inside a store shopping and forgot his daughter was in the car.

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

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