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

ANAMOSA, Iowa (AP) — Officials have lifted a bottled water advisory in Anamosa after determining a chemical mistakenly added to the water supply was harmless at low concentrations. The Department of Natural Resources lifted the advisory Monday evening after determining the chemical was triethanolamine, used mostly in the cosmetic and drug industries. One to three gallons of the chemical were mixed into about 750,000 gallons of water storage, which diluted the chemical to a harmless level.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad says the Republican Party must come together and support Donald Trump’s candidacy for president. The Republican governor said Monday that GOP leaders need to accept that Trump will be the party’s nominee for president and work to defeat Hillary Clinton, the likely Democratic nominee. He said there’s “some time” to mend internal division within the party over whether to support Trump.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Now that Donald Trump is the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, supporters of President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court pick believe they have a winning argument to get the GOP-led Senate to act. Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley opposes confirmation hearings or votes on Judge Merrick Garland until Americans elect the next president. But with Trump the likely nominee, Grassley is under new pressure from Democrats and the White House.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The lawyer for a man convicted of first-degree murder in the shooting death of a woman in a Coralville mall has requested a new trial, claiming prosecutors didn’t follow court rules. Alfredo Parrish filed the motion last week on behalf of his client 23-year-old Alexander Kozak. A jury in April found Kozak guilty of killing 20-year-old Andrea Farrington at the Coral Ridge Mall on June 12.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The National Weather Service says a tornado has touched down in central Iowa. A storm spotter observed a funnel cloud just before 8-p.m. five-miles west of Guthrie Center. Minutes later, the funnel evolved into a rope-style tornado that touched down west of Guthrie Center, according to the National Weather Service.

Hope Gettler submitted this photo to the KJAN Facebook page. She said “We watched the rotation that formed a rope like tornado. It bounced up and down for 10 minutes while it was moving northwest towards Guthrie. This was taken 5 miles north of Adair at 320th St and Elm St.”

The twister did not hit any populated areas and there were no reports of damage or injuries. The twister continued to cycle between a funnel cloud and tornado until it was about 10-miles south of Coon Rapids at around 8:18-p.m., where it was seen near 190th and Dogwood Road before retreating back into the cloud deck.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office, Monday, said two people were arrested over the weekend. On Saturday, 56-year old Verner Jay Moore, of Emerson, was arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault and Obstruction of Emergency Communications. His bond was set at $1,300. And, on Sunday, 41-year old Justin David Rhea, of Council Bluffs, was arrested for OWI/2nd offense, and Driving Under Suspension. His bond was set at $2,300.

Three accidents were reported in Mills County, as well, with injuries resulting from one of the incidents. Officials say at around 1:50-p.m. Friday, vehicles driven by Jonathan Cochran, of Bellevue, NE., and Logan Allen, of Glenwood, collided in the 5600 block of 221st Street, as a 2015 Dodge driven by Allen, was traveling north and making a left turn into a driveway. A 2013 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Cochran, was traveling south and saw the Dodge turning. Cochran applied the brakes causing his cycle to skid. The cycle fell onto its side and collided with the Dodge in the southbound lane. The motorcycle hit a trailer being pulled by the Dodge, that was loaded with horses. Cochran was transported by Glenwood Rescue to a hospital in Council Bluffs, for treatment.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad says Donald Trump should consider U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst as his vice presidential running mate for the upcoming general election. Branstad told reporters Monday the senator from Iowa would be a “great asset” to Trump, the Republican’s presumptive nominee for president. The governor says Ernst’s military record and political background make her an ideal choice for the job.

Branstad made the comments after Sen. John McCain of Arizona voiced support recently for Ernst as a possible VP pick. Branstad says he has not discussed the subject with Ernst, who is serving her first term in the Senate. He says he intends to try to meet directly with Trump before the party’s national convention in July to formally make the case for Ernst.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Dry weather last week has allowed Iowa farmers to surge ahead of their normal planting schedule with 80 percent of the corn crop now planted. The USDA says that’s eight days ahead of the five-year average of just 56 percent planted by the first week in May. The crop was planted early enough that 28 percent is already emerged from the ground about five days ahead of the Iowa average.

Location makes a difference, however, with Western Iowa lagging behind because it’s been wetter than the rest of the state. Nebraska farmers are 53 percent planted a little behind their average of 59 percent. Corn farmers also are ahead of schedule in Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. Soybeans also are in the ground much earlier in those states.

Two people were arrested Saturday on separate charges, in Cass County. The Sheriff’s Office reports 41-year old Jesse Lee Archibald, of Exira, was arrested on a charge of OWI 2nd Offense. Archibald was taken to the Cass County Jail where he was released later that day on his own recognizance. And, 48-year old Kenneth Lee Klindt, of Griswold, turned himself in at the Cass County Jail, Saturday, on a Department of Corrections warrant for Parole Violation. Klindt was booked at the Cass County Jail and remains held without bond.

The Iowa Finance Authority will soon launch a new sweepstakes to draw attention to the size of its first-time home buyers assistance grants. “The ‘2500 bucks’ campaign really emphasizes how much $2500 really is.” Ashley Jared is a spokeswoman for the Iowa Finance Authority. She is encouraging Iowans to think of what a mass of 25-hundred male deer or “bucks” would look like.

“It’s really emphasizing that $2500 is a big deal for home buyers, for down payment assistance and closing costs,” Jared says. The Finance Authority will launch the sweepstakes May 23rd at www.IowaHouseHunt.com. Anyone can enter the contest to win a 25-hundred dollar gift card at Iowa-House-Hunt-dot-com.

A second gift card will be awarded through Facebook, but the contest requires an accompanying photo of the entrant with an item that symbolizes their favorite term for “money” — like clams, dough or wads. The contest will close on July 4th.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau (GTSB) recently formed the first-of-its-kind-in-Iowa, Impaired Driving Coalition, in light of the seriousness of impaired driving across the state.

The Impaired Driving Task Force includes members of the Iowa Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the DPS’s GTSB, the DPS’s Division of Criminal Investigation Criminalistics Laboratory, Department of Corrections, Department of Transportation, Department of Public Health, Department of Human Rights, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Attorney General’s Office, city, county and state law enforcement officers and private partners.

The GTSB has asked the Coalition, which includes many different perspectives and experiences, to review existing Iowa data, laws, regulations and programs and propose a coordinated statewide impaired driving plan for preventing and reducing impaired driving behavior.

The purpose of the statewide impaired driving plan is to provide a comprehensive strategy for preventing and reducing impaired driving, based on coordinated efforts designed to reduce deaths and increase public safety. The plan will eventually be submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for approval.

The GTSB has established a new award in honor of Officers Susan Farrell and Carlos Puente-Morales. Officer Farrell and Officer Puente-Morales were killed in the line of duty by an impaired driver who was driving the wrong direction on I-80.

The Farrell/Puente-Morales Award will be presented annually at the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau Conference to a law enforcement agency that has displayed a strong emphasis on addressing impaired driving throughout the year.

All agencies that have a GTSB contract will be reviewed by GTSB staff and one agency will be selected as the award recipient by reviewing their enforcement, education or public awareness efforts in the fight against impaired driving.

The deaths of Officers Farrell and Puente-Morales will not be forgotten and will be the impetus for all Iowans to push for new innovations and initiatives to eliminate impaired drivers once and for all from Iowa’s roadways. Effective enforcement efforts can save lives and make our communities safer and stronger, and these efforts are worthy of public recognition.

(DPS Press Release)

Sheriff’s officials in Union County report one person suffered possible/unknown injuries during an accident last Thursday morning, in Afton. Authorities say 53-year old Carol Ann Cain, of Lorimor, was transported by ambulance to the Greater Regional Medical Center in Creston, after her car was struck by a pickup driven by 17-year old Jacob Walter, of Afton.

The accident happened at the uncontrolled intersection of Grant and Polk Streets in Afton, at around 11:20-a.m., Thursday. Following an investigation, Walter was cited for Failure to Yield. Damage from the collision amounted to $6,000.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Some Iowa lawmakers say a state director defied legislative intent behind a $750,000 allocation to hire disabled people and that his department ignored legislators’ requests to explain the actions. The Des Moines Register reports Iowa Department of Human Services director Chuck Palmer is expected to answer questions about the matter before a legislative committee Tuesday.

The $750,000 allocation in last year’s legislative session was intended to aid a program known as “Supported Employment,” which helps people with disabilities get and hold a job. But lawmakers didn’t include so-called clarifying language in the bill, and the department used the money to supplement the state’s $4.2 billion Medicaid budget. Republican state Rep. Megan Jones and at least three other lawmakers say Palmer and his department should’ve been aware of the Legislature’s wishes regardless.