January 16, 2026 (DES MOINES, IA) – Today, the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) Board approved assistance for six startups located in Ames, Ankeny, Boone and Des Moines.

Ames-based agtech company Hermes Biomaterials, Inc. develops tools that help researchers create stronger, higher-yielding crops. Its FGB device enables the precise delivery of genetic material into plant cells. The company received a $50,000 Proof of Commercial Relevance loan to support staff, lab equipment and supplies needed to grow and test soybeans. This investment will allow for additional in-house research and testing, accelerating product development and bringing new agricultural technologies to market more quickly.

Koos Medical Innovations, Inc. of Ankenyhas developed a disposable isolation gown designed to reduce the spread of infectious germs in health care settings. The gown’s patented design meets Food and Drug Administration performance standards and provides a superior barrier against fluid exposure, helping protect both patients and providers while lowering infection-related risks and costs for hospitals. Koos received a $100,000 Demonstration Fund loan to support commercialization and early market entry.

Headquartered in Boone, Critical Materials Recycling, Inc. recycles rare earth elements used in defense applications, clean energy and advanced technologies. Its patented, acid-free process recovers high-purity rare earth oxides — key materials used to manufacture high-performance magnets — from hard disk drives, wind turbine magnets, electric vehicle motors and consumer electronics. This process reduces emissions, electronic waste and reliance on foreign mining. The company was awarded a $100,000 Demonstration Fund loan to hire a chief commercial officer and refresh its branding.

Des Moines-based Broker Hero, LLC, doing business as Broker Hero AI, is a software-as-a-service company that supports merger and acquisition (M&A) professionals and business brokers serving small- to lower middle-market companies. Its platform automates prospecting and identifies off-market opportunities with intent-based targeting. The company’s SmartLists tool uses artificial intelligence and data providers to more efficiently identify potential buyers and sellers. Broker Hero received a $50,000 Proof of Commercial Relevance loan to refine its product, support key personnel and expand its market presence.

Morrigan Company of Des Moines, doing business as MorriganAI, develops software that helps organizations understand how artificial intelligence (AI) is being used across their workforce and systems, enabling leaders to manage it more safely and effectively. Its tools identify hidden or unapproved AI use, which can expose sensitive data, create compliance risks and lead to productivity gaps. The company received a $50,000 Proof of Commercial Relevance loan to support market analysis, product refinement, market planning and entry, and key personnel.

Des Moines-based Renewabl Furniture, Inc., doing business as Renewabl App, is a software-as-a-service company that uses artificial intelligence to help home furnishings professionals and consumers quickly create realistic visuals of custom furniture and decor. Users can upload photos of their existing home furnishings or sketches and apply fabrics, paints, hardware, finishes and other design elements. The company received a $50,000 Proof of Commercial Relevance loan to refine its software platform, hire key personnel and support its commercial launch.

Award recommendations for these funds are made by the Technology Commercialization Committee to the IEDA Board for approval.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds has released a number of detailed plans this week that she’s asking legislators to pass — but she does not plan to present her own bill to resolve the stalemate over property rights and the proposed carbon pipeline.  “I didn’t introduce anything because I knew both chambers were working on something,” Reynolds said. A House bill already eligible for debate as soon as next week would completely ban the use of eminent domain for the project. The Senate’s Republican leader has proposed giving Summit Carbon Solutions some leeway to redraw the pipeline route to avoid land owned by people who will not sign voluntary easements.

Reynolds says she and the G-O-P leaders in the House and Senate are discussing what’s next.”We all three are talking to see what that looks like. That’s the first step in trying to find resolution,” Reynolds said. “…It’s early, so I’m going to do what I always do. I’m not going to interject, except we’re keeping everybody in the loop as we move forward so there’s no surprises.” The Republican-led House has passed a handful of bills over the past five years to establish new regulations and restrictions on the pipeline project. Last spring was the first time one of those bills passed the Senate and was sent to the governor.

Last June, Reynolds said that bill would have impacted public utility projects, too, and she voted it.

(Creston, IA) – Police in Creston, Thursday night, arrested a man for Failure to Appear on a May 31, 2025 charge of Criminal Mischief in the 2nd-Degree (A Class-D Felony). Officers arrested 37-year-old Tyler James Hicks, of Creston, at around 10:15-p.m., Thursday, at the Creston/Union County Law Enforcement Center. Hicks was booked-in and held without bond until seen by a Magistrate Judge.

(Clarinda, IA) – Online court records show a Clarinda man arrested in November on a felony charge of assault with the intent to commit sexual abuse – bodily injury, is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 26th. According to a criminal complaint filed by the Clarinda Police Department, the charge against 34-year-old Cody Dean Nevada Carlson, was the result of an investigation into an incident that allegedly occurred on or about October 23rd, 2025.

The complaint alleges Carlson bit the victim multiple times, causing pain and bodily injury, before and after being told to stop. On Thursday, 4th District Court Judge Craig Dreismeier acted on an Order to raise the level of the original complaint after Clarinda Police amended their complaint.

(Red Oak, IA)– Police in Red Oak, Thursday night, arrested a man on a Harassment charge. According to the Police Department, 29-year-old Andrew Michael Brammer, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 8-p.m., Thursday, in the 400 block of E. Market Street.

Brammer was transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where he was charged with Harassment in the 1st Degree. His cash or surety bond was set at $2,000.

(Radio Iowa) – The cold weather keeps many Iowans indoors during the winter, which can lead to Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD, and a library in northwest Iowa is taking a direct approach to helping perk people up who have the winter blues. Shirley Taylor, director of the Le Mars Public Library, says they’re offering three high-intensity light therapy lamps for patrons to check out for up to three weeks at a time, and she’s hoping other Iowa libraries will follow suit. “We never know if it’s going to be a snowy winter or dry winter, cold or mild, but we do know that it’s dark,” Taylor says, laughing. “The U.S. Navy astronomical charts do show us that on January 1st, we have 9 hours of daylight here in Le Mars, and on July 1st, we have 15 hours of daylight, so that’s a pretty big difference and that can affect people’s moods.”

In addition to the lights that are available for checkout, Taylor says a fourth lamp has been installed in the library’s reading room.”We have a lot of people who come in and read newspapers and magazines here, so that’s the area where we have one that’s just set up,” Taylor says. “At any time, if people want to come in and while they’re reading newspapers, magazines — or they can even just be scrolling on Instagram — they can sit in front of one of the light therapy boxes and see if that will help them.” In light therapy, patients generally sit in front of a light box every morning for 30 minutes or more, depending on the doctor’s recommendation.

Studies show light therapy can relieve SAD symptoms in as much as 70% of patients after a few weeks of treatment. The lamps are being offered as part of the library’s Beat the Blues Challenge, and each week there’s a new theme. “This week’s challenge is journaling,” Taylor says. “Research shows that sometimes it’s just sitting down and thinking about the good things that go on in your life can really help lift your mood, to some extent.”

Studies find between 35- and 50-million Americans suffer from SAD, and those who were susceptible to it one winter are likely to see it return. In addition to the mood swings, symptoms may include trouble concentrating, and difficulty falling or staying asleep. Some people can overcome SAD by engaging in physical activity, while others may benefit from practices like yoga, meditation, tai chi, and deep breathing exercises.

(Radio Iowa) – Some Iowa business owners were in Washington, D-C this week to tell senators about the difficulties facing the agricultural economy. Jay Funke is the sales manager at Del Clay Farm Equipment in Edgewood in northeast Iowa. Funke said low commodity prices are affecting sales in the region.

(Council Bluffs, IA) — A man charged in connection with a shooting incident last fall in Avoca that left one person injured, has entered a plea of not guilty to several charges associated with the case. The charges against 29-year-old Shaun McCarthy include Attempted Murder, Willful Injury and Child Endangerment, to name a few.

According to online court records, McCarthy entered his written plea to the charges on January 9^th. On Thursday (Jan. 15th), a judge issued a modified No Contact/Protective Order in the case against McCarthy.

As previously reported, Deputies in Pottawattamie County responded a little after 8-p.m. Oct. 10, 2025, to a reported shooting west of Avoca. As law enforcement was coming to the residence, additional gunfire was heard. Deputies identified the male suspect as Shaun McCarthy, who at the time was 28-years-old, and who was outside the residence when deputies arrived at the scene.

After a short standoff, McCarthy was taken into custody without further incident. The victim suffered minor injuries. Sheriff’s officials said they found children safe in the home.

A jury trial has been scheduled for February 10.

(IOWA CAPITAL DISPATCH) – A federal judge has ordered the Muscatine County Jail to release an ICE detainee who had been incarcerated for almost a year after a judge ruled in his favor on an asylum request. The Iowa Capital Dispatch says court records indicate 36-year-old Jose Yugar-Cruz entered the United States in July 2024 after fleeing his home country of Bolivia. In court filings, Yugar-Cruz alleged that while living in Bolivia, he operated a small business and had “refused to facilitate the drug trade by police officials” who then detained him and tortured him.

In the court filings, Yugar-Cruz said he fled to Mexico, entered the United States on foot at the Arizona border, and then “sought out and surrendered” himself to federal immigration officials. He was then taken into custody and jailed, after which he applied for asylum based on the threat of persecution in Bolivia.

In December 2024, a federal immigration judge held a hearing on Yugar-Cruz’s asylum request. According to a lawsuit Yugar-Cruz filed four weeks ago against Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and various Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, the judge ruled in January 2025 that the U.S. government could not send Yugar-Cruz back to Bolivia due to the ongoing threat of torture. The judge granted Yugar-Cruz “withholding-of-removal relief” — a form of protection for individuals who face persecution if returned to their home country. It prevents the U.S. government from deporting an individual to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened.

In his lawsuit, Yugar-Cruz asserted the government never appealed the immigration judge’s ruling and so he “expected that he would soon be released from detention and allowed to start his life in the United States.” In February 2025, however, Yugar-Cruz was still being held in the Freeborn County Adult Detention Center in Albert Lea, Minn. While there, the lawsuit claimed, he spoke to ICE officials who first indicated he’d be released in “15 days or so,” but later informed him they would continue to hold him while looking for some third-party country to which he could be deported.

The lawsuit alleged ICE officials proposed that Yugar-Cruz be deported to Argentina, Chile or Paraguay, all of which border Bolivia, but Yugar-Cruz objected, noting that Bolivians, including the police, can easily travel to those countries without a passport. Mexico was proposed as an alternative, but Yugar-Cruz expressed concern officials there would simply deport him to Bolivia. On Dec. 3, 2025, Yugar-Cruz was transferred from the Albert Lea jail to the Muscatine County Jail in Iowa.

Nine days later, Yugar-Cruz’s attorney sued the Muscatine County jail administrator, as well as Noem and other Homeland Security officials, alleging they were violating federal law by continuing to detain Yugar-Cruz 11 months after the immigration judge had ruled in his favor. As part of that lawsuit, Yugar-Cruz’s attorney noted the Trump administration had adopted a practice of deporting people to third-party countries with no guarantee those individuals wouldn’t immediately be sent to their home country, where they faced persecution or torture.

A federal judge in the District of Columbia has ruled the practice amounts to a “widespread effort to evade the government’s legal obligations by doing indirectly what it cannot do directly.” Yugar-Cruz has no criminal record, according to his attorney’s court filings. His lawsuit alleged violations of his due process rights and the Immigration Nationality Act, and sought his immediate release from the Muscatine County Jail.

Recently, after the U.S. Department of Justice acknowledged the federal government had been attempting, without success, to find a third-party country to accept Yugar-Cruz, District Court Judge Stephen H. Locher ruled in Yugar-Cruz’s favor. Locher ordered the Muscatine County Jail to work with ICE officials in securing Yugar-Cruz’s immediate release and, on Jan. 7, 2026, ICE officials confirmed for the court that Yugar-Cruz had been discharged from the county jail.

His release remains subject to “reasonable conditions of supervision” by ICE, according to Locher’s order.

(Lewis, IA) – Officials with the Cass County Conservation Department said Thursday, the Cass County Conservation Board is holding a Cabin Fever Escape program on January 24th. The program/open house will be held at the Outdoor Educational Classroom outside Massena, from 1-until 4-p.m.  There is no charge to attend, and all ages are welcome!

Cure your cabin fever by spending some time outside with family friendly FUN! Bring your mugs, sleds, dress for the weather, snowshoes, and cross country skis will be available! If you get cold, warm and tasty drinks and a movie will be playing inside our lodge! There will be no snow activities planned- birding hikes, as well!

Full Moon Snowshoe Night Hike

The Cass County Conservation Board is holding Full Moon Snowshoe Night Hike. The Full Moon Snowshoe Night Hike will be held at the Outdoor Educational Classroom outside of Massena, on January 31st beginning at 7-p.m. Come out for a great night hike, try to call in various species of Owls that may be in the park that night! Snowshoes (variety of sizes) will be available. If the sky is clear, a full moon will light the way for hikers. The event is FREE, but be sure and dress for the weather!

The event be a night hike with “NO SNOWSHOES- if there is NO Snow!”

Find the Outdoor Education Classroom by taking Highway 148 south of Massena, turn Left on Tucson Road, follow it East for about two miles, and then a right hand turn into the parking lot.