Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A bill proposed by House Republicans would require local police and county sheriffs to cooperate with federal immigration officials by disclosing when they have in custody immigrants living in the country without legal permission. The measure would prevent local governments from adopting policies or procedures that limit or restrict the enforcement of any federal immigration law.

EXETER, N.H. (AP) — Stung by his second-place finish in Iowa, Donald Trump is facing new pressure to prove he can translate his massive crowds and poll leads into election wins. On Thursday, he increased the day’s number of planned New Hampshire events from two to five — the most he’d ever advertised.

KEYSTONE, Iowa (AP) — Three people were killed in a four-vehicle crash in eastern Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol says three people died and several others were injured Thursday morning after the driver of a minivan lost control of the vehicle on ice and another car crashed into it. The crashes occurred around 5:20 a.m. on an ice-covered section of Highway 30 near Keystone, west of Cedar Rapids.

MEDIAPOLIS, Iowa (AP) — A group of contractors has united to complete a custom-built home in Mediapolis after the original contractor died in a single-vehicle accident before finishing the project. The Burlington Hawk Eye reports that Darin Bush, co-owner of Schulte and Bush Contracting, died January 22nd in the accident near Sperry, about 13 miles north of Burlington.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Democrats in the Iowa Senate plan on passing a bill next week that would halt Gov. Terry Branstad’s plans to turn over management of the state’s Medicaid program to three private companies. The bill introduced in a subcommittee Wednesday directs the Iowa Department of Human Services to give a 30-day notice of contract termination to the three companies with which the state has contracted for private management of Medicaid.

It also directs the agency to continue previous efforts to improve patient outcomes, increase access to care and make the public management of Medicaid more efficient.

Senate leaders said Thursday they plan to pass the bill out of committees on Monday making it eligible for debate next Thursday. House Speaker Linda Upmeyer says the bill has no chance in the House.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A pollster warned the University of Iowa last year that its public standing was suffering from an image as a heavy-drinking school where sexual assault was too common. In a report obtained by The Associated Press, Washington-based pollster Chris Perkins tells university leaders that those perceptions mean the school “loses credibility as a serious academic institution.” He recommends specific messages for a communications strategy to combat the image.

The university has refused to release the December 2014 poll and others conducted by Perkins, who received the work under a no-bid contract. The AP obtained the report from a university employee who requested anonymity because the school didn’t authorize its disclosure. University spokeswoman Jeneane Beck said Wednesday the polling helped inform its communications and marketing strategies.

The Atlantic Public Library is now offering music downloading and streaming. Library Director Natalie Struecker broke the news during Wednesday night’s meeting of the Atlantic City Council. Struecker says they began offering the downloading and streaming of music on Wednesday. The service was to have begun Monday, but got pushed back a couple of days. She says if you have a library card, you can download three songs a week and keep them, or you can stream three-hours of music.

The service comes through the online resource Freegal Music. In addition to your library card, you will need a password to access the service, which offers about 8 million songs, including Sony Music’s catalog of artists. There is no software to download.

Freegal Music, which allows users to select pre-set music lists or create their own playlists, is available as an app for both Android and Apple devices. Songs can also be downloaded to a computer and transferred to an mp.3 or IPod device.

For more information, stop by the Atlantic Public Library or give them a call.

Another member of the Cass County Board of Supervisors has announced he will not be running for re-election during the June 7th Primary. District 1 Supervisor Duane McFadden told KJAN News about his decision during a visit to our studios this (Thursday) morning. McFadden will be completing his 12th year on the Board of Supervisors at the end of December.

He says he’s learned there are many up’s and down’s in trying to bring economic development to Cass County, especially with regard to bringing an ethanol plant to the County. Those efforts were bolstered late last week by a decision from the Iowa Economic Development Authority to award Farmers Energy Cardinal, LLC a $4.2-million tax break to create 49 jobs, of which 45 are incented at a qualifying wage of $18.67. The plant, originally planned in 2006, stalled and wasn’t completed.

When completed, the 150-million gallon per year, dry-mill corn ethanol plant will be Iowa’s 44th corn ethanol refinery and at 150 million gallons a year is among the state’s largest. The project will result in a capital investment of $189.9 million.

McFadden says when he leaves the Board, he’ll be moving to central Iowa. Duane worked for Lindeman Tractor in Atlantic for more than 20-years before he began his last campaign for office. He says whomever is elected to the District 1 seat on the Board of Supervisors has to know, especially if you’re elected Board Chair, like he was up until recently, it’s not just a couple of hours per week they’ll have to devote to the job, it’s a commitment to the County and its people.

Atlantic Police Chief Steve Green has announced he will be running to fill the District 1 seat in June. Mayor Dave Jones also has an interest in the seat, but he has not yet formally announced he’s running. Last month, Cass County District 4 Supervisor Chuck Rieken announced he too, won’t be seeking re-election.

LE MARS, Iowa (AP) – A May trial has been scheduled for a man accused of killing his mother in northwest Iowa. Jonathan Neunaber has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the July 2014 slaying of 80-year-old Esther Neunaber at her home in rural Akron. Her body was found with the body of her husband, Donald Neunaber. Prosecutors say that while Donald Neunaber died of natural causes, Esther Neunaber was beaten to death.

In January Jonathan Neunaber was found mentally fit to stand trial, which is set to begin May 10th.

Less than four months after the Eaton Corporation in Shenandoah announced it would permanently lay-off 71 workers on its third-shift manufacturing line by Dec. 2015, the company delivered another blow to the community this (Thursday) morning. Officials  said 250 hourly and salaried positions will be lost, due to the elimination of the company’s transmission assembly, gear and shaft machining operations.

Operations currently being done in Shenandoah will be moved to either Kings Mountain, North Carolina, or San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The company says it will retain manufacturing of some components for final assembly of the transmissions. Approximately 85 positions will be retained to support ongoing operations. The move is part of a change in the company’s manufacturing strategy. Employees at the plant received the news this (Thursday) morning.

Employees will receive 60 days notice about when their specific positions will be eliminated. Company officials say they will receive full severance packages, outplacement services, and those displaced employees are encouraged to seek out other positions within Eaton.

The company, which has existed in Shenandoah for more than 44 years, says it will work to help those displaced by the change. Eaton’s other Iowa plants are located in Belmond and Spencer.

Following last weekend’s deaths of two ice fishermen who fell through the ice and into a frigid lake in southern Iowa’s Decatur County, Iowans are being warned to be extremely cautious on the ice. Ed Rotert, training officer for the Mount Ayr and Midwest Regional Dive Team, says this is a particularly bad time to be risking your life by walking onto a frozen lake or pond. “Right now, the ice looks thick but it’s rotted ice,” Rotert says. “We were breaking ice out there that was close to 4″ thick and it wouldn’t even hold us up.”

Forecasters call for high temperatures across parts of southern Iowa on Sunday in the low 40s. Rotert says the ice -may- be thick enough to be considered safe in some areas of Iowa, but certainly not all of them. “It’ll be different, lake to lake, depending on the size of the lake and whether it’s spring-fed or not,” he says. “Right now, with the warm weather we’ve been having, I would suggest nobody goes out on the ice.”

Should you decide to venture onto the ice, Rotert suggests you bring along a couple of ice picks, so if you do fall in, you can use the picks to pull yourself up and out.  “Ice fishermen can buy floatation coveralls,” he says. “Most importantly, if you’re going to walk out on the ice, take a one-inch pole, closet rod, anything like that, and as you walk, slam it into the ice. If it breaks through or fractures and starts to go through the ice, that ice is completely unsafe.”

Another tip, he says the darker the ice appears, the more thin it is likely to be. The bodies of the father and son were recovered at Little River Lake on Sunday after several hours of searching. Sixty-three-year-old David Adair and 33-year-old Joe Adair were both from Missouri. They were about 200 feet from the shore when the ice broke.

(Radio Iowa)

(Update 8:56-a.m.)

Firefighters from Menlo, Casey and Stuart were called to the scene of a structure fire early this morning, in Menlo. Menlo Fire Chief Ben Gilman told KJAN News crews were alerted to the fire in the vicinity of 506 Sherman Street, just before midnight (11:54-p.m., Wednesday). He said when they arrived, the narrow, two-story structure was fully engulfed in flames. Firefighters were on the scene for more than 8-hours.

The building, which houses a commercial cabinet finishing building owned by Roy Sargent, collapsed and was a complete loss. Gilman said Sargent had gotten most of his products out of the structure, but some machines and supplies, including flammables like paint, were lost. The cause of the blaze was not immediately known.

Two firefighters, one from Menlo, the other from Stuart, suffered minor injuries when they slipped on the ice. They were treated for their injuries at the hospital, and released. In addition to the three fire departments, Stuart Rescue, deputies from Guthrie and Adair County, and an Iowa State Patrol Trooper assisted at the scene.

From the “Menlo -Our Hometown” Facebook page.

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

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