DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Federal officials say Iowa is prepared to proceed with privatizing its Medicaid program and may move forward with the plan on April 1. The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services postponed the state’s original plan to begin managed care on Jan. 1, saying too many issues remained to safely transfer the care of 560,000 poor and disabled residents to three private for-profit insurance companies. Iowa officials had been preparing for a potential March 1 switch.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — The Dubuque Police Department has asked the City Council for $30,000 to hire an independent research firm to analyze racial disparities in traffic stops that officers conduct. Internal department reviews show that minority drivers are stopped at disproportionately higher rates than white people. Dubuque Police Chief Mark Dalsing says he hopes an outside audit will shed more light on the issue.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A member of the Iowa Utilities Board who has minimized climate change in meetings about the proposed Bakken oil pipeline project has refused to recuse himself from voting on the project. Nick Wagner, a Republican who lost his Iowa House seat to a Democrat in 2012, is one of three board members expected to vote next month on the pipeline. He filed an order Feb. 18 denying the motion to recuse filed by opponents. Wagner has said acknowledging a link between fossil fuels and climate change might hurt his political career.

DECORAH, Iowa (AP) — Lawyers in the trial of a former Boone man charged with killing his wife presented their opening statements to a Winneshiek County jury. Prosecutors and defense attorneys offered different versions of how Emily Fazzino died. Alexander Fazzino is charged with first-degree murder in his wife’s death. Her body was found on a bathroom floor at the couple’s Boone home in January 2012.