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Iowa early News Headlines: Wed., Aug. 30th 2017

News

August 30th, 2017 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:00 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says she will announce in September whether she’ll need to call a special session to address a budget shortfall. The Republican governor told reporters Tuesday she is still reviewing financial information for the budget year that ended in June. The nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency said this summer that Iowa’s roughly $7.2 billion budget was facing a revenue shortfall of about $100 million. The agency warned the figure could fluctuate.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says the state agency that advocates for the elderly and disabled will review its budget in an effort to avoid some cuts to staff visits at facilities like nursing homes, but she didn’t offer specifics. The Republican governor told reporters Tuesday her office is communicating with the office of the Iowa Long-Term Care Ombudsman to review options. The ombudsman’s office says reductions to its budget would limit staff travel to facilities like nursing homes.

VERSAILLES, Mo. (AP) — The father of a 20-year-old man who drowned in a Missouri lake while he was handcuffed will be able to attend the sentencing of a highway patrol trooper involved in the case. Craig Ellingson, the father of Brandon Ellingson, of Clive, Iowa, was concerned last week that a judge’s schedule would prevent him from speaking at the sentencing for Trooper Anthony Piercy. The hearing has been rescheduled for Sept. 19, which will allow Ellingson to attend.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa man has been found guilty of a lesser charge in the 2015 shooting death of a Waterloo resident. Prosecutors had charged 39-year-old Steve Fordyce, of Denver, Iowa, with first-degree murder for the August 2015 death of 43-year-old Donald Harrington. The Courier reports that a bench trial was held earlier this month, and on Tuesday, District Judge David Odekirk in Black Hawk County found Fordyce guilty of voluntary manslaughter.