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Iowa early News Headlines: Labor Day (Monday), 9/4/2017

News

September 4th, 2017 by Ric Hanson

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

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — When a major tech company announced recently it planned to build two data centers in Iowa, Gov. Kim Reynolds saw it as a clear win. She touted the deal with Apple Inc. as one that will create jobs, spur economic growth and elevate Iowa’s status. Yet the project includes a price tag of $208 million in state and local tax breaks, a detail that has Reynolds facing criticism for backing it amid a state budget crunch. It’s become political fodder for next year’s gubernatorial race.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Equipment manufacturer John Deere has hired about 250 workers in Dubuque since last fall thanks to surging demand for new products. The Telegraph Herald reports that the John Deere Dubuque Works facility employs 1,300 production workers, its highest total since 2000. There are another 1,300 employees at the plant who work in other capacities such as engineering, sales and marketing. General Manager Mark Dickson says he predicts adding another 50 workers by October.

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A former West Des Moines preschool employee convicted for showing up to work drunk is back behind bars after officials say she showed up drunk to her sentencing. The Des Moines Register reports that at 43-year-old Angela Hircock’s sentencing Thursday, a breath test showed her blood alcohol level at .178. The legal limit to drive is .08. Her probation sentence was then set aside and she was arrested.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Police are investigating after officials at a Waterloo mosque say four people were found setting fires in the mosque’s parking lot. Ibrahim Shehata, president of the Islamic Foundation of Iowa in Waterloo, told the Courier that four people _two adults and two children _ were found Wednesday night using an accelerant to light cans on fire in the parking lot, including near the entrance door and some vehicles. No one was injured and no damage was reported.