(Radio Iowa) — A Republican senator from western Iowa is crafting a plan to have the state hire a company that would monitor financial data and flag Iowans who may not be eligible for government food assistance or Medicaid health coverage. Senator Jason Schultz, a Republican from Schleswig, says  “To apply technology to what’s currently a manual system, to remove from the process those whose situations haven’t changed and only check those where something popped up.”

Schultz says his plan is a work in process, but his initial draft has cleared its first hurdle in the senate. Meanwhile key Republicans in the Iowa House are temporarily tabling a plan to require Iowans who get government food assistance or insurance through Medicaid to prove they’re eligible for it every four months. Officials in the state agency that oversees welfare programs say they’d have to hire 280 more full-time workers and spend millions if THAT bill becomes law.

Mark Randol is Iowa Medicaid director: “As far as all the changes required from this bill, it would be significant system configuration changes,” Randol said, “and that equals cost.” Matt Blake, a lobbyist for LeadingAge Iowa, says requiring nursing home residents to prove they’re eligible for Medicaid every quarter would be excessive and disruptive. “We in the provider side with this type of population tend to assist with eligibility of income,” he says.

“At the same time, with guardians and those type of individuals, we would have to work to track them down, make sure we have people constantly trying to keep that verification solid.” Victoria Sinclair, a lobbyist for Iowans for Tax Relief, says other states are requiring more frequent income reporting to determine whether people are eligible for government benefits. “We do need to protect taxpayer dollars and make sure they’re being spent effectively, appropriately and reasonably and making sure the people who are on the system do qualify,” Sinclair says.

MaryNell Trefz of the Iowa Child and Family Policy Center is among the advocates urging legislators to table the bill: “Our state already has a very robust eligibility verification system,” she says. Trefz says state officials do monthly cross-checks to ensure Iowa welfare recipients are not getting benefits from another state.

Republican legislators have scheduled a meeting in February with staff from two state agencies to assess how high Iowa’s welfare fraud rate may be. After that meeting, GOP lawmakers in the House say it’s likely they’ll reconsider ways to crack down on welfare fraud.

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

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has named an eastern Iowa attorney who lives on a hobby farm to the Iowa Supreme Court, marking the first time the court has two women serving on the seven-member court. Dana Oxley, the only woman finalist on the list forwarded to the governor on Jan. 9, works at a Cedar Rapids law firm. Oxley, who is 52, is the second woman on the court joining Susan Christensen who was appointed by Reynolds in 2018. She is Reynolds’ third appointment to the court and fills a vacancy left by the unexpected death on Nov. 15 of Chief Justice Mark Cady.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The trial for the man charged with killing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts in 2018 has been delayed. Cristhian Bahena Rivera had been scheduled to stand trial for first-degree murder on Feb. 4 in Sioux City. That plan became uncertain last week when Judge Joel Yates suspended the case so that the Iowa Supreme Court could decide whether to grant Rivera’s pretrial appeal of a key ruling. A court spokesman said Tuesday that the trial has been delayed and will not happen in the month of February. A new trial date will be set after the Iowa Supreme Court decides how to handle Rivera’s appeal.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar has made a last-minute trip to Iowa following arguments in President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial in Washington. The Democratic presidential candidate turned up Tuesday at a bar in Council Bluffs, where she was met by a standing-room-only crowd of more than 100. She is among a handful of White House hopefuls making a final push in the Midwestern state before Monday’s first-in-the-nation caucuses. Her eleventh-hour push comes as she is facing new questions about her time as a top Minnesota prosecutor in the mid-2000s.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A warming center being evicted for not meeting fire codes has found a new spot to serve the homeless in Waterloo. The Waterloo Warming Center announced Tuesday it will be moving to the former Hawkeye Community College Metro Center and open for service on Friday. The overnight shelter opened Jan. 6 at Jubilee United Methodist Church Freedom Center to provide a safe haven from freezing temperatures. But organizers later were told it would have to close because inspectors found the space didn’t have a sprinkler system — a requirement for any building serving residential needs.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar has made a last-minute trip to Iowa following arguments in President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial in Washington. The Democratic presidential candidate turned up Tuesday at a bar in Council Bluffs, where she was met by a standing-room-only crowd of more than 100.

She is among a handful of White House hopefuls making a final push in the Midwestern state before Monday’s first-in-the-nation caucuses. Her eleventh-hour push comes as she is facing new questions about her time as a top Minnesota prosecutor in the mid-2000s.

A 15-year old male reportedly suffered from leg pain following a single vehicle accident Tuesday night, southwest of Atlantic. According to dispatch reports, the accident happened just north of 58882 Whitepole Road, at around 8:30-p.m.

The teen was transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital for treatment. Atlantic Rescue, Medivac Ambulance and Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to the scene. No other details are currently available.

Cass County Republican Party Chair Dave Wiederstein has released details with regard to the February 3rd Republican Caucuses in Cass County. The start time at each location is 7-p.m.

Activity at each location will include:

• Selecting persons to be the Precinct meeting chair and secretary.
• Holding the Presidential Poll.
• Selecting individuals to serve on the County Central Committee, Delegates and Junior Delegates to the County Convention on March 14.
• Discuss amendments to the County Platform.

Wiederstein says he anticipates the meetings will move along pretty quickly, as the Republicans have their candidate in President Trump.  The other items of party business do not take much time to go through, either.

Precinct Caucus Sites:
Precinct 1:  Atlantic Ward 1 – Atlantic Elks Lodge (411 Walnut St.)
Precinct 2:  Atlantic Ward 2 – Armory (2nd & Poplar)
Precinct 3:  Atlantic Ward 3 – Atlantic Public Library
Precinct 4:  Atlantic Ward 4 – Zion Lutheran Church (811 Oak St.)
Precinct 5:  Atlantic Ward 5 – Heritage House (1200 Brookridge Cir.)
Precinct 6:  Lewis; Cass & Bear Grove Townships – Lewis Fire Department Meeting Room (401 W. Main St.)
Precinct 7:  Wiota; Benton & Franklin Townships – Wiota Fire Department (311 Center St.)
Precinct 8:  Marne; Brighton, Pymosa, Washington & Grove Townships – Atlantic Airport (59706 Airport Road)
Precinct 9:  Edna/Victoria Townships – Massena Library (122 Main St.)
Precinct 10:  Anita; Grant & Lincoln Townships – Anita Community Center (805 Main St.)
Precinct 11:  Griswold; Pleasant & Noble Townships – Griswold Community Bldg. (601 2nd St.)
Precinct 12:  Massena City & Township) – Massena Library (122 Main St.)
Precinct 13:  Cumberland; Union Township – Cumberland Library (119 Main St.)

Two people were injured in two separate accidents that occurred in nearly the same location, Tuesday morning, in Fremont County. The Iowa State Patrol reports the first accident happened at around 7:08-a.m. on County Road J-46, west of 390th Avenue, southeast of Farragut. Fremont County Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Wake, of Tabor, was driving a Sheriff’s Department 2019 Dodge Charger eastbound on J-46, when the car went out of control on the icy road, and slid into the south ditch. The cruiser rolled over and came to rest upright in the ditch. Wake was reportedly taken by Shenandoah Rescue to the Shenandoah Memorial Hospital for treatment.

The second accident happened at around 7:51-a.m., Tuesday, as a 1990 Buick Lesabre driven by 65-year old Ronald Fritschle, of Nebraska City, NE., was traveling east, also on County Road J-46. As he approached the accident scene involving the deputy, the Buick went out of control and onto the north shoulder, before getting back on the road and heading towards the south shoulder. As the car slid sideways, the left rear struck Fremont County Sheriff’s Deputy Austin Richardson, of Hamburg, who was standing on the road investigating the first accident.

The Fritschle vehicle came to rest in the south ditch. Richardson was also taken by Shenandoah Rescue to the Shenandoah Memorial Hospital.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The trial for the man charged with killing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts in 2018 has been delayed. Cristhian Bahena Rivera had been scheduled to stand trial for first-degree murder on Feb. 4 in Sioux City. That plan became uncertain last week when Judge Joel Yates suspended the case so that the Iowa Supreme Court could decide whether to grant Rivera’s pretrial appeal of a key ruling.

A court spokesman said Tuesday that the trial has been delayed and will not happen in the month of February. A new trial date will be set after the Iowa Supreme Court decides how to handle Rivera’s appeal.

Pottawattamie County Chief Deputy Sheriff Rob Ambrose, Tuesday, announced his candidacy for Pottawattamie County Sheriff. If elected in the June Primary, Ambrose would succeed Jeff Danker, who, on Jan. 8th, announced he would not seek an eight term in office.

Pott. County Chief Deputy Sheriff Rob Ambrose

Ambrose, who was selected by Danker in 2018 to be his Chief Deputy, started his career with the Pott. County Sheriff’s Office in 2006, working for the Road Division. Sheriff Danker appointed him to the Investigations Division in 2008. While working in the Investigations Division, Ambrose was promoted to corporal in 2010 and sergeant in 2013. In 2015, he was promoted to lieutenant and assigned to oversee the Road Patrol and Investigations Division.

When he was appointed as Chief Deputy Sheriff, Rob Ambrose began overseeing the entire Sheriff’s Office. This includes six divisions, approximately 215 full-time employees, and a budget of approximately $21,000,000. As Sheriff, he says he “Will be committed to working diligently to provide residents of Pottawattamie County with dedicated and quality leadership within the law enforcement, communications and jail divisions.”

Ambrose is a graduate of Upper Iowa University. He previous experience, as from the Pott. County Sheriff’s Office, include serving as a Corrections Office for the Missouri Department of Corrections, and as deputy with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.

He and his family live in Underwood. Ambrose’ wife teaches second grade at Underwood Elementary. The couple has three school-aged daughters. His bio says in his free time, he enjoys being with his family, watching our daughters participate in their school and athletic events, and playing golf. He says he’s also been actively involved with the community and school by volunteering his time as a coach for several athletic teams, and as a member of the Underwood School Safety Committee.

Ron Ambrose said also, “I enjoy participating in the annual Shop with the Sheriff event.”

Police in Harlan report two recent arrests. On Jan. 21st, 23-year old Stephaun Javon Lancer, of Harlan, was arrested on trespass and possession of drug paraphernalia charges. And, today (Tuesday), 34-year old Brandon Amos Woodruff along with 36-year old Maura Margarita Reyes Mejia, both of Omaha, NE were arrested following a traffic stop.

Woodruff faces charges that include speeding, failure to have a valid driver’s license, and prohibited acts. Reyes Mejia was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Harlan Police report also, a 1996 Dodge Ram driven by Michael Arnold, of Harlan, went out of control Jan. 23rd at 12th and Hill Streets. The pickup left the road and hit a tree before going airborne over an embankment and flipping. The vehicle landed on all four wheels, and was declared a total loss. No injuries were reported.

The Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund recently donated $5,000 to the Atlantic Schools Booster Club. Fund spokesperson and Trevor’s mom, Melanie Petty, said the donation is to help with the fundraising for the field turf at the Trojan Bowl.

(Photo submitted)

“We are excited to be a Gold Level Sponsor,” Petty said, “and hope others will take advantage of the opportunity to help complete this project.  Trevor played football all through high school and we loved traveling with him and supporting the team.” Melanie said also, “We appreciate Atlantic Bottling and the Tyler Family for offering a matching grant up to $100,000.00 to help with this project!”

The 12th Annual TFred Memorial Golf Tournament will be held on August 8th at Nishna Hills Golf Course.  Petty said “We look forward to a great day of golf, friendship and fundraising for upcoming projects that will meet our mission statement.  Thank  you to everyone who helps us each year so that we can continue to give back in Trev’s name.  We couldn’t do any of this without you!”