Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is introducing a bill designed to help families locate missing loved ones who have Alzheimer’s disease, autism and related conditions. Grassley says the legislation is called Kevin and Avonte’s Law. “We named this law to honor two boys with autism who perished because their disease caused them to wander,” Grassley says. “One of those boys was Kevin Curtis Wills of Jefferson, Iowa, drowned after slipping into the Raccoon River, 2008.”  Wills was nine years old. The other boy drowned in New York in 2014. Grassley says the feeling of dread and helplessness families must feel when a loved one with Alzheimer’s or autism goes missing is unimaginable. “Sadly, Kevin’s is not an isolated case,” Grassley says, “but tragedy is not inevitable every time a vulnerable person goes missing.”

Grassley, a Republican, says the bill is being co-sponsored by Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar (KLO-bah-shar), a Democrat. The bill is actually being re-introduced in the Senate. It passed the chamber last year but didn’t win passage in the House. Grassley says families and caregivers should have the support they need to keep their loved ones with Alzheimer’s, autism, and other developmental disabilities safe. “This bill empowers communities to lend a hand and hopefully to turn more of these situations into happy endings,” Grassley says. “It will make more resources available for technology that advances the search for missing children and for specialized training for caregivers to help prevent wandering by vulnerable individuals.”

Grassley says the bill would reauthorize the expired Missing Alzheimer’s Disease Patient Alert Program and broaden it to support people with autism and other developmental disabilities. He says the bill would allow federal grants to be used for state and local training programs to help prevent wandering, as well as for locative tracking technology programs.

(Radio Iowa)

Two people were arrested on separate charges Tuesday, in Creston. Authorities say 24-year old Troy Claussen, of Creston, was arrested Tuesday morning at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County warrant for Failure to Appear in Court, on an original charge of Public Intoxication. He was later released on $300 bond. And, 21-year old Tyrell Stucker, of Lorimor, was arrested in Creston Tuesday afternoon, for Theft in the 5th Degree. He was later released on a Promise to Appear in Court.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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Here are some other election results from Tuesday where there were candidate races and Public Measure to decide in the KJAN listening area:

In the Adams County City of Corning, Public Measure A asked if a 7% hotel/motel tax should be imposed, effective Jan. 1st, 2018. The answer was 98 votes in favor, 63 against. Public Measure B: Shall the Corning Municipal Utilities Board of Trustees consist of 5 members instead of the current 3 members, effect Jan. 1st, 2018 , was approved by a vote of 117 to 39.

In Adair County: Mick Askren, Bryan Belden and Theresa Wright-Glass were elected to three seats on the City Council in Stuart. There were five candidates vying for those seats. The were no names written for two seats on the Parks and Rec Board in Greenfield.

In Audubon County: Brad Hemmingsen, Nick Weihs and Jason Hocker all won seats on the City Council in Audubon. A write-in, Doug Jensen well fell short of the others, with his 133 votes. Public Measure A, in Audubon, failed by a vote of 185 to 80. The measure would have allowed the LOST Funds to be shifted from 100% Streets use to 100% “Any lawful purpose” as determined by the City Council. It did not allow for property tax relief. There was a close vote for Mayor in the City of Gray, where Write-in Bryan Olson defeated William Cramer 7 votes to 4. And, Jared Olson along with Roy John Bolick, were elected to the City Council in Gray. Samuel Wendl was unopposed in his bid to fill a Vacancy term on the Council that expires in Dec., 2019. Voters in Kimballton elected Chelsee Jacobsen, Tony Petersen and Write-in Mike Shores to the City Council. Brayton voters elected Cally Christensen as Mayor over Neil C. Poldberg, by a vote of 22-to 13. Public Measure A, in Brayton, which called for an annual levy not to exceed $1.50/per $1,000 taxable valuation to be used for providing additional funds for police protection, failed by a vote of 27-to 8. Voters in Exira selected Melissa Paulsen to fill a Vacancy term on the City Council, to expire in Dec. 2019.

In Montgomery County, voters in Stanton selected Eric Paulson, Sheryl Porter and Jessica Sundberg to fill three seats on the City Council. And, voters in Villisca passed Public Measure A which deals with the composition of the Library Board of Trustees and how they are appointed, passed by a vote of 70 to 11.

In Shelby County, the City of Harlan: Sharon Kroger was elected to fill an At Large seat on the City Council, over her challenger Phillip B. Perkins. And, Jeanna Rudolph won the Ward 3 seat over challenger Larry Trickle. Public Measure A, in Harlan, which deals with the member composition of the Library Board of Trustees, was approved by a vote of 319 to 25. Also in Shelby County, Alan Wilwerding was elected Mayor of Defiance, while Tom Beytien, Vernon Cole, and Douglas Schmitz were elected to the City Council. In Earling, Jackie Frum, Troy Xavier Langenfeld and Daniel Tremel were elected to the City Council. In Elk Horn, Public Measure A: The establishment of a Capital Improvement Reserve fund and levy a tax not to exceed 67 ½ cents per thousand dollars of taxable value for the purpose of maintenance and repair of swimming pool and maintenance and construction of municipal buildings over a 10 year period, was passed by a vote of 30-to 6. In Irwin, Greg Gaer, WM D McMahon, and Lana Schieso were elected to the City Council. In Kirkman, Matthew K. Nielsen was elected Mayor, and Terry Fiscus was elected to fill one of two seats on the City Council. The second seat was a tie between Ron Heese and Sonny Goan, both of whom received 5 votes. The Shelby County Board of Supervisors will determine the winner. In Panama, Larry Keane was elected Mayor. George Leuschen and Jeremy Kruse were elected to fill two of three seats on the City Council. The third has be determined by tie-breaker, as Steven Wegner and Matt Schmitz both had 9 votes. In Portsmouth, William J. Sondag was elected Mayor. Tim Blum, Donald Kenkel and Craig Rau were elected to fill three seats on the City Council. In Shelby, Ron Kroll won a five-way race for Mayor. And, Pat Honeywell along with Jim Boeck beat six other challengers for two seats on the City Council. In Tennant, Dennis Oellerich along with Todd Hively, were elected to the City Council. And finally, in Westphalia, Brian Arkfeld, Ed Geotzinger and Julie Goetzinger were elected to fill three seats on the City Council.

There are still some races to be decided following Tuesday’s City Elections in the KJAN listening area, that’s because in some cases where there were Write-In candidates, there were ties in the vote that must be determined by the Board of Supervisors. In Atlantic, there were no surprises in the candidates who won, but a Public Measure designed to pump more money into the Parks and Rec Department, failed. A proposed 3-percent increase in the Hotel-Motel Tax in Atlantic was defeated by more than 53% of the vote, 420 No to 359 Yes votes. Voter turnout in Atlantic was slightly more than 16-percent. Elsewhere around Cass County, there were three seats available on the City Council in Cumberland. One of the seats ended-up in a tie and will have to be decided by the Supervisors. Mike Hill received 29 votes and incumbent Michael Martin received 26 votes to ensure their seat on the Cumberland City Council, but incumbent Gary Cooper and challenger Darrin Hardisty both had 23 votes. In Griswold, Julianne M. Adams and Carol Preston were elected to fill two seats on the City Council. Write-in Thomas Moore garnered 21 votes, far shy of making a challenge to the candidates who had filed for election.

In Lewis, Ryan Lockwood defeated Natalie Olson-Everett for a Vacancy seat on the City Council that will end in 2019. Lockwood had 86 votes to Olson-Everett’s 16 votes. Also in Lewis, incumbent Ryan Archibald and Don Cohrs were elected to 4-year terms on the City Council, during an election that saw six candidates vying for two seats. Archibald garnered 81 votes. Cohrs had 38. Public Measure B in Lewis, dealing with a levy to provide money for Library services, failed by a vote of 51-to 42.

In Marne, there were five seats open on the City Council, and six candidates. The winners were incumbents Lori Holste and Angela Redler, along with Mark Opbroek, Wayne Preister and Jericho Schmitt. Public Measure E, which said the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) funds could be used for “Any lawful purpose,” passed in Marne by a vote of 22-to 12. Public Measure D, which changed the term of the Mayor and Council to 4-years, also passed. The vote was 19 Yes, 16 No. In Massena, a Write-in, Phil Przychodzin, won the title of Mayor, with 54 votes. There were 13 other write-in’s.  No one had filed for the seat. Public Measure F in Massena, again changing the use of LOST funds to be used for “Any lawful purpose,” was narrowly defeated by a vote of 45-to 42.

And, in the City of Wiota, where there were three seats open on the City Council, incumbent Jeff Lillard received 15 votes toward his re-election. Charles Bechtold, a Write-in, receive 7 votes, which was good enough to place him on the Council. The third seat is up for grabs though, and will be determined by the Board of Supervisors because it was a tie vote. Write-In’s Deanna Spry and Lamar Spies both had just two votes, meaning neither one had enough to secure the final seat on the Council

Three new Freedom Rocks, painted by Ray “Bubba” Sorensen of Greenfield, will be dedicated in three Iowa communities this Saturday — on Veterans Day. Sorensen says one of them is in the Hamilton County town of Stratford and it will feature a series of soldiers’ faces, men and women, which all look like they could be related.

“What I tried to do was illustrate from the Revolutionary War, kind of like the same family that has served in the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, all the way through to current,” Sorensen says. “I have them all looking similar but a little different and then there are changes in their headwear.” The rock in Hamilton County also pays tribute to a Tuskegee airman who was killed in action in World War Two.

“Not only are the Tuskegee airmen rare, but they have incredible stories and incredible acts of heroism fighting not only the enemy but racism at that time,” Sorensen says. “It’s just a neat story as well.” The dedication ceremony will be held this Saturday afternoon at 3 P-M in Stratford.

Other ceremonies will be held in Cresco in Howard County and Murray in Clarke County. There are now 68 Freedom Rocks across the state with the goal of having the rocks located in all 99 Iowa counties by 2020.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:50 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa agency is delaying plans to add a third company back into the state’s privatized Medicaid program. Iowa Department of Human Services Director Jerry Foxhoven says the agency will hire another company to offer Medicaid coverage in 2019. The agency originally said next July. Foxhoven says the agency will still begin its search for a company soon, but the 2019 delay ensures adequate time. Foxhoven provided the information Tuesday to a health care council.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Kim Reynolds says she has asked an ethics board to determine whether a couple who work in Iowa’s executive branch violated any laws by working on the side as agents of Saudi Arabia. Reynolds says that lawmakers should also change state law next year to ban public officials from working as foreign agents. Her comments come amid scrutiny over Kim and Connie Schmett, who hold important state appointments and collected $101,500 in a Saudi Arabia-funded lobbying campaign.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Three men have pleaded guilty to using stolen identities and debit card numbers in a buying spree across Iowa. The U.S. Attorney’s Office says 26-year-old Dunieski Santana Moreno and 21-year-old Liliany de Armas Mena pleaded guilty last week in Cedar Rapids’ federal court to aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit access device fraud. Thirty-six-year-old Pedro Alvarez Rodriguez pleaded guilty to the same charges on Sept. 21. All three are Cuban citizens, but had lived in the U.S.

MISSOURI VALLEY, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a western Iowa county supervisor has died in a grain bin accident. Harrison County Sheriff Pat Sears says 63-year-old Russ Kurth, of Logan, died in the bizarre Tuesday morning accident outside a grain bin just north of Missouri Valley. Sears say Kurth and another person were checking out a door from which corn was leaking on the new bin that had been recently filled. Officials say the door burst open as Kurth and the other man approached, burying Kurth in corn.

City of Corning –

Public Measure A: Shall a 7% hotel/motel tax be imposed, effective Jan. 1st, 2018?

YES    98 *          NO   63

Public Measure B: Shall the Corning Municipal Utilities Board of Trustees consist of 5 members instead of the current 3 members, effect Jan. 1st, 2018 (If approved the current Board would be discontinued 1/1/18)

YES    117*           NO  39

City of Bagley

Mayor (1)

Emily Chapman-Olesen-22

City Council (2)

Deanna Gibson-24*

Ruth Riley-28*

To Fill a Vacancy (3 Seats)

Jon Shaffer-29*

Jennifer Ingles-24*

Nick Listina-3

Jerry England-2

Public Measure: Shall the following Public Measure be adopted? To authorize a change in the number of the Bagley Library Board Members from Seven to Five. All board members shall be appointed by the Mayor with the approval of the City Council. All nonresident members shall be appointed by the Mayor with the approval of the County Board of Supervisors.    YES –28     NO – 3

City of Bayard

Mayor (elect 1):

Gary Allen Long, 55*

Brandon Taylor, 24

City Council (elect 3):

Tonya Halterman, 41*

Kimberly Jorgensen, 12

Christine Kesselring, 19

LeeRoy Wagner, 20

Tom Warden, 52*

Write-in: Nathan McAlister, 55*

Write-in: Deanna Beyerink, 28

City of Casey

City Council (elect 2)

Robb Sneller, 37

Stacy Wagner, 44*

Write In: Rick Richter, 49*

Write In: Brandon Penton, 5

Write In: Bruce Born, 1

City of Guthrie Center

Mayor – Dennis Kunkel, 133

City Council (elect 3):

Chuck Cleveland, 110*

Carolyn Masters, 92

Randy Nickel, 81

Brian Stringer, 36

City Council To Fill Vacancy (1)

Write In: Gerald Thomas, 20*

Write In: Randy Nickel, 17

Write In: Brian Springer, 12

City of Jamaica

City Council (elect 3):

Karen Onken, 29

Randall Perkins, 32

Write-In: Hal D. Meinecke, 15

City of Panora

City Council (elect 3):

Tony Barber, 31

Thomas John Flanery, 110

Brian Dorsett, 171*

Stan Landon, 124*

Curtis Nepstad Thornberry, 182*

Public Measure: Shall the Panora City Council change the composition of the Board of Trustees of the Library from Seven resident members and Two nonresident members to Six resident members and Three nonresident members? YES 99      NO 109

City of Yale

Mayor – Steve Stanton, 53

City Council (elect 3):

John Chase, 35*

Mindy L. Fear, 29

Richard Kipp, 44*

Tim Walker, 45*

CITY OF HARLAN

Mayor – Mike Kolbe 303

City Council At Large (elect 1)

Sharon Kroger 200*

Phillip B. Perkins 157

Council Ward 1 (elect 1) – Jay Christensen, 59

Council Ward 3 (Elect 1) –

Jeanna Rudolph, 70*

Larry Trickel, 48

PUBLIC MEASURE A (Library Board of Trustees realignment of members)  –  YES  319*     NO 25

CITY OF DEFIANCE

Mayor (elect 1):

Alan J. Wilwerding, 3*

Mark Arkfeld, 1;  Bob Kloewer, 1; Douglas Schmitz, 2.

City Council  (elect 3):

Tom Beytien, 34*

Vernon Cole, 29*

Douglas Schmitz, 30*

Midge Carter, 1; Jamie Goetz, 3; Larry Stessman, 1; Mrs. John J. (Mary) Wells, 1; & Larry Patterson, 1.

City Council to fill a vacancy: Jeff Theulen, 34.

CITY OF EARLING

Mayor – Janice Gaul, 6

City Council (elect 3)

Jackie Frum, 6*

Troy Xavier Langenfeld, 6*

Heath Richards, 1; Daniel Tremel, 5*

CITY OF ELK HORN

City Council (Elect 2)

Jim McCarthy, 34

Nolan Daniel Teegerstrom, 32.

PUBLIC MEASURE A (Asks for a tax levy not to to establish a Capital Improvement Reserve Fund not exceed 67 1/2 cents per $1,000 taxable property valuation, for maintenance and repair of the swimming pool and municipal buildings for a period of 10-years. YES    30      NO 6

CITY OF IRWIN

Mayor – James Borcher, 18

City Council (elect 3)

Greg Gaer, 19

WM D. McMahon, 18

Lana Schieso, 18

Jessie Bates, 1

CITY OF KIRKMAN

Mayor:   Matthew K. Nielsen, 12*;     Steven Barrett, 3;    Ron Heese, 1.

City Council (elect 2 – All were write-in’s)

Terry Fiscus 7*

Ron Heese & Sonny Goans tied with 5 votes each, to be broken by the Board of Supervisors.

Other write-in votes include: Dennis Baldwin, 3; Brett Kimball, 3; Michael Norris, 1; Arlyn Oman, 2; Larry Andersen, 1; Gale Andersen, 1, & Nancy Nielsen, 1

CITY OF PANAMA

Mayor (write-in’s)

Larry Keane, 14*

Mona Crall, 1; George Leuschen, 2, Dean Kloewer, 1.

City Council (elect 3 – all write-in’s)

1. George Leuschen, 12*
2. Jeremy Kruse, 10*
3. Steven Wegner and Matt Schmitz each had 9 votes (Tie to be broken by the BOS)

All other write-in’s received 2 or less votes.

CITY OF PORTSMOUTH

Mayor:

William J. Sondag, 11*

Ron Prososki, 2; Connie Juhl, 2; Tim Blum 1.

City Council (elect 3):

1. Donald Kenkel, 19*
2. Tim Blum, 18*
3. Craig Rau, 11*

Jill Greaves, 1; Glen Kleffman, 2; Raymond Pitch, 1.

CITY OF SHELBY

Mayor:

Ron Kroll, 73

Mel Hursey, 5, Rod Robinson, Jim Boeck and Marsion Pitt each had 1 vote.

City Council (elect 2):

Pat Honeywell, 65*; Jim Boeck, 52*

Others receiving votes: Karen Schlueter, 31; Rick Kiessel and Brad Blum received 2 each; Dave Robinson, Jackie Hursey and Doug Wager each received 1 vote.

CITY OF TENNANT

Mayor: James W. Brantner, 18

City Council (elect 2): Dennis Oellerich, 17*; Todd Hively, 14* . Other votes: Roger Schumacher, 1.

CITY OF WESTPHALIA

Mayor – Jerry Gross, 10.

City Council (elect 3): Ed Goetzinger* & Julie Goetzinger* each received 10, and Brian Arkfeld* received 6 votes.

Other votes: Diane Hall, 2. Tom Musich, 2.