Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey’s nomination to a position in the U-S-D-A cleared the committee level in the U-S Senate last week, but he isn’t sure when the final step will take place. “I’ve kind of given up making predictions, we are a step closer but still need that full Senate approval. So we’ll see when that happens — it could happen in the short term or it certainly could be awhile yet,” Northey says. Northey says he continues to work at his current job and is doing what he can to prepare when the final approval comes. “As we think about getting folks ready — whoever that next secretary is — we make sure that we have all the documents that help that next secretary learn what the department is doing to make that transition really easy,” Northey says. “We have great folks at the department. I am very blessed to have folks who know what they are doing, do a great job.”

Northey was nominated on September 1st to become the U-S-D-A Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation. He’s been waiting for the process to take its course since then. “It does seem like it is getting closer. It’s getting a little more real now as a possibility — but again — I don’t know if that’s months away are days away,” according to Northey.

Northey became Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture in 2007.

(Radio Iowa)

The Creston Police Department reports 20-year old Seth White, of Creston, was arrested Tuesday afternoon on a warrant for Failure to Appear in Court on an original charge for Possession of a Controlled Substance – Marijuana/1st offense. White was at the Union County Jail when he was placed under arrest. He was later released on a $1000 bond.

Authorities said also, at around 7:20-p.m. Tuesday, a resident of the 200 block of S. Lincoln Street in Creston, reported that sometime between Oct. 19th and 24th, someone stole the winch off of his trailer while it was parked near the storage building at 711 W Monroe. The winch was valued at $500.

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

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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Iowa has lost out on its effort to land a new Toyota-Mazda manufacturing plant and its 4,000 jobs. State officials had submitted a site in Cedar Rapids for the $1.6 billion project. Iowa Economic Development Authority spokeswoman Kanan Kappelman said Tuesday that the state apparently didn’t meet the project requirements.

Neighboring Nebraska learned earlier this month that it, too, was no longer being considered. The companies haven’t announced yet where the plant will go, but officials have said the three finalists are all situated in the Southeast.

Former Iowa Farm Bureau president Craig Lang has filed the paperwork to launch a campaign for state ag secretary. Lang, a Republican, says several months ago he told Governor Kim Reynolds he intended to run if current Ag Secretary Bill Northey resigned. Reynolds will name Northey’s replacement soon after Northey’s wins Senate confirmation for his new federal job.

“I don’t anticipate Governor Reynolds would appoint me, period, so I’ve made the decision,” Lang says. “As soon as Bill is voted affirmatively in the US Senate, I’m going to start my campaign.” That means Lang will likely face a G-O-P primary in 2018 against the governor’s choice for state ag secretary. Lang says he wants to spark a statewide conversation about diversity in agriculture, rather than relying primarily on corn and soybean production.

“We’ve spent so much time trying to develop that infrastructure, and it’s a great infrastructure. There’s none other like it in the world, but it’s not the infrastructure that’s going to support growth of a rural community,” Lang says, “because a rural community needs higher value products directly to the consumer.”

Lang says alternative crops can boost the rural economy and give more young people a reason to live in rural Iowa. Lang, who is 66 years old, farms with his two sons, a brother and his 91-year-old father. “We milk around 650 cows three times a day. We have a small cow-calf operation with about 50 cows and calves and we farm around 1200 acres,” Lang says. “We have corn, soybeans, alfalfa, pasture and cover crops.”

The milk from their farm near Brooklyn is sold to a dairy in Newton where Maytag Blue Cheese is made. Lang’s family plants cover crops on soybean ground and in fields right after corn silage is harvested. Six-hundred thousand acres of Iowa farmland is seeded with cover crops today. Lang says, as state ag secretary, he’d like to set a goal of having cover crops on five MILLION acres.

“We can improve the water quality of the state,” Lang says. “We can retain the nitrogen and the phosphorus because of less erosion.” And Lang says the science now shows soil health improves when cover plants like rye are used and it improves the yields from traditional crops planted on the same ground. Lang was the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s president from 2001 through 2011.

He also served as president of the board that governs the state universities, but Democrats in the Iowa Senate refused to reconfirm Lang to that post after the conflict about the Tom Harkin Institute for Public Policy at Iowa State University. The institute is now located at Drake University.

(Radio Iowa)

The teenage driver of a pickup truck escaped injury when the vehicle went out of control and rolled over Tuesday evening, in Montgomery County. The Sheriff’s Office reports 14-year old Kaden Edward Jacobs, of Villisca, was traveling southbound on Vine Avenue near 250th Street at around 5:45-p.m., when the 1998 Dodge Ram truck he was driving went out of control and entered the west ditch before rolling over. No injuries were reported immediately after the crash. Damage to the vehicle was estimated at $8,000. Jacobs was cited for Violation of his school permit.

An investigation into a vehicle burglary at the Villisca Middle School, Tuesday, resulted in a boy being cited into Juvenile Court. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports Deputies arrested a 13-year old male in the 300 block of S. 3rd Avenue in Villisca at around 8:20-p.m., for Burglary in the 3rd Degree. The teen was summoned into Juvenile Court and then released to a parent. The boys’ name was not released.

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

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has temporarily blocked part of a new state law that requires a woman to wait three days before getting an abortion. The court granted a motion Monday that extends an injunction on the 72-hour waiting period until a lawsuit challenging the provision is resolved.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A state audit is questioning Iowa State University’s use of donations to buy an airplane used largely by former President Steven Leath to work on his piloting skills. Auditors say the school failed to get required written permission from the executive director of the Board of Regents and that the plane flown by former President Steven Leath was rarely used for “clear business purposes.” The university says the purchase was appropriate.

DENISON, Iowa (AP) — A man convicted for causing a crash that killed a teenage girl will be sentenced in December, when he faces up to 109 years in prison. The Sioux City Journal reports that a judge set Ramon Hernandez’s sentencing hearing for Dec. 8 in Crawford County District Court. A Crawford County jury convicted Hernandez of vehicular homicide, three counts of distribution of a controlled substance to a minor and five other counts.

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — West Des Moines police will soon join other Des Moines-area departments in requiring its officers to wear body cameras. The Des Moines Register reports that West Des Moines officers will begin wearing the cameras Nov. 1. Officers will wear them at all times, but the cameras will only record in certain cases, including during investigations and some contact with the public.

Sheriff’s officials in Fremont County report the arrest on Tuesday of a woman on Theft charges. 43-year old Kara Lorimor, of Sidney, was taken into custody following an investigation into items stolen from separate apartments in the 100 block of Main Street, and an associated disturbance.

Kara Lorimor (Adams County S/O photo)

Deputies determined Lorimor allegedly took the items in question. She was arrested and charged with two counts of Theft 5th Degree. Lormior is being held in the Fremont County Jail on a $600 bond.

ATLANTIC – Dr. Chad McCance, Cass County Health System (CCHS) General Surgeon, was honored recently as an Iowa Hospital Association (IHA) 2017 Hospital Hero. McCance received his award at the IHA annual meeting in Des Moines earlier this month.

Brett Altman, CCHS CEO said “Dr. McCance is one of the most humble surgeons I’ve ever worked with. He is kind, compassionate, hardworking, and makes great effort to always be available to serve the needs of his patients and the health system. He cares about people and strives to make a positive impact with those around him, not the least of which are patients facing challenges with their health.”

Dr. Chad McCance, CCHS General Surgeon, (right) was presented with his IHA Hospital Hero award by Brett Altman, CEO.

According to the IHA, a hospital hero any employee or physician “who has performed a heroic deed or tirelessly given of their time, talent and expertise to improve their organization and the world around them is eligible for the Iowa Hospital Heroes Award.” Dr. McCance was one of just 11 hospital staff and physicians from across the state selected for this prestigious award this year.

The program for the event provided the following information from his nomination and letters of support:

“As the only general surgeon in a critical access hospital, Dr. Chad McCance shoulders a tremendous responsibility, and he never fails to deliver. Even if he has to hike through a blizzard to get to the hospital (and he has!), he is always ready to serve his patients. Dr. McCance works with area surgeons from three different hospitals to ensure each community has surgery coverage at all times. In 2016, he was on call a total of 272 days!

A lifelong learner, Dr. McCance added C-sections to his skill set when he came to Cass County Memorial Hospital, a service he had never provided but was needed here. When a patient needs more advanced care than he can provide he not only has the wisdom to refer them on, but frequently travels to a metropolitan hospital 60 miles away so he can scrub in, learn new techniques and obtain firsthand knowledge of his patient’s medical status. Dr. McCance has juggled his medical career while serving in a more traditional heroic role as a member of the U.S. Army Reserves from 1986 – 2012, including a 90-day tour of active duty in 2003. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. And through it all, he is a loving and devoted husband and father.

Dr. McCance doesn’t just show up for work, he greets his patients with passion and enthusiasm for how he can help them enjoy the very best quality of life. When he greets patients for a pre-scope office visit, he cannot hide his enthusiasm, because he knows that he can actually prevent a cancer from developing by performing a thorough scope examination. His heartfelt commitment is contagious, and before you know it, you are actually excited to have a colonoscopy!

And that is just the kind of person he is – driven by an internal desire to help and heal. It shows in all of his roles: veteran, father, husband, man of faith, mechanic, friend, student, and teacher. These are all great things, and are not necessarily uncommon. It is the combination of all of these roles, coupled with his selfless and tireless passion for healthcare, which makes him a hero to us.”