SHENANDOAH — Today, Rep. Cindy Axne (IA-03) applauded the announcement of $22,549,000 in new federal investments to improve water and sewer infrastructure in three cities within Iowa’s Third Congressional District.

The investments were part of nearly a half a billion dollars in funds for rural water, energy, and biofuel infrastructure announced today by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development.

“Access to safe and sanitary water infrastructure and clean drinking water should be universal in our great nation, but that requires investments that will keep our communities healthy,” said Rep. Axne. “I’m pleased to see more than $22 million in Rural Development funds coming back to southwest Iowa today to help our rural communities implement the upgrades and maintenance needed to provide for their communities.”

The three projects within Iowa’s Third Congressional District are:

• Anita: A $1,880,000 loan and $401,000 in grant funding to improve the municipal sewer system by building a Submerged Attached Growth Reactor treatment system and an ultraviolet disinfection treatment system. These improvements will extend power from Anita Municipal Utilities to the lagoon system and upgrade the lift station.
• Shenandoah: A $17,743,000 loan and $2,000,000 in grant funding to expand and upgrade the city’s wastewater facility and infrastructure. Funds will be used to install a four-million-gallon equalization basin, an ultraviolet disinfection station and a flood-risk-protection berm.
• Sidney: A $525,000 grant to complete infrastructure improvements to the city’s water system, including a new plant and transmission main, a water storage tower and new water meters.

The full list of projects announced today can be found here.

The Harlan Police Department is asking for your help in identifying a man and a woman who allegedly tried to break into the bill changer at local laundromat, and in the process caused quite a bit of damage. The couple drove away in a blue Pontiac Grand Prix 4 door with out of state plates. Any help would greatly appreciated. Thank You!!!

As the result of an investigation by the Council Bluffs Police Department and Homeland Security, a man from Omaha convicted on child porn offenses, was sentenced Wednesday to serve nearly 12 1/2 years in prison. There is no parole in the federal system. Acting U-S Attorney Jan Sharp, with the District of Nebraska, said 33-year old Nicholas Andrew Travis received his sentence Wednesday, following his conviction for Receipt of Child Pornography. After his release, Travis will be required to serve a 5-year term of supervised release, and is required to register as a sex offender. He was also ordered to pay $33,000 in restitution and a $100 special assessment.

On Jan. 24, 2020, special agents and task force officers with Homeland Security executed a search warrant at Travis’ apartment at the Open Door Mission, in Omaha. They seized his cell phone, which Travis admitted he used to download child porn from the internet, while at his apartment in Omaha. A forensic examination of the phone revealed 3,127 images and videos depicting children, specifically girls between the ages of three and  10, engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

The case was brought to the court as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice.

Page County Sheriff’s Deputies, Tuesday, arrested 39-year-old Andrew Jackson Paez. He was taken into custody on a Page County Warrant for Violation of Probation on his sentencing Charge of Arson in the 2nd degree.

Andrew Jackson Paez

Paez was arrested at the Atchison County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Office. His cash or surety bond was set at $5,000.

(Radio Iowa) – Republicans in the Iowa legislature are scaling back the governor’s proposals to address Iowa’s housing shortage. House Republicans are proposing a 25-million dollar increase in state tax credits to companies that build low- and moderate income housing for renters and buyers. SENATE Republicans are proposing a lower, 15 million dollar increase in that workforce housing program.

Sen. Dan Dawson, (R), Council Bluffs

Senator Dan Dawson, a Republican from Council Bluffs, says the state should be getting millions to boost housing through already-approved federal pandemic relief as well as President Biden’s proposed infrastructure package. “We didn’t want to live in a vacuum and not realize that there’s a lot of other federal monies out there that will be coming down,” Dawson says.

Senator Bill Dotzler, a Democrat from Waterloo, is supporting the plan, with reservations, as Dotzler says an immediate boost to the state’s workforce housing tax credit program is essential to attracting new businesses. “That’s one of the real limiting factors that we’re seeing with some of these new start-ups is one of the questions that they ask is: ‘Do you have affordable housing?'” Dotzler says.

Republican lawmakers say once rules are developed for how states may spend federal money on housing programs, the legislature will review the issue in 2022 and could dedicate more state money for housing.

(Des Moines) – The Iowa Department of Public Health Thursday, reported 531 new positive COVID-19 tests and six additional deaths. At 10 a.m., the health department reported 391,125 total positive tests and 5,899 total deaths since the start of the pandemic. One Iowa care facility continues reports a COVID-19 outbreak. There are 18 positive cases and seven recoveries among residents and staff within that facility. Iowa reports 2,305 long-term care facility deaths.

Iowa’s 7-day positivity rate is 4.3%, while the 14-day average was holding at 4.4%. The number of Iowans hospitalized statewide, increased from 219 to 235 in the last 24 hours. There are 56 patients in ICU,  52 were admitted to a hospital (compared to 38 the day before), and 24 patients on ventilators, four more than the previous day. RMCC Region 4 hospitals (those in western/southwest Iowa) show: There are 31 hospitalized with COVID (up from 22 the day before); 11 COVID patients are in an ICU; six people were admitted with symptoms of COVID, and there remain four COVID patients on a ventilator.

In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases by County; The # of new cases since yesterday {+} if any; and the total number of deaths in each county to date:

Cass, 1,435 cases; {+4}; 54 deaths
Adair, 968; {+0}; 32
Adams, 342 {+1}; 4
Audubon, 513 {+0}; 9
Guthrie, 1,266 {+0}; 29
Harrison County, 1,904; {+8}; 73
Madison County, 1,692; {+6; 19
Mills County, 1,756; {+1}; 20
Montgomery, 1,093 {+1}; 37
Pottawattamie County, 11,899; {+24}; 162
Shelby County, 1,350 {+0}; 37
Union County, 1,315; {+1}; 32

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports two arrests: At around 9:10-a.m. Thursday (today), Deputies arrested 41-year-old David Daniel Wells, of Red Oak, on a warrant for Violation of Probation. And, at around 8:30-a.m. Wednesday, 26-year-old Seancody Lee Anderson, of Emerson, turned himself-in to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office. Anderson was wanted on a warrant for Failure to Appear on an original charge of Interference with Official Acts. His cash bond was set $2,000. The cash bond for Wells was set at $10,000.