KWIT: Regional News for 7/25 (2008-07-25)

In Iowa...

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Gov. Chet Culver says he's extending all
disaster proclamations until August 22nd, which means Iowans
affected by flooding and severe weather will have more time to get
assistance as they clean-up and begin to rebuild.
According to Culver's office, 86 of Iowa's 99 counties were
covered under the governor's disaster proclamations.
His office says related proclamations that do things such as
waiving portions of administrative rules for a handful of agencies
- including the Iowa Department of Transportation, Department of
Natural Resources and Division of Banking - have also been
extended.
The governor says he is committed to providing Iowans with the
assistance they need to recover from the devastating damage.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) - The mother of an alleged sexual assault
victim has released a letter she sent to University of Iowa
officials, accusing them of ignoring the woman as she faced
harassment after reporting the attack.
In a copyright story, the Iowa Press-Citizen reports that the
mother provided the newspaper with a copy of the letter dated May
16th. It's the second letter written by the mother and then sent to
the newspaper.
The Iowa Board of Regents has ordered that an investigation into
the university's response to the alleged attack be reopened because
regents didn't know of the letters. Two former football players
have been charged in the assault.
The alleged victim is an athlete, and the latest letter accuses
officials of not helping her in the face of harassment from
teammates and football players.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Lawmakers have questioned the legality and
effectiveness of the government's tactics in a May raid that led to
the arrest of nearly 400 immigrants.
The crackdown on Agriprocessors Inc., a kosher meatpacking plant
in Postville, represented the largest single immigration raid in
the nation's history.
Most of the workers faced charges of aggravated identity theft
for using immigration or Social Security numbers that did not
belong to them. Many accepted plea agreements on a lesser charge of
Social Security fraud. Most now face five months of jail followed
by deportation.
The raid has come under fire from immigration reform groups.
And, some lawmakers are now objecting to group prosecutions they
say violated due process. The also criticized the decision to
disproportionately go after workers instead of employers.
The House Judiciary subcommittee on immigration held a five-hour
hearing today on the Postville raid.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a Democrat from California who chairs the
subcommittee, says the raid looks and feels like a cattle auction,
not a criminal prosecution in the United States.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) - Two supervisors at the Agriprocessors
Inc. meatpacking plant in Postville have asked a judge to revoke an
order that they be detained until their trial.
A judge ruled earlier this month that Juan Carlos
Guerrero-Espinoza and Martin De La Rosa-Loera remain in federal
custody until their trial, which is scheduled for Sept. 15.
The men have pleaded not guilty to aiding and abetting another
in knowingly possessing, obtaining, accepting and receiving a
resident alien card. They're also charged with knowing the card had
been unlawfully obtained.
The men's lawyers filed motions this week to have them released
under certain conditions until their trial.
Federal immigration officials raided the Agriprocessors plant on
May 12th. Nearly 400 workers at the nation's largest kosher
meatpacking plant were detained.

In Nebraska...

FREMONT, Neb. (AP) - A proposed law that would prohibit renting
to or harboring illegal immigrants in Fremont, Neb., would now ban
hiring as well.
The revised ordinance under consideration by the Fremont City
Council now calls for businesses in the city to use an
Internet-based system to verify they aren't employing illegal
immigrants.
Under the proposal, the council would have the authority to
revoke a business license, permit or contract or recall a grant or
accelerate loan payments of a business found in violation.
The ordinance is scheduled for discussion at the council's
meeting Tuesday.
A final vote is scheduled for August 26th.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Victims of recent storm and flood damage in
the Midwest could get some tax relief under a new bill pending in
Congress.
The nearly $4 billion measure would let disaster victims take
money out of retirement plans without facing tax penalties. It also
would give tax breaks to businesses that suffered losses and
encourage more donations to charities.
The plan would apply to people and businesses in federal
disaster areas in Iowa, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin.
Lawmakers from five Midwestern states introduced the measure in
the Senate and House on Thursday.
The package is modeled after similar laws that Congress passed
to help victims of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma in 2005 and
the massive tornado in Greensburg, Kan., last year.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson says he's concerned
about Indian Health Service's questionable management and what he
sees as disservice to the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska.
Nelson says the Indian Health Service is squandering federal
dollars and leaving tribes to pick up the pieces.
The Nebraska Democrat says the Omaha Tribe faces a funding
crisis because of the agency's "woefully inadequate" payment rate
for certain health services.
Congressional investigators say the Indian Health Service has
lost at least $15.8 million worth of equipment and later falsified
documents to cover up some of those losses.

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) - Experts say a grasshopper infestation
is spreading from western Nebraska's pastureland into crops like
soybeans, corn and alfalfa.
Researchers with the West Central Research and Extension Center
in North Platte are telling producers that now is the time to spray
for the insects.
Grasshoppers have been a pest in western Nebraska's pastureland
for the last decade, but now seem to be causing significant damage
to row crops.
David Boxler, a research technologist with the center, says
producers should prepare to spray now, before the insects make it
to their adult stage. Boxler says once the grasshoppers are winged,
"it's very difficult to apply a treatment and very costly."

In South Dakota...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin says
she won't rule out running for governor in 2010.
She's running for re-election to the U.S. House in November.
Herseth Sandlin says the November election and the birth of her
first child in December will influence her decisions for 2010.
It's not the first time she's talked about a possible run for
governor. Last November, she told reporters she wouldn't close off
any opportunities to serve the state in 2010 or beyond.

MITCHELL, S.D. (AP) - Officials have confirmed the season's
first case of livestock anthrax and suspect a second case - both in
Hutchinson County.
State Veterinarian Sam Holland said about three head of cattle
died in each case.
Anthrax spores occur naturally in the soil. They can be exposed
by drought, floods or wind and can then be ingested when livestock
graze close to the ground.
It can infect humans who handle infected animals or inhale the
spores released by the bacteria. It is treatable with antibiotics.
The state typically has some livestock anthrax cases each year.
A vaccination is available.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - The Internal Revenue Service said it
will send a second set of information packets to more than 11,450
retirees and military veterans in South Dakotans who may be
eligible for the federal economic stimulus payment but have not yet
filed for it.
The deadline is Oct. 15.
The packages will contain everything needed by a person who
normally does not have a federal tax filing requirement but who
must file this year in order to receive an economic stimulus
payment.
For people such as retirees who have no tax liability or filing
requirement, there is a minimum payment of $300 per person, or $600
for married couples.