OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A report on a June survey underscores previous survey signs that slower economic growth likely is ahead for nine Midwestern and Plains states.

The survey report issued Wednesday says the overall Mid-America Business Conditions Index rose to 53.0 from 50.4 in May and 52.7 in April.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says “improvements at the national level in housing, retail sales and hiring pushed supply managers to raise their expectations about future economic conditions.”

The survey results from supply managers are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests economic growth, while a score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — A Columbus man has pleaded no contest to manslaughter in the fatal stabbing of his grandmother in 2014.

20-year-old Chase Micklevitz entered the plea Monday. It means he neither admits nor disputes the charge.

Micklevitz’s murder trial for the death of 58-year-old Deanna Micklevitz was scheduled to begin in July. He was initially charged with second-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony, but they were dropped as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

Police say Micklevitz stabbed his grandmother four times last summer with a kitchen knife. She was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Micklevitz is scheduled to be sentenced on July 31.

It’s been just over a month since Lexi Wiezorek and Noah Ramos went missing after their car plunged into the swollen South Platte River but, there may be renewed hope in bringing closure to the families.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said, “As of June 30, 2015, the South Platte River has seen a decrease in water flows.”

Officials say the vehicle is still in an area where the water is fairly deep, but they expect water flows to decrease significantly by the end of the week.

At this point, the LCSO says the plan is to attempt to extract the vehicle on Monday or Tuesday of next week, provided the projections for the river flows hold true.

They say they are considering several different options for removing the vehicle, and the option they select will depend on what happens with the water.

According to the statement, it appears that heavy equipment will be the best option for removal, but that could change.

The safety of recovery workers is of the utmost importance to the LCSO as they work toward resolving this incident for the sake of the families involved.

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LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska state Sen. Jeremy Nordquist has submitted his resignation letter to the governor as he begins a new job with Democratic U.S. Rep. Brad Ashford.

Nordquist’s final day in office is Tuesday. The lawmaker was first elected to the Legislature in 2008, representing part of downtown Omaha and the South Omaha district. He announced last month that he is moving to Washington to serve as Ashford’s chief-of-staff.

Nordquist says he feels blessed to have served in the Legislature, and urged Gov. Pete Ricketts to appoint a replacement who shares the values of the district’s residents. The appointee will serve the rest of Nordquist’s term, which ends in January 2017.

NEW YORK (AP) — July Fourth fireworks fill the skies with more than sparkling bursts of color. A study says they spew pollution, too.

Researchers who checked 315 locations around the country found that the explosions temporarily boosted the levels of airborne microscopic particles.

The levels were more than twice normal at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. on July 4. They tapered off overnight and fell back to normal by noon on July 5.

Other studies show inhaling such particles can cause a health risk. The new study didn’t look for health effects.

But the Environmental Protection Agency says children, older adults, and people with heart disease, asthma or other lung diseases are considered to be particularly sensitive to particle pollution. The agency recommends that they watch fireworks from upwind.

KIMBALL, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 3-year-old Wyoming boy who was pulled from a western Nebraska reservoir has died at a Denver hospital.

The accident occurred Saturday evening at Oliver Reservoir, about eight miles west of Kimball. Sgt. Brandon Loy of the Kimball County Sheriff’s Office says the boy had been with relatives in the swimming area. Loy says he was at the reservoir when one of the boy’s relatives called 911 and says he soon found the boy floating in the water.

Loy says paramedics took the boy to a Kimball hospital, and he later was flown to Denver. Loy says the boy died there around 3 a.m. Sunday.

He identified the boy as Bentley Graves, of Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.

Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 95. Southwest wind 3 to 7 mph.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. South southeast wind around 7 mph becoming north northwest after midnight.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 91. North wind 7 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1am. Partly cloudy, with a low around 64. North wind 6 to 11 mph becoming light and variable after midnight.
Thursday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 84. North wind 5 to 9 mph.
Thursday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1am. Partly cloudy, with a low around 61.
Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 83.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 61.
Independence Day: Mostly sunny, with a high near 87.

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — More than a dozen states are challenging a new rule that gives federal authorities jurisdiction over some state waters.

North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem (STEHN’-juhm) says the “Waters of the U.S.” rule by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers is “unnecessary” and “unlawful.” He says it does nothing to increase water quality in North Dakota and other states.

Federal officials say the new rule aims to clarify which wetlands, streams and other waterways are protected under the Clean Water Act.

Stenehjem says a lawsuit seeking to have the rule thrown out was filed Monday in federal court in North Dakota.

The other states joining the lawsuit are Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, South Dakota and Wyoming.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A report investigating a deadly riot at a Nebraska prison says too many inmates were outside their cells at the time of the incident.

The report distributed Monday says multiple inmates at Tecumseh State Correctional Institution were released simultaneously for medication distribution. That led to a large gathering in the prison courtyard.

There were 57 staff members at the facility, the minimum allowed for monitoring the 1,024 inmates.

The report, written by an administrator for the Washington state corrections department, recommends that facility personnel change several procedures. That includes adding more rules for dispensing inmate medication and monitoring inmates.

The May 10 uprising led to the death of two inmates. The facility remains on lockdown, although inmates have been allowed to have visitors and some access to outdoor recreation yards.