The Iowa House Ethics Committee has dismissed a complaint against a rural lawmaker that was filed by a group that lobbies against large-scale livestock confinements. Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement argued Representative Dolores Mertz, a Democrat from Ottosen, should not be chair of the House Ag Committee because her sons run hog confinements and they pay rent to her to spread manure on her farm. Representative Tyler Olson, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids who is a member of the House Ethics Committee, says House rules allow people with "special knowledge" of a profession to serve in leadership roles. "In general, we have a citizen legislature," Olson said. "We all have other roles….I’m an attorney by trade and obviously vote on a lot of issues that relate to that profession." Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement complain Mertz is using her authority as Ag Committee chair to kill bills they’d like to see passed. But Olson and the other four members of the Ethics Committee agreed that a committee chair has the authority to use that position to either advance or to kill bills. "In my opinion the facts as alleged, assuming they are true, do not constitute a valid complaint," Olson said. The House Ethics Committee voted unanimously to discuss the complaint against Mertz, which angered Larry Ginter, a farmer from Rhodes who is a member of the group that filed the complaint. "We are outraged about this decision," Ginter said moments after the meeting concluded. "It’s business as unusual down here at the statehouse and people are tired of not getting some justice out here about clean air and clean water." The group specifically complained Mertz had blocked a bill which would increase the distance required between a livestock confinement and a home. Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement executive director Hugh Espy says they’ll regroup and return to the statehouse Tuesday to lobby legislators. "When you go out in the court of public and I’ll tell you what, there’s thousands and tens of thousands of folks and some of ‘em are right here today who say, ‘This fight is just starting,’" Espy said in a statehouse hallway as he was surrounded by a few dozen Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement members. "It’s just heating up. It ain’t going away until we get justice." The House Ethics Committee dismissed the complaint, and further ruled that Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement cannot refile a similar complaint against Mertz.
House ethics panel dismisses complaint against Representative Mertz
Warm February melts away snow cover
February ended up being the warmest winter month of the year thus far, and the state climatologist says that’s good news in helping avoid a repeat of spring flooding. Harry Hillaker says the snow that had accumulated so far this winter faded away in the warmer February temps.
Hillaker says the only long term or old snow cover in the state is in the far northeast part of the state, in areas such as Decorah, Fayette, Guttenberg, where there are a few inches of snowcover. Hillaker says that’s a lot different than this time a year ago.
Last year finding open areas without heavy snow cover in February was not easy. Hillaker says some parts or northeastern and northern Iowa had as much as 20 inches of snowcover last year at this time. He says that makes it more favorable for the ground not being saturated like it was last spring.
Hillaker says less saturation of the ground makes it easier to handle any spring rains, and lessens the likelihood for flooding.
Vandals shoot out hundreds of car windows in CR
Vandals shot out the windows out more than 130 vehicles in Cedar Rapids over the weekend using a B.B. or pellet gun. Jason Houghtaling says the rear window of his family’s van was shattered and now instead of taking a vacation, they’ll have to use the money they’d saved to replace the glass.
Houghtailing says, "If you want to find a random way to blow off some steam, doing damage to other people’s property is not the way to do it." Cedar Rapids police say they can’t remember the last time this much destruction happened in one evening. Ben Bowers had the windows of his pickup truck shot out.
Bowers says: "They’re not taking into consideration people’s finances or anything like that. They’re just trying to pass time by and doing it in stupid ways." Repairing a broken car window can cost anywhere from $200 all the way up to more than $1,000.
Darlys Dickman says she can’t understand why someone would do such a damaging thing in her neighborhood. Dickman says: "Maybe it’s just frustration because so many people are out of work. It’s a sad way to take it out on other people." Police say the vandals targeted all four of the city’s quadrants. Houghtaling hopes police are able to find the vandals.
He says, "Somebody’s responsible for all this and they need to catch them and prosecute them." Even though no one seems to have heard any glass shatter, people in the community will be listening closely for any clues about who’s responsible. If you have any information about these crimes, call the Cedar Rapids Police Department at (319) 286-5378.
Bill would increase cancer benefits for firefighters
Iowa firefighters are pressing for changes that would boost the benefits for firefighters who are diagnosed with cancer. Under current Iowa law, firefighters who’re diagnosed with heart or lung disease automatically get higher disability benefits — as well as death benefits — because firefighters convinced legislators in the past those conditions are job-related.
Senator Jeff Danielson, a fire fighter from Cedar Falls, is sponsoring a bill which would increase benefits for firefighters who get cancer. "In many ways this is a widow’s bill and a children’s bill that provides some measure of financial help for those families that have to deal with that diagnosis from that point forward," Danielson says.
According to Danielson, firefighters would have to make a larger contribution to their pension plan if his bill becomes law, but Danielson admits the cities that employ firefighters will have to pay more, too. Jessica Harder of the Iowa League of Cities says it may not be realistic to assume every fire fighter who gets cancer got it because of their job.
"As people age, the incidence of cancer increases so I think that’s just part of maybe the human condition," she says. "I mean, health-wise, your health can go down as you get older." The president of the state’s firefighters union suggests the two sides may be able to reach a compromise by adopting a list of cancers to which firefighters are most susceptible.
But Danielson, a Democrat and the bill’s author, says if the full senate debates his bill, he plans to ask that in addition to firefighters, police officers also get larger disability checks and death benefits if they’re diagnosed with cancer.
Environmentalist warns against planting pear trees
Planting season is approaching and some environmentalists are telling Iowans to avoid planting pear trees. Varieties such as Cleveland Select and Bradford are popular because they produce white flowers. Cedar Rapids arborist Daniel Gibbons says the trees are harmless – until they cross-pollinate with other varieties.
"It’s a non-native tree that can grow about anywhere and it grows in such a thick mass that our native plant species cannot reproduce underneath it," Gibbons said. Pear trees come from China. The trees by themselves are sterile, but because there are different varieties, thorny hybrid pear trees can pop up.
"Because of the way it has been cultivated and planted, cross-pollination is much more rapid over here and so that is why there are many different hybridized seedlings that are sprouting up," Gibbons said. The thorny hybrids destroy native wildlife and Gibbons says they can crowd around utilities causing thousands of dollars in damage.
Gibbons says it’s not yet a big problem in Iowa, but some cities on the east coast have banned the tree and the problem is rapidly growing in border states such as Missouri.
UNI wins MVC title, top seed in conference tourney
The University of Northern Iowa won it’s first ever Missouri Valley Conference regular season title by downing Evansville 69-62 in Cedar Falls Saturday tonight.
The victory gives the Panthers a share of the Missouri Valley Conference regular season title with Creighton, which won earlier in the day over Illinois State.
Jordan Eglseder led UNI with 20 points as they pulled out to a 21 point lead, and then held on for the win down the stretch.
UNI finished 14-4 in the MVC and locks up the top spot for the post-season tournament. They are 20-10 overall.
Fort Dodge gypsum plant lays off 29
Georgia Pacific Gypsum in Fort Dodge is laying off 29 workers from one of its three wallboard production shifts. The reason is due to the continued weak demand for building materials. Georgia Pacific officials will re-evaluate the layoffs if market conditions change. There are two shifts that currently produce a line of gypsum products at the Fort Dodge facility. The plant had about 145 workers in recent years. It has been in operation since the early 1900s.
