Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:55 a.m. CDT

(HANLONTOWN) — A pedestrian on 390th Street in northern Iowa’s Worth County was struck and killed by a car Friday evening. The Iowa State Patrol reports the unidentified victim was walking eastbound on 390th Street, about one-eighth of a mile east of Ironwood Avenue at around 5:20-p.m., when they were hit by a 2013 VW Passat. The accident took place northeast of Hanlontown. The name of the driver was not released. The accident remains under investigation.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a budget bill that prohibits the use of Medicaid funding to pay for sex-reassignment surgery. The Republican governor signed the Health and Human Services funding bill Friday and opted not to issue a line item veto of the ban. Republicans added the prohibition in the closing days of the Legislature, saying it was a response to a recent Iowa Supreme Court decision that said the state couldn’t deny two transgender women Medicaid coverage for sex-reassignment surgery.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — When the Mississippi River reached record levels 26 years ago, the overflowing water covered 400,000 square miles and caused dozens of deaths in a disaster dubbed “The Great Flood of 1993.” But when portions of the river exceeded those levels in parts of the Midwest this week, the flooding affected much less land. Officials say the difference largely comes down to actions taken by communities following the 1993 flood, such as the erection of floodwalls and temporary flood barriers.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a budget bill that prohibits the use of Medicaid funding to pay for sex-reassignment surgery. The Republican governor signed the Health and Human Services funding bill on Friday and opted not to issue a line item veto of the ban on public funding for such surgeries.

Conservative Republicans added the prohibition in the closing days of the Legislature, saying it was a response to a recent Iowa Supreme Court decision that said the state couldn’t deny two transgender women Medicaid coverage for sex-reassignment surgery.

Daniel Hoffmann-Zinnell, executive director of the civil rights group One Iowa Action, said that by signing the bill, Reynolds “tarnished Iowa’s reputation as a state that stands for fairness and equality.”

Four people were arrested recently on drug charges in Cass County. The Sheriff’s Office reports:

• On Wednesday (5/1) 43-year old Anthony Hernandez, of Atlantic, was arrested for Possession of Meth 1st Offense and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Hernandez was taken to the Cass County Jail and released the following day on his own recognizance.
• On April 28th, 30-year old Cody Lee Sellman, of Lanesboro, IA, was arrested for felony Possession with Intent to Deliver Meth; a felony Drug Tax Stamp Violation; and Interference with Official Acts. Sellman was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $50,000 bond.
• On April 26th, 31-year old James Dwight Mills, who currently incarcerated in the Cass County Jail, was assessed additional charges of felony Drug Tax Stamp Violation, and Possession with Intent to Deliver Alprazolam. Mills was initially incarcerated on April 21, 2019, on drug delivery and drug paraphernalia charges. He remains held at the Cass County Jail on $55,000 bond.
• And, on April 22nd, Cass County Deputies arrested 37-year old Samuel Lee Farley,  of Anita, on charges of OWI 1st Offense; Possession of Marijuana 1st Offense; and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was also charged with an OWI 1st Offense (Serious) that took place on February 7, 2019. Farley was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $3,000 bond.

The Sheriff’s Office reports also, that on Thursday, May 2nd, 44-year old Brad James Smith, of Atlantic, was arrested on a felony OWI/3rd Offense charge, and Driving While Revoked. Smith was taken to the Cass County Sheriff’s Office and released the following day on his own recognizance. May 1st, 59-year old Joseph Anthony Frontado, Sr., of Atlantic, was arrested in Cass County for OWI/1st Offense. Frontado was taken to the Cass County Jail and released the following day on his own recognizance.

April 30th, 30-year old Christopher John Hazen, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on an Atlantic Police Department warrant for Burglary 3rd Degree, and Theft 3rd Degree. Hazen was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $2,000 bond. And, on April 29th, 24-year old Edward Lee Roy Burton, Jr., of Atlantic, was arrested on a charge of OWI 1st Offense. Burton was taken to the Cass County Jail and released the following day on his own recognizance.

If you have documents, bills or other, similar forms of paper that needs to be securely shredded to protect your information from prying trash can eyes, come to the Atlantic Public Library this Saturday, from 9-until 11-a.m., where they can be shredded absolutely free of charge. Friends of the Atlantic Public Library are sponsoring the event, using funds from their semi-annual FRIENDS Book Sale. Ken Moorman is part of the organization. He says the shredder is for residents only, who need their sensitive information destroyed. (Click on the left side of the audio bar(s) below to listen)

They won’t turn anyone away, as long as the amount of paper they have to shred is reasonable. The process to get rid of those documents is as simple as driving up to the site.

Once your documents have been removed from your vehicle, they will be placed into a dumpster and shredded immediately. Last year, Moorman said, they shredded about two-tons of paper.

The shredder is intended for normal office paper, such as 8 1/2”by 11”, or 11×14. There are other places in town for newspaper recycling. Moorman says documents will not be accepted before 9-a.m., or after 11-a.m.

If you miss the shredding event this Saturday, gather your papers for next Spring, when Friends of the Atlantic Library will have the shredder available once again.

(Radio Iowa) — The mayor of Council Bluffs says Iowa’s property tax system has been “broken” for decades and needs a complete overhaul. Mayor Matt Walsh comments come after the 2019 Iowa legislature passed a bill requiring new public notices and a super majority vote when city councils raise property taxes more than two percent.

“They tinker with it and try to make it workable,” Walsh says. “At this point, it’s like a piece of machinery. You can only repair it so many times. It no longer works.” Walsh says property taxes put Council Bluffs at a “distinct disadvantage” with Omaha.

“No doubt there’s need for property tax reform. I don’t think the legislature accomplished what they wanted to accomplish,” Walsh said. “I don’t think it added any transparency.” Walsh and mayors from eastern and central Iowa discussed property taxes during taping of “Iowa Press” which airs tonight (Friday) on Iowa Public Television.

North Liberty Mayor Terry Donahue says posting public notices about property taxes online and in newspapers won’t be a problem. “When we go through our public process, we have three or four public meetings where people can come in, see what maybe the preliminary budget may be,” Donahue says. “If they wish to make a comment, they’re certainly welcome to do so. We have a public hearing that’s mandated when we do the final adoption. I don’t see that as a problem at all. It’s just adding, maybe, an extra step.”

Nevada Mayor Brett Barker was at the statehouse, lobbying against a previous proposal that included a statewide cap on property tax increases. “The legislators listened. They made changes,” Barker says. “A lot of the unintended consequences we were concerned about were mitigated in the final version of the bill.” Barker says the legislation’s public notice requirements may help the public better understand the existing property tax system.