The battle over traffic enforcement cameras remains unresolved in the state legislature. Earlier this year, the Iowa Senate voted to ban the cameras which catch vehicles speeding and running red lights. Then, the House voted to establish new regulations for the cameras. Senator Brad Zaun of Urbandale is still pushing for an outright ban. He suggests this issue could wind up being a bargaining chip to decide other issues that have to be resolved before the legislature may adjourn.

“It may be one of the negotiating tools to get out of here,” Zaun says. Senator Tony Bisignano of Des Moines wants the cameras to stay. He says cities need the revenue from the tickets. “Twelve million dollars, it’s going to cost local government, if this bill will go to the governor,” Bisignano says.

Zaun responded. “All we’ve had conversations about with these traffic enforcement cameras is about money,” Zaun said. Zaun is among those who say the cameras are more about revenue than safety. Those who argue the cameras should stay say it’s too dangerous for police to pull drivers amid speeding traffic on highways that pass through cities.

(Radio Iowa)

A vote is expected today (Wednesday) in the U-S House on a bill, drafted by Iowa Congressman David Young, that seeks to crack down on identity thieves and help victims of such fraud. “Many in the Third District of Iowa have spoken to me about their fear of having their identity, bank or credit card numbers, and other personal information stolen,” Young said on the House floor Tuesday.

The Justice for Victims of IRS Scams and Identity Theft Act would require the Attorney General and Treasury Secretary to submit reports to Congress detailing how they have prosecuted identity theft crimes. According to Young, Americans lose billions of dollars to con artists and many Iowans worry about getting a call from their bank or credit card company explaining their information has been stolen. “This reality can turn an individual’s and a family’s world upside down. Millions of Americans have gotten that call and many have lost everything because of identity theft,” Young said.

A 2016 report indicated Americans submit up to 14,000 complaints about IRS impersonation scams every week. “This is serious,” Young said. “These scams are indiscriminate and can impact any person at any time.”

Young added that the Department of Justice should suggest “what can be done to deter criminals and prevent identity theft from happening.”

(Radio Iowa)

The Iowa Department of Corrections reports a woman who was convicted of 2nd Degree Robbery in Johnson County, is listed as escaped from a detention facility. 37-year old Amy Lorene McBride failed to report back to the Gerald R. Hinzman Residential Center as required, Tuesday morning.

Amy McBride

McBride is a white female, 5’4″ tall, and weighing 157 pounds. She was admitted to the work release facility on 3/29/2018.  Persons with information on McBrides’s whereabouts should contact local police.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:30 a.m. CDT

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is defending his decision not to disclose his role in a new corporation that recently spent around $2 million to open a storage rental business and purchase a strip mall. Pate said in a statement Tuesday evening that his disclosure form is accurate because he reported receiving rental income from unspecified commercial and residential properties.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Lawmakers in the Iowa Senate have updated employee policies and ethics rules to better address allegations of sexual misconduct and other harassment within their half of the state Capitol. The Republican-controlled chamber held last-minute procedural votes Tuesday. The changes are a culmination of growing public scrutiny over how the Iowa Capitol, particularly Senate Republicans, should handle such allegations.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Des Moines woman has been charged for the death of her 6-month-old son. Court records say 33-year-old Latyia Johnson was arrested Monday and is charged with child endangerment resulting in death. Court records don’t list the name of her attorney. Court records say she told police Monday that she’d given him more than an adult level of an allergy medication and a children’s pain reliever _ information that was consistent with an autopsy report.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa children should no longer face so-called “lunch shaming” in school cafeterias under a new law signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds. Reynolds announced Tuesday that she signed the bill, which lawmakers approved unanimously. Iowa is following the lead of several other states that have passed similar legislation that bans staff from throwing away meals that were already served or publicly identifying students whose parents owe money.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate did not disclose his role in a new corporation that has recently spent around $2 million to open a storage rental business and purchase a strip mall. In an ethics filing last week, Pate affirmed that the only outside business in which he engaged during 2017 was the eastern Iowa asphalt paving company he has long owned.

But business and government records reviewed by The Associated Press show Pate formed a company days before the 2016 presidential election, PRG Group LLC, and it worked throughout 2017 to open a new mini-storage business in Cedar Rapids. In a February filing, Pate called himself its “managing partner.”

An aide said Tuesday that Pate was “preparing a response” to questions about the matter.