(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston report the arrest at around 9:20-p.m. Wednesday, of 39-year-old Mathew Louis Scherer, from Creston. He was arrested at a residence in the 300 block of N. Pine Street, and charged with two-counts Domestic Abuse Assault, along with Criminal Mischief in the 4th Degree. Scherer was brought to the Union County Jail, and was later released on bond.

Authorities said also, 38-year-old Curtis Lee Lamasters, of Creston, was arrested for OWI/1st offense, Interference with Official Acts, Driving on a Revoked License, and Assault (without injury) on a person in a certain occupation. His bond was set at $3,300.

(Red Oak, Iowa) — Police in Red Oak report a man was arrested on a valid Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office warrant, Thursday evening. Authorities say 24-year-old Christopher Floyd Birdtail, of Red Oak, was taken into custody a little before 6:30 p.m., in the 2400 Block of North 8th Street. Birdtail was arrested on the warrant for Failure to Appear, on the original charge of Possession of a Controlled Substance/1st Offense.

He was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $2,000 cash bond.

(Radio Iowa) – Republicans on an Iowa Senate committee have approved making changes in Iowa’s Bottle Bill — tripling the amount of deposit fees that go to redemption centers that accept empties and pay back the nickel deposits on cans and bottles. Democrats say the entire package of changes will crush the Bottle Bill. Republican Senator Jason Schultz of Schleswig says it’s time to stop waiting for grocers and beverage distributors to come up with a compromise.

“Iowans, I think, are increasingly and justifiably enraged that we’ve let this go this far,” Schultz says. If the bill becomes law, beverage distributors would maintain mobile trailers that accept empties AND the state’s beer excise tax would be reduced next year. The bill also says grocery stores could quit taking back cans and bottles in 2023.

“This is a very real move to reinvigorate and modernize Iowa’s decades old Bottle Bill,” Schultz says. “Every poll shows, every forum that I go to shows…and my own family shows that they want to have it. Iowans love the Bottle Bill.” A survey conducted last month found the Bottle Bill remains popular with 84 percent of eligible Iowa voters. Senator Bill Dotzler, a Democrat from Waterloo, says it’s been one of the most popular laws on the books for years.

“This bill, the way it is written, is the de facto end of the Bottle Bill,” Dotzler says. “…You’re not going to be able to find a place to get rid of your bottles and cans.” Senator Joe Bolkcom, a Democrat from Iowa City, says that’s already happened — with no consequences to retailers. “The Bottle Bill’s on life support and it’s on life support because HyVee and Fareway and convenience store chains have quit taking the containers that consumers buy,” Bolkcom says. Schultz says while there could be some tweaks, his overall reform plan is the only viable option that could pass the Senate and the House.

“This is the opportunity to make the Bottle Bill live for another 10 years,” Schultz says. “It’s the only way to look at it. It’s hard to imagine any other way you could look at this situation.” The bill passed the Senate Ways and Means Committee Thursday and is now eligible for debate in the full Senate.