DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Kim Reynolds has named a corporate attorney who has contributed money to her campaign to a state commission that nominates candidates for positions on the Iowa Supreme Court and the Iowa Court of Appeals. Reynolds on Friday named Dan Huitink (HOY-tink) to the state judicial nominating commission. Huitink is a lawyer for Vermeer Corp. in Pella and is a former assistant U.S. attorney.

His appointment was made possible by a bill Reynolds signed Wednesday that gave her the authority to appoint nine members of the 17-member state commission. Lawyers will elect eight. Previously the governor and attorneys each selected eight commission members and the senior justice on the Iowa Supreme Court was the 17th member. The law removes the justice, which means Justice David Wiggins, a Democratic appointee, is taken off the commission.

Democrats have criticized the change, saying Republicans want to stack the courts in their favor after losing recent cases on abortion and same-sex marriage. State campaign finance records show Huitink contributed to Reynolds’ campaign for governor and has given to the Republican Party.

DES MOINES – Today (Friday), Gov. Kim Reynolds extended existing proclamations of disaster emergency for counties impacted by March flooding. The proclamation extends the governor’s activation of Iowa disaster response and recovery efforts for an additional 30 days to June 11, 2019, and allows state resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of this severe weather across the entire state.

The proclamation also provides impacted Iowans additional time to apply for the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program. The new deadline to apply for the program is June 11, 2019.

Among the counties covered under this extended proclamation are: Adair, Audubon, Carroll, Cass, Crawford, Dallas, Guthrie, Madison, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie, Shelby, and Union.

The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for qualifying residents with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level or a maximum annual income of $41,560 for a family of three. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. The grant application, instructions, and information on application deadlines are available on the Iowa Department of Human Services website.

The Disaster Case Management Program remains in effect for all counties currently covered by governor’s disaster proclamations. Disaster Case Management is a program to address serious needs to overcome a disaster-related hardship, injury or adverse condition. For information on the Disaster Case Management Program, contact your local community action association or visit www.iowacommunityaction.org.

The proclamation also extends the governor’s temporary suspension of regulatory provisions pertaining to hours of service for disaster repair crews and drivers delivering goods and services while responding to disaster sites during the duration of this disaster, along with weight limits related to disaster repairs. In addition, the proclamation waives fees for issuance of replacement motor vehicle registrations cards, plates and driver licenses, additional fees for car and travel trailer lots, and waives some types of recycler licenses.

The proclamation suspends length-of-stay and fee requirements at Waubonsie State Park located in Fremont County. Requirements suspended include:

• Limiting campers to no more than 14 consecutive nights
• Requiring a minimum of three nights separating each two-week stay
• Camping and related transactions fees
• Establishing a minimal number of campground sites that must be made available through the online reservation system

To be eligible for the fee waivers, persons displaced by this disaster should show up in person to check for availability. For more information, visit the DNR Disaster Assistance website or the Waubonsie State Park website. For more information on Iowa’s flooding and disaster assistance, visit floods2019.iowa.gov.

Atlantic School District Superintendent Steve Barber wants to dispel rumors about “an incident” at one of the district’s buildings. Barber said today (Friday), there was no incident, and no weapon was brought to school. He said he doesn’t know who started the rumor or why, but it is completely unfounded.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A mountain lion appears to be ambling through much of Des Moines. Police on Thursday warned city residents to be mindful of the animal after it was spotted on security video in a neighborhood just west of downtown.

On Friday, the city released a video showing the mountain lion strolling overnight through a neighborhood miles away on the city’s southside, not far from the airport. The area is within a couple miles of open farmland.

Authorities recommend that people in the area keep watch over small children and pets that are outside. They ask that anyone who sees the mountain lion to call 911.