(Radio Iowa)- Republican lawmakers are proposing a ban on gender reassignment surgery and hormone therapy for transgender youth. Senator Jeff Edler, a Republican from State Center, says if the state can make it illegal for minors to use tobacco or alcohol, it can ban body altering procedures. “What they’re feeling today may not be the same that they’re feeling when they’re 18 or older and some of these procedures are non-reversible,” Elder says. “I mean, the damage that is being done. It is very new technology and techniques.”

Subcommittees in the Iowa House AND Senate approved the same bill on Tuesday afternoon. A woman who said her name was Angie testified at the subcommittee hearing in the Senate. “It is irresponsible to lead children down this path at such a young and vulnerable age,” she said. Samantha Fett of Carlisle, a member of the conservative Moms for Liberty group, says the bill protects the children of today and future generations.

“We need to allow children to grow normally because puberty is important to human development,” she said. “Pausing it has life-altering consensuses forever.” Doctors and parents pushed back on the idea children are being manipulated. Karen Butler of Iowa City told lawmakers her child is non-binary and the family spent years meeting with specialists and mental health professionals.

“What makes you think you are in a better position than I to make decisions about my child?” Butler asked lawmakers. “…I want you to understand the gender affirming surgery my child received was medically necessary, potentially life saving care.” Dr. Kaaren Olesen, an O-B/G-Y-N at Broadlawns Hospital in Des Moines, cares for L-G-B-T-Q youth. “We are not going about willy nilly just doing surgeries on young children,” she said. “There are processes and procedures to follow.” Aime Wichtendahl, a member of the Hiawatha City Council, told lawmakers she knew at the age of nine — as a student at a Christian school — that she was trans.

“Being trans is a condition of the human race,” she said. “You can’t erase us, no matter books you ban…no matter how many rules and regulations you put in front of us.” South Dakota lawmakers recently passed a ban on gender reassignment surgery and hormone therapy for minors. Similar legislation has been proposed this year in 26 other states.

(Bedford, Iowa – DNR News) – A contractor for the city of Bedford accidentally hit a private sewer line while doing work on a water line Tuesday, causing wastewater to spill between 405 North and 102 Central Street.

City officials estimated 100 gallons of sewage reached the city storm sewer, which drains approximately one mile before outletting into the East Fork of the One Hundred Two River.

The city’s contractor immediately made the necessary repairs to the private sewer line.

The chairman of a key Senate committee has introduced a bill to boost the penalty for assaulting a referee or umpire. Troy Scheuermann of Farmington is urging lawmakers to make this move for sports officials. Scheuermann, who’s a basketball referee, cites what happened after he and a partner volunteered to referee a three-on-three tournament for fifth graders in Fort Madison last March.

Fort Madison’s newspaper has reported that a Burlington man was arrested and charged with a serious misdemeanor. Senator Lynn Evans of Aurelia is a licensed official for football, basketball, baseball, softball and track. He’s never been assaulted over a call he’s made, but Evans says the escalation of these kind of incidents is discouraging people from becoming a sports official.

Senator Nate Boulton of Des Moines says police in Des Moines had to be called this past year after an umpire was assaulted at a slow pitch softball game.

Senator Mike Bousselot, a Republican from Ankeny, says the bill will draw a line of protection for sports officials.

The bill has cleared a Senate subcommittee and is scheduled for a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday. Twenty-three other states have already made assaulting a sports official a felony.

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – In an update to our report earlier this month, officials with the Council Bluffs Police Department, today (Tuesday), said that a woman who was reported missing to Council Bluffs Police on Feb. 14th, was found deceased Sunday, in an area outside the Council Bluffs City Limits. 60-year-old Illene Gowen was found by Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputies.

Illene Gowan

Her death is considered suspicious. Anyone with information on her whereabouts on or after Feb. 13, 2023, is asked to contact the Council Bluffs P-D at 712-890-5400, Option 3

(Harlan, Iowa) – The Harlan Police Department reports numerous arrests took place from Feb. 4th through the 27th. Two suspects were arrested twice.

Beginning with the most recent, on Feb. 27th, 60-year-old William Joseph Daeges, of Harlan, was arrested for allegedly violating a no contact order, and for and interference with official acts. And, 33-year-old Jacob Brady Scheffler, of Harlan, was arrested on an active Shelby County warrant.

On Feb. 24th, Harlan Police arrested Joey Lee Ranney, on active Shelby County warrants for Burglary and Forgery. Officers with the H-PD arrested 22-year-old Brandon Jay Benedict, of Harlan, on Feb. 21st. He was charged with Driving While Barred. The previous day, officers arrested 60-year-old William Joseph Daeges, of Harlan, for Domestic Abuse Assault.

On the 15th 30-year-old Brian Daniel Green, and 31-year-old Shelbie Ann Green, both of Harlan, were arrested for Violation of a No Contact Order. Shelbie Green was additionally charged with Assault. On Feb. 11th, 41-year-old Jasper William Daniel, of Harlan, was arrested for driving while barred. On the 6th, 35-year-old Dustin Allen Hansen, of Harlan, was arrested for Driving while revoked.

And, on Feb. 4th, 31-year-old Shelbie Ann Green, of Harlan, was arrested on an Assault charge.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – Sheriff’s officials in Mills County are looking for a rental truck involved in a property damage accident. Authorities say 62-year-old Thomas Head, of Council Bluffs, was driving a 1998 Toyota eastbound on Highway 34 at around 5:30-a.m. Monday, when his vehicle was struck by a white Enterprise rental truck, as the truck was eastbound and attempting to pass the Toyota. The truck fled the scene. No injuries were reported. The driver of the rental truck was still not known as of the latest report.

And, Mills County Sheriff’s officials say 40-year-old Michaela Rice Collins, of Glenwood, was arrested Monday night, on a charge of Domestic Abuse Assault. She was being held without bond in the Mills County Jail.

(Radio Iowa) – (UPDATED 11:05-a..m.) A House subcommittee has approved a bill that would let Iowa schools have policies requiring that students use the bathrooms or locker rooms designated for their biological sex. During a subcommittee hearing early this (Tuesday) morning, Patty Alexander, a teacher from Urbandale, urged lawmakers to pass the bill.  “There is a push to influence our children into something they are not,” Alexander says. “We are pushing them in nihilism and narcissism…We are telling them they are born in the wrong bodies.” Jill Bjorklund, of Ankeny, and her seven-year-old transgender daughter Lily urged lawmakers to defeat the bill.

“If this bill passes I will not be able to go to the bathroom in the girls bathroom where all of my friends go. I will have to go in the boy’s bathroom which is way more confusing for my friends when I walk in with a dress on,” Lily said. Jill Bjorklund said: “How do you look at her face and think she is a danger?” Amber Williams told lawmakers she was a concerned mom who supports the bill.”Boys bathrooms are made for boys with urinals and toilets and girls bathrooms are made with toilets and tampon dispensers,” Williams said. “Boys and girls are biologically different, with different needs in the bathroom.” Chris Patterson, the parent of a non-binary child, says her first grader was forced to adhere to the kind of policy in this bill.

“I watched my confident, curious kiddo going from loving school to climbing into the car afterwards, sometimes wet, because they couldn’t risk one more interaction where someone told them they were in the wrong bathroom,” Patterson said. Lobbyists representing schools warn districts will risk lawsuits and be forced to decide whether to adhere to federal policy on transgender students’ bathroom use or the proposed state law. Shellie Flockhart told lawmakers she was the mother of four and her teenage children are opposed to having kids of the opposite sex in their locker room.

“Gender specific restrooms, locker rooms and showers are a safety requirement. As a woman, to ask for anything less is offensive,” Flockhart said. “The separation of bathrooms and locker rooms is needed.” Becky Taylor is executive director of Iowa Safe Schools, which works with 10-thousand L-G-B-T-Q students. Taylor says the bill’s accommodation — letting transgender students use the restroom in the nurses office — does not meet the legal standard. “Let me remind you that Brown v Board of Education found that having separate but supposedly equal facilities was inherently inequitable and illegal,” Taylor said.

In 2021, a gender specific bathroom policy won initial approval from a subcommittees in the Iowa Senate, but today’s (Tuesday’s) vote is the first time a House subcommittee has advanced a so-called bathroom bill.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with the Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO) have introduced Erin Hudson to their staff. Hudson will assume to role of Community Development Director, overseeing SWIPCO’s housing and planning teams of 12 current staff members. The housing and planning departments are currently managing a grant portfolio of over $100 million, ranging from disaster recovery, housing, recreation, to foundational services such as transportation, water, sewer, and broadband.

“I am very excited to be here as I am glad to get back to working in an area of assisting people as most of my career has evidence of such,” said Hudson. “I find the work that SWIPCO does to be fascinating, and I am glad to be a part of it. I am ready to dive in and get involved as the Community Development Director in all aspects of Housing and Planning as we move forward through all the projects we are working on and all projects we may have on the horizon.”

Hudson lives in Harlan, Iowa with her two children. She has a bachelor’s degree from Northwest Missouri State University in Psychology and a master’s degree in public administration from University of Nebraska-Omaha. Hudson has a background working with various populations in the nonprofit arena. She worked with troubled youth, then low-income individuals/families, then disabled individuals, and then an assisted living facility.

Erin Hudson

Hudson has worked in administration and wrote and reviewed federal government grants to fund programs that she operated. Hudson brings with her a wealth of knowledge in grant writing and has many years of supervisory experience from her position as director at Youth Emergency Services, West Central Community Action, Concerned, Inc. and Manning Senior Living.

“Erin brings amazing experience managing diverse teams. Right now, there are unprecedented investments being made in our communities and Erin will be a major help as SWIPCO works to ensure as much of that is invested right here in Southwest Iowa.” SWIPCO Executive Director John McCurdy said.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Board of Supervisors in Cass County met during a brief session this (Tuesday) morning. The Board approved the renewal of a 28-E agreement with the Southwest Iowa Juvenile Detention facility. Board Chair Steve Baier….

After some brief discussion, the Supervisors tabled action until March 14th, on updating the County’s Investment Policy. Baier said the Board has been working on the policy for at least a couple of months. Supervisor Bernard Pettinger said he and Supervisor Wendy Richter have been discussing how to better explain what the policy entails.

An attorney will review a draft of the proposal to make sure the language in clear, concise, and compliant with the Code of Iowa. And, Engineer Trent Wolken reported the Secondary Roads Department has been trying to keep a delicate balance with regard to application of road rock. First they were dealing with snow and ice late last week, and then it was heavy rain this week.

Board Chair Baier said “This is one of the challenging periods of year,” and that “no matter what you do the Secondary Roads that you’re gonna have some issues.”

(Radio Iowa) – The U-S Supreme Court is hearing arguments today (Tuesday) over President Biden’s plan to forgive student loans, a plan Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley calls “reckless” and which would cost the federal government nearly one-trillion dollars. Grassley, a Republican, says the student loan system is deeply flawed and students and families need help in making better informed decisions about borrowing for college. “I often hear from Iowa families who are dissatisfied and confused by the complex student loan borrowing program, however, the federal student loan forgiveness doesn’t fix this problem,” Grassley says. “It would only shift the responsibility for repaying loans away from the original borrower and force it upon the American taxpayers.”

Grassley is introducing three bipartisan bills with Senator Tina Smith, a Democrat from Minnesota, which he says would offer more counseling, resources and clarity to the student loan process. Grassley says Biden’s plan would erase ten- to 20-thousand dollars in debt for each student who qualifies, and millions may qualify. “It’s not fair to force the cost of this plan on taxpayers who didn’t seek an advanced degree or who already paid off their loans,” Grassley says. “My bill empowers students with the tools that they need to make informed decisions about borrowing for school.”

Grassley says the trio of bills would ensure that students get the full picture when choosing a college and taking out a loan. From the initial college search, to the acceptance of financial aid, to counseling once in college, Grassley says the bills would help students avoid sticker shock, find the best college for their budget and avoid taking out ill-advised, oversized loans. He says a societal change is forcing a shift in how we think about college.

“You go back 25 years and the attitude was in American society if you didn’t have a B.A. degree or a graduate degree, you weren’t going to amount anything,” Grassley says, “and you’re finding people that get a four-year degree, they go back to a community college to get some skill so they can pay off their loans.”  Grassley says much of the student debt conversation is focused on repayment of that debt, while he says we need to fix the process on the front-end before students get in over their heads. A news release from Grassley’s office says the three bills are:

• The Understanding the True Cost of College Act which would create a universal financial aid offer form and standardize terms used to describe financial aid to allow students to more easily compare financial aid packages between schools.
• The Know Before You Owe Federal Student Loan Act would strengthen the Higher Education Act to enhance the current loan counseling requirements for institutions of higher education.
• The Net Price Calculator Improvement Act would improve the effectiveness of and access to net price calculators.