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The Iowa Senate has passed a bill to ban traffic cameras for the third year in a row.
Supporters of banning traffic cameras say they violate due process rights and are a money-making scheme for local governments.
Senator Brad Zaun of Urbandale, the self-described “poster boy” on this topic, says it’s the right thing to do.
0326zaun1 :12 “I want to make it very clear: our traffic laws are there for a reason. They need to be obeyed. But I have to stand up when our citizens are being taken advantage by these gotcha cams.”
The bill passed the Senate with a 30 to 19 vote, with some Democrats joining the majority and some Republicans joining the minority. Some opponents of the bill say traffic cameras are important for road safety and should be regulated by the state, not banned.
Lawmakers in the House have a bill to regulate traffic cameras. It’s not clear if the two chambers will reach an agreement this year.
Dakota County road crews had yet to finish fixing road and bridge damage caused by a flood last summer when another round of flooding nearly two weeks ago did even more damage, according to the Sioux City Journal.
Rain and rapidly melting snow rushed over still-frozen ground to fill creeks and rivers. When the banks were filled, the water poured over and around bridges and county roads, causing "just about every damage you can think of to a road," Dakota County highway superintendent Fred Kellogg told the Journal.
Kellogg estimated damage was at least $1 million, with the potential to increase.