Latest news with #Gustoff
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
With Trump's plans for America's 250th in mind, Iowa lawmakers don't want cities to limit fireworks
Iowa lawmakers want President Donald Trump to know that their state is eager to be at the center of next year's celebration of the nation's 250th birthday and shares his vision of fireworks filling the skies — so much so that they don't want local officials blocking any small, neighborhood displays. The Republican-controlled Legislature passed a bill this week that would ban local limits on people setting off their own rockets, mortars, aerial spinners and Roman candles on July 3 or 4, or Dec. 31. There was nothing to stop big, public shows — say, a Fourth of July display as part of Trump's proposed 'Great American State Fair' in Iowa's capital of Des Moines — but a relative handful of cities, including Des Moines, haven't allowed people to shoot them off, even on the nation's birthday or New Year's Eve. The bill headed to Republican Gov. Kim Reynold's desk after the state House approved it Tuesday, 51-39, with the GOP majority overriding Democrats' concerns that it could undermine fire safety or harm military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. Des Moines and at least six of its suburbs, as well as the cities of Ames, Cedar Rapids and Dubuque bar people from setting off their own fireworks even on Independence Day. In arguing for the bill, Republican state Rep. Bill Gustoff quoted founding father John Adams' desire for national celebrations involving parades and 'illuminations' of fireworks, from 'one end of this continent to the other.' Gustoff, who is from the Des Moines area, also cited the proposal Trump first floated in 2023 to have a yearlong national exposition on the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines. 'Mr. President, we welcome that idea in Iowa and we're ready, willing and able to host the party,' Gustoff said during Tuesday's short debate. 'We need to enable Iowans to be part of that celebration.' While communities around the world have celebrated events with fireworks for hundreds of years, people's fondness for setting them off themselves has often been a bane of local police and firefighters. Still, only one state — Adams' home of Massachusetts — imposes an outright ban on their use by individual consumers. For years, Pennsylvania only allowed the use of sparklers and similar novelty fireworks. But in 2017, it permitted the sale of the full array of products, only to narrow those sales in 2022 to July 2-4 and Dec. 31 amid complaints. Georgia ended a decades-long ban on consumer fireworks in 2015 and doesn't allow cities and counties to restrict them. Iowa banned consumer sales of fireworks for decades, spurred on by a June 1931 fire that engulfed about 100 buildings in the small town of Spencer, which started with a sparkler at a drugstore. However, in 2017, Iowa lawmakers allowed cities and counties to license firework sellers and allow people to set off fireworks from June 1 through July 8 and from Dec. 10 through Jan. 3. Iowa state health department data shows that in 2017, the number of fireworks-related emergency room visits in Iowa nearly doubled from 2016 and remained higher than pre-legalization levels through 2023. The state associations for fire marshals, fire chiefs, firefighters and emergency managers, opposed the fireworks law, as did the Iowa League of Cities. Democratic state Rep. Larry McBurney, from the Des Moines area, said the flash, noise and smell of gunpowder from fireworks can trigger veterans' PTSD. Fellow Democratic state Rep. Eric Gjerde, a Cedar Rapids police officer, said people who call to complain about fireworks in his city often think they're hearing gunfire. 'We have to take every single one of those extremely seriously, so we send multiple officers to investigate,' he told his colleagues. Fireworks manufacturers and retailers supported the bill, as did the state association for retail stores and the small-government, free-market group Americans for Prosperity. But in arguing in favor of the bill, Gustoff cited next year's celebration of the Declaration of Independence's signing in 1776. 'Current law allows a patchwork of ordinances that are a trap for the unwary, patriotic American in Iowa who simply wants to celebrate Independence Day the way it was intended by our founding fathers,' he said. ___ Associated Press Writers Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa; Jeff Amy in Atlanta and Marc Levy, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, also contributed.
Winnipeg Free Press
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
With Trump's plans for America's 250th in mind, Iowa lawmakers don't want cities to limit fireworks
Iowa lawmakers want President Donald Trump to know that their state is eager to be at the center of next year's celebration of the nation's 250th birthday and shares his vision of fireworks filling the skies — so much so that they don't want local officials blocking any small, neighborhood displays. The Republican-controlled Legislature passed a bill this week that would ban local limits on people setting off their own rockets, mortars, aerial spinners and Roman candles on July 3 or 4, or Dec. 31. There was nothing to stop big, public shows — say, a Fourth of July display as part of Trump's proposed 'Great American State Fair' in Iowa's capital of Des Moines — but a relative handful of cities, including Des Moines, haven't allowed people to shoot them off, even on the nation's birthday or New Year's Eve. The bill headed to Republican Gov. Kim Reynold's desk after the state House approved it Tuesday, 51-39, with the GOP majority overriding Democrats' concerns that it could undermine fire safety or harm military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. Des Moines and at least six of its suburbs, as well as the cities of Ames, Cedar Rapids and Dubuque bar people from setting off their own fireworks even on Independence Day. In arguing for the bill, Republican state Rep. Bill Gustoff quoted founding father John Adams' desire for national celebrations involving parades and 'illuminations' of fireworks, from 'one end of this continent to the other.' Gustoff, who is from the Des Moines area, also cited the proposal Trump first floated in 2023 to have a yearlong national exposition on the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines. 'Mr. President, we welcome that idea in Iowa and we're ready, willing and able to host the party,' Gustoff said during Tuesday's short debate. 'We need to enable Iowans to be part of that celebration.' While communities around the world have celebrated events with fireworks for hundreds of years, people's fondness for setting them off themselves has often been a bane of local police and firefighters. Still, only one state — Adams' home of Massachusetts — imposes an outright ban on their use by individual consumers. For years, Pennsylvania only allowed the use of sparklers and similar novelty fireworks. But in 2017, it permitted the sale of the full array of products, only to narrow those sales in 2022 to July 2-4 and Dec. 31 amid complaints. Georgia ended a decades-long ban on consumer fireworks in 2015 and doesn't allow cities and counties to restrict them. Iowa banned consumer sales of fireworks for decades, spurred on by a June 1931 fire that engulfed about 100 buildings in the small town of Spencer, which started with a sparkler at a drugstore. However, in 2017, Iowa lawmakers allowed cities and counties to license firework sellers and allow people to set off fireworks from June 1 through July 8 and from Dec. 10 through Jan. 3. Iowa state health department data shows that in 2017, the number of fireworks-related emergency room visits in Iowa nearly doubled from 2016 and remained higher than pre-legalization levels through 2023. The state associations for fire marshals, fire chiefs, firefighters and emergency managers, opposed the fireworks law, as did the Iowa League of Cities. Democratic state Rep. Larry McBurney, from the Des Moines area, said the flash, noise and smell of gunpowder from fireworks can trigger veterans' PTSD. Fellow Democratic state Rep. Eric Gjerde, a Cedar Rapids police officer, said people who call to complain about fireworks in his city often think they're hearing gunfire. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. 'We have to take every single one of those extremely seriously, so we send multiple officers to investigate,' he told his colleagues. Fireworks manufacturers and retailers supported the bill, as did the state association for retail stores and the small-government, free-market group Americans for Prosperity. But in arguing in favor of the bill, Gustoff cited next year's celebration of the Declaration of Independence's signing in 1776. 'Current law allows a patchwork of ordinances that are a trap for the unwary, patriotic American in Iowa who simply wants to celebrate Independence Day the way it was intended by our founding fathers,' he said. ___ Associated Press Writers Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa; Jeff Amy in Atlanta and Marc Levy, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, also contributed.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill curbing local fireworks rules approved ahead of America's 250th anniversary
The Iowa House passed legislation restricting local governments from implementing more stringent fireworks regulations than in state law on July 3, 4 and Dec. 31. (Photo by Kathie Obradovich/Iowa Capital Dispatch) A bill passed by the House Monday limiting local government's ability to restrict fireworks use will help the state participate in President Donald Trump's plans for major celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the U.S.'s founding in 2026, Rep. Bill Gustoff, R-Des Moines, said. The House passed Senate File 303 with a vote of 51-39, sending it to Gov. Kim Reynolds. The bill prohibits county boards of supervisors and city councils from prohibiting or limiting the use of fireworks on July 3, 4 and Dec. 31, outside of existing regulations in Iowa Code. State law sets certain constraints on fireworks — which are legal to use from June 1 through July 8 and Dec. 10 through Jan. 3 of each year — that outlaws the sale of fireworks to minors and the use of 'display' fireworks by people or organizations outside of local approval, as well as sets certain time restrictions on fireworks. If signed into law, it would remove ordinances or other regulations set by several Iowa localities that ban or restrict the use of fireworks, including Des Moines, Ames and Iowa City. Gustoff, the bill's floor manager, said lifting these local restrictions for three days a year will allow 'the unwary, patriotic American in Iowa' to celebrate the nation's founding without running the risk of breaking local law. He said this will be especially important as the country prepares to celebrate the country's 250th anniversary. Trump has floated bringing these celebrations to the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Trump has proposed a yearlong celebration that he said would begin at the Iowa State Fair for the 'Great American State Fair' scheduled from Memorial Day 2025 to July 4, 2026. 'Mr. President, we welcome that idea in Iowa, and we're ready, willing and able to host the party,' Gustoff said. 'Iowans would want to join their fellow citizens from around the nation to celebrate the semi-quincentennial birthday of the greatest nation in history, in the world. … We need to enable Iowans to be part of that celebration.' That includes being allowed to set off fireworks without violating local regulations, Gustoff said. However, Democrats have repeatedly expressed concerns about limiting local government's ability to set rules on fireworks use, particularly when different communities may set these regulations to address public safety hazards. 'When I look at the list of who signed on as lobbyists, it's striking to me that anyone concerned with public safety — firefighters, the fire marshals, the fire chiefs — are all against it, because they know what the challenges are in an urban environment,' Senate Minority Leader Janice Weiner said in March. 'And it should be — in my view, it also should also be a local government issue.' Rep. Eric Gjerde, D-Cedar Rapids, introduced an amendment Monday that would prohibit 'consumer fireworks for personal use.' He said that in Cedar Rapids, which has a ban on fireworks within city limits, the Cedar Rapids Fire Department received 636 calls for service for fireworks between June 1 and July 8, 2024. These included some dumpster, grass and debris fires caused by fireworks, in addition to calls from people who think the sounds of fireworks are gunshots — calls that require multiple law enforcement officers to respond and investigate. He also brought up issues people in Iowa communities have with fireworks, like veterans who suffer from PTSD having adverse responses to fireworks going off nearby. 'When we take away the local control of cities and counties to determine what works best for them and what works best for their individuals — to me, it's just easier to say, let's just get rid of consumer fireworks altogether and stick with the display fireworks by our cities and our counties,' Gjerde said. '… So I think that even though we all enjoy — I enjoy a good firework display — but I also think we need to be certain that's what's in the best interest for everybody.' The amendment failed. Gustoff said fireworks have been around for thousands of years, saying there's 'no denying that they have broad-based appeal, and they're here to stay.' The measure goes to Reynolds for final approval.
