State officials answer questions at DeWitt Q&A

On Saturday there was a legislative coffee down in DeWitt. Three State Officials were present to answer questions, discuss topics with their constituents, and hear about the issues important to the community. Representatives Norlin Mommsen and Tom Determann, and Senator Mike Zimmer were at the DeWitt community center from 11am to noon, and much was discussed during that hour.

During the hour two topics seemed to dominate the discussion, with them being property taxes and eminent domain. Eminent domain and the use of it for a pipeline was discussed in depth.

Two of the officials, Mommsen and Zimmer voted no on the use of eminent domain, while Determann voted yes on the proposal. When asked for reasons behind their votes, Mommsen said he “voted no because it didn’t aid anyone in my(his) district,” and Zimmer said “eminent domain should be the last option ever considered or used.”

Determan held a different view, citing Highway 30 as an example of the good that eminent domain could bring, as according to him, “It couldn’t have been done without it.”

After the legislative coffee, the officials stayed for a bit longer to converse with those who came and talk more about topics.

If you are interested in going, they will be hosting three more of these events in the coming months. Feb. 28th, Mar. 14th, and April 18th are the dates, which are all Saturdays. They will have an event in Camanche City Hall from 9am-10am, and in the DeWitt Community Center from 11am-noon.