Washington County Engineer Jacob Thorius voiced disagreement with actions being taken on a state level that would impact secondary roads during Tuesday’s Washington County Board of Supervisors meeting.

During the public comment period Thorius mentioned a proclamation signed Monday by Governor Kim Reynolds (R) allowing vehicles transporting corn, soybeans, gasoline, diesel, ethanol, and other related items to be overweight without a permit effectively through May 11th. Reynolds stated this proclamation is to help Iowa farmers for a timely and successful planting season amid disruptions to the food supply chain and worsened inflation. Thorius also brought up bills in the Iowa House and Senate for an all-systems permit that would allow vehicles to carry larger loads on secondary roads, which he said he and county engineer associations don’t understand why these changes that would cause more damage to roads would be proposed. He expects House File 2536 to be voted on this week, and he encouraged the supervisors to ask their house representatives to vote nay, “But this is a concern that people want us to take care of the roads and I get the desire to get crops out to the market but fewer trips at a heavier load is not a better thing. It’s actually detrimental to our system.”

Thorius mentioned that Senate File 2376 would allow counties to opt out of the permit system, which he said would be a logistical nightmare, though it is preferable to the House’s bill. He said he’s reached out to Representative Jarad Klein. The Washington Chamber of Commerce’s monthly legislative briefing scheduled this Saturday has been canceled as lawmakers work to wrap up the current session.