People who get caught illegally shooting off fireworks in Fort Dodge will help to pay for the large professional pyrotechnics show on Independence Day under a plan approved Monday by the City Council.

The measure, OK’d on a 5-1 vote, would earmark a portion of the fines paid by fireworks violators to the big community-wide show.

Under that measure, the city will give to the fireworks show whichever is greater: $5,000 or half of the fireworks fines collected that year. That ensures that the city will contribute at least $5,000 annually.

The measure also states that the city will contribute $5,000 to pay for this year’s fireworks show.

Councilmembers Kim Alstott, Neven Conrad, Dave Flattery, Dean Hill and Lydia Schuur voted for the plan.

Councilman Jeff Halter voted no.

“Because of the amount of time and effort that police officers have to spend responding to fireworks violations, that money should stay in their budget,” he said.

Halter added that if the money from fireworks fines isn’t needed to support the Police Department, the money should be spent on some kind of longer term entertainment program rather than “just a few minutes of fireworks.”

He also suggested putting a cap on how much money the city would give to the program.

Flattery said he’s “not a fan” of the smaller fireworks used by individuals. The professional fireworks show, he said, is a community event that brings people into Fort Dodge.

Councilman Terry Moehnke was absent from Monday’s vote.

The community fireworks show has been funded by donations in the past.

In 2017, the state Legislature and former Gov. Terry Branstad legalized the sale and use of fireworks in Iowa for the first time since the 1930s. The state law gives cities the ability to limit the use of fireworks. Cities cannot regulate the sale of fireworks apart from using zoning regulations to dictate where they can be sold.

In Fort Dodge, fireworks can be used from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. July 1-3. They can be used from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. July 4.

They can also be used between 5 p.m. Dec. 31 and 12:30 a.m. Jan. 1.

People convicted of violating the fireworks rules can be fined $500.

Last summer, Fort Dodge police officers responded to 604 fireworks complaints between June 1 and July 8 and issued 49 citations.

According to data presented to the council in August, 40 of those citations were for discharging fireworks outside the allowed time period, six were for using commercial-grade fireworks and two were for shooting off fireworks in the street.