Governor Reynolds not seeking reelection - In a video published on Friday, April 11, Governor Kim Reynolds announced that she will not seek reelection in 2026. In the post, Governor Reynolds cited her desire to be with...more
Week 12 of the 2025 Iowa Legislative Session featured the final major deadline before legislators’ per diem runs out on the 110th day of session: the second funnel. To survive this deadline, bills must have passed through a...more
On February 28, 2025, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed legislation making the state the first to remove antidiscrimination protections for gender identity from its civil rights code....more
The 91st General Assembly reconvened at the Capitol for a full week of legislating. Last week, there were 144 new bill introductions between both chambers, and 90 bills passed out of subcommittee. Currently, 33 bills have...more
Iowa’s fetal heartbeat law, House File 732, which was signed into law by Governor Kim Reynolds in 2023, will go into effect on Monday, July 29. The law has been temporarily enjoined from enforcement since last July, however a...more
Bill introductions slowed to a trickle by week 13, with just a handful of days left until the end of the scheduled legislative session. Most of the work happening now is in the Appropriations Committee, Ways and Means...more
Week 12 brought more signs of Spring: the Pella Tulip Time Queen and her court graced the Capitol with their presence and their Dutch letters. In March Madness news, the Sweet 16 weekend kicked off with the Iowa State Cyclone...more
Week Eight brought remarkable and historic weather, a late-night floor debate in the House, and the first bills signed by the Governor this session....more
The first funnel of the legislative session was a sprint to get as many bills passed through committees as possible. It was unusually busy, with more than 100 bills introduced since last Thursday, including successor bills...more
Week five of the legislative session was full of subcommittee and committee action. The first funnel is this week, Friday, February 16. A large number of bills moved forward in week five, but several key priorities have yet...more
Week four of the legislative session was action-packed. Drafters, legislators, advocates, and staff are hustling to keep up with the pace and volume of bills being introduced and moving through committees. A number of...more
After two weeks of midweek snowstorms, legislative activity returned to normal with the first “full” week at the Capitol, which included a large volume of subcommittee hearings, committee meetings, and public events filling...more
On Monday, January 15, despite the brutal cold, Republicans gathered around the state for the first indication of the Republican Party’s nominee...more
The 90th General Assembly reconvened this week for the 2024 legislative session amid a record-setting snowstorm in central Iowa. On Monday, leadership in both parties gave opening-day speeches outlining their priorities for...more
The 2024 session of the 90th General Assembly began today, Monday, January 8. All House and Senate members returned to the Capitol for the second year of the General Assembly. The day began with the opening gavel in both...more
The Revenue Estimating Conference forecasted Iowa’s revenues for fiscal years 2024 and 2025, predicting a slight decline but emphasizing a strong overall budget. Governor Kim Reynolds is required to use this estimate as the...more
On Tuesday, the Boards and Commissions Review Committee (BCRC) created in the Governor’s realignment bill (Division XIX of SF5514) met to discuss and deliver their preliminary recommendations. After reviewing the...more
On May 26, 2023, Governor Kim Reynolds signed Senate File 542, an Act relating to youth employment. For Iowa employers that employ minors, the new law could be significant....more
On June 1, 2023, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed into law Iowa bill HF 685, which will significantly impact the future of Iowa’s long-term-care industry. ...more
Iowa is on the brink of becoming the next state to embrace captive insurance companies. On April 24, the Iowa Senate unanimously passed Senate File 549 (SF 549), as amended, “a bill for an act relating to captive insurance...more
Today, April 28, is the final day of paid work for Iowa lawmakers, their clerks, and Capitol staff. The House and Senate pages decorated boxes for the legislators they assisted this year to help them clear their desks for the...more
On March 28, 2023, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed into law Senate File 262 ("Iowa Data Privacy Law"), Iowa's new state consumer privacy law, which will go into effect on January 1, 2025. By passing this law, Iowa joins...more
Week 13 was quiet at the Capitol, with very little floor action and minimal committee work. During week 13, the Senate could only consider House bills, House joint resolutions, and unfinished business, and the House could...more
The past two weeks have seen continued progress on proposed comprehensive privacy legislation across multiple states. Most notably, on March 28, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed SF 262 into law, officially making Iowa the...more
Iowa’s new data privacy law, which will come into force in 2025, adds to an increasingly complex patchwork of state laws. On March 28, 2023, Iowa became the sixth US state to pass a comprehensive privacy law. The Iowa...more