A bill for an act eliminating the Iowa smart planning principles and other local comprehensive planning and development guidelines.
HF 2618 repeals Iowa's "smart planning principles" (sections 18B.1 and 18B.2), which required local governments and state agencies to consider 10 specific guidelines in planning, zoning, and development decisions. The bill removes these requirements from state code, eliminating the obligation for cities, counties, and state agencies to reference or apply these principles when creating comprehensive plans, zoning regulations, or infrastructure projects. It also deletes related references from other sections of Iowa law governing regional planning (28I.4), airport zoning (329.3), and local development regulations (335.5, 414.3). This change directly affects how local governments approach land use and development planning across Iowa.
Bill status
passed
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Mar 2026
House Passage
Mar 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 19, 2026
Last action Mar 26, 2026
Floor votes · House Mar 4, 2026
How they voted
72–24
Passed · 3 other
Total votes 99
Mar 4, 2026
D
Democratic32
68% Nay
R
Republican67
95% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
12
Key actions
5
Committee
4
Amendments
1
Mar 24, 2026
Introduced
Amendment S-5134 filed.
upper
Mar 24, 2026
Upper · Passed
Committee report, recommending amendment and passage.
upper
Mar 12, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Subcommittee recommends amendment and passage.
legislature
Mar 10, 2026
Legislature · Passed
Subcommittee Meeting: 03/12/2026 12:30PM Senate Lounge.
legislature
Mar 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Subcommittee: Webster, Driscoll, and Weiner.
upper
Mar 4, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed House, yeas 72, nays 25.
lower
Feb 19, 2026
Introduced
Introduced, placed on calendar.
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
No sponsor information available.
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