SF 8 prohibits Iowa school districts and charter schools from disciplining employees, contractors, or students for using legal names, names listed in school registration records, or for not using personal pronouns in official communications (like emails or forms). It specifically bans actions like termination, suspension, or fines for these reasons and defines "disciplinary action" broadly to include all such penalties. Employees wrongfully terminated under this law can seek reinstatement, back pay, and up to three times their annual wages through civil court. The bill applies directly to all public and charter schools in Iowa, affecting staff, contractors, and students in daily school interactions.
SF 552 requires Iowa's Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to review anti-obesity medications - including GLP-1 agonists - for use in two specific programs: the state's medical assistance program (Medicaid) and health insurance plans for state employees. The review must assess medication effectiveness for weight loss, impact on related health conditions (comorbidities), potential cost savings, recommended eligibility, and short- and long-term coverage costs. HHS and DAS must submit a report to the legislature by January 5, 2026, detailing their findings, proposed eligibility rules, and cost analysis. This bill does not change current coverage but mandates a formal review to inform future policy decisions.
SF 640 establishes the Iowa Major Events and Tourism Program to provide financial assistance to Iowa nonprofit organizations hosting tourism events like festivals, conventions, and sports competitions that generate significant economic impact. Eligible organizations must submit economic analyses showing projected hotel occupancy, attendee numbers (including out-of-state visitors), and revenue, and must cover at least 50% of event costs themselves. The program is funded with $15 million from sports wagering receipts for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, and it repeals related provisions of the existing sports tourism infrastructure program to prevent overlapping funding.
SF 517 requires public and nonpublic schools in Iowa to report suspected child abuse by staff to child welfare authorities and law enforcement if the abuse would be a criminal act. Schools must also cooperate with child protection assessments, including allowing confidential interviews with children. The bill mandates that the state child welfare department notify school boards and the board of educational examiners when abuse by a staff member is confirmed. This triggers potential license denial or revocation for licensed educators if they have a founded abuse report on file in the state's central registry. The law updates school procedures for handling abuse reports and ties educator licensing decisions directly to confirmed abuse findings.
SF 541 amends Iowa election laws to standardize ballot handling, voter verification, and canvassing procedures. It requires election officials to preserve federal election ballots for 22 months (Sec. 7,9,10), mandates voter ID numbers for absentee ballot challenges (Sec. 1), and sets fixed days (Monday/Tuesday) for counting results after most elections (Sec. 2,3,12). The bill also updates electronic record retention rules, requiring voter registration histories to be kept for multiple election cycles (Sec. 6) and clarifies how judges and clerks are retained based on approval votes (Sec. 4). These changes directly affect county election officials, voters, and judicial retention processes.
This bill extends Iowa's incentives for school district reorganization or dissolution through July 2030. It provides extra state funding to districts that share grades with other districts or merge, calculated as one-tenth of the percentage of a student's school day spent in another district. Districts receiving this "supplementary weighting" can use it for up to three years, with renewal requiring progress reports on reorganization plans. The bill applies to districts that initiate reorganization by 2030 and certify their plans to the state education department.
SF 489 requires Iowa's Department of Transportation (DOT) to ensure equal representation from both government entities (like cities or counties) and non-governmental groups (such as private developers or community organizations) when creating statewide urban design specifications. These specifications guide how cities plan and build transportation infrastructure, like streets and public spaces. The bill amends existing DOT duties to explicitly include this requirement in their planning responsibilities. It does not change the DOT's other core functions, such as highway maintenance or transportation data reporting. The bill is currently under review by the Transportation committee.
This bill (SF 555) changes Iowa's requirement for land to qualify for special turkey and deer hunting licenses. It increases the minimum farm unit size from 2 contiguous acres to 20 contiguous acres for parcels purchased on or after January 11, 2027. Landowners seeking these special licenses on newly purchased land will now need at least 20 acres, while current landowners with smaller parcels (2+ acres) remain unaffected. The change directly affects new land buyers aiming to use special hunting licenses on their property.
SF 518 requires Iowa school districts, accredited nonpublic schools, charter schools, and innovation zone schools to immediately place certain employees on administrative leave (temporary leave without pay) when two specific conditions occur: (1) an employee has a pending child abuse case before the Board of Educational Examiners with a probable cause finding, or (2) an employee was involved in a criminal/civil case where a court found negligence and the school is investigating. Employees must remain on leave until the Board of Educational Examiners case or school investigation concludes. This law directly affects school employees facing these specific legal or disciplinary circumstances. It creates a mandatory leave requirement for school employers in these defined scenarios.
SF 524 changes Iowa's tax dispute rules by allowing taxpayers who win administrative hearings or court cases against the Department of Revenue to recover more costs. It removes the current $25,000 cap on recoverable costs and expands eligible expenses to include reasonable attorney fees, expert witness costs, and necessary studies. The bill shifts the burden of proof: if a taxpayer substantially wins on the amount or key issues, the Department must prove its tax position was "substantially justified," rather than the taxpayer having to prove the Department was wrong. This applies to disputes over tax, penalty, or interest collection.
SF 550 establishes a centralized statewide voter registration system in Iowa, requiring all counties to submit voter data to a single, computerized state file by 2007. The bill mandates annual verification of registrations against state databases (including DMV records for noncitizens, felons, and deceased voters) and requires voter ID cards for registered voters whose names don’t match DMV records. It also makes driver’s license applications automatically serve as voter registration forms (unless declined or noncitizen status is shown) and requires the state registrar to publish annual reports on canceled registrations. The law directly affects voters, county election officials, and state agencies like the DMV, which must share noncitizen data.
SF 389 amends Iowa's public records law to improve transparency and accessibility for requesters. It requires public agencies to accept written, phone, or electronic requests without demanding in-person visits, and to provide records at no cost for documents taking under 30 minutes to produce. Agencies must now promptly acknowledge requests, provide fee estimates, and notify requesters of expected delays. These changes apply directly to Iowa public agencies handling public records requests and aim to reduce barriers to accessing government information.
