SF 219 introduces a new annual fee for owners of forest and fruit-tree reservations in Iowa, starting January 1, 2026. These reservations are currently exempt from property tax. The fee structure varies based on the reservation's location relative to the owner's homestead. Owners will pay $2 per acre if the reservation is in the same county as their homestead, or $3 per acre if it's in a contiguous county. For other reservations, including those within city limits, the fee will be a rate calculated annually by the Department of Management, with all fees deposited into the county general fund.
SF 471 modifies regulations for self-storage facilities, affecting both operators and occupants. The bill clarifies that using a leased space for residential purposes immediately puts an occupant in default, allowing the operator to limit access. It also establishes that an occupant's failure to sign and return a written rental agreement within 30 days, after taking or retaining possession, constitutes acceptance of its terms. Furthermore, if an occupant defaults or an agreement is not renewed, operators must provide 15 days' notice to remove property, during which they can restrict access to office hours if specified in the rental agreement.
HF 163 aims to enhance school safety by requiring the creation of multidisciplinary threat assessment teams in school districts and accredited nonpublic schools. These teams will coordinate resources to assess and intervene when K-12 students exhibit behavior that may pose a threat to school safety. The bill also authorizes "covered entities," including schools, the judicial branch, and criminal justice agencies, to share records and information about students at risk of mental illness or posing a significant threat, to ensure access to appropriate services or safety. Additionally, it provides civil liability immunity to individuals who, in good faith, report or investigate credible dangers of serious harm on school property.
HF 795 modifies the definition of "units sold" used for cigarette and tobacco regulation and taxation. For individual cigarettes, the bill specifies that "units sold" will be measured by packs required to bear the state's excise stamp. For roll-your-own tobacco, "units sold" will be measured by the tobacco on which tax is due under Code chapter 453A. The Department of Revenue is still responsible for establishing rules to determine the amount of excise tax paid. This bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.
SF 522 updates Iowa's agricultural regulations, primarily focusing on crop production. It expands the definition of "agricultural land" to encompass various farm uses, structures, and land reserved for environmental protection. The bill also introduces and defines "beneficial substances" as a new category of regulated agricultural inputs for plant and soil health, separate from traditional fertilizers and pesticides. Additionally, it clarifies definitions for numerous agricultural products, impacting how they are labeled and distributed by agricultural businesses.
SF 625 modifies Iowa's gambling tax revenue allocation. It directs $8 million annually from sports wagering receipts to the public safety equipment fund starting July 1, 2026, for enforcement activities like boat and racetrack inspections. The bill also establishes a gaming enforcement revolving fund to cover direct costs for criminal investigation agents, adjusts regulatory fees based on prior-year unspent funds, and creates an Iowa horse racing fund to distribute tax revenue from simulcast horse races to counties and the commission. These changes affect gambling licensees through fee adjustments and ensure specific tax revenues fund public safety and horse racing operations.
This bill increases penalties for individuals who commit assaults against specific professionals, including peace officers, correctional staff, healthcare providers, firefighters, and certain state employees. It upgrades assaults intended to inflict serious injury or involving a dangerous weapon from a Class D to a Class C felony. Additionally, assaults causing bodily injury or mental illness against these professionals are elevated from an aggravated misdemeanor to a Class D felony. Other assaults, such as those causing contact with saliva, are reclassified from a serious to an aggravated misdemeanor, and carry a mandatory minimum 7-day jail sentence that cannot be suspended.
HF 857 establishes rules for financial institutions regarding their use of specific consumer credit report information for marketing purposes. The bill focuses on "prescreened trigger lead information," which identifies consumers based on criteria suggesting they may be seeking new financial products. It sets guidelines for how financial institutions can use this particular data when soliciting potential customers. This legislation directly impacts both consumers and the financial industry by regulating this form of marketing.
This bill permits banks to utilize specialized filing services offered by the Secretary of State's office. It amends existing law to allow documents filed under the Iowa Banking Act (Chapter 524) to be eligible for "extra services," such as preclearance and expedited processing. A new section is created, requiring the Secretary of State to provide these services upon request from a bank. Banks opting for these expedited services will be assessed a surcharge.
This bill amends existing law to specify where a criminal trial should be held when the county in which an offense was committed cannot be readily determined, directly affecting criminal defendants, victims, and the court system. It establishes that if the county of offense is unclear, the trial shall primarily be held in the victim's county of residence. If there is no victim, the victim is not a resident of the state, or their residence cannot be established, the trial would then take place in the county of residence of the person charged with the offense. For victims that are not natural persons, venue is proper in any county where they have a physical presence, and in cases with multiple victims, trial may be held in any county where a victim resides, prioritizing natural persons.
This bill creates new criminal offenses and penalties specifically targeting theft, forgery, and fraud involving gift cards. It defines various illegal actions, such as acquiring or using gift cards or their redemption information without consent, altering gift cards, or using fraudulent schemes to obtain them. Penalties for these crimes range from serious misdemeanors to Class C felonies, with the severity determined by the monetary value of the gift card or property involved. The bill also allows for the aggregation of values from multiple incidents over a six-month period to determine the appropriate charge, and it will take effect on July 1, 2025.
House File 309 relates to the process by which the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing reviews nursing facilities. Specifically, the bill addresses how the department evaluates certain deficient practices identified within these facilities. It modifies the existing framework for DIAL's review of these practices, affecting both the department's oversight responsibilities and the operational procedures of nursing facilities.
