Author: Amy Campbell

The Iowa Legislature will reconvene on Monday, January 12 for a short 100-day session. Lawmakers will face new challenges with a budget shortfall that requires use of the Taxpayer Relief Fund, a Medicaid shortfall that may prompt more hurdles for people to access or retain services, poor water quality and high cancer rates that are demanding policy action, an aggressive plan to take on rural health access using federal grant funds (Rural Health Transformation Grant) and the overall desire of the majority party to cut property taxes while still giving local governments the funds they need to meet their own constituent demands.

Here are a few things to get you ready for 2026:

• We have had six special elections in 2025, including three since session ended. Both House and Senate Majority Leaders are new since the session ended, and committee assignments were changed following those leadership elections. We also have a new House Minority Leader, who was elected late in the 2025 session. You can see new member backgrounds, updated committee lists, and timelines for the session in the Iowa DD Council’s Legislative Guide.

• The session is compressed this year, so legislators who want to sponsor bills must get their request in by Friday, January 23. To stay alive, bills must be voted out of their originating committee by the first funnel deadline on Friday, February 20. Bills that survive that long have until Friday, March 20 to be voted out of one chamber and out of committee in the second chamber. If all goes according to plan, the Iowa Legislature will adjourn on or around April 21.

• LWVIA Capitol Day is Thursday, February 26, 2026. Details will be coming soon, but you can get ready by reviewing the 2026 Legislative Agenda. We will also be scheduling lobbyist check-in zooms throughout the session, so stay tuned here for more details.

• The Governor’s Condition of the State address will be on Tuesday, January 13 at 6 p.m. At this time she’ll announce her budget and priorities. It will be broadcast on Iowa Public Television as well as live streamed on the legislative website (House chambers).

Governor Reynolds signs Executive Order 17 establishing Iowa Nuclear Energy Task Force

Governor Kim Reynolds today (January 5, 2026) signed an executive order establishing the Iowa Nuclear Energy Task Force to advise her, the General Assembly, and relevant state agencies on the development and advancement of nuclear energy technologies and infrastructure in the state.  

“Nuclear energy is a vital part of Iowa’s energy future, and I am committed to advancing reliable, sustainable energy solutions that strengthen our energy independence and fuel economic growth,” Governor Reynolds said. “With our strong foundation in manufacturing and energy innovation, we are uniquely positioned to lead the nation in developing and deploying nuclear technologies. The creation of the Iowa Nuclear Energy Task Force marks a strategic step forward, ensuring the safe, efficient, and responsible integration of nuclear energy into our energy portfolio.” 

The Governor has appointed Iowa native Dr. Mark Nutt, Director of Nuclear Energy Programs at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, to serve as chair of the task force which will include at least 11 members who represent utilities, power production companies, local government, academia, the Iowa Utilities Commission, and the General Assembly. 

“I’m honored to serve as chair of the Iowa Nuclear Energy Task Force,” Dr. Nutt said. “As a graduate of Iowa State University’s Nuclear Engineering program, I’m grateful for the opportunity to apply my background to help evaluate how nuclear energy can responsibly and effectively benefit Iowans. This is an exciting time to explore innovative solutions for Iowa’s energy future.” 

Other task force members include: 

• May Farlinger – Alliant, President of Alliant Energy Iowa 
• Mike Fehr – MidAmerican, SVP of Generation and Development 
• Lane Witten – NextEra, VP of Development 
• Brandy Zumbach Meisheid – Linn County Board of Supervisors, Chair 
• Dr. Jim McCalley – Iowa State University, Anson Marston Distinguished Professor and Jack London Chair in Power Systems Engineering 
• Sarah Martz – Iowa Utilities Commission, Chair 
• Matt Resor – IBEW Local 405, Business Manager 
• Andy Roberts – Iowa State Building & Construction Trades, President; Plumbers & Steamfitters Local Union 33, Business Manager 
• Senator Mike Klimesh – Iowa Senate, Majority Leader 
• Rep. David Young – Iowa House of Representatives, Chair of Commerce 
• Rep. Hans Wilz – Iowa House of Representatives, Member of Commerce 
• Senator Izaah Knox – Iowa Senate, Ranking Member of Commerce 
• Rep. Sean Bagniewski – Iowa House of Representatives, Minority Whip 

The responsibilities of the task force include but are not limited to: 

• Exploring opportunities to engage with the federal government to support nuclear energy development and ensure Iowa’s policies and initiatives align with national regulations;  
• Assessing emerging nuclear technologies for Iowa’s energy sector;  
• Engaging with industry leaders, academic institutions, and others to ensure Iowa develops a highly skilled workforce for the growing nuclear energy sector; 
• Engaging with manufacturers and other nuclear energy stakeholders to identify barriers to entry and the partnerships and investments needed to cultivate a nuclear supply chain in Iowa; and  
• Evaluating opportunities to enhance economic growth by utilizing nuclear energy. 

The executive order requires the task force to submit its final report detailing its findings and recommendations to the governor within 180 days of the order’s issuance. 

The League of Women Voters of Story County/Ames is hosting a hands-on training to help members find legislative information using online resources. The training will be taped and available here at a later date, but you can find some basics in our slide deck below.

Today (September 9), Axios did a deep dive on central Iowa’s nitrate problem, comparing outcomes to neighboring state Minnesota, which has much stronger water quality laws. You can read the entire article here. Here are the highlights:

• Iowa’s nitrate levels regularly exceed 5 mg/L for decades; Minnsota’s average is at or below 3 mg/L.
• Federal mandates require less than 10 mg/L, but public health agencies say 5 mg/L is too high.
• Minnesota requires buffer strips, restricts fall fertilizer application, and strict permitting for large animal operations. Iowa’s nitrate reduction plan includes these suggestions, but it is voluntary.
• Iowa has the largest number of acres that are tile drained in the country, a process that can quickly move nitrates to water sources.

LWVIA has included a stronger water quality statement in its 2026 legislative priorities, so the information in this article can help you with your messaging to state and federal lawmakers.

• Prioritizing, protecting and improving Iowa water quality and ensuring its sustainable management.
• Enact policies that safeguard clean water and address challenges of health risks, pollution, overuse and climate change.

Earlier this month, the Iowa House Republicans elected a new majority leader (Rep. Bobby Kaufmann). He replaces Rep. Matt Windschitl, who is stepping down from his leadership role in order to run for Congress in Iowa’s 4th District. That seat opens up after the announcement that US Rep. Randy Feenstra will run for Governor. This change in House leadership has triggered committee shifts, but we won’t know for a while how those committee chairs will change. Rep. Kaufmann had chaired the tax-writing House Ways & Means Committee. Rep. Carter Nordman, Rep. Jane Bloomingdale, and Rep. David Young are all rumored to want this post. They currently chair the House Human Resources Committee, House State Government Committee, and House Transportation Committee. Rep. Angel Ramirez, the late-session elected member from Linn County, still has not been assigned her committees. As you can see, some shuffling of committee chairs and membership is ahead.

Similarly, we still do not know whether Sen. Jack Whitver will remain Senate Majority Leader. Sen. Whitver was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer and has had to step back and let his caucus members help with some of his leadership responsibilities as he continues treatment. There are a number of names floating around to replace him when appropriate, including Sen. Mike Klimesh (who chairs Senate Health/Human Services), Sen. Mike Bousselot (who chairs Senate Commerce), and Sen. Dan Zumbach (who chairs Senate Transportation).

Finally, the special election on August 26 to replace Sen. Rocky DeWitt has ended the Republican supermajority lock in the Iowa Senate after Democrat Catelin Drey won 55% of the vote. That means the Senate breakdown for 2026 will now be 32 Republicans & 18 Democrats, still a hefty majority to pass most policies brought to the floor.

The 2025 Iowa Legislative session, which ended on May 15, broke the record in the number of bills filed. In fact, there has never been a House File 1000 in the history of the State of Iowa (since records were kept from 1876).  This year we got to House File 1055. If it felt like there were a lot more bills than usual, it is because there actually were a lot more bills than usual.

Tensions ran high this year with deep divisions on early childhood reform, pharmacy benefit manager reform, and most significantly, banning the use of eminent domain for private carbon pipeline companies.  Of the 171 bills sent to the Governor, she signed all but two and she line-item vetoed one budget:

• House File 383 (veto): Legalizing crystalline polymorph psilocybin upon FDA approval/rescheduling.  The Governor’s veto message indicated this was putting the cart before the horse and taking away state decision-making on the matter.
• House File 639 (veto): Restricting use of eminent domain for carbon pipeline projects.  The Governor’s veto message states that she agrees with the intent of the bill but it goes much further and could destabilize Iowa’s energy industry.  
• Senate File 647 (line-item veto): The Governor took out one line-item appropriation to charge UNI students from border states in-state tuition.  The rest of the budgets were signed as passed by the Legislature.

You can see the final status (with effective dates) of bills in the LWVIA Bill Tracker. All bills that are on the “inactive” list will come alive again in 2026. They begin where they ended in the legislative process.

Governor Kim Reynolds has until June 15 to sign bills into law (or keep them from becoming law with a veto). As of May 30, the Governor has taken action on 70% of the 172 bills sent to her this year. You can check on the status of all enrolled bills here.

Here are the bills she has yet to sign:

• HF 330: Insurance coverage for autism (no age limits, max caps). LWVIA supports.
• HF 383: Allowing the prescribing of crystalline polymorph psilocybin (synthethic magic mushrooms) immediately after the FDA approves its use.
• HF 437: Establishing a Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa.
• HF 516: Giving Iowans and those with connections to Iowa priority in medical and dental residencies and fellowships at the University of Iowa (aka DEI for Iowans).
• HF 639: Prohibiting use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines. The Governor may veto this – whatever she does, this issue was so divisive amongst Republicans, it’ll be the source of a major rift going into the next session.
• HF 706: Reasonable changes to open meetings, open records laws.
• HF 784: Governor’s bill to improve state math scores.
• HF 787: Teacher compensation bill, includes allowing special ed students to be placed out of state, and makes adjustments for minimum payment for retiring teachers returning to the classroom.
• HF 870: Allowing students to take a religious scripture class in public schools. LWVIA opposes this.
• HF 876: Disclosing lead service lines to homeowners.
• HF 928: Reforming the election recount process, as requested by county auditors.
• HF 954: Election reforms that include ban on ranked choice voting. LWVIA opposes.
• HF 969: Creating cancer diagnosis retirement benefit for first responders.
• HF 1002: Adding volunteer firefighters and reserve officers to the length of service award program.
• HF 1038: Spending opioid settlement funds.
• HF 1039: Infrastructure Budget
• HF 1044: Administration/Regulation Budget
• HF 1049: Health/Human Services Budget
• SF 146: Prohibiting the use of bots to buy event tickets on the Internet.
• SF 175: Requiring middle and high school human growth & development classes include videos and ultrasounds not produced by abortion supporting organizations in schools that “depict the humanity of the unborn child.” LWVIA opposes this.
• SF 288: Requiring colleges to reasonably accommodate students who have recently given birth.
• SF 383: Regulating pharmacy benefit managers and protecting rural pharmacies.
• SF 607: Governor’s unemployment insurance reforms (lowering amount paid by employers).
• SF 615: Work requirements for Iowa Health & Wellness Plan (expansion population of Medicaid, per Affordable Care Act). LWVIA opposes.
• SF 626: Federal Block Grant distribution (done every two years).
• SF 628: Transportation Budget
• SF 641: Cleanup on HHS programs, including changes on MH/DS regions.
• SF 644: Justice Systems Budget
• SF 645: Economic Development Budget
• SF 646: Agriculture & Natural Resources Budget
• SF 647: Education Budget
• SF 648: Governor’s tax credit reform.
• SF 659: Standings Budget
• SF 660: Spending sports wagering funds.

You can see all the bills the League supported, opposed, and tracked in the Bill Tracker. Remember that all “inactive bills” (the ones that didn’t make the cut this year) will become live again in the 2026 legislative session, so they are things that you can advocate for (or against) during the summer and fall.

The LWVIA tracks a wide variety of bills during each legislative session. This year not only did the Legislature introduce a record number of bills, they passed 70+ bills in the final three days of session, most with massive strike-after amendments. The LWVIA Bill Tracker is now fully updated with end-of-session actions. We will continue to update status as bills get signed.

The Bill Tracker is the best place to look for what happened this year. All bills that passed this year are in the default “Active” list. You can see where the rest of the bills landed in the “Inactive” list – they will become alive again in 2026 legislative session.

Once bills are signed we’ll post a final report on the session – so watch for news on this Policy Blog!