Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds arrives Jan. 12 to deliver her Condition of the State address before a joint session of the Iowa Legislature at the Statehouse in Des Moines. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Here’s a score card on how some issues fared during the 2021 session of the Iowa Legislature:
Did
Accelerate income tax “triggers/”phase out inheritance tax (SF619)
Revamp mental health financing/cut property taxes (SF619)
Ban government/private entities from requiring “vaccination passports” (HF889)
Amend Iowa Constitution to clarify no right to abortion (requires further action and voter approval) (HJR5)
Boost next fiscal year’s state K-12 education funding by $36.5 million (SF269)
Require K-12 schools offer in-person classroom instruction option (SF160)
Enact permit-less “constitutional carry’ gun laws (HF756)
Enact “back the blue” police protections/enhanced crime penalties (SF342)
Add new method for creating charter schools with state money (HF813)
Revamp early-voting/absentee-balloting election laws (SF413)
Expand access to broadband services in Iowa communities (HF848)
Eliminate statute of limitation on criminal actions involving sexual abuse of minors (SF562)
Amend Iowa Constitution with gun rights protection (SJR7) (requires voter approval)
Allow third-party delivery of alcohol products (HF766)
Ban sexist/racist stereotyping in diversity training (HF802)
Ban city ordinances preventing landlords from rejecting federal housing vouchers (SF252)
Create crime for assisted reproduction fraud (SF529)
Allow parents to teach driver’s education (SF546)
Create crime for failing to assist someone in imminent danger of death (SF243)
Require regents’ universities to protect First Amendment rights (HF744)
Adopt parts of governor’s plan to expand affordable housing options (SF619)
Phase out Iowa’s inheritance tax law (SF619)
Require insurance companies to cover telehealth mental health services (SF619)
Toughen criminal penalties for drivers causing death/injury due to excessive speed (HF753)
Reestablish Department of Public Safety cold-case investigation unit to help solve criminal mysteries (SF561)
Create “unauthorized sampling” criminal offense in certain trespassing cases (HF775)
Create civil remedy when sexually explicit images disclosed without consent (HF233)
Provide incentives for farm anaerobic digester biogas operations (HF522)
Eliminate diversity plans affecting open enrollment in five school districts (HF228)
Appropriate $21 million in state supplement to finance Workday contract (SF284)
Create crime for defrauding employment drug/alcohol test using synthetic urine (HF283)
Focus enforcement on human trafficking/massage therapy activities (HF452)
Provide legal immunity for firearms makers/dealers (HF621)
Allow non-registered child care homes to serve up to six children (HF260)
Expand sexual abuse statute to cover child under age 14 (SF253)
Bar counties/cities from regulating natural gas/propane sales (HF555)
Clarify requirements for using dog to track wounded deer (HF552)
Allow Iowa DOT to renew certain commercial driver’s licenses without exam (HF280)
Create public safety equipment fund (HF708)
Allow Iowa DOT special permits to transport relief supplies exceeding weight limits (HF382)
Regulate low-speed electric bikes/ impose 20 mph speed limit (HF493)
Bar public/government disclosure of nonprofit groups’ donor information (HF309)
Create a Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum tax credit (HF588)
Enhance security measures at the Iowa Lottery (HF429)
Establish criminal offense for interfering with farm animal transportation (HF655)
Clarify paid highway billboard regulations to comply with U.S. Supreme Court ruling (SF548)
Create funding for automated rape-kit evidence tracking (HF426)
Establish sexual assault forensic examiner program (HF603)
Allow private insurance companies to sell flood policies (HF583)
Reduce minimum age to 16 for an amusement ride attendant (HF558)
Phase out 2013 multi-residential property tax classification (HF418)
Grant liability immunity for veterinarians aiding authorities in a civil/criminal case (HF746)
Remove preference for Iowa coal (SF468)
Enhance penalty for caretakers involved in dependent adult death (SF450)
Allow school money transfers to cover depleted sports/extracurricular budgets (HF602)
Expand retail locations for native beer/wine/spirit sales (HF768)
Exempt legislative pages from some educational requirements (SF517)
Bar harassment by filing false police report (HF821)
Authorize/regulate the operation of personal delivery devices (HF304)
Modify lighting devices on snow plows (HF654)
Allow more frequent veterans card game tournaments (HF311)
Establish a health care professional recruitment program (HF196)
Add intentionally loud/raucous noise causing distress to disorderly conduct (HF232)
Designate flood mitigation as an essential county purpose (HF523)
Include distracted driving in driver’s education courses (HF380)
Require notification if ending public water fluoridation (HF390)
Establish data security/cybersecurity standards for insurance companies (HF719)
Expand Iowa code definition for sex act (SF172)
Increase penalty for abusing a human corpse to Class C felony (HF282)
Beef up investigations of adult financial exploitation complaints (HF839)
Establish liability immunity for agricultural tourism (SF356)
Let pharmacists administer adult COVID-19 vaccinations (SF296)
Revise Iowa’s sex offender registry provisions (HF201)
End requiring adult women have spousal approval to have hysterectomy (SF529)
Apply OWI ignition interlock only to vehicle offender drives (HF757)
Enhance penalties for drivers who leave crash scene (HF524)
Establish lifetime trout fishing license for seniors (HF234)
Provide access to adopted adult’s original birth certificate (HF855)
Clarify sealed container requirements for off-premise alcohol consumption sales (HF384)
Expand Teach Iowa scholars program (HF722)
Did not
Prohibit/remove most automated traffic enforcement cameras (SF516)
Ban hand-held electronic devices while driving (SF330/HF392)
Cut off state funds for cities/counties that “defund” police (SF479)
Bar employers from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations (SF193)
Provide state-funded “students first” scholarships to private-school families (SF159)
Allow student-athletes to profit from use of name/image/likeness (SF245)
Reinstate limited death penalty for kidnapping/raping/murdering a minor (SSB1004)
Halt high-tech state incentives due to social-media censorship (SF402/HF633)
Establish daylight saving time as the eventual official time in Iowa (SF335)
Reduce penalty for first offense marijuana possession conviction (SF533)
End faculty tenure at regent universities (HF490/SF41)
Create Department of Human Services asset/identity verification system for public assistance (SF389)
Governor’s ethanol expansion proposal (SF549/HSB185)
Revamp/allow grocery stores to opt out of bottle-deposit law (SF470/HF872)
Gradually increase state hourly minimum wage to $15 by July 2025 (HF122)
Eliminate Iowa income tax/raise state sales tax to 11 percent (SF149)
Repeal 2017 changes/restore previous public employees’ collective bargaining law (HF179/SF141)
Establish a COVID-19 oversight panel to track government expenditures (HF689)
Provide “religious freedom” protections for businesses (SF436)
Allow parents to opt students in grades 1-6 out of gender identity instruction (SF167)
Bar employers from noncompete agreements with low-wage employees (SF496)
Create alternatives to abortion program to promote childbirth/pregnancy services (HF515)
Appropriate $20 million to establish drive-through COVID-19 vaccination clinics (HF688)
Repeal declaration that English is the official language of Iowa (HF72/SF152)
Prohibit sale/transfer of semi-automatic assault weapons (HF131)
Establish campaign contribution limits for statewide/legislative candidates (HF67)
Create legislative oversight of state Supreme Court decisions invalidating a law (HF109)
Repeal bottle law with six months to recoup nickel deposits (HF156)
Eliminate gaming floor smoking exemption under Iowa Clear Indoor Air Act (HF530/SF280)
Bar construction/expansion of a confinement animal feeding operation structure (SF282)
Require motorcycle/moped operators under age 18 to wear helmets (SF210)
Allow cities/counties to ban/limit fireworks sale/use for public safety (SF99)
Bar law enforcement racial profiling (HF130/356)
Allow licensed dealers to sell motor vehicles on Sunday (HF296)
Limit authority of colleges/universities to mandate facial coverings (HSB162)
Raise state cigarette tax by 50 cents to $1.86 per pack (HF733)
Create three-year, $200 million pandemic recovery grant program for schools (HF659)
Appropriate $50 million for Iowa Finance Authority eviction/foreclosure prevention program (HF657)
Ban sale of “E-zero” non-blended regular gasoline in Iowa (HF629)
Repeal Iowa’s teacher compensation/leadership/career path program (HF628)
Require employers provide appropriate meal/rest periods (HF20)
Establish an open season for hunting black bears (HF22)
Set three classes of firearms violence protective orders (HF24)
Create income tax checkoff for qualifying Iowa zoos (HF35)
Establish school safety hotline/internet site (HF42)
Require peace officers/tribal law enforcement to use/wear body cameras (HF43)
Bar weapons in Capitol Building/on Capitol grounds (HF126)
Decriminalize marijuana possession offense to $25 civil fine (HF163)
Limit refundable research activities tax credit paid to Iowa corporations (SF28)
Exempt diapers and women’s menstrual period products from state sales tax (SF36/SF213)
Ban sale/use of pesticides in neonicotinoid class (SF52)
Bar school activities during presidential precinct caucuses (SF59)
Prohibit manufacture/possession of multi-burst trigger activators (HF127)
Ban sale/use/application of pesticide dicamba (SF66)
Protect rabbits from mistreatment like other farm livestock (SF85)
Provide free on-street city parking to wounded/disabled/Purple Heart veterans (SF56)
Include cursive writing school curriculum so students prolific by third grade (SF89)
Ban sale/possession of large capacity ammunition feeding devices (HF129)
Impose $2 yearly vehicle registration surcharge to help fund Iowa State Patrol (SF101)
Require state license for pool/billiards tourneys with more than 64 players (SF247)
Require emergency retail employee bathroom access for eligible conditions (SF250)
Earmark SAFE school infrastructure money to finance vacant school Building demolition (SSB1182)
Block internet-connected pornography/create adult entertainment fee (HF288)
Add gender identity to Iowa’s hate crimes law (HF614)
Create multistate compact to phaseout “corporate giveaways” (HF598)
Test schools/child care facilities for lead (HF594)
Allow nursing home visitors even in health emergency (HF571)
Require minority impact statement for state budget bills (HF478)
Bar discrimination based on individual’s hair texture/style (HF471)
Create private investigation state income tax credit (HF463)
Exempt bathroom access policies from civil rights practices (HF405)
Bar food service sites from offering single-use plates/bags/containers/straws unless required (HF320)
Exempt homemade food for sale from state regulation (HF319)
Allow Legislature to meet at location other than Capitol in emergency (HF276)
Prohibit using 3D printer to manufacture firearms (HF253)
Create extreme-risk protection order against person with a firearm (HF252)
Prohibit required child immunizations to attend school (HF247)
Remove gender identity as protected class under Iowa Civil Rights Act (HF272)
Legalize psychedelic mushrooms for medical use (HF459)
Change medical cannabidiol program to aid manufacturers/dispensaries (SSB1177)
Require transgender students use bathroom corresponding to sex on their birth certificate (SF224)
Set state mitigation standards for COVID-19/other infectious diseases (HF703)
Conduct 10-year comprehensive review of Iowa Code (HF704)
Review/divest/bar public investments linked to Chinese military/government services (SF499)
Bar employers from reviewing credit information about employees (HF732)
Establish experiential learning competitive grant program (SF518)
Create grants for digitization of county records (SSB1239)
Bar candidate/committee to send advocacy text if prior permission not given (HF208)
Reduce state funding for schools whose teachers use anti-slavery “1619 Project” materials (HF222)
Establish pandemic response review committee (SF519)
Create offense for slower drivers who “camp” in divided highway left lane (HF494)
Place four-year limit on term of Iowa Veterans Home commandant (SSB1097)
Phase out state tax gambling casinos pay on marketing promotions (SF169)
Legalize esports wagering (HSB200)
Bar loaded firearm when operating electric scooter (HF738)
Grant liability immunity on commercial property offered for wintertime recreational use (HF273)
Bar employers from knowingly hiring “unauthorized aliens” (SF339)
Amend Iowa Constitution guaranteeing right to hunt/fish/enjoy resources (HJR8)
Establish new remote worker grant fund/program (SF491)
Require in-person regent university graduation ceremonies (HSB246)
Allow smoking at Iowa Veterans Home under certain circumstances (SF257)
Allow school surtax/property tax levy for resource office expenses (SF258)
Create “safe and sound” public safety program in schools (HF585)
Offer phased-in tax rebates for people who move/work/live in Iowa (SF490)
Pare back state board appointees/commissioners subject to Senate confirmation (SF423)
Halt privileges to hunt/fish/camp for up to a year for Iowa convicted of littering (SF465)
Require regent universities to hire a public policy events director (HF153)
Create crime for schools/libraries allowing inappropriate programming for minors (HF185)
Instruct Iowa DOT to install adult changing stations in highway rest stops (HF492)
Make multiple traffic changes/shield police liability in vehicle pursuits (SF333)
Create transparency in prescription drug pricing (HF526)
Clarify deceptive/unfair rental car practices (HF730)
Require health professionals report vaccinations/immunizations to statewide registry (HF547)
Make over-the-counter birth control available at pharmacies for adult women (HSB121)
Bar businesses from requiring employee microchip implants (HF259)
Allow 5-year-olds to participate in voluntary preschool for a two-year period (HF318)
Allow expungement of some non-violent Class D felony convictions (HF831)
Restore voting rights for eligible convicted felons (HF818)
Post information on medication abortions at medical facilities (HF383)
Require employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant workers (SF485)
Change window tint standards/procedures for motor vehicles (SF332)
Allow override of presidential executive orders (HF815)
Block strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP) libel actions (HF456)
Change front license plate requirement for some vehicles (SF419)
Expand protections for mobile-home owners (SF469)
Increase barrel tax on beer (HF885)
Establish Juneteenth as legal paid state holiday (HF884)
Attach climate impact statement to legislative proposals (HF883)
Require deputy sheriffs to reside in county where they work (HF882)
Require high schools to teach African-American history (HF880)
Require high schools to teach history of refugee migration (HF878)
Create commission to start Iowa sister states in Africa (HF875)
Contact parent if student pronoun is requested (SF80)
Add crimes of assault/financial exploitation of older Iowans (SF522/HF353)
Allow counties to collect driver’s license fees (HF419)
Add emergency preparedness supplies to sales tax holiday (HF680)
Crack down on businesses selling glass/metal pipes used to smoke meth (SF363)
Allow parental request for child to retake grade due to COVID-19 progress concerns (SF265)
Allocate state money to K-12 schools to offset cost of COVID-19 in-person learning (HF439)
Give utilities authority to trim trees interfering with power lines (HF460/SSB1088)
Allow licensed cosmetologists/barbers to work at wedding venues (HF760)
Amend constitution to clarify lieutenant governor line of succession (SSB1211)
Expand deer hunting season; study deer population (SF581)
Set Iowa residency requirements at University of Iowa medical/dental schools (HF468)