116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Iowa bills that failed this year may be back in ’24
Among them: Sale of birth control pills with a prescription, C02 pipeline restrictions, guns in school parking lots, parental permission for social media
May. 7, 2023 5:00 am
DES MOINES — Iowa Republicans this year used their expanded legislative majorities to push through a trove of priorities over the objections of Democrats, passing reforms ranging from how students are educated to how state government is run and local governments collect property taxes.
Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds saw nearly all of her legislative priorities passed by the Legislature this year, scoring victories on major policy proposals that had proved elusive in past years — most notably, a $345 million taxpayer-funded program for private school tuition assistance.
But not all of the Republican lawmakers’ priorities made it past the finish line.
Bills that would have limited the eminent domain authority for carbon-capture pipelines, allowed pharmacists to dispense birth control without a prescription and restricted teen access to social media, among others, stalled out.
Here’s a look at the bills that did not earn enough support to pass the Iowa Legislature this session and what that means for next year.
C02 pipeline regulations
For a second year in a row, Iowa lawmakers failed to pass legislation to restrict the ability of carbon pipeline companies to force easements from unwilling landowners. That happened despite vocal opposition and polling showing an overwhelming majority of Iowans oppose allowing private corporations to use eminent domain to build the pipelines.
The Iowa Utilities Board is considering permit requests from three companies to build carbon capture pipelines in the state. The projects would capture CO2 produced at ethanol plants and shuttle it to reservoirs deep underground in other states.
The projects are vital to keep the ethanol industry afloat, according to the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association. But they’ve garnered staunch opposition from a coalition of landowners opposed to the use of eminent domain for private projects and from environmental activists who think the pipelines will prop up fossil-fuel reliant industries and will not significantly reduce carbon emissions.
A bill that would have required more voluntary landowner participation before eminent domain could be used to build a carbon capture pipeline passed the House, but failed to advance in the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver, R-Grimes, expects the issue will pop up again next session, but gave no indication as to what restrictions Senate Republicans would be willing to impose on the projects.
“There’s a lot of passion on both sides of that issue. So I expect it to continue to be something that’s talked about and monitored for the foreseeable future,” Whitver said.
Some opponents have suggested that next year may be too late.
State regulators will begin hearing arguments on Summit Carbon Solution's proposed pipeline across Iowa in October, followed by a hearing that could continue through January. The pipeline companies have said they intend to start construction sometime next year.
“I think there's varying opinions on what the timeline looks like and … whether there's potential still for next year,” House Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, said during a Friday taping of “Iowa Press.”
Grassley said there remains a “significant” and bipartisan majority in the House to limit the eminent domain authority of CO2 pipelines.
“So, what I would say to Iowans is they need to continue to engage” with lawmakers on the issue, Grassley said. “ … And House Republicans, if there is a need, and there still is the ability for us to weigh in based on what that timeline may look like, I think there will still be a willingness within our caucus.”
John Aspray, a senior Iowa organizer for Food & Water Watch, said in a statement that the Iowa Legislature “has failed Iowans by abdicating their responsibility to address the carbon pipeline threat. We will not stop fighting to keep hazardous carbon pipelines out of Iowa.”
Behind-the-counter birth control
Another proposal that did not make it through the session was one pushed by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds' to allow pharmacists to dispense birth control without a prescription.
Reynolds first introduced the proposal in 2019 and said Thursday she plans to revisit the topic next session.
The proposal passed the Senate but stalled in the House, where Republicans amended it to require a patient to see a doctor within 15 months of receiving birth control from a pharmacist.
“Some people believe that only doctors should prescribe. Some people don’t believe in birth control,” said Rep. Ann Meyer, R-Fort Dodge, who chairs the House Health and Human Services Committee. “People are concerned about women’s health, and they didn’t want to diminish the fact that someone might not go to the doctor and use (contraception) instead of an exam.
“But our legislation had guardrails on it, where we would send women to doctors.”
During a hearing on the bill, Maggie DeWitte of Pulse Life Advocates, an anti-abortion organization, argued that hormonal contraceptives are associated with some health risks and can be used as an “abortive” drug.
Grassley said the pill proposal “faces an uphill climb” but is an issue “that the Legislature should continue to engage in that conversation.”
Whitver said the proposal has now twice passed the Senate “and is obviously something we support, and there’s always next year to continue to work on that.”
Meyer, asked of any changes she foresee to the bill to make it more palatable to GOP House members, said some ideas have been thrown around, “but nothing everyone will be on board with.”
“I think we’re just going to have to start fresh next year.”
Guns in vehicles on school grounds
Senate Republicans did not take up a bill advanced by House Republicans that would further loosen Iowa's gun laws, including allowing gun owners to have a firearm in locked vehicle on school and college grounds.
House File 654 also would prohibit insurance companies from refusing to insure Iowa schools that choose to have armed staff on school grounds.
Democrats and gun-safety advocates said the bill would perpetuate ongoing gun violence in the state and put children at risk, by loosening already lax Iowa gun laws and allowing firearms to become even more accessible in locations that are targets for mass shootings.
Proponents, including the Iowa Firearms Coalition, a gun-rights advocacy group, said the proposal will protect the rights of law-abiding gun owners while maintaining strict restrictions around the weapons near schools.
Advocates said the measure enhances the ability of lawful gun owners to protect and defend themselves and their families and that they should not be forced to leave a “defensive” firearm at home for the entirety of their day because they have to drop off or pick up a student at school.
Rep. Steven Holt, a Republican from Denison and the bill’s floor manager in the House, said Senate Republicans expressed concerns over the insurance provisions in the bill.
“We’ll continue to have discussions in the interim, and maybe we’ll get it done next session,” he told reporters Thursday.
Social media restrictions for teens
Lawmakers advanced, but failed to approve new limits on social media platforms for teens, while other GOP-led states have passed similar measures — and Congress looks to address the issue.
Iowa teens would have been prohibited from using social media platforms without explicit approval from a parent or guardian under a measure that advance out of a House committee by failed to make it to the House floor.
The bill initially would have banned anyone under the age of 18 from having their own social media account.
But the House Ways and Means tax policy committee amended the bill to prohibit companies from collecting data on children under 18 without “verifiable parental consent.” That includes providing information required to create a profile on sites like TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook.
Supporters say they're concerned about social media's effects on kids' mental health.
Democrats, along with some Republicans on the committee, warned the bill could have unintended consequences, barring kids from e-commerce and job-posting sites, as well as platforms used by teachers and students to create and share files
Similar age limitations for tech platforms signed into law in Arkansas and Utah have raised questions about the privacy and First Amendment rights of young Americans.
Critics worry restricting children’s access to social media also restricts their access to supportive communities. Some children, like LGBTQ teens, may find a sense of belonging online they may not find in their physical communities, they said.
Rep. John Wills, a Republican from Spirit Lake and the bill’s floor manager, said lawmakers plan to revisit the issue next session.
“I like the direction we’re going,” Wills said of prohibiting social media companies from actively collecting data on minors, and of requiring parental consent and age verification.
“I think we have just a few tweaks to make to make it better,” he said.
Traffic cameras
Iowa lawmakers again tried to regulate traffic cameras in Iowa cities, and once again came up short.
A bill advanced out of a Senate subcommittee late in the session that would have required cities and counties to gain approval from the Iowa Department of Transportation before placing traffic cameras. The bill closely matched one in the House that passed out of committee earlier this year but failed to make it to the floor.
Lawmakers floated several methods to regulate traffic enforcement cameras this year — and over the past several years — citing concerns about privacy and arguing some cities abuse the systems to drive revenue.
A 2018 Iowa Supreme Court decision found that the Department of Transportation could not regulate traffic cameras without changes to state law, and cities have broad freedom to use the systems and issue citations.
Lobbyists representing cities and police organizations argue the proposals would limit an important traffic safety tool that has proved effective in reducing traffic crashes, including fatal crashes and those with injuries.
Democrats opposed the bills, saying they would impose burdensome regulations and take away an important revenue stream that cities use to fund public safety.
No hand-held devices while driving
Legislation that has stalled in previous years that would have banned hand-held use of mobile devices while driving appeared to pick up momentum this session, only to suddenly hit the brakes.
Law enforcement officials have asked lawmakers to pass the proposal since legislators banned texting while driving in 2017, arguing it will reduce the number of distracted drivers on Iowa roads.
They say the existing texting-while-driving ban is extremely difficult to enforce because drivers can say they were making a call or using the device’s GPS, which still is allowed under Iowa law.
Senate File 547 would have allowed officers to ticket drivers who use their phones while driving without using voice-activated or hands-free technology.
“Hindering drivers from messing with their phones by requiring a voice-activated or hands-free mode will not eliminate all the risks of distraction,” Sen. Mark Lofgren, R-Muscatine, said on the Senate floor. “But it will define the line to not cross over, and by doing so, will improve safety on our roads.”
The bill passed out of the Iowa Senate for the first time, only to get hung up in the House.
With 24 new members in the Iowa House, Grassley said there wasn’t enough support within the Republican caucus for this bill this year.
“There's still some of just the logistical questions within the caucus that how would this work?” Grassley said on “Iowa Press.”
“What are the actual impacts? Is this going to be taken too far? How does it limit itself just to distracted driving? And who is to say whether it's a phone in my hand or a potential pop — and the point is that ambiguity, there's just members that aren't comfortable at this point in time to be able to get to a level of support.”
Meyer, the House Health and Human Services chair, said the bill remains a priority for her and other House members.
“I did last week come to leadership with the votes we needed, and I believe it was just too late — too close to the end of the session,” she said. “We’ll be talking about that first week of session next year. It’s still alive.”
Erin Murphy and Caleb McCullough of The Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau contributed to this report
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
Daily Newsletters