Trans Legislation Tracker

Iowa

We are tracking 31 anti-trans bills in Iowa in 2025. The legislation impacts 7 categories:

EDUCATION

PERFORMANCE

HEALTHCARE

OTHER

BIRTH CERTIFICATES

BATHROOM

ADOPTION

IA HF167

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to mandatory reporting to the board of educational examiners of licensed school employees who engage in grooming behavior toward students.(Formerly HSB 46.)

“Grooming behavior” means any behavior, which in light of all relevant circumstances, constitutes actions to entice or entrap a student or students with the intent to make such student or students engage in a sex act the process of building trust and emotional connections with a student with the intent to exploit such student.

IA HF269

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting certain requirements for students and faculty at regents institutions relating to diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory and including applicability provisions.(Formerly HSB 53.)

A public institution of higher education, or can you employee, appointee, or committee acting on his behalf, shall not require [...] faculty of the institution to apply or participate in diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory practices or include diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory-related content in any course as a condition of approval, designation, or listing as part of any academic degree program, including general education; major, minor, or certificate requirements;

IA HF401

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act providing for general education requirements for undergraduate students at regents institutions and including applicability provisions.(Formerly HSB 63.)

NEW SECTION. 262C.3 Standards for course content. The board shall adopt a policy to ensure that courses that satisfy the general education requirements [...] do not distort significant historical events or include any curriculum or other material that teaches identity politics.

IA HF51

PERFORMANCE
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to obscenity, including the exposure of a minor to an obscene performance and admittance of a minor to a premises with obscene performances, establishing a private civil cause of action, and providing penalties.

The parent or guardian of a minor, or a minor upon attaining eighteen years of age, to whom obscene material has been knowingly disseminated or exhibited,[...] or who was exposed to an obscene performance, [...] may bring a civil action against any person who has knowingly disseminated or exhibited obscene material to the minor, or who engaged in, caused, or allowed a person to knowingly engage in an obscene performance in the presence of the minor.

IA HF571

HEALTHCARE
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to protections for medical practitioners, health care institutions, and health care payors including those related to the exercise of conscience, whistleblower activities, and free speech, and providing penalties.(Formerly HSB 139.)

A medical practitioner, healthcare institution, or healthcare payor has the right not to participate in or pay for a healthcare service that violates the medical practitioner’s, healthcare institution’s, or healthcare payor’s conscience.

IA HF583

OTHER
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to sex and gender, including those and related terms for purposes of statutory construction, indications of a person's sex on certain vital records, gender identity under the Iowa civil rights Act, and school curricula related to gender theory.(Formerly HSB 242.)

“Sex,” when used to classify or describe a natural person, means the state of being either male or female as observed or clinically verified at birth. [...] “female” means an individual who has, had, will have through the course of normal development, or would have but for a developmental anomaly, genetic anomaly, or accident, a reproductive system that at some point produces ova, and a “male” means an individual who has, had, will have through the course of normal development, or would have but for a developmental anomaly, genetic anomaly, or accident, a reproductive system that at some point produces sperm.

INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to discrimination in the provision of financial services, and providing civil penalties.

"Discriminate" [...] means a financial institution's use of a social credit score to directly or indirectly decline to provide the full and equal enjoyment of financial services to a person, and includes refusing to provide, terminating, or restricting financial services to a person. [...] "Social credit score" means an analysis, reading, scoring list, or tabulation that evaluates any of the following: [...] (b) Conduct a racial, diversity, or gender audit or disclosure, or provide a quota, preference, or benefit based on race, diversity, or gender. (c) Facilitate or assist an employee in obtaining an abortion or gender reassignment services.

IA HF80

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting school districts and charter schools from taking disciplinary action against employees, contractors, or students for the use of legal names, the use of student names as listed in school registration forms or records, or for the failure to use personal pronouns in official communications, and providing civil penalties.

An Act prohibiting school districts and charter schools from taking disciplinary action against employees, contractors, or students for the use of legal names, or use of student name, as listed in school, registration, forms or records, or for the failure to use personal pronouns in official communications, and providing civil penalties.

IA HF854

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting private institutions of higher education that participate in the Iowa tuition grant program from establishing diversity, equity, and inclusion offices.(Formerly HSB 60.)

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Office Prohibited. 1. A private institution of higher education shall not [...] establish, sustain, support, or staff a diversity, equity, and inclusion office.

IA HF855

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting community colleges from establishing diversity, equity, and inclusion offices and engaging in certain other activities relating to diversity, equity, and inclusion.(Formerly HSB 61.)

This bill provides that a public institution of higher education [...] includes a community college. Code chapter 261J generally prohibits public institutions of higher education from establishing diversity, equity, and inclusion offices [...or] requiring a person to provide a diversity, equity, or inclusion statement.

IA HF856

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting state entities from expending moneys to fund diversity, equity, and inclusion offices or to hire individuals to serve as diversity, equity, and inclusion officers, creating a private cause of action, and including effective date provisions.(Formerly HSB 155.)

A state entity shall not expend any moneys appropriated by the general assembly or any other moneys derived from bequests, charges, deposits, donations, endowments, fees, grants, gifts, income, receipts, tuition, or any other source to establish, sustain, support, or staff a diversity, equity, and inclusion office, or to contract, employ, engage, or hire an individual to serve as a diversity, equity, and inclusion officer.

IA HF88

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to education, including by modifying provisions related to private instruction, world language instruction, dual enrollment, and the tuition and textbook tax credit, and including effective date, applicability, and retroactive applicability provisions.(See HF 888.)

The world language instruction shall not alter the world language to incorporate gender-neutral language if the world language being offered and taught utilizes a grammatical gender system.

IA HF891

PERFORMANCE
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to obscenity, including the exposure of a minor to an obscene performance and admittance of a minor to a premises with obscene performances, establishing a private civil cause of action, and providing penalties.(Formerly HSB 158.)

"Obscene performance" means a visual performance by a person [...] that exposes [...] prosthetics and artificial sexual organs or substitutes thereof [...] The average person, viewing the performance as a whole and applying contemporary community standards regarding what is suitable for minors, would find it appeals to the prurient interest, is patently offensive, and, taken as a whole, lacks serious artistic, literary, political, or scientific value.

IA HSB139

HEALTHCARE
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to protections for medical practitioners, health care institutions, and health care payors including those related to the exercise of conscience, whistleblower activities, and free speech, and providing penalties.(See HF 571.)

IA HSB242

BIRTH CERTIFICATES
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to sex and gender, including those and related terms for purposes of statutory construction, indications of a person's sex on certain vital records, gender identity under the Iowa civil rights Act, and school curricula related to gender theory.(See HF 583.)

A certificate of birth filed under this section shall include a designation of the sex of the person. "Sex" for purposes of this chapter means the same as defined in section 4.1A. [...] [4.1A.] “Sex,” when used to classify or describe a natural person, means the state of being either male or female as observed or clinically verified at birth. b. When used in reference to a natural person, a “female” means an individual who has, had, will have through the course of normal development, or would have but for a developmental anomaly, genetic anomaly, or accident, a reproductive system that at some point produces ova, and a “male” means an individual who has, had, will have through the course of normal development, or would have but for a developmental anomaly, genetic anomaly, or accident, a reproductive system that at some point produces sperm.

IA HSB46

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to mandatory reporting to the board of educational examiners of licensed school employees who engage in grooming behavior toward students.(See HF 167.)

Current law defines “grooming behavior” to mean any behavior which, in light of all relevant circumstances, constitutes actions to entice or entrap a student or students with the intent to make such student or students engage in a sex act. The bill modifies “grooming behavior” to mean the process of building trust and emotional connections with a student with the intent to exploit such student.

IA HSB53

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting certain requirements for students and faculty at regents institutions relating to diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory and including applicability provisions.(See HF 269.)

The board shall establish a policy that ensures that public institutions of higher education odo not require or constrain students to enroll in a diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory-related course, in order to satisfy the requirements of any academic degree program.

IA HSB84

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting school districts, charter schools, and innovation zone schools from providing any program, curriculum, test, survey, questionnaire, promotion, or instruction relating to gender identity or sexual orientation to students in grades seven through twelve.

An Act prohibiting school districts, charter schools, and innovation zone schools from providing any program, curriculum, test, survey, questionnaire, promotion, or instruction relating to gender identity or sexual orientation to students in grades seven through twelve.

IA SF115

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to human growth and development course enrollment at school districts and to pupil attendance at educational conferences or seminars in which human growth and development information is provided.

A school district shall not enroll a pupil in a course of instruction in human growth and development or facilitate a pupil’s attendance at an educational conference or seminar that provides information about human growth and development unless the pupil’s parent or guardian files with the appropriate principal informed consent acknowledging receipt of the information required.

IA SF116

PERFORMANCE
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to obscenity, including the exposure of a minor to an obscene performance and admittance of a minor to a premises with obscene performances, establishing a private civil cause of action, and providing penalties.

“Obscene performance” means a visual performance by a person [...] that exposes the person’s [...] female breast, including prosthetics and artificial sexual organs or substitutes therefor [...] which the average person, viewing the performance as a whole and applying contemporary community standards with respect to what is suitable to be viewed by minors, would find appeals to the prurient interest and [...] taken as a whole lacks serious artistic, literary, political, or scientific value.

IA SF156

BATHROOM
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to policies for certain private spaces in facilities of public entities, providing penalties, and including effective date provisions.

Designation and use of private spaces. A state entity shall require each private space located within a facility owned, operated, or controlled by the state entity to be designated only for and used by persons of the same biological sex.

IA SF220

HEALTHCARE
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to protections for medical practitioners, health care institutions, and health care payors including those related to the exercise of conscience, whistleblower activities, and free speech, and providing penalties.

IA SF244

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act providing for general education requirements for undergraduate students at regents institutions and including applicability provisions.

NEW SECTION. 262C.3 Standards for course content. The board shall adopt a policy to ensure that courses that satisfy the general education requirements [...] do not distort significant historical events or include any curriculum or other material that teaches identity politics.

IA SF273

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to mandatory reporting to the board of educational examiners of licensed school employees who engage in grooming behavior toward students.(Formerly SSB 1066.)

“Grooming behavior” means any pattern of behavior, which in light of all relevant circumstances, constitutes actions to entice or entrap a student or students with the intent to make take advantage of such student or students engage for the benefit of the individual engaging in the pattern of behavior, including but not limited to engaging in a sex act with the student.

IA SF282

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting certain requirements for students and faculty at regents institutions relating to diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory and including applicability provisions.

"Diversity, equity, inclusion, and critical race theory-related content" means content that does one or more of the following: a. Relates any of the following topics to contemporary American society: [...] allyship, [...] race- or gender-based diversity, race- or gender-based equity, or race- or gender-based inclusion.

IA SF335

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to education, including by modifying provisions related to trainings and curricula provided by school districts and prohibited sexual orientation and gender identity instruction, and implementing prohibitions related to the diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts of institutions of higher learning governed by the state board of regents, community colleges, and public schools.

The bill prohibits school districts, charter schools, and innovation zone schools from establishing or expending money to establish, sustain, support, or staff a diversity, equity, and inclusion office. It also prohibits hiring or assigning an employee of the school, or contracting with a third party, to perform the duties of a diversity, equity, or inclusion office.

PASSED

A bill for an act relating to sex and gender, including those and related terms for purposes of statutory construction, indications of a person's sex on certain vital records, gender identity under the Iowa civil rights Act, and school curricula related to gender theory. Effective date: 07/01/2025.

“Sex,” when used to classify or describe a natural person, means the state of being either male or female as observed or clinically verified at birth. [...] “female” means an individual who has, had, will have through the course of normal development, or would have but for a developmental anomaly, genetic anomaly, or accident, a reproductive system that at some point produces ova, and a “male” means an individual who has, had, will have through the course of normal development, or would have but for a developmental anomaly, genetic anomaly, or accident, a reproductive system that at some point produces sperm.

IA SF473

ADOPTION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act relating to certain sincerely held religious or moral beliefs of child foster care providers and prospective adoptive parents.(Formerly SF 236.)

The department shall not do any of the following: a. (1) Require a prospective adoptive parent to affirm, accept, or support a policy related to sexual orientation or gender identity that conflicts with the person’s sincerely held religious or moral beliefs. (2) Preclude a person from being qualified as a prospective adoptive parent based, in whole or in part, on the person’s sincerely held religious or moral beliefs related to sexual orientation or gender identity, including but not limited to the person’s intent to guide, instruct, or raise a child in a manner consistent with the person’s sincerely held religious or moral beliefs. b. The department, and the department’s designees, shall not adopt a standard, policy, or rule that precludes a person from being considered as a child’s prospective adoptive parent based, in whole or in part, on the person’s sincerely held religious or moral beliefs related to sexual orientation or gender identity.

INTRODUCED

A bill for an act restricting county and city diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.(Formerly SSB 1150.)

A city or any city board or office shall not adopt an ordinance, motion, resolution, amendment, or policy, except as otherwise provided by federal or state law, that does any of the following: (1) Establishes or maintains a diversity, equity, and inclusion office. (2) Hires or assigns an employee or contracts with a third party to perform duties of a diversity, equity, or inclusion office. (3) Compels, requires, induces, or solicits any person to provide a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement, or gives preferential consideration to any person based on the provisions of a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement.

IA SF8

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act prohibiting school districts and charter schools from taking disciplinary action against employees, contractors, or students for the use of legal names, the use of student names as listed in school registration forms or records, or for the failure to use personal pronouns in official communications, and providing civil penalties.

Prohibition on disciplinary action — use of legal names or names of record — failure to use personal pronouns. The board of directors of each school district shall not take any disciplinary action against an employee of the school district, a contractor hired by the school district, or a student [...] for addressing other employees, contractors, or students using the employee’s, contractor’s, or student’s legal name. [...] for addressing other students using the student’s name as it is listed in the school district’s registration forms or records. [...] for failing to disclose or use any personal pronouns in the greeting or signature block of any form of official communication, including letters, forms, notes, or electronic mail.

IA SSB1150

EDUCATION
INTRODUCED

A bill for an act restricting county and city diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.(See SF 507.)

"Diversity, equity, and inclusion" includes all of the following: [...] Any effort to promote or promulgate trainings, programming, or activities designed or implemented with reference to race, color, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation. [...] Any effort to promote, as the official position of the school district, a particular, widely contested opinion referencing [...] allyship, transgender ideology, [...] social justice, intersectionality, neopronouns, heteronormativity, disparate impact, gender theory, [...] or any related formulation of these concepts.