February 6, 2026

You Need to Know

The Legislature has continued its brisk pace as we move toward the first funnel week in two weeks. At that point, any bill not assigned to the Ways & Means or Appropriations Committees must have passed a full committee in either the House or Senate to remain “alive” for the session. While funnel week is always busy with committee activity, the week prior typically brings a surge in subcommittee meetings. As a result, the Government Affairs team expects the upcoming week to be particularly active.

League Priority Legislation

Sidewalk liability legislation:

HF 192 advanced through the full House Judiciary Committee.
The League’s Priority Sidewalk Legislation is funnel-proof in both chambers as SF 2146 (formerly SSB 1118) advanced through the Senate Local Government Committee last week and both bills are eligible for floor debate.

Improved Taxpayer Notice Form (within HSB 596):

The Taxpayer Notice Form remains one of the universally appreciated portions of the House property tax bill.

Capitol Pulse

League Bill Tracker

The League is using Legible to track bills. Please follow the link below to access a table of active bills and all bills tracked by the League.
League of Cities Weekly Bill Report

New Legislation

SSB 3113 | Law Enforcement Agreements Between Counties and Cities

Division 1 - The bill sets uniform parameters for agreements between cities and counties for law enforcement services provided by the county sheriff. It caps sheriff compensation at 105% of the actual costs, requires itemized cost reporting, and specifies possible payment structures. The sheriff must enforce city ordinances when contracted. Multiple cities may jointly contract for such services.

Division 2 - Cities with populations of 6,000 or less must submit periodic cost comparison reports regarding their law enforcement arrangements, and if contracting is more cost-effective, must put the question to voters. If voters approve, the city must contract for services with detailed transition and employee protections. Cities may re-establish police departments if crime rates rise above the state average.

HSB 689 | Local Emergency Management Agency Budget Approval Changes

This bill amends Iowa Code to require that any countywide special levy used to fund local emergency management agencies must be approved by the county board of supervisors, rather than being solely under the discretion of the local emergency management commission. The bill introduces an exception to the commission’s authority over budget funding methods, applying these changes to fiscal years beginning on or after July 1, 2027.

SSB 3114 | Hotel and Motel Tax Use for Tourism Development and Promotion

Requires cities and counties that levy hotel and motel taxes to spend at least 50% of those revenues on explicitly defined 'tourism development' and 'tourism promotion' activities. The bill strikes the previous detailed list of permissible expenditures and replaces it with new, broader definitions for these terms. It also adds a definition of 'tourist.' Additionally, beginning with the annual report due Dec. 1, 2027, local governments must provide a detailed accounting of how the funds are used for tourism purposes. The bill clarifies that the remaining funds may still be used for any lawful city or county operations.

HF 2282 | Local Government Approval of School District Sale of Large Buildings

Prohibits Iowa school districts from selling buildings or structures with 2,500 square feet or more of floor space without approval from the local city council (if within city limits) or the county board of supervisors (if outside city limits). It amends existing statutes to reflect this new requirement, establishes procedures for sales of improvements, and clarifies rule of construction and lease options for cities and counties. These requirements do not apply to sales or agreements made prior to the bill's effective date.

Legislation That Advanced This Week

SSB 3075 & HSB 633 | Limitation on Amounts of Funds to be Invested in Public Trusts (IPAIT)

Passed State Government Subcommittees

League Registered Opposed

HF 2191 | Changes to Election Dates and Additional Bond Election Date

Passed Local Government Subcommittee

League Registered Undecided

HF 936 | Instrumentality Open Records

Passed Local Government Subcommittee

League Registered Undecided

HSB 639 | Appointments for City Office Vacancies

Passed Local Government Subcommittee

League Registered in Support

SSB 3009 | Elimination of Townships

Passed Local Government Subcommittee

League Registered Undecided

HF 2148 | Eliminating Iowa Smart Planning Principles Guidelines

Passed Local Government Subcommittee
League is not registered

Legislation With Scheduled Subcommittees

SSB 3069 & HSB 660 | Changes to Beneficiary and Use Requirements for Public Officer Insurance Policies

This bill removes the requirement that, when public officers obtain an insurance policy in lieu of a bond, the State of Iowa must be the beneficiary and the policy must specifically serve for the benefit of any injured corporation or person.
Senate Subcommittee scheduled for Feb. 9 at 11 a.m.
House Subcommittee scheduled for Feb. 9 at 12:45 p.m.

HSB 664 | Restriction on Local Civil Rights Ordinances

This bill prohibits cities and local governments in Iowa from enacting ordinances or laws that are broader or have different categories of unfair or discriminatory practices than those provided in the Iowa Civil Rights Act of 1965.
Subcommittee scheduled for Feb. 9 at noon.

HF 2213 | County and City Mineral Rights Divestment

This bill mandates that all counties and cities in Iowa must divest themselves of any mineral rights they own or control, such as rights to coal, gas, oil, and other resources underlying real estate. These rights must be conveyed, without consideration or expense, to the current surface owner of the respective land.
Subcommittee scheduled for Feb. 10 at 8:15 a.m.

HSB 578 | Iowa Public Information Board Bill

This bill updates the public notice requirements for meetings of Iowa governmental bodies by mandating that notice must be given to requesting news media, posted in a designated and conspicuous physical location, and posted on the governmental body's internet site if it has one. Additionally, if a meeting agenda is amended, the notice must be re-issued with the agenda marked as "AMENDED" and the changes clearly identified.
Subcommittee scheduled for Feb. 10 at 12:45 p.m.

HF 2161 | Regulation of Automatic License Plate Readers

Regulates the use of automatic registration plate readers in Iowa by requiring local authorities to adopt ordinances for their use, imposing strict limits on data access, and prohibiting facial recognition, data sharing with non-governmental parties, and placement of readers at places of worship. Violations of these provisions result in misdemeanor or aggravated misdemeanor penalties, depending on the offense.
Subcommittee scheduled for Feb. 11 at noon.

Other Legislation of Interest

SF 2069 | Tax on CO2 Sequestration Via Carbon-Capture Pipelines

This legislation imposes a new tax on pipeline companies transporting liquefied carbon dioxide within or through Iowa. Revenues are directed to the taxpayer relief fund.

Resources

You can view all editions of Legislative Link at iowaleague.org/resource/legislative-link.

Like our membership, the Iowa League of Cities is a non-partisan, service-oriented organization that does not participate in elections, make campaign contributions, or have a political action committee (PAC).