{"id":1074,"date":"2026-06-10T12:43:01","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T12:43:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/interstatelogisticshubs.com\/?p=1074"},"modified":"2026-06-10T12:43:01","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T12:43:01","slug":"iowa-protects-citizens-from-gubernatorial-overreach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/interstatelogisticshubs.com\/?p=1074","title":{"rendered":"Iowa protects citizens from gubernatorial overreach"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

This week, Iowa governor\u00a0Kim Reynolds (R) signed into law\u00a0Iowa House File 2694, legislation to reform Iowa\u2019s gubernatorial emergency powers. Specifically, the law seeks to protect the rights of Iowans from gubernatorial overreach during a state of emergency.<\/p>

Read more Graham Platner runs on the MABSA platform<\/a><\/p>\n

HF 2694 will limit the governor\u2019s authority to regulate places of worship, conduct within private residences, elections, business operations, and vaccinations during a state of disaster or emergency. The law stipulates the process required for the governor to enact a state of emergency, including a provision that a state of disaster emergency shall last 30 days, unless sooner terminated or extended in writing by the governor. Additionally, the bill allows the General Assembly, by concurrent resolution, to rescind any state of emergency proclamations.<\/p>\n

This law follows similar landmark legislation that was signed into law in Tennessee last session.\u00a0Tennessee House Bill 132\u00a0reformed Tennessee\u2019s gubernatorial powers by ensuring that all actions taken by a governor during a time of emergency would not violate the rights of Tennessee citizens as granted by the Constitution of Tennessee and the U.S. Constitution. Further, the law injects the legislature into emergency scenarios by allowing the Tennessee General Assembly to terminate states of emergency through joint resolutions and requiring legislative approval when renewing states of emergency after 30 days.<\/p>\n

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many Americans saw their respective governors wield unprecedented power with seemingly unlimited emergency declarations. This overnight shift in governance, coupled with governors who abused their pandemic emergency powers, has led several states in recent legislative sessions to reevaluate constitutional statutes pertaining to emergency provisions and powers granted to the governor during a state of emergency. HF 2694 is no exception.<\/p>\n

With the continued economic vulnerability Americans have faced in recent years, along with upticks in viruses such as bird flu and hantavirus that could be used as justifications for future emergency actions, it is reasonable for Americans and state lawmakers to be skeptical of further government overreach. The only thing some governors need is another emergency or disaster, which can be used as another justification for unchecked decisions that could deeply affect Americans\u2019 lives.<\/p>\n

During the outbreak of the pandemic in early 2020 and in the months that followed, the deciding factor as to whether Americans could send their children to school, eat at a restaurant, or go into the office ultimately came down to which state they lived in. We saw overzealous, power-hungry governors like former New York governor Andrew Cuomo (D) lock down New York, leading to the closure of thousands of small businesses and the sequestration of children at home for months on end. On the other hand, we saw courageous governors such as Florida governor\u00a0Ron DeSantis (R) and Texas governor\u00a0Greg Abbott (R) buck the lockdown trend and push for a return to normalcy.<\/p>

Read more The Last Straw: They\u2019re Stealing Elections in Real Time and Pretending It\u2019s Normal<\/a><\/p>\n

Between the coronavirus pandemic, natural disasters, and hot-button political issues, many states have watched helplessly in recent years as their governors wielded broad emergency powers justified by myriad reasons. HF 2694 is a step in the right direction of ensuring that the governor of Iowa, present and future, is bound by the Iowa Legislature when exercising emergency powers.<\/p>\n

The concept encompassed by HF 2694 is straightforward. It makes for good policy and is another example of protecting freedoms that all states, legislatures, and governors should follow. This new law will safeguard Iowa citizens from any gubernatorial action that negates the very individuals they elected to represent them — the duly elected Iowa Legislature.<\/p>\n

Gov. Kim Reynolds deserves recognition for this bold move, curtailing her own powers as governor. Similar emergency powers legislation has passed through various state legislatures in the years since the coronavirus pandemic. However, when these bills made their way to governor\u2019s desks, they were vetoed. In all cases except for Tennessee, and now Iowa. Both Gov. Reynolds and Tennessee governor Bill Lee (R) have shown tremendous foresight and the ability to make principled decisions that will improve and safeguard their states for decades to come.<\/p>\n

Governance guided by the U.S. and state constitutions is a bedrock American principle. This new Iowa law creates mechanisms to ensure the protection of fundamental rights during a state of emergency. Governors are not gods and should be beholden to the same state constitutions and legislatures that empower and check them.<\/p>\n

Samantha Fillmore\u00a0<\/em>([email\u00a0protected]<\/span>)\u00a0is the senior state government relations manager at The Heartland Institute.<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Read more Yeah, you better move on (you better move on)<\/a><\/p>\n

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Image: Gage Skidmore<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This week, Iowa governor\u00a0Kim Reynolds (R) signed into law\u00a0Iowa House File 2694, legislation to reform Iowa\u2019s gubernatorial emergency powers. Specifically, the law seeks to protect the rights of Iowans from gubernatorial overreach during a state of emergency. 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