Hunter
05/28/25
Governor Kim Reynolds signed a series of bills passed by the Iowa Legislature this session into law Tuesday.
Among the 17 bills signed was a family leave program for state workers. New mothers will get four weeks of paid leave, and new parents who do not give birth will get one week of paid leave. State employees who adopt a child also will be provided with four weeks of paid leave.
Reynolds also signed legislation banning cities, counties and community colleges from using funds on position designated for diversity, equity and inclusion. It expands on a previous law banning the three Iowa public universities from funding DEI programs.
High schoolers must past a civics test in order to graduate under a new provision. Students must get 60 percent of the multiple choice questions correct on the test, the same one administered by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services naturalization civics test. Students can retake the test as many times as needed to pass.
Other bills enacted into law include one that requires K-12 schools and child care centers to disclose vaccine exemption information, one that changes the definition of bullying and harassment in public schools to repeated and targeted behavior, and one that adds stricter penalties to repeat offenders that expose minors to obscene materials.