Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds Signs Law Revoking Civil Rights Protections for Transgender Iowans

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds Signs Law Revoking Civil Rights Protections for Transgender Iowans

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has signed a bill into law that removes civil rights protections for transgender Iowans, making Iowa the first state to eliminate a protected class from its civil rights code.

The law was passed by the Iowa House and Senate on Thursday, just a week after being introduced, and marks the end of nearly 20 years of civil rights protections for transgender Iowans, which were originally enacted in 2007 under a Democratic-led legislature.

Senate File 418 removes gender identity as a protected class from the Iowa Civil Rights Act, exposing transgender individuals to discrimination in areas such as housing, employment, education, finances, and public accommodations.

Governor Reynolds defended the bill, stating that it was intended to protect the rights of women and preserve the “biological differences between men and women.”

“In fact, it is necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls,” Reynolds said in a Facebook video on Friday. “It is about the biological differences, and that is all.”

State Republicans have supported the bill, arguing that it is essential to uphold laws they previously passed that target transgender individuals. These include a 2023 law banning transgender people from using restrooms that match their gender in public schools and a 2022 law restricting transgender participation in school athletics.

Earlier this month, a lawsuit was filed by an Iowa City man challenging the restroom law, after he was denied access to the men's bathroom at his child’s sporting event.

“Unfortunately, these common-sense protections were at risk because, before I signed this bill, the Civil Rights Code blurred the biological line between the sexes,” Reynolds said. “I know this is a sensitive issue for some, many of whom have heard misinformation about what this bill does. The truth is that it simply brings Iowa in line with the federal Civil Rights Code, as well as most states.”

The law will also define sex and gender in the Iowa code, mandate that birth certificates reflect an individual’s sex at birth, and prohibit schools from teaching about gender identity and sexual orientation in grades K-6.

Reynolds emphasized that despite the changes, all Iowans remain “children of God” and that the law is meant to strengthen protections for women and girls.

“We all agree that every Iowan, without exception, deserves respect and dignity,” Reynolds added. “What this bill does accomplish is to strengthen protections for women and girls, and I believe that is the right thing to do.”

Iowa Republicans have attempted to remove gender identity from the state’s Civil Rights Code before, and last year, a bill that would have done so received a hearing. However, lawmakers later decided to shelve the bill.

With Reynolds’ signature, the law takes effect, making Iowa the first state in the nation to remove gender identity as a protected class from its civil rights code, according to LGBTQ+ advocates.

“This isn’t leadership. It’s a shameful display of power used to crush the most vulnerable Iowans,” said Becky Tayler, executive director of Iowa Safe Schools, a group focused on LGBTQ+ youth. “Governor Reynolds has made it clear — her version of ‘freedom to flourish’ is only for those who fit her narrow, outdated vision. If there is one message to send to Governor Reynolds, it is this: transgender Iowans have always existed and will always exist.”

The law comes as former President Donald Trump pursues executive orders targeting transgender individuals, including banning transgender women from participating in women’s sports and cutting federal support for gender transition services for people under 19. Trump endorsed the Iowa bill on Thursday, urging Republicans to pass it “as fast as possible” in a post on Truth Social.

Gender identity and sexual orientation were added as protected classes to the Iowa Civil Rights Act in 2007 under a Democratic-led government.

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