Senate Study Bill 1150 - Introduced SENATE FILE _____ BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL BY CHAIRPERSON WEBSTER) A BILL FOR An Act restricting county and city diversity, equity, and 1 inclusion programs. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 2065XC (5) 91 ll/js
S.F. _____ Section 1. Section 331.301, Code 2025, is amended by adding 1 the following new subsection: 2 NEW SUBSECTION . 27. a. A county or any county board 3 or office shall not adopt an ordinance, motion, resolution, 4 amendment, or policy, except as otherwise provided by federal 5 or state law, that does any of the following: 6 (1) Establishes or maintains a diversity, equity, and 7 inclusion office. 8 (2) Hires or assigns an employee or contracts with a third 9 party to perform duties of a diversity, equity, or inclusion 10 office. 11 (3) Compels, requires, induces, or solicits any person 12 to provide a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement, or 13 gives preferential consideration to any person based on the 14 provisions of a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement. 15 b. For purposes of this subsection: 16 (1) Diversity, equity, and inclusion includes all of the 17 following: 18 (a) Any effort to manipulate or otherwise influence the 19 composition of a board of supervisors, any county board or 20 office, or county employee positions with reference to race, 21 sex, color, or ethnicity, apart from ensuring colorblind 22 and sex-neutral hiring in accordance with state and federal 23 antidiscrimination laws. 24 (b) Any effort to promote differential treatment of or 25 provide special benefits to individuals on the basis of race, 26 color, or ethnicity. 27 (c) Any effort to promote or promulgate policies and 28 procedures designed or implemented with reference to race, 29 color, or ethnicity. 30 (d) Any effort to promote or promulgate trainings, 31 programming, or activities designed or implemented with 32 reference to race, color, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual 33 orientation. 34 (e) Any effort to promote, as the official position of the 35 -1- LSB 2065XC (5) 91 ll/js 1/ 5
S.F. _____ county, a particular, widely contested opinion referencing 1 unconscious or implicit bias, cultural appropriation, 2 allyship, transgender ideology, microaggressions, group 3 marginalization, antiracism, systemic oppression, social 4 justice, intersectionality, neopronouns, heteronormativity, 5 disparate impact, gender theory, racial privilege, sexual 6 privilege, or any related formulation of these concepts. 7 (2) Diversity, equity, and inclusion office means any 8 division, office, center, or other unit of county government 9 that is responsible for creating, developing, designing, 10 implementing, organizing, planning, or promoting policies, 11 programming, training, practices, activities, or procedures 12 related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Diversity, 13 equity, and inclusion office does not include licensed 14 attorneys and paralegal and secretarial support for the 15 licensed attorneys hired by the county to ensure legal 16 compliance with the countys obligations under the federal 17 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. 12101 et 18 seq., as amended, the federal Age Discrimination in Employment 19 Act of 1967, 29 U.S.C. 621 et seq., as amended, the federal 20 Civil Rights Act of 1964, Pub. L. No. 88-352, as amended, or 21 any other applicable federal or state law or a court order. 22 Sec. 2. Section 364.3, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 23 following new subsection: 24 NEW SUBSECTION . 20. a. A city or any city board or office 25 shall not adopt an ordinance, motion, resolution, amendment, or 26 policy, except as otherwise provided by federal or state law, 27 that does any of the following: 28 (1) Establishes or maintains a diversity, equity, and 29 inclusion office. 30 (2) Hires or assigns an employee or contracts with a third 31 party to perform duties of a diversity, equity, or inclusion 32 office. 33 (3) Compels, requires, induces, or solicits any person 34 to provide a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement, or 35 -2- LSB 2065XC (5) 91 ll/js 2/ 5
S.F. _____ gives preferential consideration to any person based on the 1 provisions of a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement. 2 b. For purposes of this subsection: 3 (1) Diversity, equity, and inclusion includes all of the 4 following: 5 (a) Any effort to manipulate or otherwise influence the 6 composition of a city council, any city board or office, or 7 city employee positions with reference to race, sex, color, 8 or ethnicity, apart from ensuring colorblind and sex-neutral 9 hiring in accordance with state and federal antidiscrimination 10 laws. 11 (b) Any effort to promote differential treatment of or 12 provide special benefits to individuals on the basis of race, 13 color, or ethnicity. 14 (c) Any effort to promote or promulgate policies and 15 procedures designed or implemented with reference to race, 16 color, or ethnicity. 17 (d) Any effort to promote or promulgate trainings, 18 programming, or activities designed or implemented with 19 reference to race, color, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual 20 orientation. 21 (e) Any effort to promote, as the official position of 22 the city, a particular, widely contested opinion referencing 23 unconscious or implicit bias, cultural appropriation, 24 allyship, transgender ideology, microaggressions, group 25 marginalization, antiracism, systemic oppression, social 26 justice, intersectionality, neopronouns, heteronormativity, 27 disparate impact, gender theory, racial privilege, sexual 28 privilege, or any related formulation of these concepts. 29 (2) Diversity, equity, and inclusion office means any 30 division, office, center, or other unit of city government 31 that is responsible for creating, developing, designing, 32 implementing, organizing, planning, or promoting policies, 33 programming, training, practices, activities, or procedures 34 related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Diversity, 35 -3- LSB 2065XC (5) 91 ll/js 3/ 5
S.F. _____ equity, and inclusion office does not include licensed 1 attorneys and paralegal and secretarial support for the 2 licensed attorneys hired by the city to ensure legal compliance 3 with the citys obligations under the federal Americans with 4 Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq., as amended, 5 the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 29 6 U.S.C. 621 et seq., as amended, the federal Civil Rights 7 Act of 1964, Pub. L. No. 88-352, as amended, or any other 8 applicable federal or state law or a court order. 9 EXPLANATION 10 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 11 the explanations substance by the members of the general assembly. 12 This bill prohibits a county, a city, or any county or 13 city board or office from adopting an ordinance, motion, 14 resolution, amendment, or policy, except as otherwise provided 15 by federal or state law, that does any of the following: 16 establishes or maintains a diversity, equity, and inclusion 17 office; hires or assigns an employee or contracts with a third 18 party to perform duties of a diversity, equity, or inclusion 19 office; or compels, requires, induces, or solicits any person 20 to provide a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement, or 21 gives preferential consideration to any person based on the 22 provisions of a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement. 23 The bill provides that diversity, equity, and inclusion 24 includes: any effort to manipulate or otherwise influence 25 the composition of a county board of supervisors, a city 26 council, any county or city board or office, or county or 27 city employee positions with reference to race, sex, color, 28 or ethnicity, apart from ensuring colorblind and sex-neutral 29 hiring in accordance with state and federal antidiscrimination 30 laws; any effort by a county or city to promote differential 31 treatment of or provide special benefits to individuals on the 32 basis of race, color, or ethnicity; any effort by a county or 33 city to promote or promulgate policies and procedures designed 34 or implemented with reference to race, color, or ethnicity; 35 -4- LSB 2065XC (5) 91 ll/js 4/ 5
S.F. _____ any effort by a county or city to promote or promulgate 1 trainings, programming, or activities designed or implemented 2 with reference to race, color, ethnicity, gender identity, 3 or sexual orientation; and any effort by a county or city to 4 promote, as the official position of the city, a particular, 5 widely contested opinion referencing unconscious or implicit 6 bias, cultural appropriation, allyship, transgender ideology, 7 microaggressions, group marginalization, antiracism, systemic 8 oppression, social justice, intersectionality, neopronouns, 9 heteronormativity, disparate impact, gender theory, racial 10 privilege, sexual privilege, or any related formulation of 11 these concepts. 12 The bill provides that diversity, equity, and inclusion 13 office means any division, office, center, or other unit of 14 county or city government that is responsible for creating, 15 developing, designing, implementing, organizing, planning, 16 or promoting policies, programming, training, practices, 17 activities, or procedures related to diversity, equity, 18 and inclusion. Diversity, equity, and inclusion office 19 does not include the work product of licensed attorneys and 20 paralegal and secretarial support for the licensed attorneys 21 hired by a county or city to ensure legal compliance with a 22 county or citys obligations under the federal Americans with 23 Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq., as amended, 24 the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 29 25 U.S.C. 621 et seq., as amended, the federal Civil Rights 26 Act of 1964, Pub. L. No. 88-352, as amended, or any other 27 applicable federal or state law or a court order. 28 -5- LSB 2065XC (5) 91 ll/js 5/ 5