of iowa The House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill that would prohibit local governments from including gender identity in their anti-discrimination policies.
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Protections for trans residents include: already beaten From the Iowa Civil Rights Act of 2025. new bill It would prohibit counties and local governments from adopting nondiscrimination policies that are “broader” or “different” than those protected by state law.
U.S. Rep. Amy Wichtendahl, a Democrat who represents the Cedar Rapids area, was sworn in last year as Iowa’s first trans state representative. Wichtendaal said the bill would make Iowa’s LGBTQ+ residents feel less safe and push them toward “more friendly housing in neighboring states.” des moines register report.
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“This reduces our ability to attract new workers,” Wiklendaal said. “This bill before us today makes a mockery of our state’s most sacred values.”
Similar efforts have surfaced in other Republican-led states. In Idaho, for example, Republican lawmakers are pushing a bill that would prevent cities and counties from enforcing LGBTQ-inclusive anti-discrimination ordinances that go beyond state law, effectively nullifying protections in more than a dozen municipalities that currently prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Advocates in the state warn that the measure would eliminate local civil rights guarantees that cover about a third of the state’s population.
Iowa’s bill initially focused on referring local civil rights complaints to the state civil rights office. But removing local protections regarding gender identity had been proposed It was proposed by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and incorporated into the bill by Republican state legislators. amended bill Passed 60-2614 commissioners were absent or did not vote.
“We’re not going to get everyone together, and it’s up to their mothers to pass civil rights laws,” Republican Rep. Schuyler Wheeler, who represents the Hull area, said, according to the newspaper. Des Moines Registration. “That’s not possible for a company, it’s just a crazy idea.”
related: Iowa now allows anti-transgender discrimination
related: Iowa Republicans seek to repeal marriage equality in state
For years, local ordinances have been enacted to protect LGBTQ+ residents from discrimination in blue-chip areas of Republican-majority states, but this is difficult to achieve at the state level.
As of this month, 14 cities and one unincorporated community in Iowa have passed nondiscrimination policies that include gender identity protections, according to . Iowa State Capitol Dispatch. The state Legislature’s efforts to restrict transgender rights are a concern to many of Iowa’s LGBTQ+ residents and their allies. large-scale protests at the state capitol last year.
Before the bill becomes law, it must first pass the Iowa Senate and go to the governor’s desk for final approval. State lawmakers like Wichtendaal warn that passing the bill will only further marginalize TransIowans.
“Stand up for justice, stand up for freedom, stand up for the rights of the people.” Wichtendal said. “This state is long overdue in checking its constitutional violations and reckless disregard for its citizens’ rights and freedoms.”
This article was written as part of The Advocate’s “Future of Queer Media” fellowship program. This program is morrison media group. This program helps support the next generation of LGBTQ+ journalists.
Source: Advocate.com – www.advocate.com
