Gov. Kim Reynolds vetoed new dual credit requirements for high school students, school cybersecurity funding and other items as she took action on legislation for the last time as the state’s chief executive.
Reynolds took final action Tuesday, June 2 on bills Iowa lawmakers passed during the 2026 legislative session — her last as governor after she decided not to seek reelection.
Reynolds said it’s “bittersweet” to end this chapter of her governorship, but she’s “really proud” of what she was able to accomplish in her final legislative session, including action on property taxes, education and health care.
“Sometimes that’s not the way it goes when it’s your final year and you’re a lame duck,” she said. “Sometimes it’s kind of irrelevant what the governor wants. And what I experienced from my last legislative session was legislators and leaders in both the House and the Senate remained committed to putting Iowans first and getting things done and completed that we promised Iowans we would.”
Here are the measures Reynolds shot down.
Tighter submission deadlines for state agency, governor legislative proposals
Reynolds rejected a proposal to tighten the deadline for state agencies and the governor’s office to submit proposed legislation before lawmakers convene for the legislative session each year.
Senate File 2207 would have moved up the deadline for state agencies and departments to submit proposed legislation from 45 days to 60 days before the start of the session. It would have also moved the governor’s submission cutoff from the Friday before the start of session to 60 days out from the first day.
The governor expressed concern about the bill’s smaller submission window, arguing the weeks before session are needed to complete fiscal analyses, incorporate stakeholder feedback and finalize recommendations before delivering the Condition of the State address.
“While I appreciate the intent of establishing earlier deadlines in the legislative drafting process, this legislation would significantly impair the ability of the office of the governor to fully develop and finalize legislative priorities ahead of each session,” Reynolds wrote in her veto message.
New concurrent enrollment requirements
Reynolds opposed a pair of bills that would have created new requirements for students participating in the district-to-community college sharing or concurrent enrollment program.
Senate File 2299 would have required high school students taking college-level courses at community colleges or their legal guardians to pay the dual enrollment course costs if they fail the class.
Iowa school districts currently contract with community colleges and subsidize the cost of dual enrollment through various state programs.
Reynolds expressed concern that charging for failed courses would disproportionately harm poorer students and discourage them from participating in dual enrollment.
“Iowa should strengthen academic assistance, advising and early intervention strategies to help students successfully complete coursework, rather than creating additional financial barriers for families,” Reynolds said in her veto message. “Local school districts and community college partners are best positioned to address student completion challenges through intervention strategies tailored to the individual student.”
Senate File 2320 would have required students participating in dual enrollment to attend community college courses in person if the option is available, unless a superintendent authorizes them to attend online.
Reynolds called the measure a “one-size-fits-all statewide requirement” that fails to address broader concerns related to course quality and cost. She said it could limit course access for students on different academic schedules.
“As Iowa continues expanding educational options for students and families, policies related to concurrent enrollment should maintain appropriate flexibility while supporting high-quality instruction across delivery models,” Reynolds said.
Statewide urban design standards and specifications board
House File 2667 outlined the makeup of a 15-member statewide urban design and specifications board to set urban design standards for public improvement projects across the state and required coordination with Iowa State University’s Institute for Transportation.
This would have slashed the existing board, a volunteer panel that has 38 members, including local professional engineers and public works officials, consulting firms and the Iowa Department of Transportation.
In a veto message, Reynolds said the proposed restructuring of the board moved authority away from professional engineers and public-sector technical experts “toward private development interests.”
Moreover, she opposed shifting current law, which allows municipalities to voluntarily use SUDAS manuals, and imposing statewide standards she considered more ambiguous.
And she took issue with the bill’s requirements for reporting noncompliance with SUDAS standards, saying it would discourage flexibility at the local level, and for a ban on project modifications after construction begins that she said fails to take into account “unforeseen circumstances.”
“It would also appear to prevent a change order that could reduce costs,” Reynolds said. “Preventing local governments from adapting projects in response to real-world conditions is impractical, risks increased costs and delays and could ultimately undermine the quality and safety of public infrastructure improvements.”
Regent university investments in innovation funds
Senate File 2453 would have required that Iowa’s three public universities governed by the state Board of Regents invest at least 1% of their total foundation-managed endowment assets into an innovation fund that supports the commercialization of institution technologies or research-derived innovations.
Reynolds wrote in her veto message that she was concerned the legislation “creates a statewide investment mandate on university foundation assets without adequately recognizing the independent fiduciary responsibilities of foundation boards and investment professionals based on donor intent, institutional priorities, market conditions and long-term financial performance.”
She said the universities need flexibility to manage long-term investments and support research activities.
Several line items rejected in state budget bills
Reynolds shot down several line items tucked into state budget bills.
Cybersecurity funding: School districts won’t receive a $500,000 boost, funneled through the Iowa Department of Education, to implement and maintain email security gateways to protect school districts from cybersecurity threats. The money was included in the education budget, House File 2783.
Reynolds wrote in her veto message the provision and its associated funding “constitutes a clear and unmistakable earmark — drafted, designed and lobbied for by a specific information technology and cybersecurity firm.”
Once a district subscribes, she said it would assume recurring annual costs that pressure local budgets. Plus, she said school districts already can tap into these cybersecurity services through state-negotiated master agreements.
Limits on technology contracts for HHS: A proposed $5 million spending cap on Iowa Department of Health and Human Services contracts and agreements with major information technology systems will not move forward. The limit was included in the infrastructure budget, Senate File 2484.
She said the spending limit would produce widespread project delays and could jeopardize continued operation of major public assistance systems, including Medicaid processing claims, child support enforcement and federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefit issuance.
It would “effectively halt” all major IT modernization efforts across HHS, she warned.
“The harm goes far deeper than missed deadlines or deferred launches. In practical terms, this provision strips HHS of its routine ability to manage contracts already underway,” Reynolds wrote.
Cedar Falls opioid recovery center funding: Reynolds rejected $3 million to support the Renewal Falls Recovery Center in Cedar Falls, which is set to open this summer to provide addiction treatment services, that was allocated in HF 2782, the Iowa HHS budget.
She said money awarded from the state’s opioid settlement fund needs to go through the competitive grant application process laid out in a 2025 law rather than being earmarked in a state budget.
“This collaborative approach ensures that the state’s investments align with local need, target the most effective opportunities and remain fully compliant with the requirements of the opioid settlement agreement and the process set up by HF 1038,” Reynolds wrote. “In this instance, this project was not awarded a grant through the competitive process.”
Community mental health services funding process: Reynolds denied a proposed change to the way federal community mental health services block grant dollars are divvied up, arguing a framework set in previous legislation is a more effective way to distribute the money.
“Iowa HHS has fully prepared for the changes directed in Senate File 626 and remains committed to ensuring investments are aligned with local need, achieve the greatest impact, and comply with federal requirements,” Reynolds wrote.
She vetoed several items in the standing appropriations bill, House File 2800:
Impermissible use of COVID-19 relief funds: Reynolds said it is impermissible under federal law to transfer federal COVID-19 relief money to Iowa HHS’ Information Technology fund for projects related to Medicaid information management system. The dollars can only go toward eligible COVID-19 response expenses.
Health care access and innovation tax credit: Domestic insurance companies would have received a 25% credit for spending that supports health care access and innovation for tax years 2026 through 2033, maxing out at $3 million per tax year.
Reynolds said this would threaten the more than $120 million Iowa is looking to draw down with the temporary tax hike on private health insurance providers, known as health maintenance organizations or HMOs, because federal law requires “uniformity” in health care tax rates.
‘Civil litigation abuse’ cause of action: Reynolds vetoed a provision that would have created a statutory right to sue for “civil litigation abuse” against parties accused of pursuing legal claims for “ulterior purposes.”
In her veto message, Reynolds wrote that this new cause of action would have replaced Iowa’s longstanding legal tort for abuse of process, and that multiple stakeholders, including the attorney general’s office and the Iowa State Bar Association, had raised concerns about possible implications and unintended consequences of that change.
In particular, Reynolds wrote, the attorney general voiced concern the new law could increase the state’s exposure to legal liability.
Des Moines Register reporters Stephen Gruber-Miller and William Morris contributed to this article.
Marissa Payne covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. Reach her by email at mjpayne@registermedia.com. Follow her on X at @marissajpayne.
Rapid Response Politics Reporter Maya Marchel Hoff can be reached at mmarchelHoff@usatodayco.com. You can find her on X (formerly Twitter) at @mmarchelhoff.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: What bills did Kim Reynolds veto from Iowa’s 2026 legislative session?
Reporting by Marissa Payne and Maya Marchel Hoff, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Marissa Payne and Maya Marchel Hoff, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
