Richard Rogers, IFC’s chief lobbyist and board member, prepared a quick rundown of the 2025 Iowa Session. I’m still absolutely floored by the actions of the Senate Ways and Means Chair, Senator Dan Dawson, in killing the Gadsden Flag bill that voluntarily funds 2A Education, Training, and Programs, especially after it passed two years in a row through the House with bipartisan support and passed the Senate Transportation Committee.  We’ll have plenty to illuminate in future communications about this.  For now, let’s take a look at all the good we enjoyed and the bad we suffered this legislative session – Michael Ware

From Richard:

“No man’s life, liberty, or property are safe while the legislature is in session.” (Judge Gideon J. Tucker, 1866)

Well then, I guess Iowans can breathe a sigh of relief, as the 2025 session of the 91^st General Assembly adjourned shortly after daybreak yesterday. For the volunteers and members of Iowa Firearms Coalition (IFC), and for all Iowans who value their fundamental right to keep and bear arms, the session provided cause for both celebration and deep disappointment.

Later, IFC will offer a detailed review and analysis of our legislative efforts this year. This post will be a quick overview of the principal successes, failures, and roadblocks.

Significant Wins – passed by House and Senate and signed by Governor Reynolds:

• HF924 – lowered from 21 to 18 Iowa’s minimum age to possess and carry a handgun, as well as to obtain a nonprofessional permit to carry weapons. This was IFC’s marquee initiative for 2025 and we are very pleased that we succeeded in enacting this overdue change to the law – with broad bipartisan support – on our first attempt. IFC successfully argued that the government may not deny a subset of adults (those 18 to 20 years old, in this case) access to their fundamental rights on the basis that some small percentage of those adults might abuse those rights.
• SF106 – repealed all restrictions on possessing and carrying firearms on ATVs and snowmobiles. It also repealed the “manner of conveyance” hunting statute that generally prohibited the possession of a long-gun in a vehicle on a public highway, unless the gun, its barrels, and its attached magazines were unloaded and the gun was broken down or cased. It will remain illegal to shoot from an ATV or snowmobile, except that a nonambulatory hunter may shoot from a vehicle that is not in motion. The law will become effective on July 1.
• SF462 – repealed Iowa Code 724.31A, which was enacted in 2021 and has caused significant unintended and adverse consequences. The statute was intended to ensure that court orders barring gun possession were properly reported to the National Instant Check System (NICS). However, in practice, this resulted in double reporting to FBI/NICS. When a court order expired or was rescinded, FBI required Iowa courts (not IA-DPS, as was specified in the statute) to remove them from NICS. The courts seemed largely unable or unwilling to do so. Even though DPS would notify NICS to remove the same order from the record, until the court did so, the subject of the order was unable to receive approval though NICS. This has been a huge headache for DPS and those Iowans affected.

Losses:

• Bills that passed the House, but died in the Senate
  • HF974 – this bill would have created a Gadsden Flag license plate. Most of the $50 premium for this plate would have been distributed as grants for the purpose of education and training on the right to keep and bear arms and for firearm safety training. ($1, on top of the normal license fees, would have gone to Iowa’s Road Use Tax Fund.) First priority for awarding of grants would have gone to any official state association of NRA (currently, that is IFC) or similar organizations. This bill passed in the House on a 64 to 26 vote and was approved by the Senate Transportation Committee. However, it was killed in the Senate by Ways and Means Committee Chairman, Sen. Dan Dawson. The bill, which had also passed in the House in the 90^th General Assembly, can be revived in 2026.
  • HF945 – this bill would have enhanced protections of the right to defense of self or others. It would have established an opportunity for a pre-trial hearing, as well as other court procedures in cases where a defendant claims justifiable use of force. The bill passed the House on a bipartisan vote of 89 to 6, but was killed in the Senate by Judiciary Chairman Jason Schultz, apparently on the basis of concerns expressed to him county attorneys.
  • HF1034 – would have created an income tax credit (up to $500) for the purchase of “firearm safety devices” (gun safes and locks) to encourage safe firearm storage. This was not an IFC initiative, but we strongly supported the bill. It passed the House on a vote of 90 to 0 (!), but was killed in the Senate by Ways and Means Committee Chairman, Sen. Dan Dawson.
• Important Bills that failed to move in the House:
  • HF621 – Firearms on school property. Most importantly, this bill would have enabled persons holding a valid permit to carry weapons to carry a concealed pistol or revolver in their vehicle when dropping off or picking up at a school. This provision was passed by the House as part of a larger bill in 2023. This year, House Public Safety Committee Chairman Mike Vondran refused to consider the bill. It was then moved to the House Education Committee, where Chairman Skylar Wheeler killed it at the last moment. This remains a top IFC priority.
  • HF791 – would have made available firearm safety instruction in both primary and secondary schools. The measure had previously passed the House as part of a larger bill in 2023.

HSB280 – this bill was intended to cleanup some provisions of Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons, primarily in regard to eligibility of persons to carry weapons and to requirements for permits to carry weapons. The current law retains some rough edges that don’t fully align with the new paradigm of permitless carry that Iowa enacted in 2021. A version of this bill’s provisions passed the House in a larger bill in 2023, but this bill was blocked in the House Public Safety Committee. This initiative remains a key IFC priority.

Thank you, as always, Richard, for your work and analysis.  -Michael