(The Center Square) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said Wednesday she presented a bill to legislators that would ban state investments with firms that “elevate social issues over financial returns.”
The governor did not give specifics on the bill, which is one of three she announced.
Lawmakers last year considered legislation that would boycott companies that used environmental, social, and governance factors when making decisions. The bill passed the House but never made it to the Senate floor, according to the Legislature’s website.
The Legislature passed a bill in 2022 that prohibited the state from doing business with businesses that boycott Israel. The bill, signed into law by Reynolds, affected $2.7 million of the state’s investments, according to its fiscal note.
Reynolds also proposed legislation to enact stricter penalties on foreign companies purchasing Iowa land.
“As I traveled across the state, farmers and concerned Iowans have expressed the need for tougher legislation and I agree. Iowa has been a leader with one of the toughest foreign land ownership laws in the country being enacted back in the seventies,” Reynolds said. “Allowing foreign adversaries to undermine the agricultural dominance of our farmers only makes America weaker. American farmland should remain in American hands.”
A third law introduced by Reynolds would require a cost-benefit analysis for new rules before they are enacted. A five-year sunset would be established on all rule chapters “unless they undergo a regular comprehensive evaluation to determine their necessity and effectiveness.”
