HF 928 — A bill for an act relating to the recounting and contesting of elections, and providing penalties.
Last action — Signed by Governor.
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✓Introduced
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✓In Committee
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✓Passed House
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✓Passed Senate
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✓To Executive
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6Enacted
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced March 12, 2025. Enacted.
Signed by Governor Kim Reynolds (Republican) on June 02, 2025.
Prognosis
Where this bill stands today.
Odds of enactment
HighHow often bills like it became law.
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Enacted
Current position in the legislative process.
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1 sponsor
1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.
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Cleared a recorded vote
Passed 2 recorded votes so far.
Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.
Bill Text
What changed in the latest version
477 added · 478 removedPlain-language change summary
The latest version of House File 928 introduces a new requirement for recounts, stating that a recount board must complete its work within a specific timeframe after an election. Additionally, there are changes regarding the responsibilities of the supreme court and local election officials during the recount process. These adjustments aim to streamline the election contest process and ensure that results are finalized more efficiently, which can enhance public confidence in election outcomes.
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•,:/ % • I➢l il I tllIlltlIll IlUI1 I I ll I i I191 1'71!l71 I!711 l !791 I I! l ill 71 71IIIiI1 {1I! House File 928 AN ACT RELATING TO THE RECOUNTING AND CONTESTING OF ELECTIONS, AND PROVIDING PENALTIES.
If the second day following such an election is a legal holiday the special precinct election board may be convened at noon on the day following the election, and if the canvass of the election is scheduled at any time earlier than the Menda-yMonday Tuesday following the election, the special precinct election board shall be reconvened at noon on the day following the election.
Section 50.24, subsections 1 and 44, , Code 2025, are amended to read as follows:
The votes of all write-in candidates who each received less than five percent of the total votes cast in the city for an office shall be reported collectively under the heading "scattering".“scattering”.
Section 50.24, subsection 55, , paragraph aa, , Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
The votes of all write-in candidates who each received less than five percent of the total votes cast in the school district for an office shall be reported collectively under the heading -scattering".“scattering”.
Section 50.48, subsection 11, , paragraph a, unnumbered paragraph 11, , Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
ThreThe Except as provided in paragraph "c",“c”, the county board of canvassers shall order a recount of the votes cast for House File 928, p.
on the third day following the county board'sboard’s canvass of the election in question and the abstracts prepared pursuant to section 50.24, or section 43.49 in the case of a primary election, indicate that the difference between the total number of votes cast for the apparent winner and the total number of votes cast for the candidate requesting the recount is less than either one percent or fifty votes, whichever is lesser.lesser .
on the day following the county board'sboard’s canvass of the city runoff election.
Section 50.48, subsection 11, , Code 2025, is amended by adding the following new paragraphs:
NEW PARAGRAPH.PARAGRAPH .
on the day following the county board'sboard’s canvass of the election in question and the abstracts prepared pursuant to section 50.24, or section 43.49 in the case of a primary election, indicate that the difference between the total number of votes cast for the apparent winner and the total number of votes cast for the candidate requesting the recount is less than fifteen hundredths of one percent for the election or nomination of a candidate for a statewide elected office or federal office, or less than either one percent or fifty votes, whichever is lesser, for all other elections or nominations.
_A candidate for an office filled by the electors of the entire state shall not be required to pay more than one bond for a recount.
NEW PARAGRAPH.PARAGRAPH .
Immediately upon receipt of a request for a recount for an office filled by the electors of more than one county, other than from the state commissioner of elections pursuant to paragraph -c-,“c”, the commissioner shall send a copy of the request to each commissioner of a county where a ballot for the office was cast, who shall conduct a recount as provided in this section.
Section 50.48, subsection 22, , Code 2025, is amended by striking the subsection.
Section 50.48, subsections 3 and 44, , Code 2025, are amended to read as follows:
The recount shall be conducted by a board which shall consist of-of: r be named in the written requeot when it i3 filed.
be(1) nafRed--by,A thatdesignee eanddidateof atthe be€erecandidate t-crequesting timethe recount, who shall be named in the boardwritten isrequest requiredwhen toit convene.is filed.
under(2) 3ubparagraph3A (1)designee andof (2) the commissionerapparent andwinning candidate, who shall be named by that candidate at or before the commissioner'stime staff.the board is required to convene.
(3) A person chosen jointly by the members designated under subparagraphs (1) and (2) the commissioner and the commissioner’s staff.
The commissioner shall convene the persons designated under paragraph "a“a”, -,subparagraphs subparagraph3(1) () and (2), not later than 9:00 a.m.
on the seventh day following the county board'sboard’s canvass receipt of a request for the recount of the election in question.
ifIf these—twethose rotwo 9members cannot agree on House File 928, p.
6 eanvass, they shall immediately se netify the chief judge of shall a-ppeint the third —-fabermember netby later8:00 thana.m. 5:00 p.m.
on the e-1ninth evcnth day following the anva33.canvass, they shall immediately so notify the chief judge of the judicial district in which the canvass is occurring, who shall appoint the third member not later than 5:00 p.m.
on the eleventh day following the canvass.
When all members of the recount board have been 3cicctcdselected convened, the board shall undertake and complete the required recount as expeditiously as reasonably possible.
The commissioner or the commissionerscommissioner’s designee shall supervise the handling of ballots to ensure that the ballots are protected from alteration or damage.
The board Shallshall open only the reeeuntedsealed ballot containers from the precincts specified to be recounted in the request eror by the reeeuntrecount beard.board.
The board shall recount only the all ballots which were voted and counted for the office in question, including any disputed ballots returned as required in section 50.5.
If automatic tabulating equ±pmentequipment was used tto ecount eeunt the ballets,ballots, the eeuntrecount wordboard may request the eemm±ss±ener-commissioner teto retabulate the balletsballots usinqusing the automatic tabulating equipment.
For purposes of this paragraph, -extraordinary“extraordinary circumstances"circumstances” includes but is not limited to a machine failure during an initial recount, a discrepancy between the results of the initial count and the results of the initial recount, House File 928, p.
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Any member of the recount board may at any time during the reeeuntrecount preeeedingsproceedings extend thereeeunt-efthe recount of votes eastcast ferfor the office or nomination in question to any other precinct or precincts in the same county, or from which the returns were reported to the commissioner re3pon3ibleresponsible for conducting the e:election, without the necessity of posting additional bond.
c.
At the conclusion of the recount, the recount board shall make and file with the commissioner a written report of its findings, which shall be signed by at least ttwo -we two-thirds of the members of the recount board.
The recount board shall complete the recount and file its report not later than the eighteenth day following the commissioner'scounty board’s canvass commissioner’s receipt of a request for the recount of the election in question.
NEW SUBSECTION.SUBSECTION .
b,b. If the state commissioner believes that a commissioner is purposefully conducting a recount in violation of law, the state commissioner may impose a civil penalty on the commissioner not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars, to be deposited in the general fund of the state.
If the state commissioner believes that a commissioner is purposefully conducting a recount in violation of law, the state commissioner may impose a civil penalty on the commissioner not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars, to be deposited in the general fund of the state.
Before a recount board has issued its final report, the candidate or person who requested the recount may reach an agreement with the apparent winner to accept the results of the original canvass by submitting the agreement in House File 928, .p.
Section 50.49, subsection 11, , Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
Section 50.49, subsection 44, , Code 2025, is amended by striking the subsection.
50.50 Administrative rccountsrecounts audits.
The commissioner who was responsible for conducting an election may request an administrative rccountrecount audit when the commissioner is informed or suspects that voting equipment used in the election malfunctioned or that programming errors may have affected the outcome of the election, or if the precinct election officials report counting errors to the commissioner after the conclusion of the canvass of votes in the precinct.
An administrative rccountrecount audit shall be conducted by the board House File 928, p.
Bond shall netnot be required ferfor aan nadministrative —administrativerecount. --reeeunt--.
The state commissioner may adopt rules for administrative recounts audits.audits .
ifIf the r-eee•ntrecount beardboard finds that there is an errererror in the pregramfflingprogramming efof anany vetingvoting equipment whiehwhich may have fleau=r—ennaffected the ballet,outcome hof ethe reeetint-election beardfor shalld-eseribeany office or public measure on the r.ballot, the recount board shall describe the errors in its report to the commissioner.
The commissioner Shallshall notify the board of 3upervi3or3.supervisors.
The 3upervisorssupervisors Shallshall determine whether to erderorder an administrative reeeuntrecount ferfor any or all of the offices and public mmeasures a3ures on the ballot.
57.7 Contest court for contest of public measure ——— appeal.
The court for the trial of a contested election on a public measure shall consist of one per3onperson designated by the petitioners who are contesting the election, who shall be designated in writing—bywriting eby petitienersthe petitioners at th.the time the contest is filed, one person designated by the county commissioner of elections to represent the interests adverse to those of the petitioners, and a third person who shall be chosen jointly by the designees of the petitioners and of the commissioner.
timeIf tthe hpersons eentestiselected lsby ethe dpetitioners ,and onethe persencounty designatedcommissioner byof theelections eeuntycannot commi33ioncragree ofon election3a tothird rcpre3cntperson, the intcre3tschief advcr3cjudge to tho3e of the petitioners,judicial anddistrict ain thirdwhich per3onthe whocontest 3hallis be conte3t i3 filed shall appoint a third per3onperson to serve five district court judges, appointed by the chief justice of the supreme court by January 30 of each odd-numbered year.year .
The judgment of the committee pronounced in the final decision on the election shams—bcshall conclu3ivebe conclusive may be appealed to the supreme court.
The court for the trial of contested elections for presidential electors or for the office of senator or representative in Congress shall consist of the chief ju3ticcjustice of the supreme court, who shall be presiding judge of the court, and four five judges of the district court to be selected by the chief justice of the supreme court by January 30 of each odd-numbered year, two three of whom, with the chief j-u3ticc,justice, shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of the business of the court.
ifIf the eh±efchief justieejustice sheuldshould ffor aryany eausecause be unable teto attend at the trial, the Judgejudge lengestlongest enon justiee, and any quest±en arising as te the membershipsupreme efcourt tbench -e eeurt shall bepreside d7etermined by the members of the t net interested in theplace question The district court judge longest serving shall be the presiding judge of the court.chief justice;
and any question arising as to the membership of the court shall be determined by the members of the court not interested in the question The district court judge longest serving shall be the presiding judge of the court.
The secretary of 3tatcstate clerk of the supreme court shall be the clerk of the court, or, in the secretary of state'sstate’s ab3cncoabsence eror inability teto aet,act, the clericclerk of the suprcmesupreme court.court .
60.6 Judgment ——— appeal.
and the judgment so rendered shall eenstitäte-a-finalconstitute detea minatienfinal edetermination fof -thethe treetitle to the office may be appealed to the supreme court, and a certificate of appointment shall be issued to the successful House File 928, p.
The occrctarysecretary of state clerk of the supreme court shall be the clerk of this court;
but if the person holding that office a:9ais a party teto tthe hcontest, ethe ,clerk of the supreme court, or, in case of that person’s absence or inability, the auditor of state shall be clerk .
er, in case of that person "3 ab3cnce or inability, the auditor of otate shall be clerk.
Upon the filing of such 3tatcmcnt,statement, the The chief justice of the supreme court shall select the membership of the court to try such conte3tcontest by January 30 of each odd-numbered year, and immediately certify such selection to the clerk of the supreme court.
61.12 Judgment filed ——— execution.
A transcript of the judgment rendered by such court, filed in the office of the clerk of the supreme court, shall have the force and effect of a judgment of the supreme court, except that the judgment of the court may be appealed to the supreme court, and execution may issue therefrom in the first instance against the party'sparty’s property generally.
The court for the trial of contested county elections shall consist of Houseone Filemember 928,named pby .the contestant and one member named by the incumbent.
12If deign ate the seee--d—emberincumbent withinfails e ir- +eek after the Lief judge is tified These—t:aie—embes shall meet within thre-e days and 3cicct a third member to 3crvename as the presiding member of the e they etagree—en the—t ird- member e m he court within three days a -tcrHouse theirFile initial928, meeting,p. the chief judge-ef the-Judie al disciiemssThrall be—netifrcd—ef the failure te agree.
The12 ehiefmember, judge shall des-gnate the presiddingchief member within ene week after the ehief judge isof netified a district court judge from the judicial district whereshall thebe countynotified election is being contested, appointed by the chief justice of the supremefailure courtto byappoint. January 30 of each odd-numbered year.
The chief judge shall designate the second member within one week after the chief judge is notified.
These two members shall meet within three days and select a third member to serve as the presiding member of the court.
If they cannot agree on the third member of the court within three days after their initial meeting, the chief judge of the judicial district shall be notified of the failure to agree.
The chief judge shall designate the presiding member within one week after the chief judge is notified a district court judge from the judicial district where the county election is being contested, appointed by the chief justice of the supreme court by January 30 of each odd-numbered year .
House File 928, pp. .
______________________________ ______________________________ PAT GRASSLGRASSLEY AMY SINCLAIR Speaker of the House President of the Senate I hereby certify that this bill originated in the House and is known as House File 928, Ninety-first General Assembly.
•0/______________________________ '1MEGHAN 4M L/ •_ MEGINN NELSON Chief Clerk Aof pthe pHouse rApproved o_______________, v e jif" ?/ , 2025 ______________________________ KIM REYNOLDS Governor
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View plain text versions (5)
- Enrolled Enrolled with Governor's Action pdf
- Enrolled View text pdf
- Enrolled Signed Enrolled Bill (PDF) Current pdf
- Reprinted View text pdf
- Introduced View text pdf
Amendments
2 amendmentsClick Show changes on an amendment above to see how it modifies the bill.
Action History
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Signed by Governor.
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Reported correctly enrolled, signed by Speaker and President, and sent to Governor.
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Explanation of vote.
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Message from Senate.
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Explanation of vote.
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Immediate message.
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Passed Senate, yeas 31, nays 14.
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Substituted for SF 543.
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Placed on calendar under unfinished business.
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Read first time, attached to SF 543.
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Message from House.
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Immediate message.
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Passed House, yeas 66, nays 31.
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Amendment H-1155 adopted, as amended.
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Amendment H-1172 to amendment H-1155 filed, adopted.
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Amendment H-1155 filed.
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Introduced, placed on calendar.
Sponsors
- COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT · Primary
Sponsorship breakdown
Export CSV (upgrade) →1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 149 not signed on · 44 voted No
Sponsors (1)
- COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT
Co-sponsors (0)
None.
Not signed on (149)
149 members have not signed on to this bill.
Show all 149 →"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.
Votes
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | 29 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Unaffiliated | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Democrat | 0 | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 30 | 15 | 0 | 5 |
| % of votes cast | 60% | 30% | 0% | 10% |
How each member voted (50)
| Member | Party | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Celsi | — | Not Voting |
| De Witt | — | Yea |
| Art Staed | Democrat | Nay |
| Cindy Winckler | Democrat | Nay |
| Herman C. Quirmbach | Democrat | Nay |
| Izaah Knox | Democrat | Nay |
| Janet Petersen | Democrat | Nay |
| Janice Weiner | Democrat | Nay |
| Liz Bennett | Democrat | Not Voting |
| Matt Blake | Democrat | Nay |
| Mike Zimmer | Democrat | Nay |
| Molly Donahue | Democrat | Nay |
| Sarah Trone Garriott | Democrat | Nay |
| Sarah Trone Garriott | Democrat | Nay |
| Thomas Townsend | Democrat | Nay |
| Tony Bisignano | Democrat | Nay |
| William A. Dotzler Jr. | Democrat | Nay |
| Zach Wahls | Democrat | Nay |
| Adrian Dickey | Republican | Yea |
| Amy Sinclair | Republican | Yea |
| Annette Sweeney | Republican | Yea |
| Carrie Koelker | Republican | Yea |
| Charlie McClintock | Republican | Yea |
| Cherielynn Westrich | Republican | Yea |
| Dan Zumbach | Republican | Not Voting |
| Dave Sires | Republican | Yea |
| David D. Rowley | Republican | Yea |
| Dawn Driscoll | Republican | Yea |
| Dennis Guth | Republican | Yea |
| Doug Campbell | Republican | Yea |
| Jack Whitver | Republican | Yea |
| Jason Schultz | Republican | Yea |
| Jeff Reichman | Republican | Yea |
| Jeff Taylor | Republican | Yea |
| Jesse Green | Republican | Yea |
| Julian B. Garrett | Republican | Not Voting |
| Kara Warme | Republican | Yea |
| Ken Rozenboom | Republican | Yea |
| Kerry Gruenhagen | Republican | Not Voting |
| Kevin Alons | Republican | Yea |
| Lynn Evans | Republican | Yea |
| Mark Costello | Republican | Yea |
| Mark S. Lofgren | Republican | Yea |
| Mike Bousselot | Republican | Yea |
| Mike Klimesh | Republican | Yea |
| Mike Pike | Republican | Yea |
| Sandy Salmon | Republican | Yea |
| Scott Webster | Republican | Yea |
| Tim Kraayenbrink | Republican | Yea |
| Tom Shipley | Republican | Yea |
| Party | Yea | Nay | Present | Not Voting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | 64 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Democrat | 1 | 30 | 0 | 1 |
| Unaffiliated | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 67 | 32 | 0 | 3 |
| % of votes cast | 66% | 31% | 0% | 3% |
How each member voted (102)
| Member | Party | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| Kniff | — | Yea |
| Sexton | — | Yea |
| Jr. | — | Nay |
| Scheetz | — | Nay |
| Adam Zabner | Democrat | Nay |
| Aime Wichtendahl | Democrat | Nay |
| Amy Nielsen | Democrat | Nay |
| Austin Baeth | Democrat | Yea |
| Beth Wessel-Kroeschell | Democrat | Nay |
| Bob Kressig | Democrat | Nay |
| Brian Meyer | Democrat | Nay |
| Daniel Gosa | Democrat | Nay |
| David Jacoby | Democrat | Nay |
| Dr. Megan L. Srinivas | Democrat | Nay |
| Elinor A. Levin | Democrat | Nay |
| Elizabeth Wilson | Democrat | Nay |
| Eric J. Gjerde | Democrat | Nay |
| Heather Matson | Democrat | Nay |
| J.D. Scholten | Democrat | Nay |
| Jeff Cooling | Democrat | Nay |
| Jennifer Konfrst | Democrat | Nay |
| Jerome Amos Jr. | Democrat | Nay |
| Josh Turek | Democrat | Nay |
| Ken Croken | Democrat | Nay |
| Kenan Judge | Democrat | Nay |
| Larry McBurney | Democrat | Nay |
| Lindsay James | Democrat | Nay |
| Mary Lee Madison | Democrat | Nay |
| Monica Kurth | Democrat | Nay |
| Rick L. Olson | Democrat | Nay |
| Rob Johnson | Democrat | Nay |
| Ross Wilburn | Democrat | Nay |
| Ruth Ann Gaines | Democrat | Not Voting |
| Sean Bagniewski | Democrat | Nay |
| Timi M. Brown-Powers | Democrat | Nay |
| Tracy A. Ehlert | Democrat | Nay |
| Ann Meyer | Republican | Yea |
| Austin Harris | Republican | Yea |
| Barb Kniff McCulla | Republican | Yea |
| Bill Gustoff | Republican | Yea |
| Blaine C. Watkins | Republican | Yea |
| Bob Henderson | Republican | Yea |
| Bobby Kaufmann | Republican | Yea |
| Brent Siegrist | Republican | Not Voting |
| Brett Barker | Republican | Yea |
| Brian K. Lohse | Republican | Yea |
| Brooke Boden | Republican | Yea |
| Carter F. Nordman | Republican | Yea |
| Chad Behn | Republican | Yea |
| Chad Ingels | Republican | Yea |
| Charley Thomson | Republican | Yea |
| Christian A. Hermanson | Republican | Yea |
| Cindy Golding | Republican | Yea |
| Craig P. Johnson | Republican | Yea |
| Craig Steven Williams | Republican | Yea |
| Dan Gehlbach | Republican | Yea |
| David E. Young | Republican | Yea |
| David L. Blom | Republican | Yea |
| David Sieck | Republican | Yea |
| Dean Fisher | Republican | Yea |
| Derek Wulf | Republican | Yea |
| Devon Wood | Republican | Yea |
| Dr. Steven P. Bradley | Republican | Yea |
| Eddie Andrews | Republican | Yea |
| Gary M. Mohr | Republican | Yea |
| Hans C. Wilz | Republican | Yea |
| Heather Hora | Republican | Yea |
| Helena Hayes | Republican | Yea |
| Henry Stone | Republican | Yea |
| Jacob Bossman | Republican | Yea |
| Jane Bloomingdale | Republican | Yea |
| Jason Gearhart | Republican | Yea |
| Jennifer J. Smith | Republican | Yea |
| John H. Wills | Republican | Yea |
| Jon Dunwell | Republican | Yea |
| Joshua Meggers | Republican | Yea |
| Judd Lawler | Republican | Yea |
| Mark Cisneros | Republican | Yea |
| Mark I. Thompson | Republican | Yea |
| Matt W. Windschitl | Republican | Yea |
| Matthew Rinker | Republican | Yea |
| Megan Jones | Republican | Yea |
| Michael R. Bergan | Republican | Yea |
| Mike Vondran | Republican | Yea |
| Norlin G. Mommsen | Republican | Yea |
| Pat Grassley | Republican | Yea |
| Ray Sorensen | Republican | Yea |
| Ryan Weldon | Republican | Yea |
| Sam Wengryn | Republican | Yea |
| Samantha Fett | Republican | Not Voting |
| Shannon Latham | Republican | Yea |
| Shannon Lundgren | Republican | Yea |
| Skyler Wheeler | Republican | Yea |
| Steven C. Holt | Republican | Yea |
| Taylor R. Collins | Republican | Yea |
| Thomas Gerhold | Republican | Yea |
| Thomas Jay Moore | Republican | Yea |
| Thomas M. Jeneary | Republican | Yea |
| Tom Determann | Republican | Yea |
| Tom Shipley | Republican | Yea |
| Travis M. Sitzmann | Republican | Yea |
| Zach Dieken | Republican | Yea |
Subjects
Frequently asked questions
- Who sponsors HF 928?
- HF 928 is sponsored by COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT.
- What is the current status of HF 928?
- This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced March 12, 2025. Enacted.
- Where can I track HF 928?
- Track HF 928 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.
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