Iowa 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: Enacted

HF 2256 — A bill for an act exempting a parent’s or legal guardian’s inability to access appropriate behavioral or mental health treatment for their child from the definition of child abuse.

Last action — Signed by Governor.

Track this bill free

No card. One bill, free forever — alerts when it moves.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed House
  4. ✓
    Passed Senate
  5. ✓
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 30, 2026. Enacted.

Signed by Governor Kim Reynolds (Republican) on May 06, 2026.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 70% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

High

How often bills like it became law.

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 1 sponsor

    1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 3 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

41 added · 63 removed

Plain-language change summary

The recent amendment to House File 2256 introduces a new provision that states a parent or legal guardian will not be considered as committing child abuse if they cannot access necessary behavioral or mental health treatment for their child despite making reasonable efforts. This change aims to protect parents who are trying to get help for their children but face barriers in accessing appropriate care, acknowledging that the lack of treatment access is not a reflection of their ability to care for their child. This is important because it helps ensure that families are not penalized for systemic issues in the healthcare system while still allowing for child welfare assessments to safeguard the child's wellbeing.

→
Previous
Latest
STATE OF IOWA KMREYNODS GOVERNOR My0,026 TeHnrbealPe ertryfteoIoa tteptl DsMns,owa39 Dar.Sctr, Ieeyrni:
House File 2256 - Enrolled House File 2256 AN ACT EXEMPTING A PARENT’S OR LEGAL GUARDIAN’S INABILITY TO ACCESS APPROPRIATE BEHAVIORAL OR MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT FOR THEIR CHILD FROM THE DEFINITION OF CHILD ABUSE.
Husele2,anteepigaaetsrealadasiblytacs apoitehvoalretlelhramtfrhrhldrmhefntnof cidbs.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
Teaoeoueieseeyapoednhsa.
Section 1.
Kr^nofc \ Gvrorfoa-^ c:
Section 232.68, subsection 2, paragraph a, subparagraph (4), Code 2026, is amended by adding the following new subparagraph division:
Sceryfheeae Cekoteoue SAECPIOL ESONS,OWA09 5.851 WWW.GOVERNOR.IOWA.GOV » <£PRUE'S?! WILLMAINTAH ZnimiHüiiHHnnHiiHin», IIL jçj kivë ÆaT^ Hue ile 56 N CT EEMTNG AARNTS R EGL URDANS NAILTY O CES APRPIAE EHVIRAL R NAL ELTH EAMNT OR EIR CILD OM E EFNIIN F HID BUE.
NEW SUBPARAGRAPH DIVISION .
BE T ATED Y E ENRL SSMBY F HE TTE F W:
(d) If a child has a diagnosed behavioral health condition and, despite reasonable attempts, the child’s parent or legal guardian is unable to provide necessary care for the child’s health and welfare solely because the parent or legal guardian is unable to access appropriate behavioral or mental health treatment for the child, the department shall not consider the lack of provision of appropriate behavioral or mental health treatment as child abuse.
Scion .
This subparagraph division shall not be construed to prohibit the department from assessing a child’s situation and facilitating appropriate intervention the department deems is in the best interests of the child.
ecion 268, bscton , rarah , sbprarph 4, ode 2, s meded y dig he llwig nw ubaagaph viin:
Sec.
NW UPAAGAPH VIIN.
2.
() If ahld as aignsd bhairal alh oniton d, epie eaonbe ttmps, te hids arnt r eal arian s abe o rvie ncesry ae or he il's alh nd efre oely bcase e arnt r eal arian s abe o cess aprprae ehviral r nal elth eamet or e cid, he patmnt hll t onidr he ak f rviion of prpiae ehviral renal elth eamnt s hld aue.
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES —— INCORPORATION INTO POLICIES.
Tis upaagaph vsin hal ot e osrud o pohbt te earmet rom sssng ahids staton nd fciittng prorite neretin he earmnt ems s in e et ntrets f e hid.
The department of health and human services shall adjust the department’s child abuse House File 2256, p.
Sc.
2 assessment policies, including the department’s policy manuals, to incorporate the provisions of section 232.68, subsection 2, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (4), subparagraph division (d), as enacted in this Act.
EPRTENT F ATH ND MAN RICS - ICOPOAION TO OICE.
______________________________ ______________________________ PAT GRASSLEY 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 2256, Ninety-first General Assembly.
he patmnt f elh nd hman rics hal djst e eprten's hld use Houe Fle 26, .
______________________________ MEGHAN NELSON Chief Clerk of the House Approved _______________, 2026 ______________________________ KIM REYNOLDS Governor
2 asesmet pliie, iclding e dpatmnt's licy nuls, to nororte he roisons f ecion 2.8, ubscton , pragaph ", ubprarah (), ubargrph ivsin (), s eactd n tis c.
_ PT GASLEY AY SNCAIR Seakr f e oue Pesdet of he nae I erby erify ht his il rignaed n he ose nd is nwn s oue ile 26, intyfist enral semly.
AN LSN he ose Aprved K’MEYNLD Gvenor
⬇ Download PDF
View plain text versions (4)

Amendments

2 amendments

Click Show changes on an amendment above to see how it modifies the bill.

Action History

  1. Signed by Governor.

  2. Reported correctly enrolled, signed by Speaker and President, and sent to Governor.

  3. Explanation of vote.

  4. Message from House.

  5. Immediate message.

  6. Passed House, yeas 90, nays 0.

  7. House concurred in Senate amendment H-8299.

  8. Fiscal note.

  9. Senate amendment H-8299 filed.

  10. Message from Senate.

  11. Immediate message.

  12. Passed Senate, yeas 47, nays 0.

  13. Amendment S-5120 adopted.

  14. Placed on calendar under unfinished business.

  15. Placed on calendar.

  16. Amendment S-5120 filed.

  17. Committee report, recommending amendment and passage.

  18. Fiscal note.

  19. Subcommittee recommends passage.

  20. Subcommittee Meeting: 03/09/2026 12:30PM Room 315.

  21. Subcommittee: Alons, Evans, and Petersen.

  22. Read first time, referred to Health and Human Services.

  23. Message from House.

  24. Immediate message.

  25. Passed House, yeas 90, nays 0.

  26. Fiscal note.

  27. Introduced, placed on calendar.

Sponsors

  • COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES · Primary

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 149 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

  • COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

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.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

Shall the bill pass?

Passed 47 Yea · 0 Nay · 3 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Republican 31002
Democrat 17001
Total 48003
% of votes cast 94%0%0%6%
How each member voted (51)
Member Party Vote
Art Staed Democrat Yea
Catelin Drey Democrat Yea
Cindy Winckler Democrat Yea
Herman C. Quirmbach Democrat Yea
Izaah Knox Democrat Yea
Janet Petersen Democrat Yea
Janice Weiner Democrat Yea
Liz Bennett Democrat Yea
Matt Blake Democrat Yea
Mike Zimmer Democrat Yea
Molly Donahue Democrat Yea
Renee Hardman Democrat Yea
Sarah Trone Garriott Democrat Yea
Sarah Trone Garriott Democrat Yea
Thomas Townsend Democrat Yea
Tony Bisignano Democrat Yea
William A. Dotzler Jr. Democrat Yea
Zach Wahls Democrat Not Voting
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 Dawson Republican Yea
Dan Zumbach Republican Yea
Dave Sires Republican Yea
David D. Rowley Republican Not Voting
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 Yea
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

Official roll call →

Shall the bill pass?

Passed 47 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 30002
Republican 13001
Democrat 4000
Total 47003
% of votes cast 94%0%0%6%
How each member voted (50)
Member Party Vote
Allen — Yea
Bertrand — Not Voting
Bolkcom — Yea
Bowman — Yea
Boulton — Yea
Breitbach — Yea
Brown — Yea
Carlin — Yea
Chapman — Yea
Chelgren — Yea
Hart — Yea
Hogg — Yea
Horn — Yea
Jochum — Yea
Kapucian — Yea
Kinney — Yea
Lykam — Yea
Mathis — Yea
McCoy — Yea
Ragan — Yea
Schneider — Yea
Segebart — Yea
Zaun — Yea
Danielson — Yea
Johnson, D. — Yea
Shipley — Yea
Taylor — Yea
Vacant, 1. — Not Voting
Dvorsky — Yea
Edler — Yea
Feenstra — Yea
Greene — Yea
Herman C. Quirmbach Democrat Yea
Janet Petersen Democrat Yea
Tony Bisignano Democrat Yea
William A. Dotzler Jr. Democrat Yea
Amy Sinclair Republican Yea
Chad Behn Republican Yea
Craig P. Johnson Republican Yea
Dan Dawson Republican Yea
Dan Zumbach Republican Not Voting
Dennis Guth Republican Yea
Jack Whitver Republican Yea
Jason Schultz Republican Yea
Jennifer J. Smith Republican Yea
Julian B. Garrett Republican Yea
Ken Rozenboom Republican Yea
Mark Costello Republican Yea
Mark S. Lofgren Republican Yea
Tim Kraayenbrink Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Shall the bill pass?

Passed 98 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 66001
Democrat 10001
Republican 22000
Total 98002
% of votes cast 98%0%0%2%
How each member voted (100)
Member Party Vote
Abdul-Samad — Yea
Bacon — Yea
Baltimore — Yea
Baudler — Yea
Bearinger — Yea
Baxter — Yea
Best — Yea
Breckenridge — Yea
Carlson — Yea
Cohoon — Yea
Gustafson — Yea
Hagenow — Yea
Hall — Yea
Hanusa — Yea
Heartsill — Yea
Heddens — Yea
Heaton — Yea
Hein — Yea
Highfill — Yea
Hinson — Yea
Holz — Yea
Hunter — Yea
Huseman — Yea
Isenhart — Yea
Jacobsen — Yea
Kacena — Yea
Kearns — Yea
Kerr — Yea
Klein — Yea
Koester — Yea
Landon — Yea
Lensing — Yea
Mascher — Yea
Maxwell — Yea
McConkey — Yea
McKean — Yea
Nunn — Yea
Oldson — Yea
Ourth — Yea
Paustian — Yea
Pettengill — Yea
Prichard — Yea
Rizer — Yea
Rogers — Yea
Running-Marquardt — Yea
Sexton — Yea
Sheets — Yea
Steckman — Yea
Thede — Yea
Upmeyer — Yea
Watts — Yea
Wolfe — Yea
Worthan — Yea
Anderson — Yea
Cownie — Yea
Deyoe — Yea
Dolecheck — Yea
Finkenauer — Yea
Forbes — Yea
Fry — Yea
Gaskill — Yea
Gassman — Yea
Hager — Yea
Meyer — Yea
Miller, P. — Yea
Miller, H. — Not Voting
Vander Linden — Yea
Amy Nielsen Democrat Yea
Art Staed Democrat Yea
Beth Wessel-Kroeschell Democrat Yea
Bob Kressig Democrat Yea
Cindy Winckler Democrat Yea
David Jacoby Democrat Yea
Liz Bennett Democrat Yea
Monica Kurth Democrat Yea
Rick L. Olson Democrat Yea
Ruth Ann Gaines Democrat Not Voting
Timi M. Brown-Powers Democrat Yea
Bobby Kaufmann Republican Yea
Dan Zumbach Republican Yea
David Sieck Republican Yea
Dean Fisher Republican Yea
Gary M. Mohr Republican Yea
Jacob Bossman Republican Yea
Jane Bloomingdale Republican Yea
Jeff Taylor Republican Yea
Jeff Taylor Republican Yea
Jennifer J. Smith Republican Yea
Jennifer J. Smith Republican Yea
John H. Wills Republican Yea
Matt W. Windschitl Republican Yea
Megan Jones Republican Yea
Michael R. Bergan Republican Yea
Norlin G. Mommsen Republican Yea
Pat Grassley Republican Yea
Sandy Salmon Republican Yea
Shannon Lundgren Republican Yea
Skyler Wheeler Republican Yea
Steven C. Holt Republican Yea
Thomas Jay Moore Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

civil-rights healthcare
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors HF 2256?
HF 2256 is sponsored by COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES.
What is the current status of HF 2256?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 30, 2026. Enacted.
Where can I track HF 2256?
Track HF 2256 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on HF 2256

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of HF 2256

Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →