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HF 2534 Iowa House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

A bill for an act relating to animal feeding operations by regulating shellfish, and making penalties applicable.

HF 2534 adds shellfish to Iowa's definition of "animal" under animal feeding operation (AFO) regulations. It establishes weight-based calculation rules: shellfish weighing 25 grams or more equal 0.001 animal units each, while smaller shellfish equal 0.00006 animal units each. Shellfish confinement operations can now choose to follow general water quality permitting instead of standard AFO requirements. This directly affects shellfish farmers by integrating them into the state's existing AFO regulatory framework.
Issues: ✓ EnvironmentSupports EnvironmentBill integrates shellfish into AFO regulations requiring water quality compliance. Alternative permitting is procedural, not a weakening. Extends environmental oversight to shellfish farming operations.85% confidence
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
House Passage
Mar 2026
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
Signed into Law
Apr 2026
Introduced Feb 16, 2026 Signed Apr 16, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

Enrolled → Enrolled with Governor's Action · 3 edits · Apr 16, 2026
MINOR
This bill updates Iowa's animal feeding regulations to explicitly include shellfish alongside traditional livestock like cattle and fish. It establishes specific weight-based thresholds for shellfish (25 grams or more vs. less than 25 grams) and creates an exemption allowing operators to choose between two different permitting systems.
Scope change
The bill expands the scope of regulated 'animals' to include shellfish and clarifies the permitting requirements for facilities that exclusively confine fish or shellfish.
DEFINITION

Added shellfish to the legal definition of 'animal' in the animal feeding operations chapter.

REQUIREMENT

Introduced new weight-based thresholds for shellfish, distinguishing between those weighing 25 grams or more and those weighing less than 25 grams.

ELIGIBILITY

Created an election option for facilities exclusively confining fish or shellfish to comply with a different set of permitting requirements instead of the standard subchapter rules.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 30, 2026

How they voted

45–0
Passed · 4 other
Total votes 49
Mar 30, 2026
D Democratic15
14 Yea 1
93% Yea
R Republican34
31 Yea 3
91% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
12
Key actions
3
Committee
0
Apr 16, 2026
Signed into law
Signed by Governor.
lower
Mar 30, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed Senate, yeas 46, nays 0.
upper
Mar 2, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed House, yeas 90, nays 0.
lower
Feb 16, 2026
Introduced
Introduced, placed on calendar.
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.