HF 2667 Iowa House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

A bill for an act relating to project design standards and specifications, including by providing for a statewide urban design and specifications board and requiring certain reports to city councils regarding noncompliant projects.

HF 2667 creates a statewide urban design and specifications board to develop and maintain statewide design standards for transportation projects. It directly affects city councils and local governments managing street projects that do not follow the state's design standards. The bill requires cities to submit a cost report to their council before approving any non-compliant project, detailing financial impacts of deviating from the standards. The board must publish design manuals online and provide cost analysis for any changes to these standards, ensuring transparency for local governments.

Bill status vetoed 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Vetoed

Jun 2026

Introduced Feb 23, 2026 Vetoed Jun 2, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

Enrolled with Governor's Action → Reprinted · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was reprinted to correct formatting and layout issues while retaining the original policy content. The substantive provisions remain unchanged, establishing a new Statewide Urban Design and Specifications Board and requiring cities to report cost impacts when approving street projects that do not meet state standards.

TECHNICAL

The text was reformatted from a line-by-line legislative markup style into a standard bill layout with proper section numbering, headers, and page breaks.

Introduced → Enrolled · 8 edits · May 6, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was finalized as an enrolled law, changing the document format from a draft proposal to an official enactment signed by the Governor. Substantively, the bill established a new Statewide Urban Design and Specifications Board within the Department of Transportation to create design standards, and it shifted the enforcement mechanism so that cities and counties approving non-compliant projects must report costs to their councils and pay for the additional expenses themselves, rather than assessing property owners.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include new board members representing the American Council of Engineering Companies and the Iowa State Building and Construction Trades Council, and it added a requirement that specific board members (those appointed by the director, engineering companies, counties, and cities) must be licensed professional engineers.

REQUIREMENT

Established a new Statewide Urban Design and Specifications Board to develop and publish design and specifications manuals.

Added new board members representing the American Council of Engineering Companies and the Iowa State Building and Construction Trades Council.

Required the board to publish manuals on the Iowa State University of Science and Technology's internet site.

Removed the requirement for the board to solicit recommendations from the Institute for Transportation at Iowa State University.

Added a prohibition on cities modifying approved project designs after construction has begun.

ELIGIBILITY

Added eligibility requirements for board members appointed by the director, engineering companies, counties, and cities, mandating they be licensed professional engineers.

ENFORCEMENT

Changed the enforcement mechanism for non-compliant projects: cities and counties must now submit cost reports to their councils and pay for additional costs, instead of assessing property owners.

DEFINITION

Updated the board composition to include representatives from the American Council of Engineering Companies and the Iowa State Building and Construction Trades Council.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 31, 2026

How they voted

29–16

Passed · 4 other

Total votes 49

Mar 31, 2026

D Democratic15

1 Yea 13 Nay 1

86% Nay

R Republican34

28 Yea 3 Nay 3

82% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Jun 2, 2026

Vetoed

Vetoed by Governor.

lower

Mar 31, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed Senate, yeas 28, nays 18.

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed House, yeas 61, nays 36.

lower

Mar 4, 2026

Lower · Passed

Amendment H-8126 adopted.

lower

Mar 3, 2026

Introduced

Amendment H-8126 filed.

lower

Feb 23, 2026

Introduced

Introduced, placed on calendar.

lower

0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

What changed between versions

How they voted

Actions timeline

Sponsors