A bill for an act relating to child custody for parents subject to short-term deployments.

This Iowa bill (SF 2053) helps military parents with court-ordered visitation rights during short military deployments. It allows a deploying parent (a uniformed service member with a deployment under 30 days that prevents family travel) to make up missed visitation time within 30 days before or after deployment, without exceeding the actual missed days or a 30-day total. The bill requires the deploying parent to notify the other parent in writing within seven days (or as soon as possible if service prevents it) and provide a written plan for the make-up time, which must also be filed with the court overseeing the child custody arrangement.