Robin Opsahl covers the state legislature and politics for Iowa Capital Dispatch, where this article first appeared.

Many of the laws advanced during the 2026 legislative session took effect July 1, including measures restricting access to abortion-inducing medication, increasing the speed limit on two-lane highways and limiting future governors’ powers during public health and disaster emergencies.

July 1, the beginning of the state’s fiscal year, is the default date for new laws to be enacted, unless otherwise specified.

Several measures passed this session went into effect immediately, including laws banning public entities from hosting warrant resolution clinics and shifting some K-12 funding from public to charter schools to follow students. Other new laws have a different start date specified. For example, the 5-cent tax on vapes and alternative nicotine products will go into effect January 1, 2027.

Here’s a look at some of Iowa’s new laws that took effect July 1:

Sam Stockard and Anita Wadhwani report for the Tennessee Lookout, which is is part of the States Newsroom network. This article first appeared at Iowa Capital Dispatch.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is among a coalition warning the nation’s largest companies—many of which have diversity and equity programs—they could face legal action for using race-based policies.

A July 13 letter from Bird and twelve other attorneys general put Fortune 100 companies on notice they could be hit with legal action for violating the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, which put an end to using race as a basis for admitting students to college. The attorneys general are targeting hiring and contracting too.