Kerry Gruenhagen

Voted to Shield Pesticide Companies From Lawsuits

Gruenhagen — himself a farmer — voted Yes on SF 394 (2025), which would shield pesticide manufacturers like Bayer from lawsuits by people harmed by their products. Several of his fellow Republicans voted no; he did not.[3]

Voted to Put Work Requirements on Medicaid

He voted Yes on SF 615 (2025), forcing Iowans on Medicaid expansion to document 80 hours of work a month or lose their coverage.[2]

Voted to Strip Civil-Rights Protections From Transgender Iowans

Gruenhagen voted Yes on SF 418 (2025), removing gender identity as a protected class from the Iowa Civil Rights Act.[1]

Voted to Divert Public School Funding to Private Tuition

Gruenhagen voted Yes on HF 68 (2023), Iowa's private-school voucher law (Education Savings Accounts), which diverts public per-pupil funding to private-school tuition — money the rural public districts across Senate District 41 depend on. It passed the Senate 31-18; only three Republicans voted no, and he was not among them.[5]

Voted to Pull Books and Restrict Classroom Instruction

Gruenhagen voted Yes on SF 496 (2023), which forced books off school-library shelves and barred instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation through sixth grade. It passed the Senate 34-16 on party lines.[6]

Declined a Hearing on Iowa's Child-Welfare Oversight

As chair of the Senate Government Oversight Committee, Gruenhagen did not respond to a request from the panel's ranking Democrat, Sen. Tony Bisignano, to hold a hearing on why Iowa's Child Welfare Task Force — created after the starvation death of 16-year-old Sabrina Ray — had not met with legislators in two years. State health officials say the task force's work was folded into a successor advisory committee.[7]

Voted to Ban Abortion and Gender-Affirming Care

Gruenhagen voted to take deeply personal medical decisions out of Iowans' hands — banning most abortions after about six weeks and outlawing gender-affirming care for transgender minors.

• Voted Yes on HF 732 (2023), Iowa's ban on most abortions after roughly six weeks of pregnancy, passed in a July special session 32-17.[8]
• Voted Yes on SF 538 (2023), banning puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and related care for transgender Iowans under 18; it passed 33-16 on party lines.[9]

Voted to Squeeze the Public Schools Scott County Kids Rely On

Beyond vouchers, Gruenhagen voted to hold public-school funding below inflation and to overhaul the agency that delivers special-education services to local children.

• Voted Yes on SF 167 (2025), setting the per-pupil supplemental state aid increase at just 2% (about $157 per student) — below inflation for the rural districts across Senate District 41; it passed 29-18.[13]
• Voted Yes on HF 2612 (2024), restructuring Iowa's Area Education Agencies — the system that delivers special-education, speech, and occupational-therapy services to Scott County children through the Mississippi Bend AEA; it passed 30-18.[12]

Voted to Loosen Child-Labor Limits and Criminalize Immigrants

He voted to roll back Iowa's child-labor protections and to make being in Iowa a state crime for some immigrants — a law the courts blocked.

• Voted Yes on SF 542 (2023), which loosened Iowa's child-labor law — extending permitted work hours for 14- and 15-year-olds and opening previously barred jobs to minors. The U.S. Department of Labor warned it conflicted with federal law. Final passage 29-18.[10][16]
• Voted Yes on SF 2340 (2024), making it a state crime for certain immigrants to be in Iowa after prior removal; a federal court blocked it as unconstitutional and the U.S. Department of Justice sued the state. It passed 34-16.[11][17]

Out of Step — Even With His Own Party

Twice Gruenhagen broke from the pack: he was the lone senator to vote against banning handheld phones behind the wheel, and — a farmer himself — he sided with a carbon-pipeline company over landowners.

• Cast the only No vote on SF 22 (2025), the hands-free driving law banning handheld cellphone use behind the wheel; it passed 47-1.[14]
• Voted No on HF 639 (2025), which would have limited the Summit carbon-capture pipeline's use of eminent domain and added insurance protections for affected landowners; many Republicans voted yes, but Gruenhagen did not. It passed 27-22 and Gov. Reynolds later vetoed it.[15]