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SF334 • 2026

A bill for an act creating a special motion for expedited relief in actions involving the exercise of the right of freedom of speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition, and the right of association, and including effective date and applicability provisions.

A bill for an act creating a special motion for expedited relief in actions involving the exercise of the right of freedom of speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition, and the right of association, and including effective date and applicability provisions.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
WESTRICH
Last action
2025-02-20
Official status
Subcommittee: Schultz, Blake, and Bousselot. S.J. 327 .
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

A bill for an act creating a special motion for expedited relief in actions involving the exercise of the right of freedom of speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition, and the right of association, and including effective date and applicability provisions.

A bill for an act creating a special motion for expedited relief in actions involving the exercise of the right of freedom of speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition, and the right of association, and including effective date and applicability provisions.

What This Bill Does

  • A bill for an act creating a special motion for expedited relief in actions involving the exercise of the right of freedom of speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition, and the right of association, and including effective date and applicability provisions.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2025-02-20 Iowa Legislature

    Subcommittee: Schultz, Blake, and Bousselot. S.J. 327 .

  2. 2025-02-17 Iowa Legislature

    Introduced, referred to Judiciary. S.J. 279 .

Official Summary Text

A bill for an act creating a special motion for expedited relief in actions involving the exercise of the right of freedom of speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition, and the right of association, and including effective date and applicability provisions.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
Senate

File

334

-

Introduced

SENATE

FILE

334

BY

WESTRICH

A

BILL

FOR

An

Act

creating

a

special

motion

for

expedited

relief

in

1

actions

involving

the

exercise

of

the

right

of

freedom

of

2

speech

and

of

the

press,

the

right

to

assemble

and

petition,

3

and

the

right

of

association,

and

including

effective

date

4

and

applicability

provisions.

5

BE

IT

ENACTED

BY

THE

GENERAL

ASSEMBLY

OF

THE

STATE

OF

IOWA:

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334

Section

1.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.1

Title.

1

This

chapter

may

be

cited

as

the

“Uniform

Public

Expression

2

Protection

Act”

.

3

Sec.

2.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.2

Scope.

4

1.

As

used

in

this

section:

5

a.

“Goods

or

services”

does

not

include

the

creation,

6

dissemination,

exhibition,

or

advertisement

or

similar

7

promotion

of

a

dramatic,

literary,

musical,

political,

8

journalistic,

or

artistic

work.

9

b.

“Governmental

unit”

means

a

public

corporation

10

or

government

or

governmental

subdivision,

agency,

or

11

instrumentality.

12

2.

Except

as

otherwise

provided

in

subsection

3,

this

13

chapter

applies

to

a

cause

of

action

asserted

in

a

civil

action

14

against

a

person

based

on

any

of

the

following

of

the

person:

15

a.

Communication

in

a

legislative,

executive,

judicial,

16

administrative,

or

other

governmental

proceeding.

17

b.

Communication

on

an

issue

under

consideration

or

review

18

in

a

legislative,

executive,

judicial,

administrative,

or

other

19

governmental

proceeding.

20

c.

Exercise

of

the

right

of

freedom

of

speech

or

of

the

21

press,

the

right

to

assemble

or

petition,

or

the

right

of

22

association,

guaranteed

by

the

Constitution

of

the

United

23

States

or

the

Constitution

of

the

State

of

Iowa,

on

a

matter

of

24

public

concern.

25

3.

This

chapter

does

not

apply

to

any

of

the

following

26

causes

of

action

asserted:

27

a.

Against

a

governmental

unit

or

an

employee

or

agent

of

a

28

governmental

unit

acting

or

purporting

to

act

in

an

official

29

capacity.

30

b.

By

a

governmental

unit

or

an

employee

or

agent

of

a

31

governmental

unit

acting

in

an

official

capacity

to

enforce

a

32

law

to

protect

against

an

imminent

threat

to

public

health

or

33

safety.

34

c.

Against

a

person

primarily

engaged

in

the

business

of

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334

selling

or

leasing

goods

or

services

if

the

cause

of

action

1

arises

out

of

a

communication

related

to

the

person’s

sale

or

2

lease

of

the

goods

or

services.

3

Sec.

3.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.3

Special

motion

for

expedited

4

relief.

5

Not

later

than

sixty

days

after

a

party

is

served

with

a

6

petition,

crossclaim,

counterclaim,

third-party

claim,

or

other

7

pleading

that

asserts

a

cause

of

action

to

which

this

chapter

8

applies,

or

at

a

later

time

on

a

showing

of

good

cause,

the

9

party

may

file

a

special

motion

for

expedited

relief

to

dismiss

10

the

cause

of

action

or

part

of

the

cause

of

action.

11

Sec.

4.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.4

Stay.

12

1.

Except

as

otherwise

provided

in

subsections

4

through

13

7,

on

the

filing

of

a

motion

under

section

652.3,

all

of

the

14

following

apply:

15

a.

All

other

proceedings

between

the

moving

party

and

16

responding

party,

including

discovery

and

a

pending

hearing

or

17

motion,

are

stayed.

18

b.

On

motion

by

the

moving

party,

the

court

may

stay

a

19

hearing

or

motion

involving

another

party,

or

discovery

by

20

another

party,

if

the

hearing

or

ruling

on

the

motion

would

21

adjudicate,

or

the

discovery

would

relate

to,

an

issue

material

22

to

the

motion

under

section

652.3.

23

2.

A

stay

under

subsection

1

remains

in

effect

until

entry

24

of

an

order

ruling

on

the

motion

under

section

652.3

and

25

expiration

of

the

time

under

section

652.9

for

the

moving

party

26

to

appeal

the

order.

27

3.

Except

as

otherwise

provided

in

subsections

5,

6,

28

and

7,

if

a

party

appeals

from

an

order

ruling

on

a

motion

29

under

section

652.3,

all

proceedings

between

all

parties

in

30

the

action

are

stayed.

The

stay

remains

in

effect

until

the

31

conclusion

of

the

appeal.

32

4.

During

a

stay

under

subsection

1,

the

court

may

allow

33

limited

discovery

if

a

party

shows

that

specific

information

is

34

necessary

to

establish

whether

a

party

has

satisfied

or

failed

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to

satisfy

a

burden

under

section

652.7,

subsection

1,

and

the

1

information

is

not

reasonably

available

unless

discovery

is

2

allowed.

3

5.

A

motion

under

section

652.10

for

costs,

attorney

fees,

4

and

expenses

is

not

subject

to

a

stay

under

this

section.

5

6.

A

stay

under

this

section

does

not

affect

a

party’s

6

ability

to

voluntarily

dismiss

a

cause

of

action

or

part

of

a

7

cause

of

action

or

move

to

sever

a

cause

of

action.

8

7.

During

a

stay

under

this

section,

the

court

for

good

9

cause

may

hear

and

rule

on

all

of

the

following:

10

a.

A

motion

unrelated

to

the

motion

under

section

652.3.

11

b.

A

motion

seeking

a

special

or

preliminary

injunction

to

12

protect

against

an

imminent

threat

to

public

health

or

safety.

13

Sec.

5.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.5

Hearing.

14

1.

The

court

shall

hear

a

motion

under

section

652.3

not

15

later

than

sixty

days

after

filing

of

the

motion,

unless

the

16

court

orders

a

later

hearing

for

any

of

the

following:

17

a.

To

allow

discovery

under

section

652.4,

subsection

4.

18

b.

For

other

good

cause.

19

2.

If

the

court

orders

a

later

hearing

under

subsection

1,

20

paragraph

“a”

,

the

court

shall

hear

the

motion

under

section

21

652.3

not

later

than

sixty

days

after

the

court

order

allowing

22

the

discovery,

unless

the

court

orders

a

later

hearing

under

23

subsection

1,

paragraph

“b”

.

24

Sec.

6.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.6

Proof.

25

In

ruling

on

a

motion

under

section

652.3,

the

court

shall

26

consider

the

pleadings,

the

motion,

any

reply

or

response

to

27

the

motion,

and

any

evidence

that

could

be

considered

in

ruling

28

on

a

motion

for

summary

judgment

under

rule

of

civil

procedure

29

1.981.

30

Sec.

7.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.7

Dismissal

of

cause

of

action

in

31

whole

or

part.

32

1.

In

ruling

on

a

motion

under

section

652.3,

the

court

33

shall

dismiss

with

prejudice

a

cause

of

action,

or

part

of

a

34

cause

of

action,

if

all

of

the

following

are

true:

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a.

The

moving

party

establishes

under

section

652.2,

1

subsection

2,

that

this

chapter

applies.

2

b.

The

responding

party

fails

to

establish

under

section

3

652.2,

subsection

3,

that

this

chapter

does

not

apply.

4

c.

Any

of

the

following

are

true:

5

(1)

The

responding

party

fails

to

establish

a

prima

facie

6

case

as

to

each

essential

element

of

the

cause

of

action.

7

(2)

The

moving

party

establishes

that

any

of

the

following:

8

(a)

The

responding

party

failed

to

state

a

cause

of

action

9

upon

which

relief

can

be

granted.

10

(b)

There

is

no

genuine

issue

as

to

any

material

fact

and

11

the

moving

party

is

entitled

to

judgment

as

a

matter

of

law

on

12

the

action

or

part

of

an

action.

13

2.

A

voluntary

dismissal

without

prejudice

of

a

responding

14

party’s

cause

of

action,

or

part

of

a

cause

of

action,

that

is

15

the

subject

of

a

motion

under

section

652.3

does

not

affect

a

16

moving

party’s

right

to

obtain

a

ruling

on

the

motion

and

seek

17

costs,

attorney

fees,

and

expenses

under

section

652.10.

18

3.

A

voluntary

dismissal

with

prejudice

of

a

responding

19

party’s

cause

of

action,

or

part

of

a

cause

of

action,

that

is

20

the

subject

of

a

motion

under

section

652.3

establishes

for

the

21

purpose

of

section

652.10

that

the

moving

party

prevailed

on

22

the

motion.

23

Sec.

8.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.8

Ruling.

24

The

court

shall

rule

on

a

motion

under

section

652.3

not

25

later

than

sixty

days

after

a

hearing

under

section

652.5.

26

Sec.

9.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.9

Appeal.

27

A

moving

party

may

appeal

as

a

matter

of

right

from

an

order

28

denying,

in

whole

or

in

part,

a

motion

under

section

652.3.

29

The

appeal

must

be

filed

not

later

than

thirty

days

after

entry

30

of

the

order.

31

Sec.

10.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.10

Costs,

attorney

fees,

and

32

expenses.

33

On

a

motion

under

section

652.3,

the

court

shall

award

court

34

costs,

reasonable

attorney

fees,

and

reasonable

litigation

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expenses

related

to

the

motion

in

the

following

circumstances:

1

1.

To

the

moving

party

if

the

moving

party

prevails

on

the

2

motion.

3

2.

To

the

responding

party

if

the

responding

party

prevails

4

on

the

motion

and

the

court

finds

that

the

motion

was

frivolous

5

or

filed

solely

with

intent

to

delay

the

proceeding.

6

Sec.

11.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.11

Construction.

7

This

chapter

shall

be

broadly

construed

and

applied

to

8

protect

the

exercise

of

the

right

of

freedom

of

speech

and

of

9

the

press,

the

right

to

assemble

and

petition,

and

the

right

10

of

association,

guaranteed

by

the

Constitution

of

the

United

11

States

or

the

Constitution

of

the

State

of

Iowa.

12

Sec.

12.

NEW

SECTION

.

652.12

Uniformity

of

application

and

13

construction.

14

In

applying

and

construing

this

chapter,

consideration

shall

15

be

given

to

the

need

to

promote

uniformity

of

the

law

with

16

respect

to

its

subject

matter

among

states

that

enact

it.

17

Sec.

13.

EFFECTIVE

DATE.

This

Act,

being

deemed

of

18

immediate

importance,

takes

effect

upon

enactment.

19

Sec.

14.

APPLICABILITY.

This

Act

applies

to

a

civil

action

20

filed

or

cause

of

action

asserted

in

a

civil

action

on

or

after

21

the

effective

date

of

this

Act.

22

EXPLANATION

23

The

inclusion

of

this

explanation

does

not

constitute

agreement

with

24

the

explanation’s

substance

by

the

members

of

the

general

assembly.

25

This

bill

enacts

the

“Uniform

Public

Expression

Protection

26

Act”,

which

creates

a

special

motion

for

expedited

relief

in

27

actions

involving

the

exercise

of

the

right

of

freedom

of

28

speech

and

of

the

press,

the

right

to

assemble

and

petition,

29

and

the

right

of

association.

30

The

bill

applies

to

a

cause

of

action

asserted

in

a

civil

31

action

against

a

person

based

on

the

person’s

communication

32

in

a

legislative,

executive,

judicial,

administrative,

or

33

other

governmental

proceeding;

communication

on

an

issue

under

34

consideration

or

review

in

a

legislative,

executive,

judicial,

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334

administrative,

or

other

governmental

proceeding;

or

exercise

1

of

the

person’s

first

amendment

right

on

a

matter

of

public

2

concern.

3

The

bill

does

not

apply

to

causes

of

action

against

a

4

governmental

unit

or

an

employee

or

agent

of

a

governmental

5

unit

acting

or

purporting

to

act

in

an

official

capacity;

by

6

a

governmental

unit

or

an

employee

or

agent

of

a

governmental

7

unit

acting

in

an

official

capacity

to

enforce

or

protect

8

against

an

imminent

threat

to

public

health

or

safety;

or

9

against

a

person

engaged

in

the

business

of

selling

or

leasing

10

goods

or

services

if

the

cause

of

action

arises

out

of

a

11

communication

related

to

a

person’s

sale

or

lease

of

the

goods

12

or

services.

13

The

bill

defines

“goods

or

services”

to

not

include

the

14

creation,

dissemination,

exhibition,

or

advertisement

or

15

similar

promotion

of

a

dramatic,

literary,

musical,

political,

16

journalistic,

or

artistic

work,

and

defines

“governmental

unit”

17

to

mean

a

public

corporation

or

government

or

governmental

18

subdivision,

agency,

or

instrumentality.

19

The

bill

provides

that

no

later

than

60

days

after

being

20

served

with

a

cause

of

action

to

which

the

bill

applies,

or

21

at

a

later

time

upon

showing

of

good

cause,

a

party

may

file

22

a

special

motion

for

expedited

relief

to

dismiss

the

cause

23

of

action

or

part

of

the

cause

of

action.

The

filing

of

24

the

special

motion

stays

all

other

proceedings

between

the

25

parties,

and

the

court

has

discretion

to

stay

a

proceeding

26

involving

another

party

if

the

hearing

or

ruling

on

motion

27

would

adjudicate

an

issue

material

to

the

motion.

A

hearing

28

shall

be

held

no

later

than

60

days

after

filing

the

motion,

29

unless

the

court

orders

a

later

hearing

to

allow

discovery

30

or

for

good

cause.

A

stay

remains

in

effect

until

an

order

31

ruling

on

the

motion

is

entered

and

the

30-day

appeal

period

32

following

the

order

has

concluded.

During

a

stay,

the

court

33

may

allow

limited

discovery

if

a

party

shows

the

information

34

is

not

reasonably

available

and

that

specific

information

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334

is

necessary

to

establish

whether

a

party

has

satisfied

the

1

party’s

burden

under

the

bill.

The

court

may

also,

for

good

2

cause,

hear

and

rule

on

motions

unrelated

to

the

special

motion

3

and

a

motion

seeking

an

injunction.

The

bill

provides

that

a

4

motion

for

costs,

attorney

fees,

and

expenses

is

not

subject

5

to

the

special

motion

for

expedited

relief

stay.

The

parties’

6

ability

to

voluntarily

dismiss

or

move

to

sever

is

not

affected

7

by

the

special

motion

for

expedited

relief

stay.

8

The

bill

provides

that

in

ruling

on

a

special

motion

for

9

expedited

relief,

the

court

shall

dismiss

with

prejudice

a

10

cause

of

action,

or

part

of

a

cause

of

action,

if

the

moving

11

party

establishes

that

the

bill

applies,

the

responding

party

12

fails

to

establish

that

the

bill

does

not

apply,

and

either

the

13

responding

party

fails

to

establish

a

prima

facie

case

as

to

14

each

essential

element

of

the

cause

of

action

or

the

moving

15

party

establishes

that

the

responding

party

failed

to

state

a

16

cause

of

action

upon

which

relief

can

be

granted

or

there

is

no

17

genuine

issue

as

to

any

material

fact

and

the

moving

party

is

18

entitled

to

judgment

as

a

matter

of

law

on

the

cause

of

action

19

or

part

of

the

cause

of

action.

20

The

bill

provides

that

the

court

may

award

court

costs,

21

reasonable

attorney

fees,

and

reasonable

litigation

fees

22

relating

to

the

special

motion

to

the

prevailing

party.

23

The

bill

is

a

uniform

Act

drafted

by

the

national

conference

24

of

commissioners

on

uniform

state

laws.

The

bill

takes

effect

25

upon

enactment.

The

bill

applies

to

actions

that

are

filed

on

26

or

after

the

effective

date

of

the

bill.

27

-7-

LSB

1752XS

(3)

91

cm/jh

7/

7