Iowa Allow Limits on the Right to Confront Witnesses in Court Amendment (2028)

Iowa Allow Limits on the Right to Confront Witnesses in Court Amendment
Election date November 7, 2028
Topic Criminal trials
Status Proposed
Type Constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature

The Iowa Allow Limits on the Right to Confront Witnesses in Court Amendment may appear on the ballot in Iowa as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 7, 2028.

The constitutional amendment would permit state law to limit the rights of a person accused of a crime to confront a witness in court if the witness is under the age of 18, has an intellectual or developmental disability, or has a mental illness.

Text of the measure

Full text

The full text of the ballot measure is available here.

Path to the ballot

Amending the Iowa Constitution

See also: Amending the Iowa Constitution

A simple majority vote is required during two successive legislative sessions with an election for state legislators in between for the Iowa State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 51 votes in the Iowa House of Representatives and 26 votes in the Iowa State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

2025-2026 session

The Senate Judiciary Committee sponsored and introduced the constitutional amendment into the Iowa State Legislature as Senate Joint Resolution 9 (SJR 9) on February 27, 2025. The constitutional amendment moved through the legislature between February 27 and April 17.

• February 27, 2025: The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously submitted their report approving and sponsoring the bill.
• March 19, 2025: The state Senate unanimously approved SJR 9 in a vote of 47-0 with three senators absent or not voting.
• April 17, 2025: The state House approved SJR 9 in a vote of 87-6. Twenty-seven Democrats and 60 Republicans voted yes and three Democrats and three Republicans voted no. Two Democrats and four Republicans were absent or not voting. The amendment was then referred to the general assembly for the 2027-2028 legislative session.

Iowa State Senate

Voted on March 19, 2025

Votes Required to Pass: 26
	Yes	No	NV
Total	47	0	3
Total %	94.0%	0.0%	6.0%
Democratic (D)	13	0	3
Republican (R)	34	0	0

Iowa House of Representatives

Voted on April 17, 2025

Votes Required to Pass: 51
	Yes	No	NV
Total	87	6	6
Total %	87.8%	6.1%	6.1%
Democratic (D)	27	3	2
Republican (R)	60	3	4

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in Iowa

See below to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in Iowa.

How to vote in Iowa

Poll times

In Iowa, all polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Central Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.

Registration

Check your voter registration status here.

To vote in Iowa, one must be a United States citizen, a resident of Iowa, and at least 18 years old by Election Day. A voter that is 17 years old may participate in a primary election if they will be 18 by the time of the next general election. The deadline to register is 15 days prior to the election but registration is permitted on Election Day with proof of identification.Iowans may register online or by completing a form and returning to their county auditor’s office by mail or in person.

Automatic registration

See also: Automatic voter registration

Iowa does not practice automatic voter registration.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

Iowa has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.

Same-day registration

See also: Same-day voter registration

Iowa allows same-day voter registration.

In order to register and vote on Election Day, voters must go to the correct polling place with proof of their identity and residence (i.e. a valid Iowa driver's license or another acceptable form of photo identification and proof of residency). Click here to read more about voter identification requirements.

Residency requirements

To register to vote in Iowa, you must be a resident of the state. State law does not specify a length of time for which you must have been a resident to be eligible.

Verification of citizenship

See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States

Iowa does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. An individual applying to register to vote must attest that they are a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury.

All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment. Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. One state, Ohio, requires proof of citizenship only when registering to vote at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles facility. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters.

Verifying your registration

The Iowa secretary of state’s office maintains a page that allows residents to check their voter registration status online.

Voter ID requirements

Iowa requires voters to present identification while voting. Voters who do not have a valid ID can obtain an Iowa voter ID card for free by mail.

The following list of accepted ID was current as of October 2025. Click here for the Iowa Secretary of State's page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.

“

Iowa Voter Identification Card Iowa driver’s license Iowa non-operator ID U.S. Military ID or Veteran ID U.S. Passport Tribal ID card/document

”

Voters who do not have one of the IDs listed above may have another voter attest to their identity, or they may provide a combination of other documents to verify their identity and residence. The following additional documents are acceptable proof of identity:

• Iowa non-operator ID
• Out-of-state driver's license or non-driver ID card
• ID card issued by employer
• Student ID issued by Iowa high school or college
• Another photo ID that is current, valid, and contains an expiration date

The following documents are acceptable proof of residence if a photo ID does not contain a voter's current address:

• Residential lease
• Utility bill (including a cell phone bill)
• Bank statement
• Paycheck
• Government check or other government document
• Property tax statement

See also

2028 measures

• 2028 ballot measures
• Criminal trials on the ballot

Iowa

• Iowa ballot measures
• Iowa ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Senate Joint Resolution 9