Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley announced Tuesday that House Republican leadership had cleared a large hurdle in their effort to overturn Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ June 11 veto on an eminent domain bill. 

Grassley’s office said that 70 lawmakers had signed onto the petition to call a special session, more than a two-thirds majority required by Iowa’s Constitution. However, Republican leaders in the Iowa Senate are uninterested in calling a special session making the prospects of a special session unlikely. 

The bill, House File 639, would have enshrined limits on eminent domain use for economic development, required pipeline companies to carry more insurance, expand who can intervene in Iowa Utilities Commission proceedings, and would have required commission members to attend more meetings. 

“This veto was a major setback for Iowa landowners and the tireless efforts of the House to safeguard property rights,” Grassley said in a statement Tuesday. “We now call on our colleagues in the Senate to join us by securing the necessary signatures so we can convene a special session, override this veto, and deliver the protections Iowa landowners deserve against eminent domain for private gain.”

However, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said the bill would hurt economic development in the state and would do more harm than intended. 

“While I share the bill’s goal of protecting landowners, good policy should draw clear, careful lines,” Reynolds said in her veto message. “This bill doesn’t. It combines valid concerns with vague legal standards and sweeping mandates that reach far beyond their intended targets.” 

However, Reynolds said she is committed to working with the legislature to strengthen landowner protections, modernize permitting, and respect private property.

Despite Iowa House Republicans’ call for overriding the veto Senate Republicans largely voted against the bill with 21 of them doing so. Iowa Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver said he supported the governor’s veto on June 11, and his caucus isn’t likely to support the overturning of Reynold’s veto. 

“I support the decision Governor Reynolds made to veto HF 639,” Whitver said in a June 11 statement. “Based on the votes on that bill in the Iowa Senate, a significant majority of our caucus supports a better policy to protect landowner rights. I expect that the majority of our caucus would not be interested in any attempt to override her veto.”

Without Senate support the House cannot call a special session and the governor’s veto will stay in effect.