House File 437 - Reprinted HOUSE FILE 437 BY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 52) (COMPANION TO SF 127 BY GRUENHAGEN) (As Amended and Passed by the House March 18, 2025 ) A BILL FOR An Act establishing a center for intellectual freedom at the 1 university of Iowa. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 HF 437 (4) 91 je/jh/md

H.F. 437 Section 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act shall be known and may be 1 cited as the “Center for Intellectual Freedom Act”. 2 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 263C.1 Definitions. 3 As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise 4 requires: 5 1. “Board” means the state board of regents. 6 2. “Center” means the center for intellectual freedom 7 established by section 263C.2. 8 3. “Regents institution” means an institution specified in 9 section 262.7, subsections 1 through 3. 10 4. “University” means the state university of Iowa. 11 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 263C.2 Center for intellectual 12 freedom. 13 1. A center for intellectual freedom is established as an 14 independent academic center under the board at the university. 15 2. The center shall conduct teaching and research in the 16 historical ideas, traditions, and texts that have shaped the 17 American constitutional order and society. 18 3. The board may name the center in accordance with any 19 philanthropic naming policies or practices of the board or 20 university. 21 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 263C.3 Functions of the center. 22 1. The center shall provide scholarship in all of the 23 following subjects: 24 a. The texts and major debates that form the intellectual 25 foundation of free societies, especially that of the United 26 States. 27 b. The principles, ideals, and institutions of the American 28 constitutional order. 29 c. The foundations of responsible leadership and informed 30 citizenship. 31 2. The center shall offer university-wide programming 32 related to the values of free speech and civil discourse. 33 3. The center shall work to do all of the following: 34 a. Expand the intellectual diversity of the university’s 35 -1- HF 437 (4) 91 je/jh/md 1/ 5

H.F. 437 academic community. 1 b. Foster civic engagement among university students and 2 faculty. 3 c. Coordinate with the center for cyclone civics at Iowa 4 state university and the center for civic education at the 5 university of northern Iowa to enable academic offerings that 6 may be offered to students at any of the regents institutions 7 either in person or online. 8 4. The center, in collaboration with any of the regents 9 institutions, may offer courses; develop certificate, minor, 10 and major programs as well as graduate programs; and offer 11 degrees. 12 5. The center shall offer at least one three-semester 13 credit hour course in American history and civil government. 14 If a regents institution has established general education 15 requirements for undergraduate students that include an 16 American heritage course requirement, the center shall ensure 17 that the course satisfies that requirement. The center shall 18 coordinate with the center for cyclone civics at Iowa state 19 university and the center for civic education at the university 20 of northern Iowa to ensure that the course is offered to 21 students at each regents institution either in person or 22 online. 23 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 263C.4 Bylaws. 24 The center shall establish bylaws governing the center 25 subject to the approval of the board. In addition to any 26 other bylaws established, the bylaws must include all of the 27 following requirements, which shall take precedence over any 28 other requirements in the bylaws: 29 1. The center shall educate students by means of free, open, 30 and rigorous intellectual inquiry to seek the truth. 31 2. The center affirms its duty to equip students with 32 the skills, habits, and dispositions of mind they need to 33 reach their own informed conclusions on matters of social and 34 political importance. 35 -2- HF 437 (4) 91 je/jh/md 2/ 5

H.F. 437 3. The center affirms the value of intellectual diversity 1 in higher education and aspires to enhance the intellectual 2 diversity of the university. 3 4. The center affirms a commitment to create a community 4 dedicated to an ethic of civil and free inquiry, which respects 5 the intellectual freedom of each member, supports individual 6 capacities for growth, and welcomes the differences of opinion 7 that naturally exist in a public university community. 8 Sec. 6. NEW SECTION . 263C.5 Funding —— use. 9 1. The center may accept and administer private and 10 external donations and gifts. The university of Iowa center 11 for advancement shall be the designated foundation for 12 philanthropic gifts or funding for the center. 13 2. Any moneys appropriated to the center, and any private 14 and external donations to the center, shall be used only for 15 the direct operation of the center. 16 3. Any additional funding required to operate the center 17 shall be proportionally provided by the regents institutions, 18 subject to approval of the board. 19 Sec. 7. NEW SECTION . 263C.6 Center faculty. 20 The university shall employ tenure-eligible faculty members 21 to provide instruction through the center. The university 22 shall incrementally increase the number of such faculty to five 23 based on market research and student demand. Faculty members 24 appointed to the center may hold joint appointments to other 25 academic units of the university. Faculty members who are not 26 affiliated with the center shall have no authority to approve, 27 deny, or modify the terms of appointment of faculty to the 28 center. 29 Sec. 8. NEW SECTION . 263C.7 Advisory council. 30 1. No later than December 31, 2025, the board shall appoint 31 an advisory council for the center. 32 2. The board shall appoint a minimum of nine members to the 33 council. A majority of the members appointed to the council 34 shall constitute a quorum. No more than one member of the 35 -3- HF 437 (4) 91 je/jh/md 3/ 5

H.F. 437 council may be an employee of the university. 1 3. The board shall determine the initial length of each 2 member’s term in accordance with this subsection. A majority 3 of the members initially appointed to the council shall serve 4 initial terms of four years. The remaining initially appointed 5 members shall serve initial terms of two years. The board 6 shall appoint new members to fill vacancies on the council in 7 accordance with this section. 8 Sec. 9. NEW SECTION . 263C.8 Appointment of director. 9 1. The advisory council established under section 263C.7 10 shall conduct a nationwide search for candidates for the 11 director of the center. The council shall adhere to all 12 relevant state and federal laws in conducting the search. The 13 council shall submit finalists for the position to the board. 14 The board, upon approval of a candidate, shall appoint the 15 candidate as the director. All subsequent directors shall be 16 chosen in the same manner. 17 2. The director shall have the academic standing to be 18 eligible for tenure at a regents institution. 19 Sec. 10. NEW SECTION . 263C.9 Duties of director. 20 1. The director of the center shall have the sole and 21 exclusive authority to manage the recruitment and hiring 22 process, and to extend offers for employment, of the center 23 and to terminate employment of all staff of the center in 24 accordance with state and federal law. 25 2. The director shall conduct a market assessment to 26 determine course demand and the number of faculty required to 27 meet any unmet needs of the center and may conduct additional 28 market assessments as needed. A market assessment shall 29 include the subjects described in section 263C.3, subsections 1 30 and 2. 31 3. The director shall have the authority to invite guest 32 speakers to the university on behalf of the center. 33 4. The director shall report directly to the board. 34 Sec. 11. NEW SECTION . 263C.10 Annual report. 35 -4- HF 437 (4) 91 je/jh/md 4/ 5

H.F. 437 Beginning in 2026, the director of the center shall submit an 1 annual report to the governor, the general assembly, and the 2 board of regents by December 31. The report shall provide a 3 full account of the center’s achievements and shall identify 4 any opportunities, challenges, and obstacles in the development 5 of the center. 6 -5- HF 437 (4) 91 je/jh/md 5/ 5