Appeals Court Allows Iowa to Restrict Sexual, Gender-Related Content in Schools

The ruling allows the law to take effect while the case continues in lower courts.

Children in a classroom at Carver Community School in Des Moines, Iowa. Courtesy of the U.S. Department of Education

Iowa can enforce key parts of its education law, including restrictions on school library books, after a federal appeals court lifted lower court blocks on the policy on April 6.

In one of its rulings, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit allowed the state to go forward with enforcing its restrictions on library books with sexually explicit content. Another ruling addressed limits on gender identity instruction in early grades and a requirement that parents be notified if their child requests an “accommodation that is intended to affirm the student’s gender identity.” Both decisions were made by a 3–0 vote.