Statewide, Iowa (RI) – It’s not yet clear if Republicans in the Iowa House will pass a bill to block lawsuits alleging Roundup causes cancer if the pesticide’s label follows federal guidelines.
President Trump a couple of weeks ago cited the Defense Production Act as he issued an executive order to ensure a steady supply of glyphosate, the main ingredient in Roundup. Pat Grassley, the speaker of the Iowa House, says he hasn’t assessed that order’s impact on Iowa.
Both Grassley and House Republican Leader Bobby Kaufmann said before the 2026 legislative session started that Iowa farmers are better off having Roundup made here, since 70 percent of the Roundup sold in North America is made at a plant in Muscatine.
Senate Republicans passed the Roundup protection bill last year and Senator Majority Leader Mike Klimesh (KLEH-mish) says he hopes the House GOP takes action this year.
Democrats in the legislature have opposed the bill. Representative Austin Baeth, a Democrat from Des Moines, is a doctor of internal medicine.
Georgia and North Dakota are the only states that have passed laws to protect Bayer from lawsuits alleging Roundup caused cancer. Last month the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Bayer’s appeal to block thousands of lawsuits alleging the weed killer caused cancer and other serious illnesses
