Seventy members of the Iowa House are calling for a special session of the legislature to override the governor’s veto of a bill that would have set new rules for carbon pipelines, but the veto will stand because there’s not enough support among Senate Republicans for a special session.
The Iowa Constitution requires that two-thirds of the members of the House and the Senate sign a petition calling for a special session before one is held. The 70 signatures from Republicans and Democrats in the House meet that threshold, but Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver last week said a majority of Senate Republicans “would not be interested in any attempt to override Governor Reynolds’ veto.”
In a written statement issued today, House Speaker Pat Grassley said the veto was “a major setback for Iowa landowners” and for efforts in the House “to safeguard property rights” and “ban the use of eminent domain for (the) private gain” of pipeline owners.