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Senate approves targeted code change replacing 'pregnant person' with 'pregnant female' in select statutes
Summary
House File 22 53, described by the sponsor as a targeted terminology update replacing "pregnant person" with "pregnant female" in four code sections related to serious crimes, passed the Senate on a roll call of 40 ayes and 6 nays after sponsor remarks emphasizing prosecutorial clarity.
Senator Westrich, the senator from Waipoloa, introduced House File 22 53 as a targeted terminology update that "replaces the phrase pregnant person with a biologically accurate pregnant female in 4 specific sections of Iowa code." He said those sections deal with serious crimes, including feticide and assault causing miscarriage, and argued clearer language helps prosecutors, judges, and juries apply the law without confusion.
The bill was read for the final time, the title agreed to, and the Senate recorded 40 ayes and 6 nays; the chair declared the bill passed and the title agreed to. The sponsor stood on his opening comments and asked for a yes vote.
