Chapter 31 Rules
Update Available Below
Welcome, Homeschooling Friends!
The Chapter 31 rules in the Iowa Administrative Code have been revised by the Iowa Department of Education. These rules implement and interpret the Iowa Code sections governing private instruction, including homeschooling.
The Iowa State Board of Education approved the new rules on June 12, 2024,
and they are scheduled to take effect on July 17, 2024.
Homeschool Iowa continues to work on this issue, as we have identified several remaining concerns.
The text of the newly adopted rules can be found by clicking the blue button link below.
Click on the image above to view our lobbyist's update
posted immediately after the State Board of Education approved the new rules..
Thank you for your action!
Homeschool Iowa Advocacy Timeline
Here's timeline of what's been happening with the Chapter 31 rules.
The Department of Education published the proposed Chapter 31 rules at the beginning of February, and we all feel like it’s been a bit of a mad scramble to get comments in and organize our thoughts!
First off, thank you for your comments on the proposed rules!
We learned that more than 850 comments had been logged with the Department of Education during the public comment period in late February. Of those, more than half of those comments referenced the Homeschool Iowa requested changes. This is a huge benefit for us homeschooling families and for the Department.
Many of the hundreds of attendees at our Homeschool Iowa Capitol Day on Monday, March 4 submitted messages to the members of this important committee, alerting them to our concerns about the Chapter 31 rules revisions.
The ARRC's meeting agenda on Monday, March 11 included the Chapter 31 rules. The committee did not take any actions at this meeting, but they did receive public testimony, including that of our Homeschool Iowa president and executive director.
When the comment period ended for the proposed rules, the Department of Education logged and categorized all the public comments. We were assured by the Department and by the Governor’s office that the Department would take into consideration every public comment that was made.
Your comments made a difference!
The Department was tasked with revising the rules before publishing them again. This process was not required to be public, so we had to trust in the intent of the Department of Education and the Governor’s office. This next publishing date was to be 7 days before the next Board of Education meeting in which the Chapter 31 rule proposal was placed on the agenda.
This meeting was the May 9 meeting, but the revised proposed rules were not published until the date of the meeting. The Iowa State Board of Education voted to approve the rules as presented.
The Administrative Rules Review Committee (the ARRC) also has input on the outcome of the rules process. This committee is a bipartisan, bicameral committee that meets regularly to review and potentially pause or change administrative rules.
The State Board of Education received a final revised version of the Chapter 31 Rules and approved them on June 12, 2024. They are scheduled to become effective on July 17, 2024.
The Homeschool Iowa Advocacy Team has been carefully reviewing the newly adopted rules and has identified several concerns, which will be communicated to the Iowa Department of Education.
Homeschool Iowa is dedicated
to protecting homeschooling freedom in Iowa,
and your partnership with us
is essential!
is dedicated to
monitoring threats to our homeschool freedoms
and to inform and equip you to engage as a citizen.
Partner with us to assure that these efforts continue!
