Iowa Asks Supreme Court to Uphold State Immigration Law



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by Warner Todd Huston 24 Aug 2026

The state of Iowa has taken its case to the U.S. Supreme Court after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit blocked a law making illegal immigration a state crime.

As Breitbart News reported at the time, in April of 2024, the Iowa legislature passed and GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds signed SF-2340, a state law that made illegal immigration a state crime if the person had been deported once already or denied entry before.

Naturally, pro-illegal immigration activists immediately began filing lawsuits to stymie the law.

Ultimately, after several rounds in court, the Appeals Court upheld the lower court’s block on the law in October of 2025.

Early this year, though, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird informed the Appeals Court that the State of Iowa is seeking review of the block by the U.S. Supreme Court.

AG Bird filed her motion on Feb. 6 after her request to have the case heard by the full Eighth Circuit Court was denied.

The Biden administration had also filed suit to block the state from implementing the law; the DOJ dropped that suit as soon as Trump took office.

Bird claims that Iowa’s law is not an attempt to preempt federal immigration law or trying to create its own, parallel rules, but is only “supporting federal immigration policy by reflecting federal law.”

Now, in the latest developments in the case, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) has filed a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court defending Iowa’s recent immigration law.

FAIR agrees with AG Bird that Iowa’s law is a compliment to federal law, not a departure, and adds that Iowa’s law does not interfere or otherwise conflict with federal law, but rather assists in advancing its purposes.

“There’s a false idea out there that states can have nothing to do with immigration,” said Christopher J. Hajec, deputy general counsel of FAIR. “In fact, they have always had the right to defend themselves, and one method they may do so is by passing laws that assist the federal government in enforcing immigration laws. We hope the Court sees this vital constitutional point, grants review of this case, and reverses.”

https://www.breitbart.com/immigratio...migration-law/