Iowa Senate leader explains new eminent domain bill

Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Klimesh spoke to reporters on January 20, 2026 to outline key provisions of a bill he is introducing to regulate the process for using eminent domain to build hazardous liquid pipelines. The legislation would apply to all hazardous liquid pipelines, not just Summit Carbon Solutions' proposal to build a CO2 pipeline connected to ethanol plants in five states.

The Klimesh bill would require a company to pursue alternative routes for a proposed pipeline, avoiding land that cannot be acquired through voluntary easements. He said the company would be able to seek eminent domain approval from the Iowa Utilities Commission only as a "last resort."

Klimesh asserted that his bill would almost entirely eliminate the need for eminent domain, and similar approaches had been used in other states. He said the proposal would protect property rights while raising farm incomes, creating more manufacturing jobs, and giving farmers access to more markets for their corn. Iowa ethanol plants would also be able to access more markets for enhanced oil recovery and Sustainable Aviation Fuel.

Klimesh said he is also introducing a second bill to "place a severance tax on the CO2 flowing through these carbon capture pipelines." He said the funds collected would go into Iowa's Taxpayer Relief Fund and "would be used to continue Iowa's path to zero income tax." He explained that a severance tax is a flat fee per metric ton and is modeled on similar taxes in Wyoming, Texas, and North Dakota.

Klimesh spent about twelve minutes answering reporter questions. Asked whether he currently has 26 Iowa Senate votes behind his eminent domain proposal, Klimesh declined to comment on internal Senate Republican dynamics.