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Business interest is not in favor of the Bathroom Bill introduced by State Sen. Jim Carlin.

Business interest, though, is rarely in favor of any social conservative bill. For years big business has registered against a bill that would strengthen religious liberty in Iowa.

And now, this year, big business has lined up against a bill that would require individuals to use the restroom that corresponds with their biological sex in Iowa schools.

Chief among these businesses that want your 6-year-old daughter or granddaughter to be forced to use the bathroom stall next to a 40-year-old man who thinks he is a woman is Principal Financial Group.

The Technology Association of Iowa is also opposed. The following businesses have members on TAI’s board of directors (The Iowa Standard is trying to find out information in terms of how TAI decided to register to oppose the legislation. Some members of this list have said they do not oppose the legislation. So just being on this list doesn’t mean the business opposes the bill, we are simply revealing what businesses make up the members on TAI’s board of directors):

Accenture
Anthologic & Shift Interactive
Carrier Access
Collins Aerospace
Corteva Agriscience
Casey’s General Stores
EMC Insurance
Entrepreneurial Technologies
Far Reach
Fredrikson & Byron
Involta
Google
Hy-Vee
Kum & Go
Kingland
Kreg Tool Company
Iowa State University
John Deere
LightEdge Solutions
LWBJ
Merchants Bonding Company
Nationwide
Next Level Ventures
Paragon IT Professionals
Pella
Principal
ProCircular
Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Shazam
State of Iowa
Sukup Manufacturing
United Fire Group
Unity Point Health
The VGM Group
Wellmark Blue Cross & Blue Shield
University of Iowa
University of Northern Iowa
Visual Logic Group
Workiva
Wells Enterprises

For its part, Hy-Vee senior Vice President of communications Tina Pothoff told The Iowa Standard:

“We are not registered on this. Right now, we are reviewing this to determine its impact.”

In addition, the Greater Des Moines Partnership is registered against the bill to keep your 6-year-old daughter or granddaughter from having to use the bathroom stall next to a 40-year-old man who thinks he is a woman in an Iowa school.

You can find what businesses are members of the Greater Des Moines Partnership here.

Greg Edwards, the president and CEO of Catch Des Moines, said passing the bill could be costly for Des Moines, according to The Des Moines Register.

“(There) are some organizations that would not even look at Des Moines to bring events here if we had such a law,” Edwards said.

Andrea Woodard of the Greater Des Moines Partnership told the Register that creating “an environment that is welcoming for people of all backgrounds” is “critically important to our region’s talent attraction and retention efforts.”

“That is why we and other business organizations in Iowa and across the country have been, and continue to be, opposed to this type of legislation.”

Joe Murphy of the Iowa Business Council said that Iowa needs to be a “welcoming and an inclusive place for all people” if it wants to grow the population, drive workforce and drive business expansion.

Author: Jacob Hall

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