Solar geoengineering and cloud seeding would become felonies under a bill moving through the Iowa Legislature, part of a growing number of states looking to restrict intentional weather and climate modification.
Iowa’s proposal, SSB 3010, is sponsored by the chair of the Senate Technology Committee, Republican Sen. Charlie McClintock. It received bipartisan approval Monday by a three-member subcommittee, making it one of the first bills this year to advance to the full 11-member panel.
The bill would outlaw the “deliberate manipulation or alteration of the environment for the purpose of changing the weather or climate by artificial means,” making it a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison or a fine of up to $10,245. The legislation would treat each day of violations as a separate offense.
Tennessee approved the first such ban in April 2024, followed by Florida and Louisiana in June 2025 — though only Florida made it a criminal offense. At least 34 states have considered bills to ban solar geoengineering, according to the nonprofit SRM360, and several have lumped geoengineering together with cloud seeding.
