I'm suing the Iowa House Chief Clerk over denial of press credentials
a First Amendment case
This post first appeared at Bleeding Heartland and is shared here as part of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. For regular emails linking to all recent Bleeding Heartland articles and commentary, including coverage of the Iowa caucuses, subscribe to the free Evening Heartland newsletter.
“The First Amendment prohibits government officials from arbitrarily denying reporters access to official information, and from discriminating against reporters based on their viewpoint,” declares a federal lawsuit filed on my behalf on January 19. Yet since 2019, the Iowa House Chief Clerk “has arbitrarily applied an ever-shifting credentialing system” to limit my “ability to gather and report political news” from the Iowa House chamber.
The Institute for Free Speech filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, making four claims under the U.S. Constitution. First, by denying me access to the Iowa House press bench, where other statehouse reporters can closely observe House debate and attend regular briefings by House Speaker Pat Grassley, Chief Clerk Meghan Nelson is violating my First Amendment rights of free speech and freedom of the press.
Second, the complaint also states that Nelson’s policy, limiting access to reporters who provide “nonpartisan news to a broad segment of the public,” amounts to unconstitutional content-based and viewpoint-based discrimination, on its face and as applied to me.
Third, Nelson’s press credential policy “constitutes a prior restraint in violation of the First Amendment.” Chief Clerk Nelson has “unbridled discretion” to grant reporters access to the House press box, and “relies on the undefined, broad terms of the credential policy to subjectively exclude news media and deprive them of the ability to gather news in a manner equal to that afforded to other media representatives.”
Finally, the suit asserts that the press credential policy is vague in violation of my “First Amendment rights to free speech and press and Fourteenth Amendment right to due process.”
Click here to read the full text of the complaint.
Click the following links to read the brief in support of a motion for temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction and my declaration, which details my unsuccessful efforts since 2019 to obtain the same access the Iowa House provides to other statehouse reporters. Initially, Chief Clerk Carmine Boal claimed I was not media. In 2020, Chief Clerk Nelson denied my application on the grounds that I was “nontraditional” media. For the past three years, the Chief Clerk has given no specific reason for rejecting my request for credentials.
Institute for Free Speech Senior Attorney Charles “Chip” Miller said in a written statement, “Laura Belin is undeniably a journalist by any meaningful definition of the word. She is a skilled political reporter who has earned a seat alongside her colleagues in the House press box.”
Courtney Corbello, another attorney representing me from the Institute for Free Speech, stated, “Refusing to credential journalists for arbitrary reasons—or because lawmakers may not like tough coverage or her point of view—is censorship, period. We’re asking the court to put an end to this serious violation of Laura Belin’s First Amendment rights.”
Appendix: Full text of January 19 news release from the Institute for Free Speech
Journalist Laura Belin sues Iowa House Clerk over Denial of Press Credentials
The Iowa House Chief Clerk has repeatedly denied credentials even though Belin qualifies under the credential criteria
Des Moines, IA — The First Amendment rights to a free press and free speech ensure that government officials can’t unequally apply rules to deny a journalist access.
Yet, that’s exactly what the clerk of the Iowa House of Representatives has been doing to reporter Laura Belin for years.
Today, Institute for Free Speech attorneys filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Belin against Iowa House Chief Clerk Meghan Nelson for repeatedly and arbitrarily denying Belin’s application for press credentials. Belin is a well-respected reporter with nearly three decades of experience as a journalist. The lawsuit challenges Chief Clerk Meghan Nelson’s unconstitutional refusal to grant Belin’s credentials.
Since January 2019, Belin has sought credentials prior to every legislative session. In doing so, she has detailed how her independent online news site, Bleeding Heartland, meets the House’s published requirements for press access. Belin is also now the Statehouse reporter for KHOI Radio in Ames.
Despite those facts, the House Chief Clerk has denied each of Belin’s requests. These denials have occurred amidst a series of shifting requirements, with Belin initially denied for being “not media,” then denied for being “nontraditional” media, and, now, denied without any explanation.
As the 2024 Iowa legislative session continues, Belin remains obstructed from news-gathering opportunities afforded to the rest of the press corps, including observing floor action up close, attending media briefings, and accessing materials provided exclusively to credentialed reporters.
“Laura Belin is undeniably a journalist by any meaningful definition of the word. She is a skilled political reporter who has earned a seat alongside her colleagues in the House press box,” said Institute for Free Speech Senior Attorney Charles “Chip” Miller.
“Refusing to credential journalists for arbitrary reasons—or because lawmakers may not like tough coverage or her point of view—is censorship, period,” noted Attorney Courtney Corbello, also of the Institute for Free Speech. “We’re asking the court to put an end to this serious violation of Laura Belin’s First Amendment rights.”
The lawsuit argues that the House’s denial of Belin’s credentials is an unconstitutional attempt to play favorites and punish dissent. By manipulating the credentialing process to exclude certain reporters, the House has violated her constitutional rights under the First and Fourteenth Amendments. As implemented, the credential policy itself also unconstitutionally gives Nelson unbridled discretion to deny First Amendment rights.
“To this day, I have never received an explanation from Nelson or anyone on her behalf as to how I do not meet the press credential policy,” Belin said. “Because of how the House Chief Clerk has applied her credentialing policy, I am unable to cover legislative proceedings on equal footing with my peers in the statehouse press corps.”
To read the complaint in the case, Belin v. Nelson, click here.
About the Institute for Free Speech
The Institute for Free Speech promotes and defends the political speech rights to freely speak, assemble, publish, and petition the government guaranteed by the First Amendment.
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This is crazy. YOU and your continuing excellent coverage of the Legislature have certainly earned press credentials. I have to presume the Republicans do not want the reading/voting public to know what their Republican majority is doing to the voters.
This is such is such an important issue. Your investigative reporting has always reflected the highest standards and no doubt resulted in them targeting you.Salute for taking this on, Laura. They have a “real problem” on their hands now.