As state legislative sessions close, what did we accomplish in 2025? 

“Justice is the end of government.” —James Madison, Federalist 51

When people are wronged by the government, they can come to Pacific Legal Foundation for justice. Meanwhile, PLF is also constantly working outside courtrooms to make laws more just.

In the 2025 legislative session, Pacific Legal Foundation partnered with state legislators and allies across the country to bring America back to its constitutional first principles. Our legislative victories have protected property rights, ensured equality & opportunity, and rolled out regulatory reform.

Here are this year’s biggest legislative wins for liberty around the country.

Protecting property rights

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling in PLF’s home equity theft case Tyler v. Hennepin County, states continue to reform their property tax foreclosure practices. Arkansas closed a loophole that allowed property to be given to government agencies and bypass the protections put in place for owners to receive sale proceeds. And in Oregon, lawmakers are advancing best-in-the-nation reforms to provide homeowners with better notice of tax delinquencies and enlist the state’s abandoned property process to quickly return surplus equity to homeowners after back taxes are paid; these reforms were supported by a broad coalition of groups, including PLF, Oregon Law Center, DevNW, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Oregon Consumer Justice, AARP Oregon, and Cascade Policy Institute.

Following another PLF victory at the U.S. Supreme Court, the Colorado Farm Bureau led the charge to change a law that allowed the government to force private property owners to let unions trespass on their property to solicit employees. And the Supreme Court’s ruling on behalf of PLF clients Mike and Chantell Sacket inspired legislators to dig into Tennessee’s wetlands law and produced reform that helps protect property owners’ Fifth Amendment rights.

Property rights are paramount to solving America’s housing crisis, and Oregon and Kansas made great gains this year by passing “shot clock” bills that require localities to issue permits in a timely manner—adding predictability to the system and saving applicants time and money. PLF joined with allies at Americans for Prosperity-Kansas and the Kansas Chamber to refine and strengthen the bill that passed in the Sunflower State.

This session, several states also addressed a different national crisis—unauthorized occupation of property or “squatting.” As unlawful occupation of homes has been on the rise, many states discovered that their laws were being abused or misinterpreted or did not give clear guidance to law enforcement or homeowners on how to combat this activity. West Virginia, Indiana, Montana, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Wyoming all acted to rectify this problem—creating processes for notice and removal as well as protecting those who may be wrongfully accused.

Ensuring equality & opportunity

Over the past three decades, only nine states have acted to fulfill the promise of the Fourteenth Amendment in state law by ending educational stereotyping in public institutions or discrimination in public actions like hiring, contracting, and licensing. This year, Arkansas and Indiana became the 10th and 11th states to address these issues in state statute.

Arkansas, Tennessee, and South Carolina also responded to PLF lawsuits to end race and gender discrimination in public boards and commissions by reforming their appointment processes. And Montana followed suit with its own proactive reform.

Across the country, certificate of need reforms gained ground in multiple states and the District of Columbia. Vermont increased its monetary thresholds and implemented birth freedom—along with Kentucky, Michigan, and Iowa. In Iowa, we were proud to stand by our client Caitlin Hainley in court and at the legislature as she argued that Iowa’s mothers and babies deserve choice in their healthcare.

Rolling out regulatory reform

One year ago, the Supreme Court struck down judicial deference to agency interpretations of laws at the federal level— ending what had become known as Chevron deference and requiring courts to review the law for themselves and render independent judgment. For decades, federal courts were forced to defer to or accept an agency’s interpretation of its authority. This flipped the separation of powers on its head, allowing agencies to commandeer the role of the judiciary. When giving deference to agencies, judges fail to uphold their constitutional duty to render impartial decisions—placing the thumb on the scale in favor of government agencies—effectively colluding with agencies against individuals and businesses.

Proper judicial review is central to the heart of America’s adversarial system of justice, and one of the three pillars of regulatory reform. Although state courts have never been required to follow the flawed federal practice, many have. But in recent years the tide has begun to change. A return to first principles and separation of powers at the state level is just as critical, and this year Oklahoma, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Texas all affirmed that their state courts must conduct independent judicial review and may not defer to agency interpretations of statutes or regulations. And a similar bill is on the Missouri governor’s desk. Oklahoma and Missouri took their reforms an extra step by instructing courts to exercise any doubt in favor of reasonable interpretations of law or rule that maximize individual liberty. Where a law may be ambiguous, it should not be used against citizens.

Oklahoma, Kentucky, and Louisiana doubled down on regulatory reform by also adopting targeted legislative review of agency rulemaking (also known as REINS reform)—as did Utah and Wyoming. A REINS bill in North Carolina is awaiting the governor’s signature, as is a bill in Florida that tightens the Sunshine State’s existing REINS law. These reforms are not referendums on the executive branch; rather, they bolster the intentional separation of powers set in place by America’s Founders and mirrored in the states. Each branch plays a role in ensuring the tools in the agency toolbelt serve citizens rather than stacking the deck against them. When regulations have the force of law, elected lawmakers who are accountable to citizens must be engaged in their review.

In Oklahoma, Kentucky, North Carolina, Utah, and Wyoming, we were privileged to work with our friends at Americans for Prosperity to advance these significant reforms—as well as in Missouri, where we also joined forces with SPN’s Center for Practical Federalism. In Louisiana and Utah, our partners at the Pelican Institute for Public Policy and Libertas Institute, respectively, were instrumental in bringing about these needed changes. Our friends at Platte Institute also advanced regulatory reforms in Nebraska—requiring periodic reviews to remove outdated or unnecessary regulations, enhancing monitoring of federal funds in the state, and increasing public participation in the rulemaking process. Likewise, The James Madison Institute helped push regulatory reforms across the finish line in Florida. And in Texas, we were proud to be part of the Coalition for Regulatory Efficiency and Reform, which advocated for judicial deference reform, the establishment of an office of regulatory management, and increased sunset review and cost-benefit analysis of agency rules.

2026 policy preview

As we look toward the next legislative session, we look forward to bringing constitutional solutions to problems surrounding issues like the production of housing, environmental regulations, and access to healthcare.

Please contact if PLF can be of assistance in your state, and visit our legislation page for model policies and updates.