Best small-cap ETFs in July 2025

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  • Best small-cap ETFs in July 2025</p>

<p>James Royal, Ph.D.July 1, 2025 at 6:25 AM</p>

<p>Are you looking for the next big thing in the stock market? There's a chance it's hiding among the small caps, because these smaller companies often remain overlooked by investors. One way to gain exposure to the entire segment of the market is to buy a small-cap ETF.</p>

<p>Topics covered on this page: -</p>

<p>What is a small-cap ETF?</p>

<p>Top-performing small-cap ETFs</p>

<p>Are small-cap ETFs a good investment?</p>

<p>What is a small-cap ETF?</p>

<p>A small-cap ETF is an exchange-traded fund that invests in the market's smallest companies through what are called small-capitalization, or small-cap, stocks. Small-cap ETFs give you an easy way to buy the small-cap "haystack" rather than search through it for the high performers.</p>

<p>Small-cap stocks may sound small, but they're not usually that tiny. The total value of all their shares outstanding is typically between a few hundred million dollars and a few billion dollars. That's small for the stock market, though, where market capitalization can hit a trillion dollars.</p>

<p>Investors like small caps because they can offer higher potential returns than large-cap stocks, which are typically represented by the S&P 500 index. However, because they're smaller and have fewer financial resources, they're often riskier and more volatile, too.</p>

<p>Because of these risks, investing in individual small stocks is better left to more advanced investors. But even newer investors can buy a basket of these companies through a small-cap ETF and take advantage of the potential higher returns in undiscovered small stocks.</p>

<p>Top-performing small-cap ETFs</p>

<p>Bankrate selected its top funds based on the following criteria:</p>

<p>U.S. funds that appear in ETF.com's screener for small-caps</p>

<p>Funds among the top performers over the last five years</p>

<p>Performance measured on June 30, 2025</p>

<p>Invesco S&P SmallCap 600 Revenue ETF (RWJ)</p>

<p>This ETF is based on the S&P SmallCap 600 Revenue-Weighted index, which re-weights stocks of the S&P SmallCap 600 index by a company's revenue.</p>

<p>2025 YTD performance: -4.6 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 21.6 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.39 percent</p>

<p>Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETF (AVUV)</p>

<p>This fund invests in small-caps across industries, and focuses on companies with strong profitability metrics, particularly operating cash flow relative to book value, and attractive valuations.</p>

<p>2025 YTD performance: -4.7 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 20.9 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.25 percent</p>

<p>Invesco S&P SmallCap 600 Pure Value ETF (RZV)</p>

<p>This fund is based on the S&P SmallCap 600 Pure Value index, which selects stocks that score well on value, using such measures as the price-to-earnings ratio and book-value-to-price ratio.</p>

<p>2025 YTD performance: -4.9 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 20.6 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.35 percent</p>

<p>Invesco S&P SmallCap Value With Momentum ETF (XSVM)</p>

<p>This ETF tracks the S&P 600 High Momentum Value index, which is composed of 120 stocks with the highest scores on momentum and value factors.</p>

<p>2025 YTD performance: -3.2 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 19.6 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.37 percent</p>

<p>Principal U.S. Small Cap ETF (PSC)</p>

<p>This ETF focuses on small-caps that score well on the factors of a high-quality business, favorable price and price momentum.</p>

<p>2025 YTD performance: 3.8 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 17.4 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.38 percent</p>

<p>Vanguard Small-Cap Value ETF (VBR)</p>

<p>This ETF tracks the performance of the CRSP U.S. Small Cap Value Index, which is an index of small growth stocks.</p>

<p>2025 performance: -0.6 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 16.2 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.07 percent</p>

<p>iShares U.S. SmallCap Equity Factor ETF (SMLF)</p>

<p>This fund tracks the STOXX U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor Index, which selects and weights small-cap stocks based on four factors: momentum, quality, value and low volatility.</p>

<p>2025 YTD performance: 1.1 percent</p>

<p>Historical performance (annual over 5 years): 16.2 percent</p>

<p>Expense ratio: 0.15 percent</p>

<p>Are small-cap ETFs a good investment?</p>

<p>Investing in small-cap ETFs can provide attractive returns as long as they're purchased at sensible prices, but there are some drawbacks to be aware of.</p>

<p>Small-cap ETFs allow you to purchase a diversified portfolio of smaller companies for a relatively low cost. They also won't require the extensive research that investing in individual companies does and can be added to your overall portfolio quickly to boost exposure to the small-cap universe. Small caps can generate high returns as they grow and become larger businesses. Many of today's most successful companies started as small caps.</p>

<p>But one drawback of investing in small-cap ETFs is that as the most successful companies grow, they move on from being considered small-cap and many funds are forced to sell them to stay in line with their investment objectives. You also won't get the broad diversification that comes with other funds, so if an economic development negatively impacts the small-cap universe, you won't be protected. Small-cap funds also tend to be more volatile than funds that hold larger, more established companies.</p>

<p>(You may also want to check our list of the best large-cap ETFs and best mid-cap ETFs.)</p>

<p>Bottom line</p>

<p>Small-cap ETFs are an attractive way to invest in some of the market's fastest-growing companies at low cost without the same risks of buying individual stocks. But like all investments in the stock market, they aren't without risk and other drawbacks.</p>

<p>Editorial Disclaimer: All investors are advised to conduct their own independent research into investment strategies before making an investment decision. In addition, investors are advised that past investment product performance is no guarantee of future price appreciation.</p>

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Best small-cap ETFs in July 2025

<p>- Best small-cap ETFs in July 2025</p> <p>James Royal, Ph.D.July 1, 2025 at 6:25 AM</p> ...

Baidu appoints Haijian He as CFO

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  • Baidu appoints Haijian He as CFO</p>

<p>July 1, 2025 at 6:25 AM</p>

<p>(Reuters) -Chinese search engine giant Baidu said on Tuesday that Haijian He has been appointed as chief financial officer of the company, effective immediately.</p>

<p>Junjie He, who was serving as the interim CFO since October last year, will now assume a senior vice president role, the company said.</p>

<p>(Reporting by Rhea Rose Abraham in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)</p>

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<p>- Baidu appoints Haijian He as CFO</p> <p>July 1, 2025 at 6:25 AM</p> <p>(Reute...

Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking US rally into record heights

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<p>TERESA CEROJANO July 1, 2025 at 6:41 AM</p>

<p>1 / 5Japan Financial MarketsA person walks under the intense sun near an electronic stock board displaying Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Tuesday, July 1, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)</p>

<p>MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Asian shares are mostly higher after U.S. stocks added to their records with the close of a second straight winning month.</p>

<p>U.S. futures and oil prices were lower.</p>

<p>Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.2% to 40,003.24 despite positive results of the central bank's quarterly Tankan survey of large manufacturers, which showed an better than expected improvement in business sentiment.</p>

<p>The Shanghai Composite index added 0.2% to 3,451.69 after China's official manufacturing purchasing managers index, or PMI, rose to a three-month high of 49.7 in June while the PMI for services and other non-manufacturing businesses also rose to a three-month high of 50.5.</p>

<p>Hong Kong's stock market was closed on Tuesday.</p>

<p>South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index surged 1.5% to 3,117.17 after the government reported that exports bounced back in June, helped by strong demand for semiconductors, ships and health products.</p>

<p>"Automobile and automotive parts exports also gained. Strong electric vehicle exports to the EU and solid used-car exports partially offset the decline of U.S. exports. However, we expect auto exports to remain soft due to tariffs and increased production in the U.S.," Min Joo Kang of ING Economics said in a report.</p>

<p>Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.1% to 8,550.80.</p>

<p>The PSEi in Manila, Philippines, rose 0.2%.</p>

<p>On Monday, Wall Street resumed its upward climb.</p>

<p>The S&P 500 rose 0.5% to 6,204.95. It has staged a stunning recovery from its springtime sell-off of roughly 20%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.6% to 44,094.77, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.5% to 20,369.73.</p>

<p>Stocks got a boost after Canada said it would rescind a planned tax on U.S. technology firms and trade talks with the United States resumed. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump had said he was suspending those talks to retaliate for the tax, calling it "a direct and blatant attack on our country."</p>

<p>U.S. stocks have bounced back on hopes that Trump will reach deals with other countries to lower his painful high tariffs and avert trade wars that could stifle the economy and send inflation higher.</p>

<p>Many of Trump's announced tariffs have been postponed and are due to kick back into effect on July 9.</p>

<p>The U.S. stock market recovery could raise the risk Trump will resume escalating tariffs, similar to what happened in 2018-2019, according to strategists at Deutsche Bank led by Parag Thatte and Binky Chadha.</p>

<p>On Wall Street, Oracle's 4% rise was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500. CEO Safra Catz said the tech giant "is off to a strong start" in its fiscal year and that it signed multiple large cloud services agreements, including one that could contribute over $30 billion in annual revenue two fiscal years from now.</p>

<p>GMS' stock jumped 11.7% after the supplier of specialty building products said it agreed to sell itself to a Home Depot subsidiary in a deal that would pay $110.00 per share in cash. That would give it a total value of roughly $5.5 billion, including debt.</p>

<p>Less than two weeks ago, another company, QXO, said it was offering to buy GMS for $95.20 per share in cash. After the announcement of the Home Depot bid, QXO's stock rose 3.9%, and Home Depot's stock slipped 0.6%.</p>

<p>Hewlett Packard Enterprise rallied 11.1% and Juniper Networks climbed 8.4% after saying they had reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice that could clear the way for their merger go through, subject to court approval. HPE is trying to buy Juniper in a $14 billion deal.</p>

<p>Bank stocks were also solid after the Federal Reserve said on Friday that they are financially strong enough to survive a downturn in the economy. JPMorgan Chase climbed 1%, and Citigroup gained 0.9%.</p>

<p>In the bond market, Treasury yields fell ahead of several major economic reports later in the week. The highlight will be Thursday's jobs report. It's often the most anticipated economic data of each month, and it will come a day earlier than usual because of Friday's Fourth of July holiday.</p>

<p>In other dealings early Tuesday, benchmark U.S. crude oil lost 37 cents to $64.74 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, fell 35 cents per barrel to $66.39.</p>

<p>The U.S. dollar dipped to 143.86 Japanese yen from 144.04 yen. The euro rose to $1.1792 from $1.1789.</p>

<p>___</p>

<p>AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed.</p>

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Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking US rally into record heights

<p>- Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking US rally into record heights</p> <p>TERESA CEROJANO ...

Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking US rally into record heights

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<p>-

  • Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking US rally into record heights</p>

<p>TERESA CEROJANO July 1, 2025 at 6:41 AM</p>

<p>A person walks under the intense sun near an electronic stock board displaying Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Tuesday, July 1, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)</p>

<p>MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Asian shares are mostly higher after U.S. stocks added to their records with the close of a second straight winning month.</p>

<p>U.S. futures and oil prices were lower.</p>

<p>Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.2% to 40,003.24 despite positive results of the central bank's quarterly Tankan survey of large manufacturers, which showed an better than expected improvement in business sentiment.</p>

<p>The Shanghai Composite index added 0.2% to 3,451.69 after China's official manufacturing purchasing managers index, or PMI, rose to a three-month high of 49.7 in June while the PMI for services and other non-manufacturing businesses also rose to a three-month high of 50.5.</p>

<p>Hong Kong's stock market was closed on Tuesday.</p>

<p>South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index surged 1.5% to 3,117.17 after the government reported that exports bounced back in June, helped by strong demand for semiconductors, ships and health products.</p>

<p>"Automobile and automotive parts exports also gained. Strong electric vehicle exports to the EU and solid used-car exports partially offset the decline of U.S. exports. However, we expect auto exports to remain soft due to tariffs and increased production in the U.S.," Min Joo Kang of ING Economics said in a report.</p>

<p>Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.1% to 8,550.80.</p>

<p>The PSEi in Manila, Philippines, rose 0.2%.</p>

<p>On Monday, Wall Street resumed its upward climb.</p>

<p>The S&P 500 rose 0.5% to 6,204.95. It has staged a stunning recovery from its springtime sell-off of roughly 20%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.6% to 44,094.77, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.5% to 20,369.73.</p>

<p>Stocks got a boost after Canada said it would rescind a planned tax on U.S. technology firms and trade talks with the United States resumed. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump had said he was suspending those talks to retaliate for the tax, calling it "a direct and blatant attack on our country."</p>

<p>U.S. stocks have bounced back on hopes that Trump will reach deals with other countries to lower his painful high tariffs and avert trade wars that could stifle the economy and send inflation higher.</p>

<p>Many of Trump's announced tariffs have been postponed and are due to kick back into effect on July 9.</p>

<p>The U.S. stock market recovery could raise the risk Trump will resume escalating tariffs, similar to what happened in 2018-2019, according to strategists at Deutsche Bank led by Parag Thatte and Binky Chadha.</p>

<p>On Wall Street, Oracle's 4% rise was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500. CEO Safra Catz said the tech giant "is off to a strong start" in its fiscal year and that it signed multiple large cloud services agreements, including one that could contribute over $30 billion in annual revenue two fiscal years from now.</p>

<p>GMS' stock jumped 11.7% after the supplier of specialty building products said it agreed to sell itself to a Home Depot subsidiary in a deal that would pay $110.00 per share in cash. That would give it a total value of roughly $5.5 billion, including debt.</p>

<p>Less than two weeks ago, another company, QXO, said it was offering to buy GMS for $95.20 per share in cash. After the announcement of the Home Depot bid, QXO's stock rose 3.9%, and Home Depot's stock slipped 0.6%.</p>

<p>Hewlett Packard Enterprise rallied 11.1% and Juniper Networks climbed 8.4% after saying they had reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice that could clear the way for their merger go through, subject to court approval. HPE is trying to buy Juniper in a $14 billion deal.</p>

<p>Bank stocks were also solid after the Federal Reserve said on Friday that they are financially strong enough to survive a downturn in the economy. JPMorgan Chase climbed 1%, and Citigroup gained 0.9%.</p>

<p>In the bond market, Treasury yields fell ahead of several major economic reports later in the week. The highlight will be Thursday's jobs report. It's often the most anticipated economic data of each month, and it will come a day earlier than usual because of Friday's Fourth of July holiday.</p>

<p>In other dealings early Tuesday, benchmark U.S. crude oil lost 37 cents to $64.74 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, fell 35 cents per barrel to $66.39.</p>

<p>The U.S. dollar dipped to 143.86 Japanese yen from 144.04 yen. The euro rose to $1.1792 from $1.1789.</p>

<p>___</p>

<p>AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed.</p>

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Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking US rally into record heights

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Philadelphia city workers strike after contract talks fail

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  • Philadelphia city workers strike after contract talks fail</p>

<p>July 1, 2025 at 6:46 AM</p>

<p>FILE- Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker speaks during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Nov. 4, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, file) ()</p>

<p>PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Nearly 10,000 city workers in Philadelphia who collect trash, answer 911 calls, maintain city pools and perform other jobs went on strike Tuesday after contract negotiations broke down.</p>

<p>District Council 33 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees announced the strike on its Facebook page early Tuesday, saying "HOLD THE LINES."</p>

<p>Mayor Cherelle Parker said the city would suspend residential trash collection, close some city pools and shorten recreation center hours, but vowed to keep the city running. Police and firefighters are not on strike.</p>

<p>Parker, a pro-labor Democrat, promised that Fourth of July celebrations in the nation's birthplace would go on as usual.</p>

<p>"Keep your holiday plans. Don't leave the city," she said at a Monday afternoon news conference that followed hours of last-minute negotiations.</p>

<p>City officials urged residents to be patient and not hang up should they need to call either 911 or the city's non-emergency helpline. They said they would open drop-off sites for residential trash.</p>

<p>Parker said she had offered raises that amount to 13% over her four-year term and added a fifth step to the pay scale to align with other unionized workers. District Council 33 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees is the largest of four unions representing city workers.</p>

<p>"We believe it's a fair offer and still fiscally responsible for the people of this city," said Parker, who took office last year.</p>

<p>Union leaders, in their initial contract proposal, asked for 8% annual raises each year of the three-year contract, along with cost-of-living hikes and bonuses of up to $5,000 for those who worked through the pandemic. The union also asked the city to pay the full cost of employee health care, or $1,700 per person per month.</p>

<p>"District Council 33's members contribute as much blood, sweat and tears as does anyone else," they said in a demand letter. "We all make the city work. Our contract must reflect that reality."</p>

<p>In November, the city transit system averted a strike when the parties agreed to a one-year contract with 5% raises.</p>

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Philadelphia city workers strike after contract talks fail

<p>- Philadelphia city workers strike after contract talks fail</p> <p>July 1, 2025 at 6:46 AM<...

Thailand's king approves new Cabinet for coalition government shaken by leaked phone call

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  • Thailand's king approves new Cabinet for coalition government shaken by leaked phone call</p>

<p>July 1, 2025 at 6:55 AM</p>

<p>1 / 4Thailand PoliticsThailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, center, arrives at Government House for a cabinet meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, July 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)</p>

<p>BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand's king approved the appointments of new Cabinet members Tuesday in the coalition government shaken by a major party's departure over the prime minister's leaked phone call with Cambodia's former leader.</p>

<p>The reshuffle came during speculation over whether the Constitutional Court will take a petition accusing Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra of a serious breach of ethics over the leaked call. The court could suspend her from office pending the investigation.</p>

<p>Paetongtarn said she would accept and follow the process although she didn't want to see her work interrupted. "If you ask me whether I'm worried, I am," she told reporters Monday.</p>

<p>The endorsement of her new Cabinet by King Maha Vajiralongkorn was published in the government gazette.</p>

<p>The reshuffle replaced former Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charvirakul, leader of the Bhumjaithai Party, which had held several Cabinet positions but left the coalition over the leaked call.</p>

<p>Anutin was replaced by Phumtham Wechayachai, who had been defense minister for the past year and also will lead the Interior Ministry. The Defense Ministry post was left blank, with the deputy minister becoming the acting minister instead.</p>

<p>Paetongtarn took the position of culture minister. She said she wanted to promote Thai culture on a global scale. Before she became prime minister, Paetongtarn had promoted Thailand's "soft power," highlighting its food, culture and sports.</p>

<p>The Constitutional Court last year removed her predecessor over a breach of ethics. Thailand's courts, especially the Constitutional Court, are viewed as a bulwark of the royalist establishment, which has used them and nominally independent agencies such as the Election Commission to cripple or sink political opponents.</p>

<p>Paetongtarn also faces investigations over an alleged breach of ethics by the Office of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, whose decision could also lead to her removal.</p>

<p>Outrage over the call mostly revolved around Paetongtarn's comments toward an outspoken regional army commander and her perceived attempts to appease Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen to ease tensions at the border.</p>

<p>Thousands of conservative, nationalist-leaning protesters rallied in central Bangkok on Saturday to demand Paetongtarn's resignation.</p>

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Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect

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  • Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect</p>

<p>HANNAH FINGERHUT July 1, 2025 at 7:01 AM</p>

<p>FILE - Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, D-Hiawatha, speaks during debate on the gender identity bill, Feb. 27, 2025, at the Statehouse in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)</p>

<p>DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa became the first state to remove gender identity from its civil rights code under a law that took effect Tuesday, meaning transgender and nonbinary residents are no longer protected from discrimination in their job, housing and other aspects of life.</p>

<p>The law also explicitly defines female and male based on reproductive organs at birth and removes the ability for people to change the sex designation on their birth certificate.</p>

<p>An unprecedented take-back of legal rights after nearly two decades in Iowa code leaves transgender, nonbinary and potentially even intersex Iowans more vulnerable now than they were before. It's a governing doctrine now widely adopted by President Donald Trump and Republican-led states despite the mainstream medical view that sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum than as an either-or definition.</p>

<p>When Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Iowa's new law, she said the state's previous civil rights code "blurred the biological line between the sexes."</p>

<p>"It's common sense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it's necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls," she said in a video statement.</p>

<p>Also taking effect Tuesday are provisions in the state's health and human services budget that say Medicaid recipients are no longer covered for gender-affirming surgery or hormone therapy.</p>

<p>A national movement</p>

<p>Iowa's state Capitol filled with protesters as the law went through the Republican-controlled Legislature and to Reynolds' desk in just one week in February. Iowa Republicans said laws passed in recent years to restrict transgender students' use of bathrooms and locker rooms, and their participation on sports teams, could not coexist with a civil rights code that includes gender identity protections.</p>

<p>About two dozen other states and the Trump administration have advanced restrictions on transgender people. Republicans say such laws and executive actions protect spaces for women, rejecting the idea that people can transition to another gender. Many face court challenges.</p>

<p>About two-thirds of U.S. adults believe that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by biological characteristics at birth, an -NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in May found. But there's less consensus on policies that target transgender and nonbinary people.</p>

<p>Transgender people say those kinds of policies deny their existence and capitalize on prejudice for political gain.</p>

<p>In a major setback for transgender rights nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court last month upheld Tennessee's ban on puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors. The court's conservative majority said it doesn't violate the Constitution's equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same.</p>

<p>Not every state includes gender identity in their civil rights code, but Iowa was the first to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank.</p>

<p>Incidents of discrimination in Iowa, before and after July 1</p>

<p>Iowans will still have time to file a complaint with the state Office of Civil Rights about discrimination based on gender identity that occurred before the law took effect.</p>

<p>State law requires a complaint to be submitted within 300 days after the most recent incident of alleged discrimination. That means people have until April 27 to file a complaint about discrimination based on gender identity, according to Kristen Stiffler, the office's executive director.</p>

<p>Sixty-five such complaints were filed and accepted for investigation from July 2023 through the end of June 2024, according to Stiffler. Forty-three were filed and accepted from July 1, 2024, through June 19 of this year.</p>

<p>Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat and the state's first openly transgender lawmaker, fears the law will lead to an increase in discrimination for transgender Iowans.</p>

<p>"Anytime someone has to check your ID and they see that the gender marker doesn't match the appearance, then that opens up hostility, discrimination as possibilities," Wichtendahl said, naming examples such as applying for a job, going through the airport, buying beer or getting pulled over in a traffic stop. "That instantly outs you. That instantly puts you on the spot."</p>

<p>About half of U.S. states include gender identity in their civil rights code to protect against discrimination in housing and public places, such as stores or restaurants, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some additional states do not explicitly protect against such discrimination, but it is included in legal interpretations of statutes.</p>

<p>Five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled LGBTQ people are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. But Iowa's Supreme Court has expressly rejected the argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity.</p>

<p>Changing Iowa birth certificates before the law took effect</p>

<p>The months between when the bill was signed into law and when it took effect gave transgender Iowans time to pursue amended birth certificates before that option was eliminated.</p>

<p>Keenan Crow, with LGBTQ+ advocacy group One Iowa, said the group has long cosponsored legal clinics to assist with that process.</p>

<p>"The last one that we had was by far the biggest," Crow said.</p>

<p>Iowa's Department of Transportation still has a process by which people can change the gender designation on their license or identification card but has proposed administrative rules to eliminate that option.</p>

<p>Wichtendahl also said she has talked to some families who are looking to move out of state as a result of the new law.</p>

<p>"It's heartbreaking because this is people's lives we're talking about," Wichtendahl added. "These are families that have trans loved ones and it's keeping their loved ones away, it's putting their loved ones into uncertain future, putting their health and safety at risk."</p>

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Landmark EU tech rules holding back innovation, Google says

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  • Landmark EU tech rules holding back innovation, Google says</p>

<p>Foo Yun CheeJuly 1, 2025 at 7:07 AM</p>

<p>By Foo Yun Chee</p>

<p>BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Alphabet's Google will on Tuesday warn EU antitrust regulators and its critics that landmark European Union rules aimed at reining in Big Tech are hampering innovation to the detriment of European users and businesses.</p>

<p>The U.S. tech giant will also urge regulators to give more detailed guidance to help it comply with the rules, and ask its critics to provide evidence of costs and benefits to prove their case.</p>

<p>Google is under pressure to address charges under the EU's Digital Markets Act that it favours its own services such as Google Shopping, Google Hotels and Google Flights over rivals. The charges may result in fines of as much as 10% of its global annual revenue.</p>

<p>Earlier this month, Google proposed more changes to its search results to better showcase rival products, but critics say these still do not ensure a level playing field.</p>

<p>"We remain genuinely concerned about real world consequences of the DMA, which are leading to worse online products and experiences for Europeans," Google's lawyer Clare Kelly will tell a workshop organised by the European Commission to give Google critics the opportunity to seek clarifications.</p>

<p>She will say changes implemented by Google to date after discussions with the Commission and its critics have resulted in European users paying more for travel tickets as they cannot directly access airline sites, according to a copy of her speech seen by Reuters.</p>

<p>Kelly will also say European airlines, hotels and restaurants have reported up to a 30% loss in direct booking traffic, while users have complained about clunky workarounds.</p>

<p>Google's other lawyer, Oliver Bethell, will ask regulators to spell out in detail what the company needs to do, and critics to come up with hard evidence.</p>

<p>"If we can understand precisely what compliance looks like, not just in theory, but taking account of on the ground experience, we can launch compliant services quickly and confidently across the EEA," he will say.</p>

<p>The EEA is the 27 EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.</p>

<p>"We need help identifying the areas where we should focus. That means bringing real evidence of costs and benefits that we can take account of with the Commission," Bethell said.</p>

<p>The day-long workshop starts at 0700 GMT.</p>

<p>(Reporting by Foo Yun CheeEditing by Mark Potter)</p>

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Landmark EU tech rules holding back innovation, Google says

<p>- Landmark EU tech rules holding back innovation, Google says</p> <p>Foo Yun CheeJuly 1, 2025 a...

Bryan Kohberger to plead guilty to murder in Idaho student stabbings to avoid death penalty

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  • Bryan Kohberger to plead guilty to murder in Idaho student stabbings to avoid death penalty</p>

<p>REBECCA BOONE and GENE JOHNSONJuly 1, 2025 at 6:07 AM</p>

<p>1 / 5Four Killed University of IdahoFILE - A private security officer sits in a vehicle on Jan. 3, 2023, in front of the house in Moscow, Idaho, where four University of Idaho students were killed in November 2022. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)</p>

<p>BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Bryan Kohberger has agreed to plead guilty to murdering four University of Idaho students as part of a deal to avoid the death penalty, an attorney for one victim's family said.</p>

<p>Shanon Gray, an attorney representing the family of Kaylee Goncalves, confirmed Monday that prosecutors informed the families of the deal by email and letter earlier in the day, and that his clients were upset about it.</p>

<p>"We are beyond furious at the State of Idaho," Goncalves' family wrote in a Facebook post. "They have failed us. Please give us some time. This was very unexpected."</p>

<p>A change of plea hearing was set for Wednesday, but the family has asked prosecutors to delay it to give them more time to travel to Boise, Gray said. Kohberger's trial was set for August in Boise, where it was moved following pretrial publicity in rural northern Idaho.</p>

<p>Kohberger, 30, is accused in the stabbing deaths of Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Madison Mogen at a rental home near campus in Moscow, Idaho, early on Nov. 13, 2022. Autopsies showed the four were all likely asleep when they were attacked, some had defensive wounds and each was stabbed multiple times.</p>

<p>At the time, Kohberger was a criminal justice graduate student at Washington State University, about 9 miles (14.5 kilometers) west of the University of Idaho. He was arrested in Pennsylvania, where his parents lived, weeks later. Investigators said they matched his DNA to genetic material recovered from a knife sheath found at the crime scene.</p>

<p>No motive has emerged for the killings, nor is it clear why the attacker spared two roommates who were in the home. Authorities have said cellphone data and surveillance video shows that Kohberger visited the victims' neighborhood at least a dozen times before the killings.</p>

<p>The murders shocked the small farming community of about 25,000 people, which hadn't had a homicide in about five years, and prompted a massive hunt for the perpetrator. That included an elaborate effort to track down a white sedan that was seen on surveillance cameras repeatedly driving by the rental home, to identify Kohberger as a possible suspect through the use of genetic genealogy and to pinpoint his movements the night of the killings through cellphone data.</p>

<p>In a court filing, Kohberger's lawyers said he was on a long drive by himself around the time the four were killed.</p>

<p>In the letter to families, obtained by ABC News, prosecutors said Kohberger's lawyers approached them seeking to reach a plea deal. The defense team had previously made unsuccessful efforts to have the death penalty stricken as a possible punishment, including arguing that Kohberger's autism diagnosis made him less culpable.</p>

<p>The prosecutors said they met with available family members last week before deciding to make Kohberger an offer.</p>

<p>"This resolution is our sincere attempt to seek justice for your family," the letter said. "This agreement ensures that the defendant will be convicted, will spend the rest of his life in prison, and will not be able to put you and the other families through the uncertainty of decades of post-conviction, appeals. Your viewpoints weighed heavily in our decision-making process, and we hope that you may come to appreciate why we believe this resolution is in the best interest of justice."</p>

<p>In a Facebook post, the Goncalves family wrote that Kaylee's 18-year-old sister, Aubrie, had been unable to attend the meeting with prosecutors. But she shared her concerns in a written statement.</p>

<p>"Bryan Kohberger facing a life in prison means he would still get to speak, form relationships, and engage with the world," Aubrie Goncalves wrote. "Meanwhile, our loved ones have been silenced forever. That reality stings more deeply when it feels like the system is protecting his future more than honoring the victims' pasts."</p>

<p>In Idaho, judges may reject plea agreements, though such moves are rare. If a judge rejects a plea agreement, the defendant is allowed to withdraw the guilty plea.</p>

<p>Earlier Monday, a Pennsylvania judge had ordered that three people whose testimony was requested by defense attorneys would have to travel to Idaho to appear at Kohberger's trial.</p>

<p>The defense subpoenas were granted regarding a boxing trainer who knew Kohberger as a teenager, a childhood acquaintance of Kohberger's and a third man whose significance was not explained.</p>

<p>A gag order has largely kept attorneys, investigators and others from speaking publicly about the investigation or trial.</p>

<p>___</p>

<p>Johnson reported from Seattle. reporter Mark Scolforo contributed from Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.</p>

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Despite Trump backlash, DEI rollbacks are slowing. Here's why.

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  • Despite Trump backlash, DEI rollbacks are slowing. Here's why.</p>

<p>Jessica Guynn, USA TODAYJuly 1, 2025 at 2:42 AM</p>

<p>For months now, President Donald Trump's threat to strip federal contracts from corporations that stand by their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives has driven a sharp U-turn in corporate America, with the private sector rushing to distance itself from policies that it once trumpeted.</p>

<p>But a new study tracking DEI changes inside the nation's biggest corporations shows the pace has slowed as the Trump administration has pivoted to other policy priorities such as immigration and tariffs.</p>

<p>The backlash against DEI gained steam during the 2024 presidential election but hit a fever pitch when Trump took office. His early executive orders aimed at eliminating "illegal DEI" in the federal government and the private sector were the single-largest driving force behind the reforms that swept corporate America, Gravity Research found.</p>

<p>"President Trump's return to office created a seismic shift in the risk calculus for companies with DEI commitments," said Joanna Piacenza, vice president of thought leadership with Gravity Research, which advises companies on social, political and reputational risks. "Unlike earlier backlash driven by online activists which focused on reputational and social media pressure, Trump's administration brought policy levers and legal authority."</p>

<p>Most of the policy shifts – 80% – tracked in Gravity Research's study of Fortune 1000 companies and sports leagues between June 2024 and May 2025 occurred after Trump's inauguration. But the rate slowed significantly following the post-inauguration push, Piacenza said.</p>

<p>For example, 11 companies publicly announced in February they would make major changes to diverse hiring targets and workforce and executive representation goals, but only two made those changes in May.</p>

<p>"The slowdown appears to reflect a 'wait-and-see' posture from companies," Piacenza said. "With those initial policy adjustments now set in motion, companies appear to be reassessing further changes."</p>

<p>President Donald Trump hold up a memorandum he signed ordering an immediate assessment of aviation safety and ordering an elevation of what he called "competence over DEI."Corporations made these DEI changes</p>

<p>Corporations that rushed to make changes following the inauguration were those with the most to lose: federal contractors and companies in highly regulated industries. Nearly three-quarters of the corporations that made post-inauguration DEI changes were federal contractors, the study showed.</p>

<p>Of the DEI changes corporations made, the most significant was around hiring and representation goals, according to Gravity Research. Corporations also rebranded DEI efforts with more anodyne names such as "inclusion and belonging" and changed the chief diversity officer title to "vice president of talent strategy" or "head of people engagement" after Trump's inauguration. Mentions of "DEI" and related terms also vanished from corporate reports, regulatory filings and websites.</p>

<p>Few companies dismantled employee resource groups but emphasized they are open to all employees and are aligned with business priorities such as professional development and networking. "With federal agencies signaling that ERGs could be investigated as discriminatory, this issue may resurface as a reputational risk in the months ahead," the Gravity Research study said.</p>

<p>DEI retreat or 'head fake'?</p>

<p>The Gravity Research study found that corporations are reframing but not retreating from DEI, with 80% affirming ongoing commitments to "inclusion," "belonging," or "accessibility."</p>

<p>Business leaders are gaining confidence from pro-DEI shareholder votes and from the challenges faced by companies that have retreated on DEI, including declining sales, shrinking market caps and struggles attracting and retaining talent, said Carissa Romero, co-founder and managing director of the culture and inclusion platform Paradigm.</p>

<p>Guidance issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in March also reassured corporations that the Trump administration would not view their strategies as "illegal DEI."</p>

<p>University of Louisville students holding a rally to protect diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) on their campus in March 2024.</p>

<p>Corporations are also facing growing pressure from pro-DEI activists who have mounted a string of boycotts protesting DEI rollbacks. It's unclear how much of an impact these boycotts are having on the bottom line, but Target cited its decision to end some diversity policies as a contributor to a sharp first-quarter pullback in consumer spending.</p>

<p>"Most companies know creating diverse workforces, fair processes that advance the best talent and inclusive environments where people who are different from one another can collaborate effectively is essential to long-term business success," Romero said. "These efforts aren't a 'nice to have,' they're strategic levers for innovation, performance and resilience."</p>

<p>Corporations could quickly change their tune if the Trump administration ramps up DEI enforcement, Piacenza said. Last week the Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs issued a letter inviting federal contractors to voluntarily disclose what steps they have taken to "wind down" DEI programs.</p>

<p>DEI critics like shareholder activist Paul Chesser accuse corporations of ducking Trump administration oversight and "snookering" customers and shareholders by making superficial changes to their policies while maintaining their commitment to diversity programs behind the scenes.</p>

<p>Chesser, director of the National Legal and Policy Center's Corporate Integrity Project, calls it "the head fake across corporate America to give the impression – with little or no evidence – that companies are eliminating DEI."</p>

<p>"Companies that outside parties perceive as having made only cosmetic changes could face renewed scrutiny," Piacenza said.</p>

<p>This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Despite Trump backlash, DEI rollbacks are slowing. Here's why.</p>

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