Iowa’s Individual Income Tax Could be on the Road to Elimination The Iowa Senate kicked off February with a bang by introducing a measure to lower both individual and corporate tax rates, before placing the individual income tax on a path to elimination. Senator Dawson’s bill (SSB1126) would help Iowa maintain its competitive position, while allowing taxpayers to keep more […]
Iowa Passes Student First Act The Students First Act creates a universal ESA that will be funded with the state’s share of funding per pupil, which is currently $7,598. This is a victory for families across Iowa. Taxpayer-Funds Used Against Own Interests Taxpayer-funded lobbying occurs when political subdivisions, such as counties, cities, and school districts, pay lobbyists with money they have […]
Property Taxes Become Legislative Priority Property taxes are making headlines across Iowa, and legislative leaders are beginning to speak out about their intentions to address the growing issue. With the legislature poised to act, what can they do to rein in property taxes? ITR Foundation recently released its Property Tax Toolkit. This toolkit provides the history of how local property taxes […]
2023 Will Be a Big Year for Iowa Taxpayers Iowa taxpayers will start seeing income tax relief in just a few weeks as a result of the historic tax reform the legislature passed and Governor Kim Reynolds signed into law this year. At this moment, Iowa has a progressive income tax, with nine brackets topping out at 8.53 percent. In […]
Local Government Spending Limitations Spending limits are similar to speed limits in a school zone, both are designed to protect. In the case of local governments, they apply the brakes to slow spending down. YTD Revenue Still Tracking Closely With FY22 The most recent Revenue Estimating Conference prediction is aligning with actual results. January results will provide an even better […]
The Assessor is NOT to Blame We’ve all heard it around our communities: “Watch out: the assessor is coming around, which means property taxes are going up!” or “Don’t let them near your home, or they will increase the value and make your taxes go up!” Don’t miss who is truly in charge of your property taxes. When county board, […]
Revenue Projections Erase Majority of Tax Reform Cost The State Revenue Estimating Conference (REC) met in October to evaluate the current and next fiscal years, FY23 and FY24. Compared with its previous forecast in March, the REC increased net General Fund revenue by nearly $400 million for the current fiscal year. Even in the face of inflation and a workforce […]
Gov. Reynolds Widens Lead; Iowans Support Conservative Candidates and Policies ITR Foundation’s new poll, conducted by Cygnal, shows Governor Kim Reynolds is growing more popular, while President Joe Biden remains unpopular. Iowans support a wide range of conservative candidates and policy measures, including spending limits on local governments to control property taxes. Highlights: ITR Foundation President Chris Ingstad said, “It’s […]
Combating Runaway Property Taxes Recent headlines in Central Iowa are focused on an upcoming round of real estate assessments for properties in Polk County. Long-time Polk County assessor Randy Ripperger estimates that residential assessments will increase by 22% next year. We doubt Polk County residents will be the only Iowans experiencing a large jump in their assessed values. Countless Iowans will be […]
State Revenue in August Paints Positive Picture Iowa’s revenue report for August has been released and the news for the month was encouraging. Even under the weight of continued inflation and a national recession, the state’s net General Fund revenue was $57 million (6.5%) above the August 2021 net revenue level. When broken down by the three largest sources of revenue, they […]
Inflation Reduction Act? Not Likely Only in Washington, D.C. could someone refer to a $750 billion bill as “anti-inflationary” with a straight face, but that’s exactly what Congress and President Biden are doing as they celebrate the passage of the so-called Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). CNN has reported that the bill may not live up to its name, and U.S. News and World Report predicts inflation isn’t […]
July Revenue Figures Show Strength in Uncertain Times The first month of Iowa’s new fiscal year is now behind us. While looking at a single month is just one small slice of the pie, it might be hinting at some economic trends we are seeing nationwide. ITR Foundation reviewed the July state revenue report which revealed higher than expected income tax […]
The Impact of the National Recession on Iowa Well, we were right. Headlines this morning declared America’s economy shrank for the second quarter in a row and yesterday’s news cycle confirmed the Fed was delivering another large interest rate hike. Politicians, policy makers, and members of the media are scrambling to redefine the term “recession” for the American public but voters are not fooled by word games […]
The Latest Assault on Our Constitution and the States Once again it appears that policymakers in Washington, D.C. are trying to further centralize power and squeeze the sovereignty of the states. The United States House of Representatives Judiciary Committee has a bill before them that would set a dangerous precedent regarding tax policy if enacted. It’s called the STAMP Act which stands […]
Restrain Local Governments Addicted to Property Taxes Property taxes are despised. We hear from Iowans of all political stripes about the giant bite property taxes take from family budgets. Now inflation is adding pressure by pushing up the price of gas and groceries, not to mention rising real estate assessments and tax bills. Of course, increasing assessments don’t have to […]
Iowa and ITR Foundation In National Spotlight Another national media outlet has taken note of the work Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Legislature are doing. Real Clear Policy published The State Built on Fiscal Conservatism – Not Federal Handouts by ITR Foundation Policy Director John Hendrickson. John explains how prudent, conservative spending made this year’s tax reform possible. The Washington Times recently sought […]
The School Choice Questions We Should Be Asking The education establishment has done an amazing job of creating the perfect “Emperor’s New Clothes” scenario when arguing against school choice. In the story, the emperor is fond of clothes and two “weavers” enter his capital, telling him they will create a magnificent suit for him that would be invisible to all […]
Intentions Don’t Always Equal Results In an effort to compete in our global economy, each state in the U.S. relies on economic incentives to attract corporations. Depending on one’s view of incentives, this can be thought of as economic development, or corporate welfare, or even crony capitalism. According to one 50-state evaluation, Iowa has 60 programs, the most among its neighbors. Unfortunately, […]
Truth-in-Taxation: A Rock Chalk Taxpayer Protection March Madness wrapped up this month with the Kansas Jayhawks being crowned National Champions. While there may not be many Iowans who joined Jayhawk fans in celebrating that victory, there was another win in Kansas that we can all be happy about: property taxes. The map below identifies 21 Kansas counties that actually experienced a decline in […]
Did Iowa Spark A Tax Reform Movement? This year may be one of the most historic for states lowering income tax rates across the nation. So far, at least six other states have joined Iowa in passing tax cuts, while many more have tax reform legislation under consideration. The graph above illustrates the new rates that will be delivered to individual taxpayers in their […]
Do the media and the left not understand how tax cuts work? Did they collude to protect Hunter Biden? Would you like to see just how much Iowa is improving its tax climate? Who is really to blame for the soaring prices we’re all paying these days? ITR Foundation sets the record straight below. Budget Growth & Tax Cuts: A […]
Iowans recently scored a huge income tax reform victory but are still frustrated with out-of-control property taxes. Additionally, how should cities, counties, and school districts use the nearly $1.2 billion in federal funds they received from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)? ITR Foundation has solutions to those issues as well as some school choice stories for you to check […]
Last week the taxpayers of Iowa scored a monumental win thanks to the effort of Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Legislature. The passage and signing of this historic tax relief bill will reduce the individual income tax to a flat rate of 3.9% by 2026, begin ratcheting down the corporate income tax to an eventual flat rate of 5.5%, and […]
You are important to us! We want to keep you up to date on the impact good and bad policy has on the state’s future. So, for the last couple our weeks, our pens have been working feverishly on articles from tax policy, healthcare, education, among others. Here is a list of our most recent articles. Strong Fiscal Rules Lead to […]
From a taxpayer perspective, the 2022 legislative session is off to a good start. Governor Kim Reynolds and both the House and Senate Republicans have proposed pro-growth tax reform plans that would lower Iowa’s income tax rates. Proposed Individual Income Tax Reform Plans Governor Kim Reynolds 4.0% flat rate by 2026House Republicans 4.0% flat rate by 2026Senate Republicans […]
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