While the homestead exemption will reduce property taxes by exempting a certain amount of a home’s value from taxation, it will be short-lived if local governments are not given a spending limitation. Iowa lawmakers responded to constituent complaints of rising assessments and growing property tax bills with the most comprehensive property tax reform package in over 30 years. One specific […]
This legislation delivers more transparency and spending restraint for taxpayers. However, future property tax reform must be pursued and include strong budget or spending limits applied to entire local government budgets. A wide-ranging package of property tax reforms were approved inside the Iowa State Capitol this week, as a compromise bill (HF 718) passed both legislative chambers with overwhelming bipartisan […]
This article was published in the Cedar Rapids Gazette. A spending limit applied to local governments requiring them to earn a vote of the people to raise spending forces governments to be more accountable and to justify new spending. Taxpayers across the state are upset after receiving their property assessment notices in the mail. Property assessments in Iowa have increased, […]
Local government officials should focus less on “keeping up with the Joneses” and more on the core services demanded by their constituents. Property taxes are arguably the most hated tax in Iowa, and rightfully so. The tax bill grows whether or not the homeowner has done anything to the property. Consequently, Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation’s latest poll found that […]
This article was published in the Iowa Capital Dispatch. Truth-in-Taxation forces local governments to be more transparent, holds local governments accountable, and provides an opportunity for citizens to have an honest conversation with their elected officials about property taxes. Frustration with high property taxes is reaching a boiling point, especially after taxpayers across Iowa are receiving their assessment notices. Taxpayers […]
The system used to calculate property taxes in Iowa is too complicated. It’s easy to get lost in all of the calculations that go into determining your property tax bill, so we’ll try to simplify some of the items for you. The first thing to remember is property taxes in your community are determined by how much your local elected […]
Property taxes are a heavy burden for Iowans and voters are demanding that the legislature step up to offer some relief. The most recent ITR Foundation poll found that a full two-thirds of Iowans support the general assembly setting limits on how much a local government can tax and spend in order to control the growth of property taxes.
All bonded indebtedness, voted levies, and other revenue or spending questions that directly affect property taxes should be placed on November election ballots for the greatest possible participation of the electorate. On March 7, 2023, 22 taxing authorities spread across 35 Iowa counties held special elections that included bond questions totaling nearly $400 million in potential new spending. A majority of […]
Taxpayers who believe their assessments are incorrect have a window between April 2 and April 30 to officially protest them. All real property in Iowa is assessed beginning in January of odd-numbered years. Residential, commercial, and industrial properties are assessed according to their market values, while agricultural property is assessed according to its productivity and net earning capacity. Iowans may […]
It turns out that defining the proper role of local government, deciphering between wants and needs, and frustrated property taxpayers are not dynamics that are unique to Iowa. Our friends at
The Cardinal Institute in West Virginia are working through those same issues in their state. In a recent article, Cardinal’s Executive Director, Garrett Ballengee joined with Mark Moses, a former city finance administrator and local budget expert, to examine municipal finance and discuss the concept of mission creep.
A Des Moines Register poll of Iowa adults conducted in early March found majorities favoring property tax cuts and gradual elimination of the state’s individual income tax. One question asked whether Iowans favor “cut[ting] property taxes, limiting what local governments could spend on services.”
The benefit of switching to a set dollar exemption is taxpayers would receive a predictable and permanent form of relief that does not depend on the state’s fiscal situation. A tax bill proposed in the 2023 Legislature would switch Iowa from a credit to an exemption as the form of property tax relief for homesteads — or residents’ primary housing. […]
Iowa county bond information is not easy to acquire. State law should require county auditors to have this information on their website and also require the Secretary of State’s office to aggregate this information so news outlets and interested parties could more easily report on bonds and property tax increases being asked at special elections. On March 7, 2023, thirty-five Iowa […]
A proposed $43 million expenditure will be placed on Urbandale’s March 7th ballot requiring 60% approval to pass. If the special election harbors the same voter turnout as last year’s special election, just 14% of voters could commit their community to tens of millions of dollars in spending. The burden of property taxes is a heavy one for many Iowans […]
This article was published in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Despite numerous changes, lasting relief has not been delivered and Iowa currently has the 10th-highest property tax burden in the nation. If you have lived in Iowa for any length of time, then you know property taxes are, without a doubt, the most despised tax in the state. That’s why numerous […]
Simplifying the tax code and forcing cities to live within the general fund levy rate will result in tax relief for property taxpayers. Over the course of Iowa’s history, the legislature has approved multiple property tax levies dedicated to specific uses in municipalities. Many of these special levies came into existence decades ago and no longer serve a purpose. Iowa […]
A spending limitation would deliver lasting property tax relief by taking a head on approach to addressing runaway local government spending. Property taxes are a concern for taxpayers across the nation and it seems Iowa is not the only place where lawmakers are attempting to deliver much needed relief from the burden of local government spending. The Montana Legislature is […]
Iowans and their state government know how to live within their means; it’s time local governments do the same.
If you are following the 2023 Iowa legislative session, then you know there is a lot of proposed legislation aimed at reforming and lowering the property tax. This is because local governments in Iowa have a spending problem. Since 2000, total property taxes collected have increased nearly 120%, well outpacing inflation. The increased spending has put a burden on taxpayers that cannot be ignored.
Unassigned General Fund dollars beyond 15-30% of annual General Fund Expenditures might be excessive. The concept of reserve funds and ending fund balances have been discussed by lawmakers and local officials alike in recent days at the Iowa Capitol and in the press. It’s something we’ve had our eyes on for years here at Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation. Following […]
The House’s proposed legislation would require cities, counties, and school districts to set aside at least 10 percent of the total cost of any project for which bonds are to be issued and require notices be mailed to each property owner with personalized taxpayer information about the effects of potential spending increases on their property tax bills. Just a few […]
At the heart of high property taxes is local government spending. Solving Iowa’s property tax problem will require a commitment to responsible spending limits.
After implementing historic income tax reform, Iowa legislators will be turning their focus on property tax reform. Iowans across the political divide are rightly demanding property tax relief. Nevertheless, property tax reform will not be easy. Property taxes are local taxes and at the heart of high property taxes is local government spending. Solving Iowa’s property tax problem for the long-term will require a commitment to responsible spending limits.
Iowa is one of 18 states that have assessment limitations to limit the growth of property taxes. Iowa is somewhat unique, however, because there is no limitation on property subject to rollback. Once calculated, it applies to all properties, even new construction. The property tax revolts of the late 1970s constituted the most significant property tax limitation movement in our […]
Municipal officials have two major limitations: (1) local governments can only tax their residents as “expressly authorized” by the legislature, and (2) they cannot exercise powers that conflict with state law, meaning it is up to state lawmakers to tell local officials what their powers are. This is an important question for anybody hoping to solve the problem of high […]
Iowa has too much government. Citizens have benefitted from conservative leadership at the state level that has delivered multiple rounds of tax cuts and eased the regulatory burden on businesses and employees, but big-government objectives like property tax growth are on autopilot with no off ramp in sight. Reining in the growth of local government requires solutions to numerous issues.
Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation (ITRF) has created this toolkit to deliver a concise and easily digestible public policy guide for state and local officials who are interested in property tax reform. Since no single policy solution will “fix” Iowa’s property tax, this toolkit offers concrete ideas for policymakers that will bend the expense curve and eventually reduce the burden on taxpayers.
Direct notification is an aggressive transparency measure forcing local governments to be honest with taxpayers about how their property tax bills will be affected by potential spending increases. Iowans are frustrated with high property taxes, but very few understand the complexity of the system. In 2019, the property tax transparency and accountability law required each city and county to hold a public hearing focused on the proposed budget and total property taxes needed to fund that budget. Information about this hearing such as the date, time and location are required to be published and posted on the local government’s website, social media accounts and the local newspaper.