A Primer on Ending Fund Balances

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 […]

Iowa’s Assessment Limitation – Rollback

 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 […]

Solutions to Iowa’s Growing Property Tax Problem

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.

Where Did Iowa’s Local COVID Relief Funds Go?

In March 2021, the United States was in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to previous large-scale stimulus measures, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) on a party-line vote. Relief for state and local governments was among the most thoroughly debated provisions of the legislation, ultimately sending $130.2 billion to state, local, tribal, and territorial governments. Iowa cities and counties collectively received $1.162 billion. The state’s largest eleven metropolitan cities received nearly $335 million, while counties took in $612 million and smaller governments received $216 million in payments.

2020 Candidate Education Guide

Recently TEF Iowa polled Iowans to get their view on some key public policy issues. In this guide you will find not only how Iowans think about these issues, but also public policy solutions that align with the interest of Iowans. TEF Iowa has developed this guide as a resource to provide legislative candidates additional information on some of the […]

Tax Credits

Iowa Has One of the Worst Business Climates in the Nation Iowa competes with 49 states for businesses and people. What policies will allow Iowa to be more competitive and attract more people, businesses, and entrepreneurial activity?   While the economy overall is doing well, Iowa is still confronted with some serious economic problems. Whether it is slow population growth, […]