When Governor Reynolds took office, Iowa’s top income tax rate was among the highest in the nation. Now, after six historic tax cuts, our state benefits from a 3.8% flat income tax, a top corporate tax rate approaching 5.5%, no taxes on inheritance or retirement income, and an unemployment insurance tax that’s just half of what it used to be.
Yet, for all the progress we’ve made, one issue continues to impact Iowans in every community and at every income level: property taxes. Governor Reynolds' plan for property tax reform is estimated to save taxpayers more than $3 billion over the next six years.
Governor Reynolds Proposes:
- Restricting total revenue growth for all local government taxing authorities to 2% plus new construction, with exceptions for debt service and school funding.
- Moving property tax assessments from every two years to every three years.
- Limiting TIF to public purposes within public infrastructure, redevelopment, and economic development projects and setting project time limit of 20 years.
- Freezing property tax bills for seniors 65 and up who live in homes valued at $350,000 or less.
- Expanding tax-deductible saving accounts for first-time home purchases.
- Creating a $10 million fund to provide grants to local governments to assist in efforts to consolidate government positions and pursue shared services agreements with other local governments.
- Eliminating election mandates for County Treasurer, Auditor, and Recorder positions.
- Setting Iowa on a trajectory to allocate 30% of SAVE funds to property tax relief by state fiscal year 2030.
