Iowans for Tax Relief

06/12/2026

Both gubernatorial candidates have now selected their running mates: Rob Sand tapped Dave Muhlbauer, a farmer from western Iowa, while Zach Lahn chose State Representative Derek Wulf of Black Hawk County, also a farmer. Chris and John break down the strategy behind each pick, why Wulf stands out as a particularly strong choice for Lahn, and what the selection of two agricultural running mates signals about where both campaigns think the race will be won.

Chris Hagenow and John Hendrickson are back in the Hendrickson Libr...

05/19/2026

ITR Live Podcast - The Doom and Gloom Tour: Why Local Government Complaints Might Actually Good News

https://taxrelief.org/the-doom-and-gloom-tour-why-local-government-complaints-might-actually-good-news/

05/12/2026

Last week, Iowa legislators passed a property tax reform bill aimed at limiting the out-of-control increases of property tax bills.

On KCCI’s Close Up, Amanda Rooker, KCCI Chief Political Reporter, sat down with Chris Hagenow, ITR President, to discuss the new legislation’s impact on Iowans. Here is their conversation:

Last week, Iowa legislators passed a property tax reform bill aimed at limiting the out-of-control increases of property tax bills. On KCCI’s Close Up, Amanda Rooker, KCCI Chief Political Reporter, sat down with Chris Hagenow, ITR President, to discuss the new legislation’s impact on Iowans. Her...

05/06/2026

The Iowa Legislature finally wrapped up Sunday evening after an all-weekend push, and Chris Hagenow and John Hendrickson are here to make sense of what actually happened. The headline: Iowa passed a meaningful property tax bill built around a 2% revenue limitation — the reform ITR has championed for years. It's not a dramatic overnight cut, but it puts a real ceiling on what local governments can collect, and that's how lasting property tax relief gets built.

The bill does more than the cap alone. Changes to the school funding formula and the SAVE fund will direct more dollars toward property tax relief over time, and new limits on local government fund balances close a loophole that's allowed governments to accumulate reserves while still levying at full rates. Some provisions didn't survive — a gas tax increase, a new local option sales tax, and senior-specific relief all fell out of the final version.

The other story from the session — and arguably the bigger long-term win — is a constitutional amendment headed to Iowa voters in November that would require a two-thirds legislative majority to raise the income tax. More than two-thirds of Iowans already support it. If it passes, it becomes one of the most durable taxpayer protections in state history.

The Iowa Legislature finally wrapped up Sunday evening after an all-weekend push, and Chris Hagenow and John Hendrickson are here to make sense of what actua...

05/04/2026

Iowa lawmakers passed a comprehensive property tax reform bill featuring a 2% cap on city and county property tax growth, marking a meaningful step toward slowing long-term tax increases.

While the cap is significant, some exemptions and uncapped levies remain, meaning continued vigilance is needed as some local governments may seek to work around the limits.

The bill includes several additional reforms, including reducing the school levy rate, restructuring homestead benefits, limiting TIF durations, capping ending fund balances, and improving taxpayer transparency through clearer notices and data access.

Iowa lawmakers passed a comprehensive property tax reform bill featuring a 2% cap on city and county property tax growth, marking a meaningful step toward slowing long-term tax increases.While the cap is significant, some exemptions and uncapped levies remain, meaning continued vigilance is needed a...

04/24/2026

Whose Budget Comes First? Iowa's Property Tax Debate

The House picked up the Senate file, amended it with their own language, and passed it 64 to 23 — with three Democrats crossing the aisle — sending it back to the Senate. Chris and John walk through the standout moment from the House floor debate: Ways and Means Chairman Carter Nordman's defense of the 2% hard spending cap. His argument is the one that matters most — that for too long, the certainty of government budgets has taken priority over family budgets, and this bill flips that script. The opposition's counterargument — that rising assessments, not spending, are the real culprit — actually makes the case for the cap. If local governments won't cut levy rates on their own when assessments rise, that's precisely why a hard cap is necessary in the first place.

Whose Budget Comes First? Iowa's Property Tax Debate

04/24/2026

As Iowa’s legislature pushes toward adjournment, the focus is on finalizing the state budget and negotiations over property tax relief. The budget appears close to resolution, but property taxes remain the major sticking point.

The Iowa Senate approved an amended property tax reform bill (SF 2472) 41–4 on April 8. This week, the House took up the Senate’s bill, replaced it with its own language, and passed the amended version on a bipartisan 64-23 vote (with three Democrats joining Republicans). The bill has now returned to the Senate, which has indicated they will insist on their original plan.

Click to see the key provisions in the bill passed by the House:

As Iowa’s legislature pushes toward adjournment, the focus is on finalizing the state budget and negotiations over property tax relief. The budget appears close to resolution, but property taxes remain the major sticking point. The Iowa Senate approved an amended property tax reform bill (SF 2472)...

04/17/2026

Chris Hagenow and John Hendrickson are back at the Hendrickson Library for another episode of ITR Live, checking in on Iowa politics as the legislative session heads into its final stretch and the June primary begins to take shape.

Chris Hagenow and John Hendrickson are back at the Hendrickson Library for another episode of ITR Live, checking in on Iowa politics as the legislative sessi...

04/14/2026

Last week, the Iowa Senate approved an amended property tax reform bill on a vote of 41–4.

The House Republicans’ version was passed by the House Ways and Means Committee on March 18 and is expected to move forward in the next few weeks.

These proposals share common goals but take different approaches, including caps on local government revenue growth, changes to assessment practices, shifts in school funding, limits on TIF, and varying mixes of exemptions, freezes, and tax base adjustments.

Governor Reynolds and legislative leaders from both parties described this as the first step in negotiations. Their goal is to reach a final property tax reform agreement this year.

Click to see a comparison of the proposals:

Momentum is building around the need for limits on local revenue growth. ITR has long advocated for a 2% property tax cap, and that idea is now central to the property tax debate. The Senate, Governor, and House proposals share common goals but take different approaches, including caps on local gove...

04/09/2026

"Simply show up and say, 'I can't afford this increase any longer,'" says ITR President Chris Hagenow. "This is the time because it is the spending that drives your property tax bill, not those other pieces."

"The most important thing that we communicate to Iowans is to share their own story, is to not talk about or try to debate every line item in a local government budget, but to simply show up and say, 'I can't afford this increase any longer.'"