IFP Backgrounder — Farm Bill Debate Carries Implications for Many Thousands of Iowans Backgrounder (2-pg PDF)
As of May 2013, 198,843 households in ...
The Iowa Fiscal Partnership is a joint initiative of two nonpartisan organizations, the Iowa Policy Project and the Child and Family Policy Center, providing reliable information and analysis on Iowa budget and tax issues.
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Late deals, long-lasting impacts
“Over the long term, the late-session deals may force lower expectations in Iowa for critical services. Forward steps were clear: The Medicaid expansion will address needs and protect state revenues, while the Earned Income Tax Credit expansion is an important but small nod to a more equitable income-tax structure.
“The property-tax reform package, however, will be costly and will challenge cities, counties and schools to deliver what Iowans have come to expect. It offers big breaks to business property owners — while costing significant sums in local services at a time of continually improving state revenues.”
Peter Fisher's statement on behalf of the nonpartisan Iowa Fiscal Partnership is not the happy talk of end-of-session news conferences. In fact, it notes that the argument for business property-tax reductions has been inspired by politics, not economics. And our elected leaders are offering more of it for 2014.
Research Activities Credit Big companies get big tax breaks from the state for research activities, but for the most part, they're not really tax breaks -- just straight subsidies outside the budget process. And which companies aren't paying any income taxes while picking up $33 million in checks? Read this report
SNAP Almost 200,000 households in Iowa benefit from Food Assistance. Read this report
