As Iowa's elected leaders convene in Des Moines for the new legislative session, tax and workforce issues loom.
Iowa’s elected leaders vowed to tackle tax and the state’s workforce issues when it convened in Des Moines for its 2020 legislative session.
One of the first issues on the docket is what to do with the proceeds of a one-cent sales tax authorized by a constitutional amendment passed by Iowa voters over a decade ago. The amendment requires three-eighths of the tax to protect natural resources and outdoor recreational activities, while the rest can be used as the legislature and the governor see fit.
Various legislative proposals include using the tax’s $380 million surplus to lower income tax rates, decrease property taxes, and to expand tax-cut provisions passed in the 2018 legislative session.
Leaders in both parties agree that workforce development is a major issue that the legislature needs to address this legislative session
“When you have folks like me and (Democratic Sen.) Bill Dotzler at an event up in Waterloo sharing similar concerns about what we see in the workforce at an economic development meeting, it shows that’s an actual issues we need to address,” said incoming Speaker of the House Rep. Pat Grassley. Gov. Kim Reynolds agreed, saying that workforce issues such as career development, childcare, and housing are on “top of [her] mind.”
