Tax Relief
Taxes are at best an annoyance. I won’t go so far as to say “necessary evil” in light of all the wasteful government spending…they could cut a lot of that and reduce the amount of my money that goes to Washington and to Des Moines.
One of the most annoying for most of us is property taxes. You work hard and acquire a house or a business building, and you are forced to pay the government every year. Sort of like the HOA fees for an apartment or condo.
Earlier this year, Gov. Kim Reynolds told me on KXEL that she was going to give the legislature a chance to make meaningful strides on property tax reform this session…and if they did not act, it would become her number one priority for next year. She said real reform meant forcing counties and municipalities to make some changes…and that she felt the state had to get its own house in order before imposing anything on them.
Well, we now have the government reorganization law…the “getting the house in order” part of the plan she set out. At the same time, we property owners got our new assessments, showing increases in value of 20, 30, 40 percent statewide. Those who set such things say it’s just a reflection of actual sales following one of the hottest housing markets in decades…and they say higher assessments don’t automatically mean higher taxes.
True…but it’s hard to find examples where people’s taxes didn’t go up right after an increased valuation. That’s because governments need money to operate; it’s their oxygen, and they don’t often willingly get by with less.
And now that the housing market has cooled significantly, try getting that new assessed value if you put your house on the market today.
The last time the state tried to give us property tax relief, it was by the state assuming the cost of mental health care. Counties complained that that was the reason they needed so much revenue. But roughly half the counties did not pass that savings on to citizens in the form of lower taxes…your property tax burden remained the same, even though they no longer had the expense.
Now both the Iowa House and Senate have passed property tax relief…including direct benefit to taxpayers. The Senate promises $100M, the House thinks it should be double that; they have to figure it out, but they’re both trending in the right direction.
Frankly, this quick action is a direct result of all of us bending their ears about the higher valuation and what that might mean. So whatever happens, it’s due to all of us stepping up and politely but firmly raising concerns. That’s a good example to keep in mind the next time something like this bothers us.
