Statewide Iowa — The chairman of the Iowa Senate’s tax-writing committee is proposing a constitutional amendment that would require a super majority vote in the legislature to raise the state income tax or the sales tax.
Senator Dan Dawson, a Republican from Council Bluffs, helped develop the package of tax cuts the governor signed into law this month. Dawson says this proposed constitutional amendment would provide stability in tax policy.
The proposed amendment would require a two-thirds vote in the House AND the Senate to raise the two major taxes collected by the State of Iowa. Pam Mackey Taylor, a lobbyist for the Sierra Club’s Iowa chapter, says that would make it almost impossible to raise taxes.
Victoria Sinclair is a lobbyist Iowans for Tax Relief, a group that’s been seeking constitutional limits on state SPENDING for decades. The group also supports this proposal to require a larger majority of legislators to support raising taxes.
Mike Owen, deputy director of Common Good Iowa, says the proposed 66 percent super majority for approving future tax increases gives the minority veto power.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, a two-fifths or two-thirds majority is required in the legislatures in 15 states to raise taxes or impose new taxes. If Dawson’s proposal clears every legislative hurdle, the earliest Iowa voters would see a similar proposal for Iowa’s constitution would be in 2024 General Election ballot.
