Des Moines, Iowa (RI) — The legislature has approved a plan lawmakers say will reduce property taxes for Iowa homeowners by about $4 billion over the next six years.
After almost five months of negotiations, the bill was approved Sunday in the closing hours of the 2026 Iowa legislative session.
Senator Dan Dawson, a Republican from Council Bluffs, is chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Commitee.
Iowa homeowners will get a homestead tax exemption of up to $20,000 and the plan shifts $175 million in state funding to public schools. That move will also reduce taxes on all classes of property.
There’s a 2% limit on annual property tax revenue growth in cities and counties, although the cap would not apply to paying debts, employee benefits, or liability insurance.
Republican Representative Carter Nordman of Dallas Center is chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
All but one Democrat in the Senate supported the plan, but a couple of Republicans and 20 Democrats in the House voted against it. House Democratic Leader Brian Meyer says it’s another band aid on a broken property.
Representative Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat from Hiawatha, called it a Frankenstein bill.
She says multi-family units have been taxed like single-family homes for over a decade, and the plan will gradually raise property taxes on apartment and condo buildings to 6% within three years. Supporters of the move say unlike a home, multi-family buildings are owned by people who are aiming to make a profit.
The House and Senate convened early Saturday morning to begin their quest to complete the 2026 legislative session.
There were long periods of inactivity in public as key lawmakers met privately, sometimes with the governor, to hammer out a property tax plan.
Legislators grew weary as Saturday night became Sunday morning.
Sleep-deprived lawmakers nudged their colleagues to keep plugging away.
The Iowa House completed its work at 6:11 p.m. Sunday.
The Senate adjourned nearly an hour later, at 7:07.
KIWA Staff Photo
