Des Moines, Iowa — Republicans on a Senate committee are advancing a proposed amendment to the Iowa Constitution that would make a single-rate “flat tax” the only legal kind of state income tax.
The proposal cleared the Senate Ways and Means Committee with yes votes from the 11 Republicans on the panel, but none of them publicly discussed the proposal. Senator Herman Quirmbach of Ames is one of the six Democrats on the panel who voted against it.
Senator Cindy Winckler, a Democrat from Davenport, says Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, and Pennsylvania are the only states that have a flat income tax requirement in their state constitutions.
Under current law, Iowa’s individual income tax is scheduled to shrink to a flat rate of three-point-nine percent by January of 2026. Governor Reynolds has proposed a lower rate, to take effect retroactively to January 1st of this year. The governor has also said her ultimate goal is to eliminate the state income tax by January 1st of 2027.
