Tax cuts, special ed audit, birth control access. What to watch in the 2024 Iowa Legislature

Faster income tax cuts, overhauling state agencies that assist students with disabilities and consolidating dozens of boards and commissions are among the top priorities of Iowa Republicans when lawmakers return to the Capitol in January.

Republicans will head into the 2024 legislative session with full control of the House, Senate and governor’s office for the eighth consecutive year.

Since taking power in 2016, the GOP has secured a long list of conservative victories: banning school books with sex acts, cutting taxes, restricting abortion, loosening gun regulations, banning discussion of gender identity in elementary schools and gender-affirming care for minors, and combining government agencies.

“Over the last seven years, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a legislature that’s accomplished as much as we have here in Iowa,” Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver, R-Grimes, said.

Is anything left to be done?

Whitver told the Des Moines Register “there’s always going to be issues that are popping up,” but eventually it’s time for government to be “getting out of the way and letting the economy work as it should work.”

“There is a point, especially as limited-government Republicans, to say, ‘You know what, we’ve made the major reforms we need to make,’” Whitver said. “And at some point, you let the economy and the state take over, and see the results take place.”

House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst, D-Windsor Heights, said Democrats will focus on “putting people over politics.” She accused Republicans of passing legislation that has benefited special interests rather than the majority of Iowans.

“We’re going to make sure that the special interests, who had plenty of successes last legislative session, sit on the back bench this time so that everyday Iowans can be first,” she said.

'How low can you go?' Republicans consider speeding up income tax cuts

With a hefty state budget surplus, Iowa Republicans are looking to speed up a series of income tax cuts that will take Iowans to a 3.9% flat tax by 2026.

Whitver said Iowa is entering 2024 in a strong financial position. The state closed the books on the last fiscal year with a $1.83 billion budget surplus, as well as $902 million in reserve funds and $2.74 billion in the Taxpayer Relief Fund, which may be used only to reduce taxes.

“We have a real opportunity to expedite some of those tax cuts that we’ve put in place,” Whitver said. “And so I think that will be a big part of the conversation.”

Senate Republicans and Gov. Kim Reynolds have both said their goal is to eliminate the state’s personal income tax. But it’s not clear whether they’ll propose legislation to do so next year.

“I’ve said that’s our goal for a decade,” Whitver said. “We’re continuing to march down that path. Whether we present a bill this year that gets us to zero I’m not sure yet.”

Reynolds told reporters in November that “Iowans are going to be very happy” with the tax plan she’ll unveil in January.

“The fact of the matter is we’re sitting on a pretty good surplus, and the Taxpayer Trust Fund especially is designated to really help reduce the tax burden on Iowans,” she said. “And so we’ve got money there, and we’re going to turn it back to Iowans, and we need to be more competitive.”

Rep. David Young, R-Van Meter, said at a legislative panel hosted by the Greater Des Moines Partnership that he expects the Legislature to have “a vociferous debate” about taxes.

“It’s kind of like tax limbo,” he said. “How low can you go? And at what rate and speed?”

Republican leaders say they’re not looking to focus on property taxes after passing a large overhaul in 2023. And the 2022 tax cut package already has a mechanism to lower corporate tax rates if the state collects a certain amount each year in corporate tax receipts.

Senate Minority Leader Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, said despite Republicans’ efforts to cut taxes over the past several years, middle class families aren’t feeling much relief yet.

“If we’re going to continue making changes, I really want to see middle class and people that are really struggling get the bulk of any kind of a cut,” Jochum said.

Konfrst said the conversation about easing Iowans’ costs needs to be broader than tax cuts. She said Democrats will propose bills to help Iowans by expanding child care assistance and affordable housing.

“We have focused a lot on tax cuts over the past few years, and Iowans are still feeling the economic pinch, which tells me it is not the end-all, be-all solution that Republicans think it is,” she said. “So let’s look more holistically at Iowans’ budgets, at their costs and their expenses and what can we do to actually lower those instead of just waving the tax-cut wand.”

Will Iowa cut the Area Education Agencies? GOP leaders plan ‘comprehensive review’ of special education services

Republican legislative leaders will audit the Area Education Agencies this year, pointing out “sufficient proficiency gaps” among Iowa students with disabilities and what they see as bloat within the organizations.

Iowa’s Area Education Agencies offer shared services to school districts and students across the state.

The AEAs help to identify young children with special needs and provide them with extra support before they enter school. School-age children can also access additional services through the AEAs, including speech therapy, physical therapy and behavioral and academic counseling.

“While the AEAs will continue to serve students with disabilities, changes are necessary to improve student outcomes,” Reynolds said in a statement. “A comprehensive review of AEAs will help identify solutions. Parents can be assured that their children will continue to receive the services they need.”

Reynolds told the N’West Iowa Review that the agencies have “significantly expanded their scope of services beyond the core mission” of serving students with disabilities. About 80% of the AEA budget goes toward special education services, according to the AEA website.

Reynolds posted on social media that she has "no intention of closing AEAs."

Konfrst said AEAs provide a “crucial service” to Iowa kids, including students with special needs who attend private schools.

“We cannot walk away from the role that AEAs play … especially when we're providing vouchers for kids to go to private schools, and those schools don't provide the services kids need,” she said.

Beyond the AEA shake-ups, Republicans say they want to improve Iowa’s overall educational ranking. House Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, pledged to work alongside Iowa educators to address a “decline” in results.

House Republicans are also interested in discussing civics and history curriculum, and addressing behavioral issues in the classroom, Grassley said.

Konfrst said Republicans made a “mess” by passing state-funded private school scholarships and sweeping restrictions on books in schools. She called for more guidance for the Department of Education about how schools should be implementing the 2023 laws — although she’d prefer to “scrap them and start over.”

Will Republicans seek further abortion restrictions? Or expand birth control access?

Lawmakers held a rare special session in July to pass a law banning most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, when the first cardiac activity can be detected in an embryo.

The law was quickly stayed by a district court judge — it was in effect for a single weekend.

Now, Iowans are once again waiting for the courts to weigh the constitutionality of Iowa’s abortion law. Republican leaders say they aren’t taking further action to restrict abortion until the courts rule on the “fetal heartbeat” law.

“Getting that decision will be important to the next step,” Whitver said. “We have no idea what they’re going to say, don’t even know when that opinion will come out. And so, (we're) definitely not ready to move forward on something else when that’s making its way through the court.”

Republicans have also abandoned the effort to pass an amendment to the state’s constitution that would declare Iowa does not recognize a fundamental right to an abortion.

Whitver said the court “kind of took care of that” with its 2022 decision, which reversed an earlier finding that Iowa's constitution did protect a fundamental right to an abortion.

But Konfrst noted that many states, including those with Republican-led governments, have defeated similar constitutional amendments at the ballot box, including in Kentucky. If the Legislature did move ahead with its amendment, Iowans would vote on whether to adopt it.

“I believe that they probably won’t (pass the amendment), because they’re afraid that the voters will reject it, like they have in so many other states,” Konfrst said.

A March 2023 Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll found that a majority of Iowans, 61%, say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. 

As the abortion law stays stuck in legal limbo, Iowans can expect to see more debate on a bipartisan effort to allow over-the-counter birth control.

Reynolds proposed a bill in 2023 that would have allowed Iowans 18 and older to get birth control, including pills, birth control patches and vaginal rings, from a pharmacist without first seeing a doctor. The Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of a similar bill, passing it 45-3.

House Republicans could not reach a consensus on either bill and ended the session without passing legislation. Grassley said he’s “open” to having the conversation again this session, but he does not know how his caucus would vote.

Lawmakers will look to cut boards and commissions, end gender balance requirement

After signing a massive overhaul of state government agencies into law this year, Reynolds is looking to further shrink government by eliminating more than 100 of the state’s boards and commissions.

A task force appointed by the governor submitted a report to Reynolds this fall recommending eliminating 111 of the state’s 256 boards and commissions.

Grassley praised Reynolds' “bold” approach to reorganizing state government and said many of the boards have already been talking with lawmakers about their priorities and concerns. He said he expects lawmakers to make changes to any bill that’s proposed.

“I look at this bill as something that’s going to have a lot of fingerprints from the Legislature on it as it moves forward through the process,” he said.

Konfrst said Democrats will push to make sure Iowans with relevant professional experience remain involved in boards that oversee professional licensing and other specialized subjects.

“We’ll be looking to make sure that people with subject area expertise are not cut from these boards and commissions,” she said.

The task force also recommends eliminating Iowa’s decades-old law requiring gender balance on state boards and commissions. Whitver said he is "totally comfortable with" eliminating the gender-balance requirement.

He said people shouldn’t assume the goal is to put more men on boards and commissions.

“The normal example is you think you’re going to put a bunch of males on there, but say there’s a profession like massage therapy or cosmetology where you maybe want more females on the board,” Whitver said. “But nope, the law says you need to have more males. Just finding the best people to serve on the board should be the goal.”

Grassley said he’s heard from the governor’s office that it’s getting more difficult to find qualified people to serve on state boards.

“If that’s causing boards and commissions to not be able to run effectively, I think the Legislature needs to engage in that conversation,” he said of the requirement.

Konfrst said she can’t believe Republicans are talking about eliminating the gender-balance requirement.

“I think Iowans expect equal and fair representation on the decisions that are being made about their state,” she said. “And I don’t understand what this solves. I don’t understand what this does. I think it’s just shortsighted and frankly discriminatory to women because it’s no longer ensuring that women have equal representation on these boards.”

Both parties begin to refine messaging, priorities for 2024 election

Lawmakers will return to the Capitol for the session at the beginning of an election year, as Republicans look to build on their successes and Democrats aim to claw back legislative seats.

Whitver said he believes Republicans’ dominance has delivered results that voters will respond to.

“I think by all measures, especially financially, we’re in the strongest position that we’ve ever been in,” he said. “And we want to keep that momentum going. We’ve passed a lot of major reforms. We think they’re making a difference.”

Grassley emphasized the importance of Iowa Republicans “following through” with campaign promises and making the state “an attractive place for people to want to live.”

“I want us to continue to draw a distinction from what we’re seeing in some other states that aren’t as like-minded as us,” Grassley said.

Democrats, meanwhile, will lay out an alternative vision for Iowa that addresses what they see as key issues facing the state.

Konfrst, touting House Democrats’ “people over politics” slogan, said her party will bring forward plans to address education, costs of living and other issues regardless.

“We know the problems that Iowans are facing because we’ve been listening all year," she said. "Unfortunately, I believe Republicans will continue to focus on the issues that the special interests tell them to and not the issues that Iowans want.”

Jochum said her caucus will focus on “bread and butter issues” that they’ve heard about from constituents — including finding ways to raise wages, funding public schools and investing in urban, suburban and rural communities.

“They want those kitchen-table issues that are going to help their lives,” Jochum said.

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.

Katie Akin is a politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at kakin@registermedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @katie_akin.

Galen Bacharier covers politics for the Register. Reach him at gbacharier@registermedia.com or (573) 219-7440, and follow him on Twitter @galenbacharier.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa GOP to focus on tax cuts, special ed services in 2024 session