A state panel has made a slight reduction, but still predicts the state will collect over $11 billion in taxes during the fiscal year that begins July 1.
Legislators will use today’s Revenue Estimating Conference report as the basis for state spending plans and it will be cited by Republicans drafting more state tax cuts. Iowa Department of Management director Kraig Paulsen, the governor’s budget chief, is chairman of the panel.
“The State of Iowa continues to be in a very strong financial position and I see that continuing for the foreseeable future,” Paulsen said during today’s REC meeting. “…Reserve funds are full at over $900 million-plus, the Taxpayer Relief Fund right around $3.7 billion…I think there’s no reason to think the state can’t continue down the path of leaving more money in Iowans’ posckets.”
A new member joined the tax predicting panel for today’s meeting. Jeff Plagge, a northwest Iowa banker, retired at end of 2023 after serving as the State Superintendent of Banking.
“Mostly as I talk to customers tand people I’m around, they are pleasantly surprised by the resiliency of the Iowa economy,” Plagge said, “especially with everything the economy has been through the last few years.”
House Democrats say it’s “time to make public schools a priority” and today’s financial report shows there is no reason for Republicans to keep delaying a decision on how much the state will spend on schools.