House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst says the state sales tax exemptions House Republicans proposed this week on laundry detergent, toilet paper and vitamins fall far short of addressing the needs of working Iowans.
“Any lowering costs can help, but this isn’t going to really make up for the rising costs in health care, child care and housing,” Konfrst said during a news conference at the Capitol. “And we’ve been proposing legislation to lower those costs.”
House Speaker Pat Grassley has said Republicans in the legislature “don’t control monetary policy at the federal level” and their proposals to reduce the cost of “everyday items” with sales tax exemptions are a way to help Iowans dealing with inflation.
“If the speaker really wants to talk about lowering costs for Iowa families, we have a lot of proposals we’d be happy to sit down and discuss,” Konfrst said. “We think this is small potatoes to what Iowans need.”
House Democrats have proposed bills to provide state grants to raise the wages of child care workers and tax credits for small businesses that provide child care as a benefit for employees. House Democrats have also called for a state law that would force landlords to refund half of a deposit fee if they do not let the applicant become a renter as well as a cap on rent increases for current tenants, so rent could not go up more than the inflation rate.
None of those bills have been advanced by Republicans who control the debate agenda in the Iowa House.