Governor Kim Reynolds says she and members of the Iowa House and Senate are “laser focused”: on taking action on property taxes during the 2026 legislative session.
“Total cost of government — that’s what we’ve really focused on and the impact it has on taxpayers,” Reynolds said this morning. “There’s a lot of duplication out there. We’ve streamlined at the state level. It’s our expectation that local governments find a way to streamline as well. There’s a lot of that going on already, but there’s a lot of opportunity out there to scale those practices as well.”
Reynolds hosted an hour-long public hearing online today and heard suggestions from representatives of a variety of interest groups who were called upon to speak. Iowans for Tax Relief President Chris Hagenow told Reynolds state officials need to “right size” local government budgets and impose a 2% yearly cap on property tax growth. “There can’t be any loopholes or carve outs for that because as we have seen over and over if you create an escape hatch, local governments will find that often. They’ll find another way to collect that revenue,” Hagenow said, “and it gets back into the problem of how much Iowans are being asked to pay. What is their total cost of government? And that’s what needs to be addressed in this system.”
Hagenow, a lawyer, served in the Iowa House for 12 years, including four years as House Republican Leader. “Property taxes is incredibly complicated and we all understand that,” Hagenow says, “but the solutions here lie not in how we pay property taxes, but how much we pay in property taxes.”
Governor Reynolds and key members of the Iowa House and Senate have said property tax changes are their top priority in 2026. Some have floated ideas like freezing taxes for Iowans 65 and older, but Hagenow said that favors one class of taxpayers over another. “That’s why we think a hard, across-the-board revenue limitation benefits everyone, whether it’s seniors or any other kind of tax type,” Hagenow said. “Let’s just provide a benefit for everyone.”
The Iowa Cattlemen’s Association is urging the governor to end a state property tax break for fruit orchards and timber areas. The association’s Kelli Klink told Reynolds there are 830,000 enrolled statewide in this particular exemption. “When land comes off the tax rolls due to the fruit and forest tree reserve exemption, it places a greater tax burden on the Iowa cattlemen who own pasture and do live and work in this state and their communities,” Klink said.
Representatives of other groups like the Iowa Farm Bureau and the Iowa Business Council told the governor they’re ready to work with her on property tax changes, but did not make any specific suggestions during the public hearing.