A nearly nine percent reduction in most Iowans personal income tax rates. That’s the counter-offer Republicans in the Iowa House publicly released this week. It’s the latest wrinkle in discussions among statehouse Republicans over how deeply to cut state taxes. Speaker Linda Upmeyer, a Republican from Clear Lake, characterizes the House G-O-P’s plan as middle class tax relief.

The House Republicans’ plan is a 140-million dollar cut in the first year and a reduction of 300 million in the second year. Upmeyer characterizes it as a “starting point” in negotiations.
Unlike Senate Republicans, House Republicans are NOT proposing a cut in the corporate income tax rate. Representative Guy Vander Linden, a Republican from Oskaloosa who is chairman of the House Ways and Means tax-writing Committee, says corporate tax cuts can come “at a later date.”

The head of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council says the lack of advance notice of the meeting to the public violates the spirit of Iowa’s open meetings law. A top House Democrat warns the House G-O-P tax plan “means more state budget cuts in the future.”