IA lawmaker: 'Sweetened pot' could make property tax reform poss - KTIV News 4 Sioux City IA: News, Weather and Sports

One big issue left over from the last legislative session is property taxes. Iowa Governor Terry Branstad recently introduced a bill that would gradually reduce the taxable portion of a commercial property to 80 percent of its value.

Last year, a similar bill failed to make it out of session, but lawmakers feel the governor has sweetened the pot this time around, to ease the burden on cities and counties.

Under the new proposal the state would backfill the loss of revenue. State representative Ron Jorgensen estimates it could cost about $400 million in the short term. But he thinks in the long run the idea could attract more businesses to the state.

"We feel that by initiating this legislation, residential tax payers will actually benefit from having this pass, compared to keeping with the current system," said Ron Jorgensen, (R) Sioux City.

"It's our hope that it makes us more competitive with the states that we border. It make us more competitive in a way that hopefully will attract some business and do some economic development that puts us on par with the surrounding states," said Chris Hall, (D) Sioux City

Another major part of this proposal would limit the amount that residential, agricultural and commercial values could rise in one year, to 2 percent.

Right now, that figure is at 4 percent for residential and ag properties.