Week Three

Johnson County Task Force on Aging – Director Palmer - TODAY – 2:00 pm
LWV Legislative Forum: Saturday, January 28 - TOMORROW
TIF Reform Ideas from the Community Forum
Visitors to the Capitol
TIF Reform Ideas continued
TIF in the news!
News you can use

Week Three
My head hurts. For some reason two of the most controversial issues that were killed during the 2011 legislative session raised their ugly heads this week. The ag-gag bill and the nuclear power bill are both alive and well, and unless people speak out loudly and soon, they may become law. Another really bad bill allowing the use of lead shot for dove hunting was also voted out of the Senate Natural Resource and Environment Committee. There is a rocky road ahead. What happened to our job creation and economic growth agenda?

The nuclear power bill, HF 561, is a one-sided effort by MidAmerican Energy to have their customers take all the financial risk to build an unneeded nuclear power plant. Even with an amendment that proponents are calling a major improvement, the legislation is a bad deal and would result in higher bills for consumers and businesses even in the event a plant never produces any power. Even the Iowa Utilities Board, which usually does what the big utilities want, has suggested the amendment is trouble. Unfortunately, the hugely unpopular bill was voted out of sub-committee on Thursday and will go to the Senate Commerce Committee next week. I will be spending considerable time working again to stop this legislation. Here is a news article on the debate.

The so-called ag-gag bill, HF 589, is unnecessary. It tries to address the concerns of agricultural interests to prevent the public from seeing abuses of animals that might happen in their facilities. There are already laws that exist to prevent trespassing from people that seek unlawful access to confinement facilities. Animal welfare and food safety are of great concern to consumers. Preventing consumers from having confidence in how their food is produced is a mistake. I will oppose this legislation.

On Tuesday, Peter Fisher from the Iowa Policy Project came to the Senate Ways & Means Committee meeting to present his report, “Tax Increment Financing: A Case Study of Johnson County” (click here for the report). Committee members had really good questions, and we had a good discussion.

Also on Tuesday, I participated in the League of Cities Legislative Day. I was on a panel to answer questions about property taxes and TIF. My colleagues Senator Feenstra, Representative Tom Sands and Representative Dave Jacoby joined me to discuss these issues on the panel.

I met with Governor Branstad on Tuesday to discuss the Senate’s bi-partisan commercial property tax plan. I explained the Senate’s bill, and we discussed trying to get on the same page. The Governor still likes his plan a lot. The Senate really likes the Senate plan too! There is an article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette that discusses the issue (Click here to read the article).

On Wednesday, I met with the elected and city leaders from the City of Des Moines to discuss their use of TIF. We had a very good discussion about what is working and some ideas on making TIF work even better.

On Thursday, Kirkwood Community College students visited the Capitol. We had a good discussion about ways to keep our community colleges strong.

Also on Thursday morning, the Legislative Interim Committee received three mental health redesign bill drafts for review. Here is a link to download PDF versions of the DRAFT bills.

Johnson County Task Force on Aging – Director Palmer - TODAY – 2:00 pm
Chuck Palmer, Director of the Iowa Department of Human Services, will address the subject of The Status of Human Services in Iowa. The forum sponsored by the Johnson County Task Force on Aging will be held in Room 203 of the County Health and Human Services Building at 2:00 PM on Friday, January 27th. I will attend this meeting.

LWV Legislative Forum: Saturday, January 28 - TOMORROW
I will be at the Johnson County Legislative Forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters this Saturday January 28, at 9:30 AM. The Legislative forum is cosponsored by Iowa City Education Association, the Iowa City Community School District, and the American Association of University Professors, University of Iowa chapter. The forum will be held in the Emma Harvat Hall at the Iowa City Council Chambers. It will also be broadcast live on Iowa City Channel 4.

TIF Reform Ideas from the Community Forum
Last Saturday, January 21, more than 90 people attended a community forum to discuss tax increment financing. The meeting was very informative and productive. Our discussion led to more than 40 reform ideas being identified. Participants were then asked to rank their top five ideas for improving TIF. Here are the top seven ideas that received most support in rank order: (the rest of the TIF reform ideas are below).

1. No open ended TIFs: The revenue diversion ends when project finance obligations end.

2. Put teeth in Anti-piracy provisions to ban the use of TIFs to entice employers and jobs from one Iowa location to another.

3. Require job creation and/or job retention impact statement of all new TIF’s.

4. Increase state oversight of TIF’s. Require the Iowa Economic Development Authority to review the economic impact of the proposed TIFs. For example, required that the project be shown to expand the property tax base of the state and show a financial need before granting approval.

5. Limit a city’s TIF debt to no more than a specific percentage of that city’s taxable value.

6. Require “But For” analysis on all TIF proposals

7. Restrict a city’s TIF income to no more than a specific percentage of that city’s regular property tax income.

Thank you to everyone that participated in the TIF meetings! They were quite helpful to me in developing a clearer understanding of the issue and some ideas for fixing TIF.

Visitors to the Capitol
Christine Scheetz, President and CEO, United Way of Johnson County
Peter Fisher, Research Director, Iowa Policy Project
Jeff Davidson, Development Director, City of Iowa City
Wendy Ford, Economic Development Coordinator, City of Iowa City
Mark Wyatt, Executive Director , Iowa Bicycle Coalition
Kelly Hayworth, City Administrator, Coralville
Jim Fausett, Mayor, Coralville
Tom Gill, City Council Member, Coralville
Dan McMillan, Director of Communications, University of Iowa College of Public Health
Jon Weih, Kirkwood Community College, Iowa City
Rod Sullivan, Johnson County Supervisor
Mary O’Brien, UIHC
Sorry if I missed you.

TIF Reform Ideas continued
8. Sunset TIFs with no existing end date: Slum & blight and pre-1995 economic development TIFs.

9. Limit economic development TIFs to 10 years (a five year extension if the county approves).

10. Expand the state and local reporting requirements and transparency.

11. Ban TIFs for residential and retail development, with limited exceptions for the redevelopment of existing commercial properties.

12. TIF only for economic development. No TIFs for city halls, fire stations, rec centers, equipment vehicles or salaries.

13. Tighten definition of slum and blight TIFs and limit them 10, 15, or 20 years.

14. Ban retail TIFs

15. Prevent residential value from being included in a TIF increment and phase-out existing residential TIF’s.

16. Allow schools/county a voice in TIF decision if they disagree with proposal, allow a cap on TIF.

17. Allow schools and county an opt out option on TIF

18. Tighten definition of what constitutes slum and blight.

19. Allow schools to opt out of TIF.

20. TIF proposal must be consistent with Comprehensive Plan.

21. Stricter state policy on use of TIFs

22. Do not allow tax rebates/abatements

23. Allow residential TIFs with some restrictions
24.TIF reform should occur incrementally.

25. Allow rebates with some restrictions.

26. Require County-wide comprehensive financial plan.

27. Ban TIFs for residential value from being included in a TIF increment and phase out existing residential TIFs AND add low and moderate income property.

28. Encourage cities to use other financing tools.

29. Limiting TIFed areas to a certain percentage of a city.

30. Don’t allow a TIFed area to include more than one school district.

31. All TIF debt should come be considered general obligation debt.

32. Allow project only TIFs.

33. If taxes don’t cover debt service, developer owes money/pays taxes.

34. Be careful about placing limitations on residential and retail TIFs.

35. If retails TIF is wanted, TIF at initial base amount.

36. Examine money being taken away from the schools. Keep more dollars in schools

37. Evaluate with caution regarding smaller vs. larger towns.

38. Require analysis of whether a project would take place without TIF.

39. Code word KISS (keep it simple stupid) Prioritize

40. Make bonding more enticing to local entities. Consider lowering the threshold to 50 % voter approval.

41. Analysis of cost benefits taxes lost vs. revenues in

42. Pinpoint changes to biggest abuses. Maintain flexibility

43. Look at how a project is done, and how it fits into a community

44. Cities should not be landlords

TIF in the news!
1/24/12: Iowa City no longer part of TIF meeting (Iowa City Press Citizen)
1/24/12: Top priority: Limit time for TIF districts (Iowa City Press Citizen)
1/17/12: Iowa lawmakers study tax increment financing rules (QCT)
1/18/12: Tax increment financing getting legislative scrutiny (CRG)

News you can use

MPO Regional Trails and Bicycling Committee: Tuesday, February 7, 3:30 PM
The Metropolitan Planning Organization of Johnson County will be meeting on the first floor of the Johnson County Administration Building in the conference room.

eFiling your taxes gets your return quicker
Iowa taxpayers may now file their income tax returns online at the Iowa Department of Revenue’s e-File website. When you file electronically, your refund is issued in days, compared to weeks for returns filed on paper. Join 85 percent of Iowans who filed this way in 2010. Visit www.iowa.gov/tax for details. While you’re there, see if you’re eligible to file your federal and state income tax returns together for free.

Avoid tax refund anticipation loans & checks
This income tax season, taxpayers are being warned away from tax refund anticipation loans and checks. These options are expensive and don’t always provide faster access to your tax return dollars. Free income tax preparation assistance is available through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. To learn more, call 515-281-5926 or visit the Iowa Attorney General’s website at www.iowaattorneygeneral.org/consumer_advisories/credit_finance/rapid_tax_refund.html.

Community grants for beautification
Interested in making your community more attractive? Have you considered a state grant that can leverage local dollars, support volunteer efforts and encourage improvements to local image and appearance?

Through April 2, Keep Iowa Beautiful is accepting applications for their 2012 Community Beautification Grant Program. This program is designed for communities of less than 5,000 that wish to implement beautification projects. Applications and complete details are available at www.keepiowabeautiful.com/kib-beautification-grant.cfm.

Apply for water improvement grants
Through April 2, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources is accepting applications for a grant designed to help locally-led groups develop water quality improvement efforts in their communities. Groups can request Watershed Planning Grants from $10,000 to $50,000 to develop plans to improve a local river, lake or stream on the state’s impaired waters list. For application materials and additional details, visit http://watershed.iowadnr.gov or contact Stephen Hopkins at 515-281-6402.

2012 Iowa travel guide available
Looking for great vacation opportunities for your family this year? The 2012 Iowa Travel Guide is free and full of fun and interesting Iowa destinations. Get yours by calling 800-345-IOWA, visiting www.traveliowa.com, or stopping by any Iowa Welcome Center.