Legislative session concludes with a few surprises
The 2004 session of the Iowa Legislature came to an end on April 20, lasting exactly 100 days. As can often happen in a process that is sometimes described as ìmaking sausageî, several unexpected items related to land use arose the final two weeks of session. (As evidence of just how broad land-use issues can be, please note that our members have opinions on both sides of some of these issues.)
Tax Abatement for Renovation Tax abatement is certainly being abused across Iowa. Many new, even wealthy homes and businesses receive this tax break, which often amounts to a shift to other taxpayers. But abatement for renovation encourages smart growth by providing an incentive to rehab existing properties in older neighborhoods. This year, SF 2291 passed unanimously. The bill offers two new abatement options for abandoned properties that are being renovated. The first extends over 16 years, with 80% of the value of the improvements exempt the first year, phasing out over the next 15 years. The second option allows a full exemption for five years.
Public Transit Transit advocates have reason to celebrate for a change. State support for public transit had declined from $14 million to $8 million in recent years. This year, state investment in mass transit will rise to an estimated $10.5 - $11 million. This is in part because of increased car sales, gas taxes and vehicle registrations (a portion of which goes to transit), and largely due to a legislative decision two years ago to prevent transit money from being moved out of the Road Use Tax Fund into the general fund, where it was subject to budget cuts.
Vision Iowa and Community Attraction & Tourism (CAT) Grants Out of the blue, the House approved bonding for $60 million in new Vision Iowa money. The Senate had other ideas and instead gave $72 million to the CAT program, which comes from two sources: the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund (RIIF) and bank franchise taxes. Critics contend that this shift in revenue may mean (1) less money for the environmental programs funded by RIIF, such as Loess Hills preservation, Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) and air quality monitoring, and (2) because of the loss of bank franchise taxes to the general fund, less revenue for education, public safety, health care and other general purposes. Supporters of increased CAT funding feel the stateís investment will pay off with higher tax revenues and local and regional quality-of-life enhancements in years to come.
Gambling HF 2302 allows the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission to authorize new casino licenses. It is uncertain how many licenses will be issued, but they want a new casino include Palo Alto, Worth, Blackhawk, Webster, Wapello and Franklin. Why is this a land-use issue? Many people fear that new casinos could provide justification for condemning farmland and building new lakes. In Des Moines, a broad coalition of interested groups and individuals working on downtown revitalization are dead-set against a casino in the downtown area, and in fact HF 2302 specifically prevents a casino from being located there. Interestingly, as an indication of the diversity of opinion on this issue, in Waterloo a casino in the downtown area is proposed as a way to enhance downtown revitalization efforts.
Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Toward the end of session, a promising proposal surfaced to remove the school foundation levy from future TIF districts. This would have saved the state $30 million each year to reimburse school districts for revenue they lose to local TIF districts. Lawmakers backed off this proposal upon objections from the Iowa League of Cities and development interests. As a result, no action was taken on TIF this year.
Jay Howe Confirmed to City Development Board Last year, former 1000 Friends of Iowa board member, Jay Howe, was appointed by Governor Vilsack to the City Development Board, which is the five-member board overseeing annexations across the state. Gubernatorial appointees need to be confirmed by a 2/3rds vote of the Iowa Senate, and Jay came through the process without opposition. (Note of historical interest: Our board president, LaVon Griffieon, was similarly appointed to the City Development Board in 2001, and after a very contentious hearing in which the Iowa Chamber Alliance, Bill Knapp and the Iowa League of Cities opposed her, her confirmation was defeated by one vote.)
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