HF718 effects could prompt future county disaster declaration

By Zach Jensen,

Winneshiek County might someday consider applying for a disaster declaration through Winneshiek County Emergency Management if state legislators don’t amend restrictions on generating county property taxes. Winneshiek County Emergency Management Coordinator Sean Snyder reminded county officials of that option during Monday’s board of supervisors meeting.

House File 718, a state bill which addresses property taxes, financial authority and county government budgets, passed with bipartisan support in 2023. The chief complaint about the law during a recent meeting of northeast Iowa counties was that the bill essentially limits the amount of property tax counties can collect each year from its property owners. 

“House File 718 has this quirky thing built into that the more your tax base grows, the more it makes you lower your levy rate,” Winneshiek County Auditor Ben Steines said. “Counties used to rely on new businesses and more housing to grow their tax base so they didn’t need to raise their levies. Now, (the state) is punishing us, basically, for having an increased tax base.”

Full article in the January 23 Decorah Leader.

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