| • Agreed, the valuations are getting out of hand and resulting in property taxes being too high as percentage of total tax. I've considered selling my house to a less expensive one just for this reason. That would be unfortunate. |
| • The property tax exemption ceiling for the elderly and disabled is the same as it was when it was instituted in 1980. As a result, people who are 100% exempt from paying property taxes now have to pay because property taxes have far exceeded that ceiling. The ceiling for exemptions must be raised to keep pace with inflation. Taxes are over 3 times what they were then. It would make sense to raise the ceiling by 3 times the amount it was in '80 - or cut back spending to '80 levels. I was guaranteed I'd continue to qualify - and I do - except they never told me the ceiling was never raised. I live in a very modest home but I have had to pay everything over $999 since I moved in, though I qualify for 100% exemption. They need to fix this. Oh, and btw, exempt should mean exempt. The county should have to do without those monies; the state should not have to make them up. No money should change hands when a property is exempt. |
| • All taxes are too high |
| • To hi |
| • The property tax issue is especially difficult for retired folks who no longer work. Social security rarely goes up and when it does it does not match annual property tax increases. I suggest that property taxes be frozen for those over the age of 65. If and when the house is sold in the future than the new buyer would pay the updated increase in property taxes. |
| • Sales tax is already too high. We have too much government involvement such as a state run guardianship (OSDM) that has gone around and decimated our elderly. Ready of the Roy Kotval story. The laws for OSDM did change for the better during the last session and we are still dealing with the aftermath. DHS needs to be scaled back dramatically. Most of the time additional agencies and additional government is not the answer. Follow president Trump's method. Iowa is not all that great especially so the corruption in our court system which ranks very low in transparency. Constitutionally and bibicaly, government functions are very limited. |
| • income taxes are the worst |
| • My farmland lying in across Woodbury Co. and Monona Co. saw a 23.82% increase for Woodbury Co. portion of property taxes and saw a 2.55% increase for Monona Co. portion of property taxes. My other farmland lying entirely within Monona Co. saw a 5.23% increase in property taxes. My home acreage in Monona Co. say a 1.81% increase in property taxes. Is this a mixture of equalization change, assessment change, and rate change? If a legal entity receives a reduction in money received from the State Legislature, can they (with no limit) increase their askings from the property taxpayer? |
| • I think they are onerous and create a situation where one never owns any property. We are just leasing from the state. Own a 150 year old farm, not if you don't pay your property taxes this year. Home school your kids or don't even have any, half of your property taxes go to failing public schools. Fix up your house so that the roof doesn't leak or the siding looks nice, pay more property taxes! The state is the biggest bully there is. Taxes should be based on consumption not mere existence. |
| • The property assessments have gotten out of hand. My new office building is assessed at nearly $150,000.00 over what I paid for it in April of this year. |
| • Sales Tax would be fairest-putting the state in the market place. When it becomes too burdensome a black market will develop. Then we will become a third world country. The state spending swamp needs to be drained! |
| • We farm. When we started farming, we only paid $2/acre. With the formula the Iowa government uses to formulate our land taxes, it's pretty crazy! Why can't they make do w/ they have, like we do?? |
| • I feel our schools get more taxes than needed now, since we have closed many schools in my are. Larger portion of taxes goes toward sports and unfair since does not benefit all the students in our community. |
| • to high |
• Property taxes are complicated. I've been paying them for years and I still have a hard time keeping a handle on all of the different variables that make up the overall expense.
It is frustrating that the overall tax burden Iowans pay is not a bigger issue. The size of government always grows and seldom retracts.
I'd be open to a higher state sales tax only if other forms of taxation were to just go away. I hate the local options sales tax as well... it never fails that the increases are always kept. I remember when Iowa had a 4% sales tax. |
| • It really is a shame that property taxes can eventually take away someone's property if they are unable to pay. Property owners are pretty much renting the land they own. |
| • There should be no property taxes. One should not be taxed on things that are owned. |
| • Allowing property tax to increase the same amount as Social Security COLA leaves retires without any additional income or increase in income. Not a good idea. |
| • Current tax exempt properties need to pay a service fee for fire, police and roads bordering the property |
| • They suck! I’ve lived in my home for over 40 years and they’re outrageous!!! Raise sales tax! |
| • What is the quit rate of state gov't employees?? We have too many on the payroll and they are wildly overpaid |
| • Way to high. Poor county financial management. School system funding ridiculous. To many liberal idiots running the county and the school system. We are obviously on a rapid path to Socialism. It would really be nice to be able to spend some of my earned income on updating farm equipment in lieu of giving it all to the socialists. Every bit of funds realized by the traffic cams should be subtracted directly from the county taxes! Where do lottery ticket and casino profits go these days? Next, publish the definition and purpose of all the Muscatine County taxing authorities. |
| • State, County governments need to hold their spending in check. School boards need to hold their spending in check also. |
| • I think before we raise more taxes that we should do a top to bottom study of where waste can be reduced. For instance, our community colleges do the heavy lifting in this state and have had no adjustment to the formula that was supposed to sustain them, while our universities grow, put bigger athletic facilities up, waste money on crappy curriculum and produce graduates who can't find jobs in fields most of us can see will never produce a dollar. Let's investigate and clean that up first before we raise another penny of tax. |
| • I have gone to our Republican county board of supervisors. The answer is something like this, "well, this increase was caused by something out of our control; that increase was caused by something out of our control. Well, actually we only control about 10% of the budget" |
| • It's silly to try to reduce property taxes by any means other than limiting what cities and counties and schools and county hospitals spend. There is way too much duplication of services between the layers of government, and until that is reduced, all taxes will be too high. |
| • City local city spending is out of control |
| • Too high for too little. |
| • My house is paid for yet I pay each year to keep it, that is just wrong. |
| • I think it is unfair to pay property taxes every year, because simply owning property does not mean there has been any income accrued on account of it. Money only changes hands when there is a sale or purchase of a home. At the very least, property taxes should be paid annually based on the purchase price, not assessed value. Again increase of value does not mean any revenue has been received by the property owner. Think of all the money will be saved if all the assessors in Iowa would be our if work! |
| • my county has failed in keeping factorys and workers here,so the people that live here carry the load. also when the people vote no twice on a new school and school superintedent says were building a school anyway, somebody should be setting in jail. the people knew the new school would be to much tax burden right now |
| • Property tax will eventually cause me to have to sell the property. |
| • School taxes collected from property taxes are out of control! Would rather see a higher sales tax for their funding so everyone pays more except for property owners! Also lowering their levies increase the state law which could raise the levy for roads and bridges as our infrastructure is falling apart due to the lack of funding and increase traffic and heavy load use! |
| • Schools, Community Colleges, Iowa Great Lakes Sanitary District, Rural Water Utilities and all School and Government Employees salaries are excessive. Way above what private industry pays for the same amount of work. In particular School and Government employees are always ready to stop working and visit excessively. Having been in private business as an employee and manager/owner we really see this as once we get an employee trained well they like to switch to government as salaries and benefits are as good or better and the demand to produce is minimized. God forbid they ever miss a coffee break, work an extra hour to complete something as they can always drive back clear across town or the county or more the next day. We have too many public employees and teachers and school administrators, etc. |
| • For People Below 200% of Poverty, We Need to Give Them a Break on All Taxes! |
| • Assessors need to be elected offices, and if someone challenges their property tax assessment, or if an assessment increases, the county assessor must prove why the increase is justified, not the homeowner. Even when my house is paid off, I’m still paying rent to the government |
| • All taxes are too high. Is it a wonder people cant really retire. Taxes never come down. My taxes are more then my house payment. The street in front of my house is in bad shape. And almost half the taxes I pay go to the schools. And all we hear is it's not enough. |
| • It is ridiculous what I pay for property taxes. My parents live in a different State, have a house almost 2 times bigger in size, next to a lake and pay almost half what I pay in taxes. And actually, it is one reason they moved out of Iowa. |
| • Absolutely ridiculous! My property taxes and valuations have doubled in the last two years. And when I called the Assessor's office I was told it was just my turn for this huge increase and when all was done everybody would be hit. No way all this property could double in value overnight! If my property is worth this much, I think I should sell it all and move to Arizona where the property taxes are a fraction of what Iowan's pay. And then they act surprised when no one wants to stay in Iowa...….. |
| • My property taxes went down so I have nothing to complain about. |
| • My property taxes have 2-3% of my homes valuation over the last 20 years. So I pay almost half my homes value in that time... then I pay again when I sell it because it brings less money due to PT pressure. If a state employee makes over $75K and can't tell you in 6 words or less what they do... eliminate the position. |
| • Just stop spending on every crazy project that comes along. Just should pay for police, fire and roads and schools. The rest is not taxpayer's responsibility. |
| • Get rid of the tax abatements!!!! Give seniors a tax break. |
| • My taxes just went up 60% due to a property re-evaluation. The politician claim they reduced property taxes. |
| • No property tax increases for retirees on a fixed income. |
| • Illinois stops raising property taxes on seniors after they reach 65. Iowa should do this since most seniors live on social security alone. Every time property taxes go up, it means that they have less to live on. There are some, social security is all they have to live on. My taxes went up about $400 a year, and hardly no raise from social security. Plus everything else goes up too. Give the seniors a break on property taxes. |
| • Way too high, especially for residents who live on a fixed income. |
| • Property taxes - The penalty for owning ! I feel we as owners are shouldering more than our share of running the county and state governments ! |
| • The Taxes I pay on my house is ridiculous. Something needs to be done. When I retire I will be moving out of Iowa. |
| • they are to HIGH!!!!! |
| • Too high and no taxpayer in on how the taxes are spent especially school funds. |
