A Memo From Danny Carroll, IFPC Action Board Chair

To: Iowa Family Policy Center ACTION Board of Directors
IFPC Action Staff
Friends of the Family in Iowa

From: Danny Carroll, Chairman of the Board


The Board of Directors and senior staff of the Iowa Family Policy Center and IFPC Action have for some time been contemplating the adoption of a new policy position statement that would work in tandem with the five existing statements to guide the ministry. This statement deals directly with the negative impact of over taxation on the health of the family. While the discussion has been ongoing, it seems as though the current global economic recession, and the continued overspending from government at all levels, requires our immediate action.

The new guiding policy position includes the following statement:
Excessive government 1) over-taxes families, often forcing parents to work longer hours and spend less time parenting; and 2) creates disincentives for handling social problems at their proper levels – in families, faith communities, and local volunteer associations.

It is the clear conviction of the Board of Directors that Iowa is only as strong as the families that live here, and that by increasing the tax burden on our families, governments jeopardize the strength and future viability of our state.

Recent events at the State Capitol have revealed the extent to which some lawmakers will go to fund an ever growing government. With unemployment on the rise, and state revenue projections dropping sharply, Democrat leaders in the Iowa Legislature have proposed eliminating Federal Deductibility as a revenue generating scheme. The plan would permit the State of Iowa to begin taxing residents on the Federal taxes they pay. According to reported estimates, this proposal is a $600 million tax increase on Iowa families.

This current scheme to begin taxing the taxes that hard working Iowa families are compelled to send to Washington should be abandoned immediately. Government has lost all credibility when it comes to promises about lowering tax rates, and there is no reasonable expectation that any so-called “tax cuts” will be real or long-lasting. Legislative leaders should focus on shrinking government instead of playing sleight-of-hand tricks with the tax code.

It would appear that the Iowa Legislature is watching events in Washington, and have rightly concluded that our Federal taxes will go up over the next several years. Current law would help ease the pain suffered by Iowa families when they deduct those taxes on their state income tax returns. The proposed change will place a tax on taxes. Instead of seeing the specter of Iowans’ growing Federal tax bill as an indicator there will be less money to go around, it appears some Iowa legislators are determined to place a first lien on the productivity of every family in the state.

The proposal to eliminate Federal Deductibility is wrong. It holds the potential to hurt Iowa families, and IFPC Action stands in direct opposition to the proposal.