The Iowa Legislature will convene for its second special session in a month to consider another plan for redrawing boundaries for the state’s legislative and congressional districts. The second gathering
After the derecho devasted Eastern Iowa forests, state lawmakers want to raise taxes on them
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WATERLOO, Iowa (KWWL) - State lawmakers are considering legislation that could send property tax costs soaring for privately owned forests throughout the state.
According to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, of Iowa’s nearly 3 million acres of forest land, 85.5 percent are privately owned.
If passed, Senate File 352 would change the Forest and Fruit Tree Reservation law and decrease the property tax exemption from 100% to 75% of the reserved land s actual value.
For forest owners like John Zakrasek, who owns two acres in Linn County, the tax would be 100% of the property s value. Under the new rule, anyone who owns less than 10 acres would not be subject to any exemption. All forest reserve exemptions would expire after five years.