Inside IECA Government Relations

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June 11, 2026

Reflections of the 2026 Iowa Legislative Session

“Hindsight is always 20:20,” they say. After being the legislature’s No. 1 priority throughout the session, who knew it would take until the final day of Iowa’s 2026 Legislative Session after pulling an all-nighter for property tax reform to finally be passed? I don’t think many people could have foreseen the marathon the session (and the property tax issue) ended up being.

Despite the changes to the property tax structure and how extension districts will be funded, the Iowa legislative session taught us a lot about Extension. That’s kind of a funny notion because the goal of IECA throughout the session was to make sure legislators understood how Extension is funded and informing them how property tax reform would affect the services offered in every county.

What we didn’t realize was that the process would teach us that we can no longer be “the best kept secret”. We need to make sure all Iowans know about Extension and how Extension can improve their business, their farm, their home, and their life. We must continue to engage with our legislators to ensure they understand the value and impact that extension programming has in your communities.

We learned there’s a perception that Extension is management heavy with not enough impact. That means we’re not telling our story well enough. We’re not focusing our efforts to create the biggest impact we can. We need to look at our organization with a different lens to ensure we’re telling the right story to the right people, all while meeting the needs of our county and state with the funds available.

To support those efforts, the Iowa Extension Council Association is forming an ad hoc committee to look at the profile of Extension and how to be more clear about our mission and impact. We want to refine the narrative. IECA will share outcomes of this ad hoc committee over the coming year. If you’re interested in joining this ad hoc committee, please contact Jennifer Vit at jvit@iastate.edu.

Thank you for your role in elevating extension and connecting with your legislators. It was critical to have your voice heard in the statehouse. Let’s keep that momentum going.

How Can Extension Councils Keep the Momentum?

Summer program season is a great opportunity to engage with your legislators. Here are suggestions to catch legislators outside the legislative session:

• Invite them to the beef/swine/sheep/etc show at your county fair.
• Invite them to attend in a pasture walk or field scouting workshop.
• Invite them to visit your donation garden or Master Gardener plot.
• Ask them to stop by the extension office sometime to learn more about the programming that is offered and the impacts you’ve measured.
• Ask them to speak at your county’s 4-H awards program this fall.
• Ask them to share a message about leadership with your 4-H members at a county council meeting.
• Invite them to an informal reception with council members prior to a council meeting.

Don’t know what to say? Check out our templates you can cut/paste into an email. Just be sure to personalize it where indicated.

Local Leaders Invitation Template #1:

Sample Invitation to Meet with Extension Council Members

Local Leaders Invitation Template #2:

Sample Invitation to County Fair

Local Leaders Invitation Template #3:

Sample Invitation to an Event

What happened with property tax?

In general, the FY28 extension district budgets will be based on the FY27 levy amount plus allow 2% growth each year. The bill also reduces allowed carryover from 50% to 35% beginning in FY28.

Use the revenue tool (Excel file) to forecast your county’s income over the next 10 years.

May 4, 2026

Iowa Legislature Approves Tax Reform Bill

May 3 marked the final day of Iowa’s 2026 Legislative Session, as the Legislature officially passed the Adjournment Sine Die resolution at 7:07 PM after working through the night on Saturday, May 2.

Perhaps most important for extension districts, the House and Senate both passed an amended Senate File 2472 for property taxes. Once leadership reached an agreement, they quickly moved to get the plan approved in both chambers. The property tax reform bill passed 41-1 in the Senate and 61-22 in the House. This bill changes Iowa Code 176A to:

• remove the levy rate cap
• remove the dollar cap, and
• add the 2% growth cap (replacing the incremental increase of $6K, $7K, $15K, or $25K)

What comes next?

Some language changed in the 11th hour so we’ll review the entire bill to ensure we understand what it all means. The bill will be sent to the governor for signature. The new property tax calculations would be implemented July 1, 2027. Once it is signed into law, IECA will begin working to calculate implications for county budgets and coordinate some webinars to guide councils how to prepare for these tax changes.

IECA is committed to helping councils understand the new levy and how to strengthen Extension for the future. Feel free to direct any questions to your IECA Board of Directors representative or IECA Executive Director Jennifer Vit.

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April 21, 2026

House Passes IECA's Requested Amendment

On April 22, the Iowa House passed Amendment H-8394 to Senate File 2472. This amendment would change Iowa Code 176A to:

• Remove the levy rate cap
• Remove the dollar cap, and
• Add the 2% growth cap (replacing the incremental increase of $6K, $7K, $15K, or $25K)

This is good news! Without this amendment, levy-capped counties would see significant reductions in tax revenue.

What Comes Next with the Property Tax Bill?

Since the House and Senate have both passed different bills, they now need to reconcile and pass one bill. Once both chambers pass identical bills, it will be sent to the governor for signature and adoption. The new property tax calculations would be implemented July 1, 2027.

We appreciate that both the House and Senate versions of property tax reform include similar safeguards to protect the ag extension district levy.

Your Advocacy Makes a Difference

This amendment would not have happened if it weren’t for constituents. Extension and 4-H supporters called, texted, and emailed their legislators and the message was clear, allowing the amendment to pass without issue.

Extension Council members and Extension Districts are encouraged to continue sharing the impacts of extension work in their counties with legislators, taxpayers, in media outlets, and online (see resources on this page).

Any council member can share the message about the extraordinary public value that ISU Extension and Outreach has for Iowans throughout the year (not just during the legislative session).  Here are a few resources you can share. 

• Familiarize yourself with your county's impact report.  If you will be seeing someone in person, your county office can help print off copies, as needed.
• Read through the Annual Impact Report  for ISU Extension and Outreach to familiarize yourself with some of our accomplishments.
• Review ISU Extension and Outreach financial information. The ISU Extension and Outreach Funding at a Glance and County Agricultural Extension District Tax Asking Limits are both helpful documents to understand where our funding comes from and how counties are limited in their allowable levy ask.
• The Resources for Legislators page provides a broad overview of some of ISU Extension and Outreach's key programs and the impacts that are made in their legislative districts.