Newsletter archives
January 24, 2025 | Overtime and tips from taxes is wrong solution to a very real problem
Well-intentioned policy changes do not always make things better. Case in point: ideas to exempt overtime pay and tips from income taxes. Such proposals, now emerging in Iowa, aim to address a fundamental problem — that many people are working hard but still struggling to make ends meet. But tax cuts are a clumsy tool with real downsides.
Also: UI taxes, unsupervised teens in child care, dangerous SNAP cuts
January 17, 2025 | Lawmakers look to cut Medicaid by ramping up administrative hurdles
In 2013, Iowa was among the first states to take up the federal option to expand Medicaid to low-income adults. In doing so, we cut our state’s uninsured rates and made it possible for thousands of Iowans to see a doctor, get medications, and go to the hospital without fear of choosing between their health, buying groceries or paying the rent. The Governor and some lawmakers — empowered by the incoming presidential administration — now want to pare back Iowa’s adult coverage gains.
January 15, 2025 | Contact your Member of Congress TODAY and tell them to protect Medicaid
Politico last week published a leaked document from the U.S. House outlining budget cuts they are considering to pay for tax cuts skewed to the wealthy. Unsurprisingly, Medicaid — health insurance for low-income children, low-wage workers, people with disabilities and older adults in nursing homes — was the biggest target. Our Iowa House delegation needs to hear from you this week, as Congress mulls its next steps on the budget.