Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
The conservative interest group Iowans for Tax Relief is pushing against Gov. Terry Branstad‘s proposal to raise casino taxes with a statewide campaign.
Last week, the group launched a radio ad criticizing the governor and the state legislature. In an email to members obtained by The Iowa Independent, ITR called the tax increase on casinos “fundamentally unfair” and claimed it would destroy jobs in Iowa.
The new law singles out Iowa casinos, and would raise taxes on them by 64 percent. At the same time, Republicans have been pushing for a Tax Relief Fund, without significant detail as to how it would be administered, and cuts to property taxes and income taxes.
“This tax grab by state government will take almost $200 million from local communities and transfer that money to state bureaucrats in Des Moines,” Iowans for Tax Relief said in the email.
Leaders from the legislature said in February they doubted the casino tax increase would go through.
Economist Harvey Siegelman of the Strategic Economics Group, hired by gambling interests, concluded if the tax increase went through, four to six of the state’s casinos would close, leading to as many as 4,500 layoffs.
Branstad has said he believed the casinos were crying wolf and didn’t believe it would turn out as bad as they predict. At one point, he said they were the ones who could afford a tax increase.
The Governor confronted protests at town hall events over the issue, but did say he was willing to compromise.
Polling shows around half of Iowans are supportive of the major tax hike.
Hear the radio ad by ITR here.
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