Capitol Notebook: Iowa state lawmakers move bill designed to address retail theft

DES MOINES — Organized retail theft would become a new state crime, and in certain cases would be a felony offense, under legislation that earned unanimous approval from Iowa state lawmakers.

The proposal is on its way to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk for her consideration after it passed the Iowa Senate on Wednesday.

The Senate passed the bill with a 47-0 vote; it previously passed the House on a 97-0 vote.

The bill, House File 2594, creates the new state crime of organized retail theft and defines that crime as when individuals working together steal retail merchandise and then attempt to sell that merchandise, advertise the stolen merchandise for sale or attempt to return the stolen merchandise for a refund.

Legislators said the bill is needed because of an increase in retail theft in Iowa.

Sen. Scott Webster, R-Bettendorf, said the bill will help “fix the situation” by creating a deterrent for such crimes.

Sen. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, praised the proposal but also said he wished it would go further and create punishments for other types of theft that have become more common, like stealing delivered packages from porches and doorsteps.

“We’re seeing more and more that theft has become a profession, become organized,” Bisignano said during debate. “We need to combat organized theft.”

Under the bill, organized retail theft, depending on the value of merchandise stolen, would range from a serious misdemeanor to a Class C felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine between $1,000 and $10,000.

Flat tax proposal moves ahead

A requirement that Iowa have just one income tax rate for all workers would be put to a public vote as an amendment to the Iowa Constitution under legislation advanced by Senate Republicans.

The Iowa Constitution can only be amended by a provision that passes consecutive Iowa General Assemblys, and then approved by a public vote.

Under Senate Study Bill 3189, the Iowa Constitution would be amended to state that there shall not be more than one state income tax rate above zero at any one time.

The proposal passed the Iowa Senate’s tax policy committee on a party-line vote, with all Republicans supporting and all Democrats opposing. It is now eligible for consideration by the full Senate.

A bill considered previously by statehouse Republicans included both the single tax rate provision and another that would require the approval of two-thirds of the Iowa Legislature in order to increase the state income tax.

That provision is not included in the bill moving in the Senate.

Sen. Dan Dawson, R-Council Bluffs, said the two proposals will both advance, but they must be separated so they can be posed as separate questions to the voters.

Iowa AG asks court to raise age for TikTok app

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is asking a court to force TikTok to raise its age rating on app stores as she pursues a lawsuit against the social media company.

Bird, a Republican, sued TikTok in January, alleging the app is “misleading parents” by hosting content inappropriate for its 12+ app store rating.

Bird filed a motion for a temporary injunction in the Polk County District Court on Wednesday, asking the court to stop TikTok from listing a “12+” rating on the Apple App Store and from listing that it contains only “infrequent/mild” references to alcohol, sexual content and suggestive themes.

TikTok said when the lawsuit was filed that it has significant safeguards in place and limits access for users under 18.

TikTok also has been under scrutiny at the federal level, as congressional lawmakers seek to force its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app or face a ban from U.S. app stores.

Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau