Governor Kim Reynolds’ legislative proposal for a flat income tax is being argued as equal, but opponents say it would benefit higher income earners.

Governor Reynolds released in her annual Condition of the State address that all Iowans would pay a 4% income tax rate and no state income tax at all on retirement income. Iowa’s current tax law has high-income earners paying a larger percentage of their income than lower-income earners. District 42 Senator Jeff Reichman (R) tells KCII he supports Reynolds’ plan, “I think a flat tax is the way to go. It gets rid of a lot of the loopholes and exemptions. Of course it’s a percentage, so everybody’s paying the same share. So we didn’t have a lot of the exemptions that they had at the federal level, so I don’t think it’s going to impact any one segment, it’s more equal and I think that’s what we should do is things should be equal across the board, for everyone.”

Reichman didn’t answer with anything specific when asked which loopholes or exemptions this plan would scrap. Eight U.S. states currently have no income tax, when of the other 42 states, nine including Illinois have a flat tax. Reynolds’ proposal would phase Iowa to a 4% tax rate over four years, while the current system has multiple tax brackets depending on a person’s income level. You can hear from Senator Reichman in today’s Halcyon House Washington Page on air and at kciiradio.com.