The Iowa legislature may soon convene in Des Moines to consider tax breaks that might seal the deal for a new steel plant near the Missisippi River in southeast Iowa.
Republican legislative leaders have not provided confirmation, but the House Minority Leader has sent an email to the 33 Democrats in the Iowa House, saying a company is asking the governor and legislators to “consider a special session to pass an incentive package…soon.” The company is not named in the email.
The Des Moines Register has reported some property owners about five miles from the Mississippi River in Lee County said they’ve been contacted about selling their land and they told the paper they believe a steel plant may be built there.
If state incentives are approved in a special legislative session this fall, it would not be the first time lawmakers have taken steps to try to attract a steel plant to Iowa. In 1994, Iowa officials came up with a $75 million package to lure Canadian-based IPSCO Steel to build a plant near Muscatine. It included state sales tax exemptions for construction materials, a 10% investment tax credit, and a property tax exemption for the machinery and equipment inside the plant. The state’s Research Activities tax credit for IPSCO was doubled and the state provided nearly $2 million for access roads to the facility and job training for employees, plus a $1 million loan.
The IPSCO plant near Muscatine opened in 1997 and recycles scrap metal. The plant has been under Swedish ownership since 2007.
