Amendment S-5259 to SF 2506

Filed May 3, 2026 in the Senate by Sen. Mike Bousselot (R)

Amends this SF 2506 to CONFORM to HF 2799

What it changes

1. By striking everything after the enacting clause and inserting: “DIVISION I HEADQUARTERS EXPANSION AND DEVELOPMENT FOR GROWTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM Section
2. NEW SECTION . 15.600 Short title. This part shall be known and may be cited as the “Headquarters Expansion and Development for Growth and Employment Program” , or “EDGE Program” . Sec.
3. NEW SECTION . 15.601 Definitions. As used in this part, unless the context otherwise requires:
4. “Agreement” means an agreement entered into by an eligible business and the authority pursuant to section 15.604.
5. “Base employment level” means the number of full-time equivalent positions at a business, as established by the authority and the business based on the business’s payroll records, on the date the business applies for the program.
6. “Benefits” means nonwage compensation provided to an employee. “Benefits” include medical and dental insurance, a pension, a retirement plan, a profit-sharing plan, child care, life insurance, vision insurance, and disability insurance.
7. “Community” means a city or county in the state.
8. “Corporate headquarters” means a location in the state that serves as the principal executive office or houses the core administrative operations for a business, and that includes executive leadership offices, strategic decision-making functions, and administrative and support staff employees.
9. “Corporate job” means a position based at a corporate headquarters that involves strategic planning, executive decision-making, or core administrative functions.
10. “Created jobs” or “create jobs” means new, permanent, full-time equivalent positions added to an eligible business’s payroll, at the location of the eligible business’s project, in excess of the eligible business’s base employment level.
11. “Data center business” means the same as defined in section 423.3, subsection
13. “Eligible business” means a business that meets the requirements of section 15.602.
14. “Full-time equivalent position” means a non-part-time position for the number of hours or days per week considered to be full-time work for the kind of service or work performed for an employer. Typically, a full-time equivalent position requires two thousand eighty hours of work in a calendar year, including all paid holidays, vacations, sick time, and other paid leave.
15. “Gross annual wages” means all regular wages and salaries received by an employee for performing services as an employee of an employer. “Gross annual wages” does not include nonregular forms of compensation, such as bonuses, unusual overtime pay, commissions, stock options, pensions, retirement or death benefits, unemployment benefits, life or other insurance, or other fringe benefits.
16. “New corporate job” means a corporate job that is a created job.
17. “Program” means the headquarters expansion and development for growth and employment program.
18. “Project” means the retention or location of a corporate headquarters for an eligible business, proposed in an eligible business’s application to the program, that will accomplish the goals of the program.
19. “Qualifying wage threshold” means the mean wage level represented by the wages within two standard deviations of the mean wage within the laborshed area in which the eligible business is located, as calculated by the authority by rule, using the most current covered wage and employment data available from the department of workforce development for the laborshed area in which the eligible business is located.
20. “Retained corporate job” means a corporate job that is also a retained job.
21. “Retained jobs” means a full-time equivalent position that is in existence at the time an eligible business applies for the program that remains continuously filled, and that is at risk of elimination if the proposed project for which the eligible business is applying to the program does not proceed.
22. “Tax incentives” means tax credits authorized under the program by the authority for an eligible business. Sec.
23. NEW SECTION . 15.602 Eligible business.
24. To be eligible to receive tax incentives under the program, a business must meet all of the following requirements: a. The community in which the proposed project is located must approve the project either by ordinance or resolution. b. The business must have a global presence, significant market share, or national recognition in the industry in which the business operates. c. The business must be able to provide documentation that a minimum of fifty-one percent of the business’s gross revenue is generated from business conducted outside the state. d. The business must be able to provide documentation that a state other than Iowa is meaningfully competing for the location or retention of the business’s corporate headquarters. e. (1) The business must be primarily engaged in advanced manufacturing, bioscience, insurance and finance, technology and innovation, or research and development. The business shall not be a data center business, a retail business, or a business where a cover charge or membership requirement restricts certain individuals from entering the business. (2) Factors the authority shall consider to determine if a business is primarily engaged in advanced manufacturing, bioscience, insurance and finance, technology and innovation, or research and development shall include but are not limited to all of the following: (a) The business’s North American industry classification system code. (b) The business’s main sources of revenue. (c) The business’s customer base. f. (1) The business must not be solely relocating operations from one area of the state to another area of the state. A proposed project that does not create jobs or involve a substantial amount of new capital investment shall be presumed to be a relocation of operations. For purposes of this subparagraph, the authority shall consider a letter from the affected local community’s government officials supporting the business’s move away from the affected local community in making a determination whether the business is solely relocating operations. (2) This paragraph shall not be construed to prohibit a business from expanding the business’s operations in a community if the business has similar operations in this state that are not closing or undergoing a substantial reduction in operations. g. The business must offer comprehensive benefits to each full-time equivalent employee employed at its corporate headquarters. The authority may adopt rules under chapter 17A to determine the requirements for comprehensive benefits. h. (1) The business must not have a record of violations of law or of rules, including but not limited to antitrust, environmental, trade, or worker safety, that over a period of time show a consistent pattern or that establish the business’s intentional, criminal, or reckless conduct in violation of such laws or rules. (2) In making determinations and findings under subparagraph (1), and making a determination whether a business is disqualified from the program, the authority shall be exempt from chapter 17A.
25. In determining if a business is eligible to participate in the program, the authority shall consider a variety of factors including but not limited to all of the following: a. The cost to the state of providing tax incentives compared to the potential increase in state and local tax collections from the project, the potential for population growth resulting from the project, and the potential for wage growth resulting from the project. b. The impact of the business’s proposed project on businesses that are in competition with the business. The authority shall make a good-faith effort to identify existing Iowa businesses in competition with the business being considered for the program. The authority shall make a good-faith effort to determine the probability that any proposed tax incentives will displace employees of a competing business. In determining the impact on a competing business, employee displacement from the competing business shall not be considered created jobs for the applying business’s project. c. The business’s proposed project’s economic impact on the state. The authority shall place greater emphasis on businesses and proposed projects that meet the following requirements: (1) The business has a high proportion of in-state suppliers. (2) The proposed project will diversify the state economy. (3) The business has few in-state competitors. (4) The proposed project has the potential to create jobs on an ongoing basis, or will result in increased skills and wages for employees of the eligible business. (5) The proposed project has the potential to increase the state’s overall gross domestic product. (6) The proposed project will result in a newly constructed facility, or a facility with a significantly increased taxable valuation. (7) Any other factors the authority deems relevant in determining the economic impact of a proposed project. Sec.
26. NEW SECTION . 15.603 Applications —— authorization of tax incentives.
27. Applications for the program shall be submitted to the authority in the form and manner prescribed by the authority by rule. Each application must be accompanied by an application fee in an amount determined by the authority by rule.
28. In determining the eligibility of a business to participate in the program the authority may engage outside experts to complete a technical, financial, or other review of an application submitted by a business if such review is outside the expertise of the authority.
29. The authority and the board may negotiate with an eligible business regarding the terms of, and the aggregate value of, the tax incentives the eligible business may receive under the program. Sec.
30. NEW SECTION . 15.604 Agreement.
31. An eligible business that is approved by the authority to participate in the program shall enter into an agreement with the authority that specifies the criteria for the successful completion of all requirements of the program. The agreement must contain, at a minimum, provisions related to all of the following: a. The eligible business must certify to the authority annually that the business is in compliance with the agreement. b. If the eligible business fails to comply with any requirements of the program or the agreement, the eligible business may be required to repay any tax incentives the authority issued to the eligible business. After a final determination by the authority, the authority will notify the department of revenue of any required repayment of a tax incentive, which shall be considered a tax payment due and payable to the department of revenue by any taxpayer that claimed the tax incentive, and the failure to make the repayment may be treated by the department of revenue in the same manner as a failure to pay the tax shown due, or required to be shown due, with the filing of a return or deposit form. c. If the eligible business undergoes a layoff or permanently closes any of its facilities within the state, the eligible business may be subject to all of the following: (1) A reduction or elimination of some or all of the tax incentives the authority issued to the eligible business. (2) Repayment of any tax incentives that the business has claimed, and payment of any penalties assessed by the department of revenue. d. The end date of the agreement. e. The number of new corporate jobs and retained corporate jobs to be created or retained as part of the project, the qualifying wage threshold applicable to the project, and the date on which the authority will initially verify the eligible business employs the required number of new corporate jobs and retained corporate jobs. f. The maximum aggregate value of the tax incentives authorized by the board. g. The eligible business shall only employ individuals legally authorized to work in this state. If the eligible business is found to knowingly employ individuals who are not legally authorized to work in this state, in addition to any penalties provided by law, the eligible business may be required to repay all or a portion of any tax incentives the authority issued to the eligible business. h. A requirement that the eligible business must continue to own and operate a corporate headquarters in the state until the end date of the agreement as specified in paragraph “d” . i. Any terms deemed necessary by the authority to effect the eligible business’s ongoing compliance with section 15.602.
32. The board shall not amend the terms of the agreement to allow an increase in the maximum aggregate value of tax incentives authorized by the board under section 15.603.
33. The eligible business shall comply with all applicable terms of the agreement until the agreement end date. An eligible business shall maintain the business’s base employment level until the agreement end date.
34. The eligible business shall not assign the agreement to another entity without the advance written approval of the board.
35. The authority may enforce the terms of the agreement as necessary and appropriate. Sec.
36. NEW SECTION . 15.605 Qualifying wage tax credit.
37. If the authority has entered into an agreement with an eligible business pursuant to section 15.604, the authority may authorize a qualifying wage tax credit with the eligible business for a period not to exceed three years according to the start and end date specified in the agreement. The authority may issue a qualifying wage tax credit to the eligible business for each year of the authorized period upon verification under section 15.604, subsection 1, paragraph “e” , that the eligible business employed the required number of employees in new corporate jobs and retained corporate jobs that pay at least two hundred percent of the qualifying wage threshold. The tax credit for each year of the authorized period shall equal no more than the sum of all of the following: a. Up to fifteen percent of the gross annual wages of new corporate jobs that pay at least two hundred percent of the qualifying wage threshold. b. Up to one percent of the gross annual wages of retained corporate jobs that pay at least two hundred percent of the qualifying wage threshold, not to exceed one million dollars.
38. A tax credit shall be allowed against the taxes imposed in chapter 422, subchapters II, III, and V, and against the moneys and credits tax imposed in section 533.329.
39. In order for a taxpayer to claim a tax credit under subsection 1, a tax credit certificate issued by the authority shall be included with the taxpayer’s tax return. The tax credit certificate shall contain the taxpayer’s name, address, tax identification number, the amount of the credit, and other information required by the authority.
40. An individual may claim a tax credit under subsection 1 on behalf of a partnership, limited liability company, S corporation, estate, or trust electing to have income taxed directly to the individual. The amount claimed by the individual shall be based upon the pro rata share of the individual’s earnings from the partnership, limited liability company, S corporation, estate, or trust.
41. Any tax credit in excess of the taxpayer’s liability for the tax year is refundable. In lieu of claiming a refund, an eligible business may elect to have the overpayment shown on the eligible business’s final, completed return credited to the eligible business’s tax liability for the immediately succeeding tax year. A tax credit shall not be carried back to a tax year prior to the tax year in which the tax credit is first claimed by the eligible business.
42. Tax credit certificates issued pursuant to this section are not transferable. Sec.
43. NEW SECTION . 15.606 Other incentives. The authority, in its discretion, may prohibit an eligible business that has been issued tax incentives under the program from receiving any additional tax incentive, tax credit, grant, loan, or other financial assistance under any program administered by the authority. Sec.
44. NEW SECTION . 422.12R Qualifying wage tax credit. The taxes imposed under this subchapter, less the credits allowed under section 422.12, shall be reduced by a qualifying wage tax credit allowed under section 15.605. Sec.
45. Section 422.33, Code 2026, is amended by adding the following new subsection: NEW SUBSECTION .
46. The taxes imposed under this subchapter shall be reduced by a qualifying wage tax credit allowed under section 15.605. Sec.
47. Section 422.60, Code 2026, is amended by adding the following new subsection: NEW SUBSECTION .
48. The taxes imposed under this subchapter shall be reduced by a qualifying wage tax credit allowed under section 15.605. Sec.
49. Section 533.329, subsection 2, Code 2026, is amended by adding the following new paragraph: NEW PARAGRAPH . m. The moneys and credits tax imposed under this section shall be reduced by a qualifying wage tax credit allowed under section 15.605. Sec.
50. CODE EDITOR DIRECTIVE. The Code editor is directed to designate sections 15.600 through 15.606, as enacted in this division of this Act, as part 37 of subchapter II. DIVISION II MAJOR ECONOMIC GROWTH ATTRACTION PROGRAM Sec.
51. Section 15.491, subsection 12, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
52. “Foreign adversary” means a the following: a. A foreign government or foreign non-government person as determined in 15 C.F.R. §7.4 , and that is listed in 15 C.F.R. §7.4(a) at any time from March 4, 2024, through the termination of the program July 17, 2024 . b. A foreign government or foreign non-government person as determined in 15 C.F.R. §791.4, and that is listed in 15 C.F.R. §791.4 at any time from July 18, 2024, through the termination of the program. Sec.
53. Section 15.501, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows: 15.501 Restrictions on board. The board shall not authorize tax incentives available under the program, or an exemption to restrictions on agricultural land holdings pursuant to this part , for more than two eligible businesses, or on or after January 1, 2027 2030 , whichever occurs first. DIVISION III BUSINESS INCENTIVES FOR GROWTH PROGRAM TRAINING FUND Sec.
54. NEW SECTION . 15.512 Training fund.
55. A business incentives for growth program training fund is created in the state treasury under the control of the authority. An amount up to one and one-half percent of the gross wages an eligible business pays to employees specified in an agreement entered into pursuant to section 15.506 shall be credited to the fund from the withholding payments made by an eligible business pursuant to section 422.16. Such jobs shall be identified by the authority as having a sufficient economic impact to warrant assistance with training.
56. On a quarterly basis, an eligible business shall disclose the amount of gross wages that qualify under subsection 1 to the authority and to the department of revenue. Based upon the gross wage amount provided to the authority, the authority shall calculate the amount of gross wages to be deposited into the fund for the quarter, and the department of revenue shall deposit that amount into the fund.
57. Moneys in the fund shall be used to reimburse training expenses incurred by an eligible business that are associated with the eligible business’s project.
58. An eligible business’s training expenses that may be eligible for reimbursement must meet all of the following criteria: a. The expenses are paid to a third party. b. The expenses are for training that is specific to the project of the eligible business and necessary for the success of the project. c. The expenses were incurred over the period of time identified in the agreement under section 15.506, but not to exceed four years. d. The expenses are documented to the satisfaction of the authority.
59. An eligible business that has been approved by the authority to receive a reimbursement from the fund shall not be eligible to receive any other state incentive to be used for the same purpose. DIVISION IV REPEAL OF THE NEW JOBS TAX CREDIT Sec.
60. Section 2.48, subsection 3, paragraph e, subparagraph (7), Code 2026, is amended by striking the subparagraph. Sec.

Shortened here; the full amendment is in the official document.

Official amendment (PDF) · In the Bill Book