Wahls releases economic agenda targeting corporate power, Iowa costs

Zach Wahls released a sweeping 10-point economic platform targeting corporate monopolies, billionaire tax breaks, and the rising cost of housing, childcare, and wages.

Iowa Sen. Zach Wahls, a candidate in the Democratic primary for US Senate, is talking a lot about the cost of fire trucks. 

“In the last decade the price for a new fire truck in this country has tripled. … It turns out this is a statewide problem and this is a national problem. And it’s the same story,” Wahls said at a Progress Iowa-End Citizens United forum earlier this month featuring Wahls and his primary opponent, Iowa Rep. Josh Turek. 

Wahls described how Rev Group, a private equity-backed fire truck manufacturer, consolidated the market to drive up profits. 

“I know a lot of folks have been talking to me recently about the fact that property taxes are going up and they’re really unaffordable. One of the reasons that is the case is because our property tax money is padding the profit margins of these big corporations,” Wahls said. “And that is why we need a senator who will enforce antitrust laws and tackle these big companies head on.”

This week, Wahls unrolled a 10-pillar plan to lower costs for working families, crack down on corporate monopolies, and rewrite what he calls a tax code that rewards wealth over work. The document argues that Iowa’s dead-last 2025 economic growth ranking isn’t a product of Iowans not working hard enough, but of a system deliberately tilted away from them.

Here’s what’s in Wahls’ plan:

Pass pro-worker legislation. Wahls calls for passing the PRO Act to restore collective bargaining rights, raising the federal minimum wage to at least $15 an hour and indexing it to inflation, guaranteeing paid family and medical leave, and cracking down on wage theft. He also backs the American Ownership and Resilience Act, which would make it easier for employees to purchase the companies they work for when owners retire or sell.

Tax the super wealthy Wahls’ plan backs the Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act, which would impose a 5% annual tax on the country’s 938 billionaires and direct proceeds toward $3,000 direct payments to each person in households earning under $150,000. Wahls also calls for closing the carried interest loophole and the step-up in basis tax break, which allow billionaires to greatly reduce their tax bills, with exemptions for family farms and small businesses.

Lower the cost of child care. Wahls often talks about his family paying more for their son’s daycare than their mortgage. His plan calls for major federal investment in childcare access, expanded pre-K, and higher wages for childcare workers.

Help Iowans buy a home. Wahls’ plan would ban Wall Street investment firms from buying single-family homes, expand down payment assistance for first-time buyers, crack down on algorithmic rent price-fixing, reform the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit for rural Iowa, and extend federal protections to mobile home park residents facing buyouts by out-of-state private equity.

Take on the monopolists. Pointing to what he says is a private equity-driven tripling of fire engine prices over the past decade, Wahls calls for aggressive antitrust enforcement across meatpacking, agriculture, health care, and housing. His plan also includes right-to-repair legislation for farm equipment, a ban on surveillance pricing at grocery stores, and expanded small business access to capital in rural communities.

Defend Social Security. Wahls proposes what he calls the Keep the Promise Act: scrapping the payroll tax cap so that wealthy Americans pay into Social Security on every dollar they earn, not just the first $168,000. He also calls for reversing DOGE cuts to the Social Security Administration on day one and pledges no benefit cuts and no retirement age increases. The plan specifically criticizes US Rep. Ashley Hinson—the likely Republican nominee in the Senate race—for voting to gut Social Security funding.

Iowa workers > AI companies. Workers would receive advance notice and bargaining rights before AI use changes their jobs. The plan would require companies profiting from automation to contribute to the social safety net, mandate independent pre-deployment safety testing for high-risk AI systems, protect AI whistleblowers, and require water usage studies for large data centers, a nod to Iowa’s growing role as an AI infrastructure hub.

Make it easier to be an entrepreneur. Wahls backs the Tax Relief for New Businesses Act, which would raise the startup cost tax deduction from $5,000 to $50,000, arguing the gap between the current deduction and the average $40,000 cost to start a business effectively locks out anyone without family money. He also calls for restoring Small Business Administration programs the Trump administration is cutting and passing the American Access to Banking Act to address rural credit deserts created by bank consolidation.

Build on Iowa’s clean energy leadership. Iowa generates more than 60% of its electricity from wind. Wahls calls for defending the federal clean energy tax credits he says Hinson voted to roll back, investing in grid modernization and energy storage, building clean energy manufacturing in Iowa, and protecting wind and solar lease income for farm families.

Iowa First trade policy. One in five Iowa jobs is tied to international trade, and Wahls calls Trump’s blanket tariffs a direct hit on Iowa’s agricultural exports. He calls for ending “tariff chaos,” enforcing rules against currency manipulation and dumping, and rebuilding trade relationships he says Iowa farmers depend on as customers.

The full agenda is available on Wahls’ campaign Substack. Wahls faces Turek in the June Democratic primary before a likely general election matchup against Hinson.