Some 150 Farm Bureau leaders fanned out around the rotunda of the Iowa Capitol last week to stress to their senators the need to couple Iowa tax rules with recently-passed federal rules to provide needed economic help for farmers and rural communities and to provide more consistency.

"The tax coupling is really important to us right now," said Tye Rinner, Washington County Farm Bureau vice president. "We’re all in limbo right now waiting to see what’s going to happen and that’s keeping us from making the investments in equipment, buildings, and other capital purchases, which would also create jobs in our rural communities."

Passage of the tax coupling measure is vital...