LETTER: Iowans can’t keep doing more with less

To the editor,

Iowa’s family farms have been asked to do the impossible. With Iowa’s farm income projected to drop by 24% this year, our neighbors are seeing corn and soybean prices fall below the cost of putting the seed in the ground. 

At the same time, the “safety net” feels more like a tightrope. Iowans can’t keep doing more with less!

It isn’t just the price of diesel or fertilizer. Tariffs have devastated Iowa’s farms, increasing operation costs across the board. Still, for many farmers, the biggest threat to the operation isn’t in the machine shed — it’s the health care bill on the kitchen table. With the expiration of federal health credits, some of our local producers are facing premium hikes of $3,000 or more. In a year of tight margins, that is the difference between upgrading equipment and more debt.

Iowans must grapple with the issue of eminent domain. Our land is our legacy. As the son of a 5th-generation farmer, I believe that private property rights are fundamental, and no private corporation should be able to seize a single acre of Iowa soil for a carbon pipeline without voluntary consent. 

The Iowa House took a step by passing a ban on eminent domain for these projects this January, but we need leaders who won’t waver when the corporate lobbyists come calling.

We need a state government that prioritizes:

• Protecting property rights

• Lowering overhead

• Investing in the next generation

Republicans repeatedly sacrifice our communities’ interests to those of corporations and special interest groups. From the divestment in public education to Governor Reynolds’ veto of an eminent domain ban last year, they prove over and over where their loyalties lie, and they are not with the small farmer; they are not with you.

I’m running to be your voice. A voice for the small town, a voice for the small farmer, a voice for small business. Iowa has given my family everything for six generations, and I’m ready to work to ensure it remains a land of opportunity for the next six.

Matt English

Anamosa

Editor’s note: English, a Democrat, is running for the Iowa House District 66 seat in the 2026 election. Candidates for political office will be limited to printing one letter to the editor in the Express prior to the primary election and prior to the general election. Letters referencing political candidates will not be published in the last newspaper printed before an election.