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| The Iowa Policy Project (IPP) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 2001 to produce research and analysis to engage Iowans in state policy decisions. IPP focuses on tax and budget issues, the Iowa economy, and energy and environmental policy. |
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The mission of the Iowa Policy Project is to promote public policy that fosters economic opportunity while safeguarding the health and well-being of Iowa's people and the environment.
By providing a foundation of fact-based, objective research and engaging the public in an informed discussion of policy alternatives, IPP advances effective, accountable and fair government. |
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| Founded in 2001, the Iowa Policy Project provides timely research on policy issues of critical importance to the citizens of Iowa. Specifically, IPP focuses on tax and budget, energy and environment, and economic opportunity issues. One important way IPP reaches the public is through the media. News releases and news conferences usually accompany the release of reports. IPP staff also make frequent presentations around the state. Our clearly written reports and presentations equip all Iowans with the facts and context they need to evaluate policy alternatives. |
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| IPP is affiliated with the Economic Analysis Research Network (EARN), which includes similar policy groups in about two dozen states. EARN was initiated by and is supported by the Economic Policy Institute. In 2003, IPP joined with the Child and Family Policy Center in Des Moines to form the Iowa Fiscal Partnership. The Partnership and its website, www.iowafiscal.org, were created to be a reliable information source on fiscal policy issues in Iowa. The Iowa Fiscal Partnership offers policy solutions that value the contributions of Iowa's low-income and working families, increase economic opportunity, and reduce inequality. The Partnership is affiliated with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities' State Fiscal Analysis Initiative and was made possible with generous funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Stoneman Family Foundation. |
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Current funding for IPP comes from a variety of sources, including the McKnight Foundation, the Stoneman Family Foundation and the U.S. Department of Labor, as well as individuals and organizations in the state of Iowa. Previous funders include The Joyce Foundation, The Commonwealth Fund, the Mott Foundation, the Retirement Research Foundation, and the Iowa Finance Authority.
IPP is a 501(c)(3) organization. Contributions are tax-deductible. |
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Andrew Cannon, Research Associate
Economic Opportunity, Budget & Tax
Andrew earned a master’s degree in Public Policy in 2009 and bachelor’s degrees in English and Political Science in 2005, all from the University of Utah. |
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| After a 20-something-year stint in Utah, Andrew returned to his native Midwest in June 2009 to join IPP. Andrew conducts research and analysis for IPP on economic opportunity within Iowa, and how health policy can contribute to Iowans’ economic health.
Email: acannon (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Peter Fisher, Research Director
Budget & Tax, Economic Opportunity
Peter holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Peter is a national expert on public finance and has served as a consultant to the Iowa Dept. of Economic Development, the State of Ohio, and the Iowa Business Council. His reports are regularly published in State Tax Notes and refereed journals. His recent book Grading Places: What Do the Business Climate Rankings Really Tell Us? was published by the Economic Policy Institute in 2005. Peter is a professor of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Iowa. |
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| Peter provides overall supervision for IPP research activities. He is directly involved in research, writing and outreach on state tax and budget issues. He has authored or co-authored the majority of Iowa Fiscal Partnership reports and guest opinions on state tax policy. Email: pfisher (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Lily French, Research Associate and Outreach Coordinator
Economic Opportunity and Outreach
Lily joined IPP in March 2008. A former policy analyst for the US Department of Health and Human Services and the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Lily also directed a women's business center in Madison, Wis., before returning to Iowa. Over the past 10 years, she has served as an adviser to state and local government officials on issues of child care, workforce development and microenterprise development. Lily holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Michigan and a bachelor's degree in Sociology from the University of Iowa. |
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| Lily’s research for IPP concentrates on policy analysis to advance the economic opportunity of all Iowans. She also coordinates IPP outreach efforts, predominantly around state fiscal and economic policy, with a variety of constituent groups, legislators and others to ensure IPP work is relevant and widely distributed. Email: lfrench (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Teresa Galluzzo, Research Associate
Energy & Environment
Teresa joined IPP in November 2004. She received her master's of science in environmental studies from the University of Montana and a bachelor's of science in geography from the University of Iowa. |
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| Teresa’s work for IPP concentrates on state environmental issues, particularly water and energy issues. She has written reports on the economic advantages of locally owned wind projects, the 10 pioneering Iowa schools that operate their own wind turbines, and Iowa’s lagging financial commitment to its environment. Email: tgalluzzo (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Will Hoyer, Research Associate
Energy & Environment
Will joined IPP in August 2010. He spent five years in Madison, Wisconsin, working on local, state and regional water policies for Clean Wisconsin. Most recently he has worked as a grant writer for the City of Dubuque, focusing on state and federal Recovery Act opportunities surrounding energy efficiency, transportation and infrastructure. He received his master's degree in Water Resources Management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and undergraduate degrees in Biology and Environmental Studies from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. He resides in Dubuque. |
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| Will's focus at IPP is on environmental issues, particularly issues affecting water resources. Email: whoyer (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Noga O'Connor, Research Associate
Economic Opportunity
Noga holds a Ph.D. in sociology of education from New York University and an M.A. in sociology of education from Teachers College. She has worked as a statistical consultant and as director of institutional research before graduating in 2006 and accepting a position at the University of Iowa as visiting faculty. She joined IPP in July 2010 with a focus on issues of post-secondary training and the labor market, looking especially at the performance and well-being of Iowa workers.
Noga's academic publications center on minorities in higher education and on community colleges. |
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| Noga’s research for IPP concentrates on policy analysis to advance the economic opportunity of all Iowans. Her research interests include the black-white achievement gap, group differences in returns to education, and the relationship between academic credentials and the labor market. Email: noconnor (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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David Osterberg, Founder and Executive Director
Energy & Environment, Economic Opportunity
David is a former Iowa state representative who was chairman of the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee as well as the Agriculture Committee. David was the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in 1998 and worked for one year as a consultant to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. David holds an M.S. in water resources management and another in agricultural economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is an associate clinical professor in the Department of Occupational and Environmental Health at the University of Iowa.
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| David directs staff, works with the Treasurer and bookkeeper to assure the organization maintains financial integrity, raises funds and interacts with the Board of Directors. He is co-author of several IPP energy and environment reports. David speaks widely to explain the findings of IPP reports. Email: dosterberg (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Mike Owen, Assistant Director
Communications and Federal Issues
Mike covered local, state and federal policy issues in a 21-year news career in Iowa and Pennsylvania. He received his bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science from the University of Iowa. |
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| In 2001, Mike became IPP’s first full-time employee, editing reports and coordinating communications. Mike also coordinates IPP efforts to promote public understanding of federal policy impacts on Iowans. Email: ipp (at) Lcom.net OR mikeowen (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Nathan Shepherd, Office Manager
Administration
Nathan joined IPP in December 2007. He has helped to manage a small business over the past decade and previously worked as an environmental organizer with a statewide advocacy organization. |
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Nathan received his bachelor of science degree in general agriculture - environmental studies from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1987. Email: nshepherd (at) iowapolicyproject.org |
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Colin Gordon, Senior Research Consultant
Economic Opportunity
Colin has been part of IPP since its earliest days, co-authoring the first State of Working Iowa report in 2001, and each report since in that widely respected series. He also has authored other reports to advance effective and accountable policies that help working families, particularly analysis of economic development subsidies and health-care issues. He is the author of New Deals: Business, Labor, and Politics in America, 1920-1935; Dead on Arrival: The Politics of Health Care in Twentieth-Century America; and Mapping Decline: St. Louis and the Fate of the American City.
Colin has his Ph.D. in history, and is a professor and chair in the Department of History at the University of Iowa. Email: colin-gordon (at) uiowa.edu |
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 Caroline Brigham
Budget & Tax
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 Hadley Rapp
Energy & Environment
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 Anna Sewell
Outreach
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| Janet Carl, President, a former Democratic state representative, lives in Grinnell and is a language arts instructor at Grinnell College. |
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| Jen Sherer, Vice President, lives in Iowa City and is director of the Labor Center at the University of Iowa. |
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| Ro Foege, a former Democratic state representative, lives in Mount Vernon. |
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| Lyle Krewson, a former Republican state representative, lives in West Des Moines and is currently a legislative consultant to various organizations, which include Lutheran Services In Iowa. |
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| Lana Ross lives in Des Moines and is executive director of the Iowa Community Action Association. |
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| Mark L. Smith lives in Des Moines and is former president of the Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. |
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| Tony Smith lives in Ames and is professor of philosophy at Iowa State University. |
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