Iowa Business Report 26-15 (Apr. 10-12, 2026)

April 12, 2026·23 min·2 clips

Financial analyst Tracy Burns explains how recent tax law headlines are misleading and reveals key deductions people miss.

Tax planning is the focus. Stein brings in Burns as a financial analyst, former Fox Business anchor, and author of a new book on legal write-offs, credits, and loopholes. The income tax filing deadline is close, so the timing is not subtle. Burns says the reconciliation bill passed last July can help, but only if people do not skim a headline and assume they understand it. She is practical about the whole thing. A tax return, in her view, is not paperwork to shove away after filing. It is a map for the next year. Stein pushes on planning. He ties her point to IRA contributions, charitable gifts, and the money people leave on the table when they wait until December to think. Burns agrees. The signed return shows what came in, what went out, and what could be adjusted before next year. Standard deductions get a close look too. A larger standard deduction can help, but it can also change whether itemizing is worth it in a given year. That makes timing the real tool. Medical expenses, charitable giving, and other deductible costs may need to be grouped so the taxpayer actually gets the benefit. Burns points to donor-advised funds as one way to do it: make a larger charitable contribution in an itemizing year, then distribute it more slowly later. The segment stays clear and workmanlike. Tax law is treated as something to plan around, not just something to survive each spring. The episode also previews broader Iowa economic optimism and a profile of an Iowa company using software to make drones more efficient.

As heard by us

A calm, tactical listen for listeners who want taxes treated like planning, not punishment.

April's tax deadline gives this Iowa Business Report a practical edge. Jeff Stein keeps the focus on what the new law may mean for planning, while Tracy Burns, a financial analyst and former Fox Business anchor, is at her best treating a return as a working document instead of a…

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You want tax moves before filing day closes in.

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