Racing Ass'n of Central Iowa v. Fitzgerald

I respectfully dissent. The doctrine of independent constitutional interpretation by state courts is a powerful and vital aspect of constitutional law.8 Yet, it is not well suited for equal protection claims involving a rational basis analysis of taxation statutes, and is entirely inappropriate when it arises within the very same case in which the United States Supreme Court has decided the issue. Since this court applies the same tests and follows the same analysis as the Supreme Court in *18equal protection claims involving taxation, a conflicting decision by this court within the context of…