Kansas state government

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While Kansas ranks in the middle of the states in total tax burden, the state’s take is getting larger, compared to other states.

This finding is important as Kansas and its largest city are increasingly using favorable tax treatment to centrally plan and manage economic development. When the state allows a company’s employee withholding taxes to be used for its own exclusive benefit — as outgoing Governor Mark Parkinson recently granted to Wichita’s Bombardier Learjet — it increases the cost of government for everyone else.

The Kansas PEAK bill that the legislature passed this year allows this practice to be extended to more and smaller companies.

In cities like Wichita, the city council routinely grants tax abatements and other favorable tax treatment to companies that it believes are deserving.

The result of all this intervention is that the tax base is narrowed, and the high cost of government is born by a smaller group of taxpayers.

To top it off, the result of this centralized planning and management of economic development is: pretty much zero.

In 2008 the Kansas Legislative Division of Post Audit looked at the use of economic development incentives in Kansas, examining some $1.3 billion in spending over five years. In examining the literature, the auditors found: “Most studies of traditional economic development incentives suggest these incentives don’t have a significant impact on economic growth.”

It also found: “The majority of research concludes there is a lack of demonstrated impact from the typical types of economic development assistance, and that incentives aren’t cost-effective.” The audit can be read at Economic Development: Determining the Amounts the State Has Spent on Economic Development Programs and the Economic Impacts on Kansas Counties. The document has an executive summary.

The concentrating of the cost of government on a shrinking tax base spells trouble. One solution that I proposed to the Wichita city council is that when tax incentives are given, the city reduce its spending by the cost of the incentive: “The harmful effect of this tax abatement is this: When someone escapes paying taxes, someone else has to make up the difference. … As long as this body is willing to grant tax abatements and other special tax favors, I propose this simple pledge: that when the City of Wichita allows a company to escape paying taxes, that it reduce city spending by the same amount. By following this simple rule, the City can be reminded of the cost of granting special tax favors, and the rest of us won’t have to pay for them.”

Kansas tax burdens getting heavier, studies show

By Gene Meyer, Kansas Reporter

(KansasReporter) TOPEKA, Kan. – Kansans’ state and local sales taxes are now 12th highest in the nation, though their total tax burden is nearer the middle of the pack in 24th place, say two new reports released Thursday.

But, as investment companies always remind us when pitching their new products, your actual results may vary.

“Even within a state, it can be difficult to know what the average tax rate is when there can be hundreds of different jurisdictions charging different rates,” said Kail Padgitt, an economist at the Washington, D.C. based Tax Foundation, which calculates Kansas’ 7.95 percent average state and local sales taxes are 12th highest in the nation.

Within that average, though, actual local rates in some 790 different county, local and special tax districts across Kansas vary from 6.3 percent where only the basic state rate is charged to more than 10.5 percent in a few special taxing districts.

The ranking, one of the first nationally to include Kansas’ recently raised 6.3 percent statewide sales tax that became effective July 1, puts the 12th ranked Sunflower state higher than its neighbors in 15th ranked Missouri, 25th ranked Colorado and 29th ranked Nebraska. Only Oklahoma, where an average 8.33 percent sales tax burden clocks in at seventh highest in the nation, comes in higher.

Tagged as: Economic development, Kansas Reporter, Kansas state government, Mark Parkinson, Tax abatements, Wichita city council, Wichita city government

How does Kansas rank in economic freedom?

by Bob Weeks on August 19, 2010

In measures of economic and personal freedom, Kansas ranks relatively well among the states, but lags behind some neighboring states. Recent actions by the Kansas legislature might drive its ranking down.

Last year the Mercatus Center at George Mason University published a paper that ranks the states in several areas regarding freedom. According to the authors, “This paper presents the first-ever comprehensive ranking of the American states on their public policies affecting individual freedoms in the economic, social, and personal spheres.”

What is the philosophical basis for measuring or determining freedom? Here’s an explanation from the introduction:

We explicitly ground our conception of freedom on an individual rights framework. In our view, individuals should be allowed to dispose of their lives, liberties, and property as they see fit, so long as they do not infringe on the rights of others. This understanding of freedom follows from the natural-rights liberal thought of John Locke, Immanuel Kant, and Robert Nozick, but it is also consistent with the rights-generating rule-utilitarianism of Herbert Spencer and others.

According to the authors, “No current studies exist that measure both economic and personal freedom in the fifty states.” So this is a ground-breaking work.

How does Kansas do? Surprisingly, not too badly. Not outstanding, but not as bad as I might have thought.

For the four areas measured, here’s how we did: In fiscal policy, Kansas is 28. In regulatory policy, 4. In economic freedom, 18. In personal freedom, 15. (In all cases, a ranking of 1 means the most freedom.)

Our overall ranking is 12.

Some of the remarks the authors made about Kansas include noting our large public employee payroll, even though state employees are not paid as well as private sector workers. Also: “The area of spending that could most stand to be cut is education, while the taxes that should have priority for cutting are individual income and property taxes.”

Some of our neighbors do pretty well in the overall ranking. Colorado is 2, Texas is 5, Missouri is 6, and Oklahoma is 18. Nebraska is not as good at 28.

Colorado undoubtedly benefited from its taxpayer bill of rights (TABOR) law, which places limits on the rate of growth of government spending, although it had been suspended for several years. Those in Kansas who favor government spending over private sector spending use Colorado as an example of a state that TABOR has destroyed, but in terms of economic freedom, it does very well.

In case you’re wondering, for overall ranking, New Hampshire is best. The worst? It’s no surprise that it’s New York by a wide margin, with New Jersey, Rhode Island, California, and Maryland rounding out the bottom five.

If this index were to be recomputed this year, Kansas might fall in rankings due to outgoing Governor Mark Parkinson‘s two landmark achievements — the increase in the statewide sales tax and the statewide smoking ban. Some of the other enacted laws detailed in the article In Kansas Legislature, a bad year for freedom and liberty would push Kansas’ ranking down, too.

But since rankings are relative and consider what happened in other states, Kansas might not have changed much, as many states have passed tax increases and other freedom-killing legislation and regulations.

The full study contains discussion of the politics surrounding these rankings, and a narrative discussion of the factors present in each state.

You may read the entire study by clicking on Freedom in the 50 States: An Index of Personal and Economic Freedom.

Tagged as: Economics, Freedom, Government spending, Kansas state government, Mark Parkinson, Regulation

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Kansas primary election recap to be Pachyderm topic

by Bob Weeks on August 18, 2010

in Politics

At this week’s meeting of the Wichita Pachyderm Club, the presentation will be “Reflections on the Primary Election.” This will be a panel discussion with panelists WSU Political Science Professor Ken Ciboski, District Court Judge Phillip Journey, and Terry Bruce, a Kansas Senator from Hutchinson.

All are welcome to attend Wichita Pachyderm Club meetings. The program costs $10, which includes a delicious buffet lunch including salad, soup, two main dishes, and ice tea and coffee. The meeting starts at noon, although it’s recommended to arrive fifteen minutes early to get your lunch before the program starts.

The Wichita Petroleum Club is on the ninth floor of the Bank of America Building at 100 N. Broadway (north side of Douglas between Topeka and Broadway) in Wichita, Kansas (click for a map and directions). You may park in the garage (enter west side of Broadway between Douglas and First Streets) and use the sky walk to enter the Bank of America building. The Petroleum Club will stamp your parking ticket and the fee will be $1.00. Or, there is usually some metered and free street parking nearby.

Tagged as: Elections, Kansas legislature, Kansas Republicans, Kansas state government, Politics, Wichita Pachyderm Club

Kansas Senate could see shift

by Bob Weeks on August 9, 2010

The recent primary election in Kansas, combined with the results of the November general election, could alter the composition of the Kansas Senate, even though no members are standing for election. (Correction: one member faces an opponent in November after winning the primary election.)

Several members of the senate advanced through last week’s primary election in their efforts in seeking higher — or other — offices. Some are likely to win their elections in November and be required to resign their senate positions.

These include Senator Tim Huelskamp of Fowler, who is running for U.S. Congress from the first district, and Senator Jeff Colyer, who is nominee for lieutenant governor on a ticket with U.S. Senator Sam Brownback. Both are odds-on favorites in the November election.

Senator Derek Schmidt is running for Kansas Attorney General. Should he win, not only would there be a new member of the senate, there would also be a new majority leader, which is a powerful and important position in the senate’s leadership structure.

In Sedgwick County, Senator Oletha Faust-Goudeau has won the Democratic Party nomination for a position on the Sedgwick County Commission. (Provisional ballots are being counted in this primary election contest, but the outcome is not expected to change.) Should she win in November there would be a new senator from her district in northeast Wichita.

Rumors are afloat that Senator Jim Barnett, recently a candidate for the Republican party nomination for U.S. Congress for the first district, may retire. Earlier this year he retired from his Emporia medical practice, and his wife works for a school district in Johnson County, some 100 miles away from Emporia.

Then — assuming a Brownback win in the race for governor — there will likely be a shake-up in many cabinet positions. Several senators may be interested in these. A win by Tom Holland might produce some changeover in the cabinet, and a Holland win would require that he and his running mate Senator Kelly Kultala resign from the senate.

It’s too early to tell whether these possible resignations and incoming new members would produce a shift in the political makeup of the senate. New senators will be selected by the precinct committeemen and women in the retiring senators’ districts. They would serve the remainder of the terms, which would be two years.

While the Kansas Senate is overwhelmingly in the hands of Republicans — the present composition is 31 Republicans and nine Democrats — many Senate Republicans routinely vote with Democrats on issues of spending and taxation. An example is the bill that increased the statewide sales tax by one cent per dollar this year. That legislation passed with a vote of 23 to 17, with 15 Republican senators joining eight Democrats voting in favor of passage.

An interesting situation is the replacement for Huelskamp, assuming he wins his general election in November. It was thought that longtime Representative and former Speaker of the House Melvin Neufeld would be the favorite to succeed Huelskamp. But Neufeld lost his re-election bid to upstart Garrett Love by a large margin. Whether the precinct committee people would elevate someone who just lost an election to a higher office is unknown. Could Love be appointed to the Senate, and then Neufeld appointed to the position to which he just lost a re-election bid? That would seem to nullify the sentiment of the voters expressed just a week ago. Others will undoubtedly be interested in the senate position, too.

Tagged as: Elections, Kansas legislature, Kansas state government

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Kansas judicial selection needs reform, says law professor

by Bob Weeks on August 9, 2010

Selecting lawmakers is important, says Kansas University Law Professor Stephen J. Ware, and that’s why Kansans should care about the method of judicial selection in Kansas.

Ware spoke to a meeting of the Wichita Pachyderm Club on Friday about the method of judicial selection in Kansas. His paper on this topic is Selection to the Kansas Supreme Court, which is published by the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies.

“Judges are lawmakers too. Judges make law,” Ware told the audience. While the legislature passes laws and judges apply those laws in the cases that come before them, it’s more complicated than that because of the common law, Ware explained. While there has been a growth of legislation, statutes, and administrative agencies, many important areas are still governed by common law, and it’s judges that make this common law.

While the common law is generally noncontroversial, Ware said that much of the lawmaking that judges do is “predictably political in its dividing lines.” Conservative judges and liberal judges predictably decide differently on similar cases. So it is important to our body of law, Ware said, whether the judges who make that law are conservative or liberal. Importantly, most lawmaking by judges takes place in state courts, not federal courts.

In a democracy, lawmakers should be selected democratically, Ware said, and judges are part of the lawmaking process. But democratic selection of judges is a controversial topic with many Kansas lawyers. The members of the Kansas Supreme Court — the final word on law in Kansas — are selected in a very undemocratic way, Ware told the audience.

In Kansas, there is a nominating commission that accepts applications for open positions on either the Kansas Supreme Court or the Kansas Court of Appeals. In secret, the commission deliberates and votes to send three finalists to the governor. The governor must select one of those three to become a new member of the court.

Therefore, the members of the commission exercise great power compared to average citizens, Ware explained. The nine-member commission has four members who are selected by the governor, which Ware said is a democratic process, as the governor is elected by the people. But the other five members — which constitute a majority of the commission — are selected by the 9,000 members of the Kansas bar (the lawyers licensed to practice law in Kansas).

Ware said this is an inequality that goes against the “one person, one vote” principle of democracies. The power of a vote of a member of the bar is “infinitely more powerful” than the votes of non-lawyers.

When comparing the method of judicial selection in Kansas to other states, Ware said that “Kansas is the only state that gives its bar the power to select the majority of its supreme court nominating commission.”

There are three basic ways that states use to select their Supreme Court members. The “Missouri Plan” makes use of a nominating commission, where the governor must select one of the commission’s recommendations. Kansas uses a version of the Missouri plan.

A second method is similar to the way United States federal court judges are selected, where the governor makes a nomination that is then confirmed by the state Senate or other legislative body.

A third method is elections. Ware distinguished between contestable elections — where there are two or more candidates running against each other — and retention elections, where the question is simply should a serving judge be retained in office. Supreme Court judges in Kansas to have to stand for retention elections. In Kansas, as is typical around the country, no serving judge has ever failed to win a retention election.

Ware gave these reasons for reform: First, basic democracy, the one person, one vote principle. The secrecy of the nominating commission is troubling, too.

As to options for reform, one measure would be to reduce or eliminate the number of nominating commission members who are selected by the bar. Commission members might be selected by the governor and legislature, for example. This is a more democratic method as the governor and legislators are elected by the people.

Another way would be to add senate confirmation to the existing process, or to do away with the nominating commission and have senate confirmation of the governor’s nominee. Finally, we could have contestable elections.

Any change to the method of judicial selection would require an amendment to the Kansas Constitution. That requires a two-thirds majority vote in both the Kansas Senate and House of Representatives, and then a majority vote of the people.

Responding to questions, Ware said that in states that use senate confirmation of a governor’s nominee, the nominee is nearly always confirmed with very few dissenting votes. He said that this is evidence of governors getting a feel in advance for potential nominees’ prospects for confirmation and using that to help select a nominee, rather than senators simply rolling over and acceding to whomever a governor nominates.

Judicial selection among the states. Kansas is alone in giving the bar extreme power.

Tagged as: Kansas state government, Kansas Supreme Court

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Kansas primary legislative elections 2010

by Bob Weeks on August 6, 2010

Here’s a look at the August 3, 2010 Kansas primary election contests that had the possibility of changing the character of the Kansas House of Representatives, and in one case, the Kansas Senate.

A Kansas Chamber of Commerce endorsement is a reliable measure of a candidate’s conservative credentials from a fiscal perspective. The Kansas Economic Freedom Index and AFP legislative scorecards provide additional insight into legislators and their voting records.

Here are races where there may be a shift in the makeup of the House, sometimes depending on the results of the November general election.

In Kansas House District 17 (parts of Shawnee and Lenexa) the Kansas Chamber of Commerce endorsed Kelly Meigs, and she defeated one-term incumbent Jill Quigley 53 percent to 47 percent in the Republican primary. Bryan Cox has filed as a Democrat. Quigley had a liberal voting record, scoring just nine percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index.

In Kansas House District 29 (parts of Overland Park) conservative challenger Richard Downing wasn’t able to defeat first-term incumbent Sheryl L. Spalding (19 percent on KEFI), although the margin of Spalding’s victory is just 29 votes of 2,695 cast and could possibly change. The winner will face Democrat Doug Dowell in the general election.

In Kansas House District 65 (Junction City and parts of Geary and Wabaunsee counties), Barbara Craft did not seek re-election. Her Kansas Economic Freedom Index rating of 19 percent places her in the left-wing Republican camp. The Kansas Chamber did not make an endorsement in this district, but Republican primary winner James P. Fawcett has been described as a conservative. He’ll face Democrat Larry Hicks in November.

In House District 110 (Osborne, Rooks and Russell Counties, Cities of Ellis and Victoria, Buckeye, Catherine, Ellis, Herzog and Victoria townships) three Republicans vied to fill this seat previously held by Dan Johnson with his 16 percent Kansas Economic Freedom Index score. Chamber-endorsed Dan L. Collins won. No Democrat filed in this district, so this is a certain pick-up for conservatives.

In House District 69 (parts of Salina) Chamber-endorsed Tom Arpke defeated incumbent Republican Deena L. Horst, who has represented the district since 1995. Horst had earned a score of 69 percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index. On AFP’s rating for this year she scored 60 percent and 100 percent the year before. She voted for the big-spending budget this year, but not the sales tax increase. Arpke will face Democrat Gerrett Morris — not to be confused with Garrett Morris of Saturday Night Live fame — in November.

Kansas House District 120 (Cheyenne, Decatur, Norton, Phillips and Rawlins counties) is a loss for conservatives as incumbent John Faber lost to challenger Ward Cassidy. The winner will face Democrat Robert Strevey in the general election. The Chamber had endorsed Faber, who earned a Kansas Economic Freedom Index rating of 72 percent and an AFP rating of 90 percent. A resident of St. Francis, Cassidy and his wife are public school employees, and he lists education as one of his priorities. When public school employees say this, it usually means that spending on schools is a priority over everything else. His website also says he pledges to “look at every means possible to increase revenue within the state without raising taxes.”

In Kansas House District 124 (Grant, Morton, Stanton and Stevens counties, Haskell County: City of Satanta and Dudley Township, Seward County: Seward Township), incumbent Bill Light did not seek re-election. Republicans Dan Widder and J. Stephen Alford sought the Republican party nomination, with no Democrats having filed. The Chamber endorsed Widder. Alford narrowly won with 51 percent of the vote. Light was a left-wing Republican with a Kansas Economic Freedom Index rating of 11 percent. Alford, endorsed by liberal Senate President Stephen Morris (his own KEFI rating is only seven percent), can’t be much more to the left than Light.

There were a handful of instances where moderate or liberal Republicans withstood challenges by conservatives.

In Kansas House District 9 (Allen County plus parts of Woodson, Coffey, Anderson, and Franklin Counties, including the city of Iola), the Chamber selected Raymond “Bud” Sifers over incumbent Bill Otto in the Republican primary. Otto won with 56 percent of the vote. No Democrat filed. Otto is sometimes difficult to classify. He scored 60 percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index, but only 40 percent on AFP’s scorecard for this year after rating 82 percent the year before. This year, Otto voted against the spending bill but for the sales tax increase, the only member of the House to vote this way on these two bills.

In Kansas House District 60 (parts of Emporia) incumbent Republican Don Hill defeated challenger Daniel Buller. Hill scored a very liberal nine percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index and is mentioned as one of the leaders of the left-wing Republican faction of the House that votes for spending and tax increases. Hill will face Democrat Michael “Mike” Dorcey in the general election.

In Kansas House District 64 (Clay County plus parts of Dickinson, Geary, and Riley counties) incumbent Republican Vern Swanson was challenged by Michael Musselman. Swanson won. No Democrat filed. Swanson scored 19 percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index.

In Kansas House District 68 (parts of Morris and Dickinson counties including Council Grove and Abilene) two-term incumbent Republican Tom J. Moxley was challenged by Calvin Seadeek Jr. Moxley has a liberal voting record, scoring 19 percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index. There is no Democratic party opponent in the general election.

In Kansas House District 70 (Chase and Marion counties, plus part of Butler County) Cheryl Green challenged first-term incumbent J. Robert (Bob) Brookens (KEFI 19 percent). Brookens won with 60 percent of the vote. There was no Democratic Party filer.

In Kansas House District 71 (parts of Salina) incumbent Charlie Roth withstood a challenge by two opponents in the Republican primary. There is no Democratic Party filer. Roth scored a liberal nine percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index and played a leadership role in passing the statewide smoking ban in the House of Representatives this year.

In Kansas House District 83 (Eatborough and parts of east Wichita) veteran incumbent Jo Ann Pottorff defeated conservative challenger Kyle Amos. The Chamber chose Amos for its endorsement, and Pottorff scored a low 13 percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index. Sean Amore is the Democratic Party opponent in the general election.

In the Kansas Senate, there was one election this year. The appointed incumbent for Senate District 7 (In Johnson County the cities of Countryside, Fairway, Merriam, Mission, Mission Hills, Mission Woods, Prairie Village, Roeland Park, Westwood, Westwood Hills, and parts of Leawood and Overland Park) is Terrie Huntington, and she faced a conservative challenge from David Harvey. Huntington’s votes for the big-spending budget and the sales tax increase earned her a Kansas Econimic Freedom Index score of 20 percent, and led to the Kansas Chamber endorsement of Harvey. Huntingon won with 54 percent of the vote.

Conservatives withstood some challengers in these districts.

In Kansas House District 13 (Eureka, Yates Center, Fredonia, Neodesha and surrounding area) the Chamber endorsed incumbent Forrest Knox over challenger Trent Forsyth in the Republican primary. No Democrat filed. Knox scored 95 percent on the Kansas Economic Freedom Index, and Forsyth was endorsed by the liberal teachers union. Knox won with 54 percent of the vote.

In Kansas House District 94 (parts of west Wichita and part of Attica, Delano, and Waco townships), incumbent conservative Joe McLeland handily defeated two challengers, including one endorsed by the liberal Wichita Eagle editorial board. There is no Democratic Party candidate in this district

In Kansas House District 121 (Graham, Sheridan, Sherman and Thomas counties), Brenda McCants challenged incumbent Jim Morrison, with no Democrat filing for the general election contest. Martin Hawver, dean of Kansas Statehouse reporters, described this as a a race “more about experience — coming up to reapportionment — than philosophy, not a moderate/conservative split.” But Morrison had the Kansas Chamber’s endorsement and a reliably conservative voting record.

Tagged as: Americans For Prosperity, Elections, Kansas Chamber of Commerce, Kansas Economic Freedom Index, Kansas legislature, Kansas Republicans, Kansas state government

Kansas county spending benchmarks

by Bob Weeks on August 5, 2010

Continue reading at Kansas County Budget Analysis — In Search of Efficient Government

In Kansas, revenue flowing to the state has declined. How can our state cope with a loss in revenue?

One way would have been to set aside money in good times, the so-called “rainy day fund” idea that some groups have promoted. But Kansas didn’t do that. We spent all the revenue that flowed in during the recent prosperous years of the mid 2000s.

Governments can also cut spending by cutting services. They can also raise taxes.

Operating more efficiently is another option. In order to gauge how efficiently Kansas counties are operating in different areas of operation, the Kansas Policy Institute has gathered information from all Kansas counties.

Some interesting differences have been found. For Sedgwick and Johnson counties, the state’s two largest in terms of population, KPI found a huge difference in spending on county commissioners: $1.50 (on a per-person basis) in Sedgwick County, but $4.42 for Johnson County.

KPI estimates that if outlier counties (those that spend a lot, again on a per-person bases) reduced their spending to that of the median for counties with similar population, the savings could be in the range of several hundred million dollars per year.

From working on this project, KPI has several recommendations for counties regarding budget reporting. First, we should have a uniform chart of accounts for Kansas counties. Budgets and financial statements should be published in a standardized and easily understood format. Documents should be published online, retained for several years, and available in machine-readable format.

Kansas County Budget Analysis — In Search of Efficient Government

By Dave Trabert, Kansas Policy Institute.

It’s quite possible that twenty years from now we’ll look back on some of the decisions made during the current recession as either being responsible for catapulting Kansas into a much more competitive position for job growth and economic prosperity or causing the state to fall farther behind. Recessions certainly cause economic havoc as they unfold but they also create opportunities.

There are numerous examples of businesses that reinvented themselves and emerged from the recession in a much stronger and more competitive position, while competitors who tried to ‘ride out the storm’ were worse off than before the recession. Recessions naturally make customers much more open to change as they seek better value for their dollar. Imagine how a business would fare that tried to make up for reduced revenue by raising prices during a recession. Unless the business had a monopoly on an essential product it would likely lose even more customers, but that is exactly how many governments react in a recession — they raise prices on their customers.

There is ample evidence that higher taxes prompt customers (taxpayers) to leave. One example of such evidence can be found in a comparison of domestic migration data1 with the Tax Foundation’s most recent ranking of state and local tax burdens expressed as a percentage of income. The ten states with the highest combined state / local tax burden had a combined average 3.3% net loss from domestic migration (more U.S residents moving out of the state than moving in), whereas the ten states with the lowest tax burden had a combined average 3.8% net gain. The low-burden grouping includes one outlier, Louisiana, which suffered significant population loss following Hurricane Katrina; the average net gain of the other nine low-burden states is 5.0%.

Kansas has a domestic migration net loss of 2.5% over the same period and is ranked #38 among the states (#1 being the best). Kansas also has the worst performance in the region; Nebraska is the only other state with a net loss (2.3%) and other states have all gained population from domestic migration (Colorado 4.2%, Texas 3.4%, Oklahoma 1.1% and Missouri 0.7%).

Tagged as: Government spending, Kansas Policy Institute, Kansas state government

Avoiding bad decisions in good times

by Bob Weeks on August 5, 2010

in Economics

By Dave Trabert, Kansas Policy Institute.

An associate of mine once said, “Some of the worst decisions are made in the best of times.” His observation pertained to negotiating agreements with labor unions but I was reminded of it by a news report saying local governments may eliminate 500,000 jobs across the country if Congress doesn’t pony up more federal tax dollars. The story was based on a survey released by the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties and United States Conference of Mayors.

Here’s the taxpayer perspective.

According to the US Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the country’s population grew 34.4% between 1980 and 2008 but local government employment jumped 51.3%. If local government employment had simply kept pace with population gains, there would be 1.6 million fewer local government jobs today. Instead, we’ve seen runaway property taxes (93% over the last twelve years in Kansas) and higher local sales taxes. Governments chose to add extra employees when revenues were flowing (instead of reducing taxes and improving the economy), and now face the painful task of backing off some of their excess employment.

Local government job growth outpaced population growth in most states but some were extreme, including Kansas, which had 65% local government job growth but only an 18% population increase. In 2008 Kansas had 65.7 local government employees for every thousand residents; that’s 39% above the national average and the second-worst state ratio in the country.

No one wants to see someone lose their job, but using tax dollars to subsidize employment is bad policy to begin with and spending federal dollars on local government employment destroys the Constitutional protections of state sovereignty. Governments have no money of their own; they simply take money from taxpayers and redistribute it. Raising federal taxes to maintain a bloated local government workforce will only make an already weak economy even worse.

Tagged as: Economics, Government spending, Kansas Policy Institute, Kansas state government

Kansas coal plant public hearings

by Bob Weeks on August 1, 2010

This week the Kansas Department of Health and Environment will hold public hearings on the expansion of the coal-fired steam electricity generating unit at Holcomb. This plant became controversial when KDHE Secretary Rod Bremby denied a permit on the basis of the plant’s carbon dioxide emissions. That was the first time a permit had been denied for that reason.

While former Governor Kathleen Sebelius opposed the plant, one of the first things new Governor Mark Parkinson did last year was to negotiate a permit for a smaller plant than had been originally requested.

According to a KDHE news release, here is the schedule for hearings:

Overland Park: Monday, August 2 at 2 pm and 6:30 pm at Blue Valley Northwest High School, 135th and Switzer, Overland Park

Salina: Wednesday, August 4 at 2 pm and 6:30 pm at Highway Patrol Training Center Auditorium, 2025 East Iron, Salina.

Garden City: Thursday, August 5 at 2 pm and 6:30 pm at 801 Campus Drive, Garden City

Written comments may be submitted before August 15 by email to sunflowercomments@kdheks.gov, or in writing to: KDHE Bureau of Air, Attn.: Sunflower Comments, 1000 S.W. Jackson, Suite 310, Topeka, KS 66612-1366 or presented at the hearing.

Tagged as: Climate change, Environment, Global warming alarmism, Kansas state government, Kathleen Sebelius, Mark Parkinson

Schodorf, Pottorff claim to have cut spending

by Bob Weeks on August 1, 2010

Two Kansas Republicans — one running for re-election, the other for higher office — both claim to have led the way in cutting the Kansas state budget. These claims, however, are at odds with the facts and both candidates’ records.

Kansas Senator Jean Schodorf is a candidate for the Republican Party nomination for United States Congress from the fourth district of Kansas. A television advertisement states that she “led the effort in the Senate to cut over $1 billion from the state budget.”

In Kansas House District 83 in east Wichita, Jo Ann Pottorff is seeking re-election. In a Wichita Eagle advertisement, she made a similar claim to Schodorf, stating “I forced state government to live within its means by cutting $1 billion in excess spending and voting down attempts to grow government by more than $185 million.”

There are a few ways to look at these claims. First, both of these politicians have big-spending and big-taxing records. In any sort of legislative vote rating system that rewards fiscally conservative votes, these two women rank very low year after year. Both voted for the spending programs that grew Kansas spending so much over the last five years that cuts in the rate of growth were necessary this year.

But these “cuts” were not cuts in actual spending. They were cuts in planned spending. The budget that both candidates voted for this year increased state spending by $200 million over the past year.

By the way, both candidates voted to increase the statewide sales tax this year. They attempt to justify this vote by saying that if the state didn’t increase taxes, it would force local governments and school districts to increase property taxes.

That would be the case only if schools kept spending at current levels. There are plenty of things schools could have done to save money — including implementing school choice programs which save money — but neither of these candidates considered that politically feasible. Their generous campaign contributions from the school spending lobby may have helped form their thinking on this issue.

In the chart below, you can see that Pottorff has had a few years in which she earned respectable vote ratings. But Schodorf has not.

Voters who desire conservative candidates should not be fooled by the efforts of both Schodorf and Pottorff to portray themselves as fiscally conservative legislators. It may turn out that their constituents prefer their left-wing voting records, and it’s the right of voters to do so. But voters should understand the choice they’re faced with.

Kansas legislative vote ratings for Jo Ann Pottorff and Jean Schodorf

Tagged as: Jean Schodorf, Kansas fourth district, Kansas legislature, Kansas state government

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Kansas judicial selection expert to speak in Wichita

by Bob Weeks on August 1, 2010

Kansas University law professor Stephen J. Ware is an expert on the process of judicial selection in Kansas and other states. His research shows that Kansas is at the undemocratic extreme end of the spectrum in concentrating power in members of the bar when it comes to selecting judges for our state’s highest courts.

This week Ware will speak at two events in Wichita.

The first event is titled “Are you a Second-Class Citizen? Selecting the Lawmaking Judges of Kansas.” The free event is sponsored by The Federalist Society and hosted by Americans for Prosperity Foundation. It is on Thursday August 5th from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm at the Lionel D. Alford Library located at 3447 S. Meridian in Wichita.

For more information on this event contact John Todd at john@johntodd.net or 316-312-7335, or Susan Estes, AFP Field Director at sestes@afphq.org or 316-681-4415.

The second event is the regular weekly luncheon meeting of the Wichita Pachyderm Club on Friday August 6. This meeting is also open to the public. It costs $10, which includes lunch. More information about this meeting is available at Kansas judicial selection expert to address Pachyderms.

Tagged as: Kansas state government, Kansas Supreme Court

Kansas judicial selection expert to address Pachyderms

by Bob Weeks on August 1, 2010

This Friday (August 6) the Wichita Pachyderm Club features Kansas University law professor Stephen J. Ware. Ware is an expert on the process of judicial selection in Kansas and other states. His research shows that Kansas is at the undemocratic extreme end of the spectrum in concentrating power in members of the bar when it comes to selecting judges for our state’s highest courts.

Tagged as: Kansas state government, Supreme Court, Wichita Pachyderm Club

The ‘tax expenditure’ solution for our national debt

by Bob Weeks on July 20, 2010

in Taxation

While most critics of government spending focus on entitlements, regular appropriations, and earmarks, there is a category of spending that not many pay much attention to. The spending is called “tax expenditures.”

It’s a big issue. As economist Martin Feldstein writes in the Wall Street Journal, tax expenditures will increase the federal budget deficit by $1 trillion this year.

Tax expenditures are implemented through the tax system. It’s usually the income tax system, especially at the federal level. Taxpayers may receive tax credits, which reduce the tax that must be paid dollar for dollar. Many credits are refundable, meaning that if the taxpayer has no tax liability, the government will send the recipient a check. Examples cited by Feldstein include “$500 million annual subsidy for the rehabilitation of historic structures and a $4 billion annual subsidy of employer-paid transportation benefits.”

While supporters of many of these programs portray them as not costing the government anything, Feldstein writes that they do: “These tax rules — because they result in the loss of revenue that would otherwise be collected by the government — are equivalent to direct government expenditures.”

I argued this in testimony I presented to a committee in the Kansas Legislature this year, when it was considering restoring and expanding the Kansas historic preservation tax credit program. I told committee members: “We must recognize that a tax credit is an appropriation of Kansans’ money made through the tax system. If the legislature is not comfortable with writing a developer a check for over $1,000,000 — as in the case with one Wichita developer — it should not make a roundabout contribution through the tax system that has the same economic impact on the state’s finances.”

In that committee, not one member voted against this program, even though the committee has some members who consider themselves very fiscally conservative and hawks on spending.

Here in Wichita, the city council regularly steers spending to certain companies through the tax system by granting property tax exemptions and tax increment financing.

Feldstein describes problems with spending implemented through the tax system:

Politicians use tax expenditures to grow the welfare state. While proposing a freeze on discretionary spending, President Obama at the same time proposed an expansion of a tax credit program for child or elderly care.
Once enshrined in the tax law, these appropriations don’t have to be reauthorized each year. They’re on auto-pilot, so to speak.
Eliminating tax expenditures is looked on by Republicans as a tax increase, so they are reluctant to support their elimination. Felstein counters: “But eliminating tax expenditures does not increase marginal tax rates or reduce the reward for saving, investment or risk-taking.”
Tax expenditures distort the economy in harmful ways: “[Eliminating tax expenditures] would also increase overall economic efficiency by removing incentives that distort private spending decisions.”

Feldstein concludes: “Cutting tax expenditures is really the best way to reduce government spending. And to be politically acceptable, the cuts in tax expenditures must be widespread, requiring most taxpayers to give up something so that the fiscal deficits can decline.”

The ‘Tax Expenditure’ Solution for Our National Debt

The credits and subsidies that make the tax code so complicated cost big bucks. Reduce them by third and the debt will be 72% of GDP in 2020 instead of 90%.

By Martin Feldstein

When it comes to spending cuts, Congress is looking in the wrong place. Most federal nondefense spending, other than Social Security and Medicare, is now done through special tax rules rather than by direct cash outlays. The rules are used to subsidize a wide range of spending including education, child care, health insurance, and a myriad of other congressional favorites.

These tax rules — because they result in the loss of revenue that would otherwise be collected by the government — are equivalent to direct government expenditures. That’s why tax and budget experts refer to them as “tax expenditures.” This year tax expenditures will raise the federal deficit by about $1 trillion, according to estimates by the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation. If Congress is serious about cutting government spending, it has to go after many of them.

Continue reading at the Wall Street Journal (subscription required)

Tagged as: Economic development, Economics, Government spending, Kansas state government, Tax abatements, Tax increment financing, TIF districts, Wichita city government

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Kansas legislative candidates to speak in Wichita

by Bob Weeks on July 18, 2010

in Politics

This Friday (July 23), the Wichita Pachyderm Club features Republican Legislative candidates from Sedgwick County. Only those candidates facing a contest in the August 3rd primary election will be speaking.

The invited candidates and links to their websites (where available) are:

From District 82 (Derby plus parts of Gypsum, Riverside, Rockford and Salem townships): Joseph Ashby, Jim Howell, and Van Willis.

From District 83 (Eastborough and parts of east Wichita): Kyle Amos and Jo Ann Pottorff.

From District 94 (parts of west Wichita and part of Attica, Delano, and Waco townships): Joe McLeland, Roy Oeser, and Wade A. Waterbury. There is no Democratic Party candidate in this district, so the primary will probably decide who next represents this district.

From District 96 (parts of southwest Wichita and parts of Illinois, Riverside, and Waco townships): Phil Hermanson and Mark Gietzen.

Additional information about these candidates may be found in the Wichita Eagle Voter Guide.

Tagged as: Elections, Kansas legislature, Kansas Republicans, Kansas state government, Wichita Pachyderm Club

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DeGraaf releases endorsements for Kansas offices

July 15, 2010

Kansas State Representative Pete DeGraaf has released his personal endorsements for Kansas statewide races and for races around the Wichita area.

Kansas voter registration deadline near

July 14, 2010

In Kansas, the deadline to register to vote or to change party affiliation is Monday July 19th. Voters need to register if they have moved or changed names.

Kansas Legislator offers more rebuttal of Kansas Senate President Morris

July 12, 2010

Recently Kansas Senate President Stephen Morris wrote an op-ed in which he explained the legislature’s reasons for passing a one cent per dollar increase in the statewide sales tax. That tax started on July 1. His piece may be read at State of the State KS.

In Kansas Legislature, a bad year for freedom and liberty

July 9, 2010

It was a bad year for economic freedom in the Kansas Legislature. There were the big votes that most people know of — the big-spending budget, the increase in the sales tax, and the statewide smoking ban — but the legislature passed — and the governor signed — many other laws that chip away at personal liberty and economic freedom. The following list contains many of these bills.

Holland/Kultala ticket endorsed by Kansas Governor Parkinson

July 1, 2010

At an event this afternoon in Wichita, bipartisanship and reaching across the aisle — plus some Sam Brownback bashing — was the theme as outgoing Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson endorsed the team of Kansas Senator Tom Holland of Baldwin City and fellow Senator Kelly Kultala of Kansas City for the Democratic Party nomination for Kansas governor.

Kansas sales tax increase starts today

July 1, 2010

Today Kansans will face an added tax burden on retail purchases, as the statewide sales tax rate goes up by one cent per dollar. Touted by its backers like Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson as a “one percent” increase in the tax, it is actually an increase of (6.3 – 5.3) / 6.3 = 15.9 percent.

Kansas Chamber makes legislative endorsements

June 30, 2010

Yesterday the Kansas Chamber Political Action Committee, an arm of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, released its endorsements for the Kansas Legislature.

For Kansas Senate President Stephen Morris, raising taxes is responsible

June 25, 2010

Recently Kansas Senate President Stephen Morris wrote an op-ed which explained the Kansas Legislature’s reasoning for passing a one cent per dollar increase in the statewide sales tax effective July 1. His piece may be read at State of the State KS.

Kansas judicial retention election attracts attention

June 21, 2010

Kansas Watchdog’s Earl Glynn reports on the fund-raising and politics surrounding Kansas Supreme Court Justice Carol A. Beier and the retention election she faces this year. Normally these judicial retention elections are not newsworthy, although perhaps they should be. This year’s retention election for Justice Beier, however, is attracting attention.

Kansas restrictive neighborhood covenants don’t apply to political yard signs

June 20, 2010

It’s common for neighborhoods to have restrictive covenants that prohibit homeowners from placing any signs in their yard, except for signs advertising homes for sale. But a 2008 Kansas law overrides these restrictive covenants to allow for the placement of small political yard signs starting 45 days before an election.

Kansas Insurance Commissioner to address Pachyderms

June 20, 2010

This Friday (June 25) candidate for the Republican party nomination for Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger will address members and guests of the Wichita Pachyderm Club. Her opponent for this nomination is David Powell. As no Democrat has filed for this position, the primary election is almost certain to determine who will be the next insurance commissioner.

‘This Week in Kansas’ new to KAKE Television

June 12, 2010

At the end of May, a Kansas broadcasting institution came to an end: Kansas Week, produced by KPTS public television in Wichita. KAKE Television (channel 10) in Wichita immediately started a similar show titled This Week in Kansas, with the same Tim Brown as host.

Holland / Kultala ticket pairs two Kansas Senate liberals

June 9, 2010

Today Kansas senator and gubernatorial candidate Tom Holland chose fellow senator Kelly Kultala of Kansas City as his lieutenant governor running mate.

Wichita Bowllagio hearing produces only delay

June 9, 2010

Yesterday’s meeting of the Wichita City Council featured a lengthy public hearing for a proposed west-side entertainment development known as Bowllagio. Bowllagio is planned to have a bowling and entertainment center, a boutique hotel, and a restaurant owned by a celebrity television chef.

Kansas agency websites: campaign flyers?

June 7, 2010

Kansas state government agencies are headed by a mix of elected and appointed officials. After looking at the websites for agencies headed by elected officials, Kansans would be justified in asking if some are using their agency websites for campaign purposes.

Kansas news digest

June 7, 2010

News from alternative media around Kansas for June 7, 2010.

AFP Kansas legislative scorecards released

June 3, 2010

The Kansas Chapter of Americans for Prosperity has released its legislative scorecards for the 2010 session of the Kansas Legislature. These scorecards rank members of the Kansas House and Senate by the way they voted on selected legislation and amendments.

Kansas Democrats described as ‘imploding’

June 3, 2010

Larry J. Sabato, who is director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, is a respected analyst of national who publishes Sabato’s Crystal Ball, an informative look at campaigns and races around the country.

In the most recent issue Sabato takes a look at 2010 gubernatorial races and concludes that “There’s now no question that the gubernatorial turnover in November will be historic.” He estimates that Republicans will add six or seven states to the count of those states with Republican governors

Brownback, Colyer announce in Wichita

June 2, 2010

On Tuesday, United States Senator Sam Brownback formally filed to become a candidate for the Republican party nomination to be governor of Kansas. He also introduced his running mate.

Kansas Secretary of State candidate Ensley to speak in Wichita

June 1, 2010

This Friday (June 4) candidate for the Republican party nomination for Kansas Secretary of State Elizabeth “Libby” Ensley will address members and guests of the Wichita Pachyderm Club. Ensley is the Election Commissioner for Shawnee County (Topeka) Kansas.

Some Kansas high tax zones are over 10%

May 27, 2010

When the Kansas statewide sales tax is increased effective July 1, there will be a few districts in Kansas where the combined sales tax rate — state, city, county, and any special districts — will be over ten percent. My research shows there will be 55 districts where the combined sales tax will be nine percent or greater. Some high-tax districts are entire cities such as Pomona and Sedan at 9.8 percent, but many are special districts where sales tax is diverted from general government to special purposes. Perhaps we should require warning signs to be posted to warn visitors that they’re about to enter a high-tax area. But that would go against the purpose of many of these districts, which is to extract revenue from those outside the immediate area. Kansas Reporter has more on this issue.

Some Kansas House Members voted for spending, but not the taxes

May 26, 2010

This year both the Kansas House of Representatives and Senate voted for increased spending and increased taxes. The taxes are primarily in the form of a one cent per dollar increase in the statewide sales tax, scheduled to take effect July 1.

When the budget and taxes were debated in the Senate, several senators made the point that if a member voted in favor of increased spending, they should also vote for the tax increase. In the Senate, all members who voted for increased spending also voted for the tax increase.

At forum, Kansas Secretary of State candidates have different attitudes regarding voter fraud

May 25, 2010

Last week’s meeting of the Sedgwick County Republican Party featured a forum with the three candidates seeking the Republican party nomination for Kansas Secretary of State. The candidates and links to their campaign websites are J.R. Claeys, Elizabeth “Libby” Ensley, and Kris Kobach.

During the forum, the different attitudes of the candidates towards the extent of voter fraud in Kansas and the measures that should be taken to combat it — such as photo ID and proof of citizenship — became apparent.

The fight for Kansas jobs

May 24, 2010

When seeking to bring additional businesses to Kansas, no one champions higher taxes as an additional benefit. The Chamber will always defend Kansas entrepreneurs and taxpayers against policies which inhibit their ability to increase capital investment, grow private-sector jobs and reduce the burden on government services. Responsible government and a friendly business climate can and should co-exist.

Kansas News Digest

May 21, 2010

News from alternative media around Kansas for May 21, 2010.

Bill Light, facing conservative challenger, withdraws Kansas House bid

May 20, 2010

The Kansas Republican Assembly blog reports on the withdrawal of Kansas House of Representatives member Bill Light from consideration for re-election.