From the Wichita Pachyderm Club: Alan Cobb, President and Chief Executive officer, Kansas Chamber of Commerce. His topic was "The State of the State Economy: Solutions for Increasing Growth." This audio presentation or podcast was recorded on October 18, 2019.
Recently Kansas Policy Institute, along with Americans for Prosperity and Kansas Chamber of Commerce, held a series of briefings for candidates for the Kansas Legislature. The presentations in Wichita were recorded, and are available as follows: What Was Really the Matter with the Kansas Tax Plan. KPI President Dave Trabert spoke on the reality and myths of the state's tax plan. Click here to view at YouTube. Kansas K-12 Education Spending and Achievement. KPI President Dave Trabert spoke on K-12 education spending and achievement. Click here to view. Medicaid Expansion. Melissa Fausz, a senior policy analyst with Americans for Prosperity,…
Reestablishing a Fundamental Principle of Democracy Alan Cobb, Kansas Chamber President & CEO The words of a recent guest editorial in the Lawrence Journal-World about the Kansas Coalition for Fair Funding were not surprising. It was a continuation of the intellectually shallow, fact-short screed about taxes, school finance, and the Kansas budget. Certainly, reasonable people can disagree about these issues, but partisans rarely adhere to that theorem. And thus, I thought I was reading something from a partisan staffer. Alas, it was from a well-respected Wichita State University professor emeritus who I have known for decades. I’ve not always agreed…
Here are highlights from Voice for Liberty for 2016. Was it a good year for the principles of individual liberty, limited government, economic freedom, and free markets in Wichita and Kansas? Also be sure to view the programs on WichitaLiberty.TV for guests like journalist, novelist, and blogger Bud Norman; Radio talk show host Joseph Ashby; David Bobb, President of Bill of Rights Institute; Heritage Foundation trade expert Bryan Riley; Radio talk show host Andy Hooser; Keen Umbehr; John Chisholm on entrepreneurship; James Rosebush, author of "True Reagan," Jonathan Williams of American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC); Gidget Southway, or Danedri Herbert;…
From Kansas Policy Institute and the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, a new website with facts about the Kansas budget, economy, and schools. GetTheFactsKansas.com aims to provide Kansans with factual information about our state. Sometimes this is in short supply, so this effort is welcome. As an example, when explaining school spending, the site notes: "At $13,124 per-pupil, 2015 marked the third consecutive year of record-setting funding according to the Kansas Department of Education (KSDE). And if the Department’s estimates hold, another new record will be set when the 2016 final results are reported. Record funding is not the result of…
Mike O'Neal, President of Kansas Chamber of Commerce, spoke to members and guests of the Wichita Pachyderm Club on October 9, 2015. His topic was "The Kansas Budget and Taxes: The 2015 Legislative Session and Looking Ahead to the 2016 Legislative Session." This is an audio presentation. Reporting from the Wichita Eagle on this event is here, but be sure to read the comment by Dave Trabert of Kansas Policy Institute: The Eagle's analysis here is just wrong. The statute does not refer to current spending as the Eagle used, but total spending. 72-64c01. Sixty-five percent of moneys to be…
A Hutchinson News editorial contained an uninformed opinion of which special interest groups are working for the best interests of Kansans. Following, Dave Trabert of Kansas Policy Institute explains that influence may be shifting from media, unions, the education establishment, cities, counties, and school boards to those with different views -- those of limited government and economic freedom that empower citizens, not an expansive government and its beneficiaries. The editorial referred to is Goodbye Democracy, Hello Wealthocracy. Media spin a threat By Dave Trabert Kansans are bombarded with claims that range from innocently incomplete to quite deliberately false. Increasingly, the…
In this episode of WichitaLiberty Podcasts: Mike O'Neal, who is president and CEO of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, spoke yesterday to the Wichita Pachyderm Club. A large part of his talk was on the topic of Kansas school finance and other education topics. This podcast contains that portion of his speech. O'Neal graduated from Kansas University and also its law school. He served in the Kansas House of Representatives for 28 years, with his final four years as Speaker of the House. He joined the Kansas Chamber as President and CEO in 2012 as he retired from the legislature.…
Is "capitalism" and "business" the same thing? Most people would probably answer yes, but that's a mistake. In a video from LearnLiberty.org, a project of Institute for Humane Studies, Professor Steve Horwitz explains the difference: "He refutes the often recited claim that 'What is good for General Motors is good for America' by explaining that pro-business legislation encourages behavior that is not beneficial to society or the business itself. He suggests that, in a free market, factors such as profit and competition encourage behavior that ultimately benefits society. Professor Horwitz illustrates that pro-business legislation restricts progress and therefore caters to…
On September 7 the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce will host the 2012 Congressional Summit in Wichita, presented by Black & Veatch. All six members of the Kansas federal delegation have committed to attend this event. The event will be from 12:00 pm to 2:30 pm at Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview in Wichita. Individual tickets are $20, which includes lunch. To register, click on 2012 Congressional Summit.
Kansas Watchdog, in its article Tracking the PACs -- big money flowing into crucial Senate contests, lays out the action of political action committees seeking to influence Kansas voters in the August primary election. The issue of third-party money involvement has been a concern to many, with Democrats and moderate Republicans railing against "special interest" money, frequently referring to the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Americans for Prosperity. The claim is that these organizations are attempting to buy an election. Thanks to Earl Glynn's reporting in Kansas Watchdog, we see that both sides have PACs that funnel money to, or…
The Kansas Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee has made campaign contributions to the primary election opponents of eight Republican members of the Kansas Senate that it sees as impediments to private sector job creation, according to reporting in the Lawrence Journal-World. According to its website, the Chamber PAC "supports and endorses incumbent state legislators and other candidates for state office who support the Kansas Chamber’s legislative agenda, promote the tenets of free enterprise and pledge to make Kansas a better place in which to do business." Following is the 2010 Kansas Senate roster with each senator's score on the…
The fact that the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce supports a tax increase reminded me of a piece in the Wall Street Journal by Stephen Moore that shows how very often, local chambers of commerce support principles of crony capitalism instead of pro-growth policies that support free enterprise and genuine capitalism. We may soon have a test of this in Wichita, where business leaders are tossing about ideas for various forms of tax increases. Again, I distinguish between "business leaders" and "capitalists." Fortunately, the Kansas Chamber of Commerce is generally unwavering in its support of pro-growth, limited government principles. But…
Wichita downtown sites draw little interest. Wichita Business Journal: "Interest from developers in eight city-owned “catalyst” sites in downtown Wichita was minimal -- unexpectedly so. 'I was a little bit surprised how light the response was,' says Scott Knebel, downtown revitalization manager for the city of Wichita." With the city soliciting informal proposals for eight sites, only two proposals were received. KPERS. It appears that the Kansas Legislature will pass a pension "reform" bill that does not include a shift to a defined-contribution plan for new employees. Instead, the tough decisions that need to be made about the Kansas Public…
Shale gas to be topic in Wichita. This Friday (May 6) the Wichita Pachyderm Club features Malcolm C. Harris, Sr., Ph.D., Professor of Finance, Division of Business and Information Technology, Friends University, speaking on the topic: "Shale gas: Our energy future?" Harris also blogs at Mammon Among Friends. ... "Shale gas" refers to a relatively new method of extracting natural gas, as reported in the Wall Street Journal: "We've always known the potential of shale; we just didn't have the technology to get to it at a low enough cost. Now new techniques have driven down the price tag --…
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…
Yesterday the Kansas Chamber Political Action Committee, an arm of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, released its endorsements for the Kansas Legislature. In announcing its endorsements, Kansas Chamber Interim President and CEO Kent Beisner said "We are proud to endorse a group of candidates who demonstrate a pro-jobs approach to stimulating the Kansas economy and the personal leadership to form strong public policy. These individuals are committed to reducing government spending and growing jobs in Kansas.” The release also said that the Chamber PAC endorses exceptional lawmakers and candidates who support the tenets of free enterprise. The selection process focuses…
When the Kansas Chamber of Commerce recently referred to the need to control Kansas government spending and taxes, a few politicians and newspaper editorial writers embellished what the Chamber actually said in order to make their own political points. Here's what the Kansas Chamber said in its press release dated May 8: "As of today, the legislature has failed to address the needs and wishes of the business community. It has instead catered to the needs of those at the government trough. The Kansas legislature has turned a deaf ear to the hard-working businessmen and women who have made the…
