Voice For Liberty

Tag: Kansas state government

Articles about Kansas, its government, and public policy in Kansas.

  • From John Todd: Testimony regarding Senate Bill No. 58

    February 3, 2005

    Members
    Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee
    State Capitol
    Topeka, Kansas 66612

    Subject: Testimony in OPPOSITION TO SENATE BILL #58 (Sales Tax Increase For The Proposed Wichita/Sedgwick County Arena).

    My name is John Todd. I am a self-employed real estate broker from Wichita, and I come before you in opposition to the enabling legislation that would allow Sedgwick County to raise the local sales tax 1% to fund a new Downtown Arena.

    The reason why I am here in opposition to this government driven plan is my basic belief that individuals know best how to spend their own money, and that they should be allowed the freedom to spend the fruit of their own labor as they wish, and not as government dictates, particularly when it involves mandatory spending for an elective entertainment venue like the proposed downtown arena.

    If the need for a Downtown Arena were market driven, the private sector would already be building it, and the taxpayers would be left out of the loop. Obviously, it is not, and so the proponents want the taxpayers to build it and absorb the losses. I believe their plan calls for over $20 million in operational losses. This does not count the business property that will be taken off the tax rolls for a county owned facility. If the Wichita Eagle’s pre-election numbers of $40 million in property value was correct, those losses in real estate taxes could amount to $1 million more in lost taxes per year, and I would bet that that shortfall will be spread back over the other real estate property taxpayers.

    How did we ever get the idea that the road to prosperity is built on government spending and the heavy taxation of our people? How far from the truth can this be?

    Anyone who has read the Eagle in recent months can attest to the massive number of so called “economic development” projects in downtown Wichita that are losing money, and that the taxpayer is being asked to cover. One only needs to read of the $1.00 per year 99 year leases that are being awarded for the millions of dollars taxpayer owned land and the $7 million dollars needed to lure a second or third choice anchor retailer downtown to grow disenchanted with local government’s ability to “manage” anything, particularly if it is related to real estate development.

    And why should anyone be concerned with these boondoggles? We can’t continue to take $184.5 million here and $140 million there, and $100 million yonder out of our economy and hope to favorably compete with other cities, counties, and states in our region.

    There are numerous excellent examples of free market economics at work in our city. One only needs to look north and south on Rock Road in Wichita to observe the benefits of this privately funded system that expands the tax base, creates jobs, and is indeed true “economic growth”, and best of all, the taxpayer is not liable if any of these business ventures fail. Will a 1% sales tax that will remove $184.5 million from the Sedgwick County economy hurt these local businesses? Absolutely! And according to an article in the March 2001 issue of “FedGaxette,” published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis entitled “Stadiums and convention centers as community loss leaders” contains this quote:

    “Current research indicates that stadiums and arenas have a particularly bad track record when it comes to delivering on promises of community economic windfalls. University researchers Mark Rosentraub and Mark Swindell found that three decades worth of studies ‘lead to the inescapable conclusion that the direct and indirect economic impacts of sports teams and the facilities are quite small’ and do not create much in the way of new jobs or economic development.”

    The proponents of this Bill here today will tell you that 52% of the voters voted for the arena. That is true; however, they ignore the fact that our County elected officials were less than forthcoming in advising voters that the arena vote was an advisory election only, and is not binding. The County is not authorized to raise sales taxes without first obtaining legislative approval prior to any vote. Sedgwick County broke state law! The legislature is now faced with the dilemma of passing enabling legislating, and making it retroactive to the November 2, 2004 election and calling that election binding. This is wrong, and you should not let it happen. At the very least, if you pass the enabling legislation, a subsequent public vote should be required before allowing the County to raise the sales tax.

    Before you pass this Bill into law, several matters need to be considered.

    1. Is the $184.5 million dollar price tag excessive?

    2. What is the real impact of taking $184.5 million dollars out of the private economy in terms of retailer profits and potential job losses?

    3. The arena vote was won by a narrow margin. Rural Sedgwick County voters voted against the arena as did voters in the less affluent neighborhoods. Perhaps the sales tax should be optional at the check out stand. Those who want to pay the arena tax could and those who don’t could simply ‘opt out’.

    4. What will happen to the Sedgwick County economy if the Legislature or the Supreme Court mandates a statewide sales tax to meet the Court’s requirements for school financing?

    5. What is the specific location for the proposed arena? Who owns the land? Is the land going to cost $1.00 per square foot or $20.00 per square foot? And is the $20 million for land acquisition going to cover the actual cost, or will it be double or triple that amount? Would not an astute “private” investor already own the land or control the price under an option to purchase contract? If the Legislature allows the County to fill its checkbook, will not the price of land double or triple?

    6. No one knows what the proposed arena will look like since it has not been designed. Should not the taxpayers have known what they are voting for?

    7. Before you authorize giving the Sedgwick County Commission a blank check with $184.5 million of taxpayer money deposited in it, perhaps you need to consider placing some “controls” over how they spend the money?

    8. Will the people who contributed to the pro arena campaign be allowed to bid on the construction work, participate in the design work, earn commissions for the sale/purchase of the land, or will these be considered a “conflict of interest”?

    9. Will the Sedgwick County commissioners be required to explain why they voted for a $55 million dollar renovation for the Kansas Coliseum and then decided that it was too expensive? What did they do with the long-term capital improvement fund(s) that should have been earmarked for this project? And how do they explain that only $25 million in private funds were needed to renovate a similar size arena at Wichita State University? Does it always cost the public sector twice the amount to do the work as the private sector? Perhaps we need to enlist the business acumen of the private sector to build the arena for half of the proposed cost?

    10. Perhaps our voters need better information in order for them to make an informed decision regarding a new arena or a renovated Coliseum? Property taxes were made an issue in the arena campaign. Many votes expressed their frustration to me that they were not given the opportunity to vote for “none of the above”, and since they were more opposed to property taxes than sales taxes, they were forced to vote for the arena. Perhaps the legislature needs to enact legislation requiring a public vote before local governments can raise local property taxes?

    11. Are not government directed projects like the arena the antitheses of the free market system? Does anyone else tire of working until April or May of each year to pay his or her taxes? Is government really the answer?

    Too many questions need to be answered before you decide pass this Bill into law. A non-binding public vote for a downtown arena in 1993 failed to pass by a wide margin. Since the 1993 vote was ignored, you have the necessary precedence and current state law on your side to ignore this vote, and at the very least amend this Bill to require another public referendum.

    Thank you for allowing me to speak. I would be glad to answer questions.

    Sincerely,

    John R. Todd

  • Letter to Kansas Legislators regarding Sedgwick County arena tax

    January 25, 2005

    Dear Senator or Representative:

    I am writing to express my opposition to the legislature granting Sedgwick County the authority to raise its county-wide sales tax in order to fund the proposed downtown Wichita arena.

    I realize that the voters in Sedgwick County voted for the tax. Still, I believe there is ample reason why you should vote against the tax.

    The primary reason is that the idea of the arena came about so fast in the summer that there was little thought given to the underlying issues. The Center for Economic Development and Business Research at Wichita State University produced a study showing a large positive economic impact for a downtown arena. I found much academic research that showed otherwise, that taxpayer-funded facilities such as the proposed downtown Wichita arena rarely live up to their expectations, and instead become a burden on the taxpayers. I also uncovered the fact that the WSU study was flawed in that it omitted important factors such as depreciation, the accounting for which is now required by Government Accounting Standards Board Statement 34. Incredibly, the CEDBR at WSU was not aware of this requirement when they prepared the study that was used to promote the economic benefit of the proposed arena. They admitted this when I called it to their attention.

    Thus, what is presented as an economic boon for all the people instead becomes the county as a whole subsidizing the interests of a few.

    I presented my findings to many news outlets in Wichita, but there was little interest. Because I experienced such resistance to my message I started a website, the “Voice for Liberty in Wichita.” It is located at wichitaliberty.org. Much of the research I uncovered is posted there. As an example I am enclosing an article that I recently wrote. It is based on what was found to happen in Pulaski County, Arkansas (Little Rock), when they built an arena funded in part by taxpayers.

    I would be happy to provide you with any additional information that I can.

    Thanking you in advance for your time,

    Bob Weeks

  • A Taxpayer Bill of Rights for Kansas, Please

    Taxes in Kansas are high, and may increase this year. The recent school finance ruling by the Kansas Supreme Court and the passage of the downtown arena sales tax referendum in Sedgwick County are just two reasons why.

    We should act now to restrain the growth of state government spending. The Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR, has shown to be effective in Colorado. We in Kansas could have this, too.

    The law is quite simple: state spending and debt could not grow faster than the rate of annual population growth plus inflation. It doesn’t prescribe how the state should raise or spend money, just that real (inflation-adjusted) spending can’t grow faster than the state’s population grows.

    On the Americans for Prosperity web site there is an excellent analysis of what could happen in Kansas if we adopt such a law. You may read about it at this link: A Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights for Kansas.

    Other helpful information is at the Cato Institute: Fiscal Trail Blazer: Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights is leading the way, Reforming TABOR in Colorado, and States Face Fiscal Crunch after 1990s Spending Surge.

    As our state legislature prepares to start the 2005 session, I urge you to contact your representatives and make them aware of your support for this important law.

  • Tom Daschle’s Defeat, Media Filters, and Kansas

    (Reprinted with the permission of the author, Karl Peterjohn, of Kansas Taxpayers Network.)

    Enclosed is a December 13, 2004 Wall Street Journal opinion piece by John Fund (How Daschle Got Blogged) demonstrating how the bloggers went past the media filters in South Dakota to help knock off Tom Daschle last month.

    This is relevant to Kansas for several reasons: This state has a similar one party news media like South Dakota’s that provides unbalanced information — as was well demonstrated by the critical letter to the editor that appeared in the Wichita Eagle December 13 criticizing an Americans For Prosperity report that the Kansas press — with one exception in the Lawrence Journal World — had not bothered to mention in print.

    The Eagle editorial page found it worthwhile to publish a letter from Wisconsin blasting AFP-KS’ position on TABOR without bothering to report on the basic study or mention it in their editorial page. In fact, the Eagle has an unpublished editorial piece from Alan Cobb on TABOR.

    Ironically, despite this recent flaw in their coverage, I consider the Eagle to have the least bad level of imbalance in both its editorial and news coverage when compared with the major newspapers in this state.

    There are even worse examples coming out of the Kansas City area as well as the Topeka newspaper. The smaller dailies, lead by the Harris chain as well as Dave Seaton’s two Cowley County papers are usually even worse.

    Second, these media filters allow distortions, like the 2002 Sebelius campaign, to get away with remarkable prevarication on their position concerning key issues, like taxes. Another example of flawed Kansas media coverage is the non reporting of the Missouri money flowing into Kansas campaigns at many levels. See the last minute, third-party hit pieces that occur at the end of the campaign and get no negative coverage if the Left blasts Phill Kline in the last week of his campaign but is major news if the conservatives find a 527 vehicle that runs paid media ads in this state.

    In the 2002 campaign Sebelius kept claiming that she was not supportive of raising taxes. No one in the mainstream press bothered to ask her about her repeated legislative votes for raising taxes while serving in the Kansas house in the 1980’s and early 1990’s. Now that she has spent the last year proposing numerous, large tax hikes it would seem worthwhile for someone in this state’s news media to bother to mention her flip-flop. I’ve complained about it in my editorials that I post on KTN’s web site and I send out on-line but I believe that the statehouse press corps is concerned about losing access inside her office if they press her on this as well as other key issues.

    Third, there are already a few good bloggers at work in this state. “The Kansas Meadowlark” is regularly providing excellent public document information that is regularly ignored in the “mainstream” Kansas press. We need more Meadowlarks and we need ways to disseminate his work more widely to Kansas netizens. There was another blogger, I believe it was “Kansas Citizen” operating out of Johnson County too.

    Fourth, I’m tired of the rotating door between the media and its sources and the political Left in this state. Jim MacLean leaves the Topeka Capital-Journal for the Sebelius administration. This occurred only a year or so after the head of the KS Associated Press statehouse office “retires” and is then appointed to the Kansas Board of Regents as well as serving on other boards appointed by the governor.

    More recently the most commonly quoted-by-the-press academic in this state, Burdett Loomis, takes a position with the Sebelius administration without fully leaving his position at KU! I was recently surprised to find out from the Kansas Meadowlark that his son had been active in the 2002 Sebelius campaign as well as joining her staff after Sebelius became governor. I wonder who the media will find to become the next Burdett Loomis to quote in “news” stories or if they will continue to quote him since he still is part time at KU’s Dole center.

    Fifth, this is a national as well as statewide problem. Tom Daschle’s wife is a Washington lobbyist. Could a Dennis Hastert or Bill Frist spouse do this? Of course not, the media would howl. Newt Gingrich was forced by the news media to surrender book royalties after he became speaker while HIllary Clinton had no problem taking her book royalties to her bank. Fortunately there are several groups like the Media Resource Center and Accuracy in Media as well as numerous bloggers operating in Washington. Unfortunately, the only methodical effort to hold the media accountable in this state that I know of is through bloggers like the Kansas Meadowlark.

    Many of you receiving this email distribute your own material and others to your own lists. This effort needs to expand and grow. If you have a web site, I strongly urge you to link up with the Kansas Meadowlark’s. If you find other web sites, please spread the word. I’m sending this to you not in the belief that I have all of the answers, but only because I think I know some of the questions and you need to read Fund’s editorial.