Voice For Liberty

Category: Kansas state government

  • Americans for Prosperity model budget to be presented

    This Friday Derrick Sontag, Kansas State Director for Americans for Prosperity, will address members and guests of the Wichita Pachyderm Club. His topic is “An update on the budget shortfall in Kansas, how we got there through excessive spending, and how our state’s tax burden compares with neighboring states.”

    AFP’s model budget for Kansas is titled Commonsense Budget Proposal. It contains “a roadmap for legislators seeking to make Kansas government more efficient — and less costly — without turning to Kansas taxpayers,” according to Sontag.

    All are welcome to attend 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). Park in the garage just across Broadway and use the sky walk to enter the Bank of America building. Bring your parking garage ticket to be stamped and your parking fee will be only $1.00. There is usually some metered and free street parking nearby.

  • Eric Payne, Joseph Scapa address county Republicans

    Last night’s meeting of the Sedgwick County Republican Party featured speeches by two candidates for the Republican party nomination for the Kansas House of Representatives from the 87th district. Democrat Raj Goyle is the incumbent, and he is not seeking re-election.

    Eric Payne (campaign website) and Joseph Scapa (campaign website not available) each spoke for about 15 minutes. Both are young businessmen running for office for the first time. The filing deadline is not until June, so more Republicans could enter this race. No other party has announced a candidate. Payne has been running for six months and has raised substantial campaign funds. Scapa announced his candidacy at the end of January.

    Eric Payne 2010-02-18 Eric Payne

    Payne, who works in his family’s propane business, told of growing up in Salina and graduating from Kansas State University. He said that after building a house in the 87th district, he became concerned about Goyle’s representation of the district.

    Payne said that Kansas government needs to be run as he does his business, keeping expenses low and running as efficiently as possible. He noted the all-time high number of Kansas government employees, presently numbering 40,000. He noted that Kansas government spending has increased rapidly since 2004 while revenue increased at a slower pace, which he called unsustainable. This happened while the Kansas economy and population remained relatively stable, he said.

    He spoke in favor of limited government, mentioning four core principles: lowering the tax burden, refocusing government agencies on their core missions, improving efficiency and transparency in spending, and promoting a common sense government.

    Payne said that Kansas needs to be a leader in attracting business and driving our economy through entrepreneurship and productivity, two concepts he said were not foreign to Wichitans.

    He called for simplification of the Kansas tax structure, one that would have low rates on a broad base.

    Payne said he is a pro-life Republican, committed to protecting traditional family values. He supports the second amendment right to self-defense.

    Joseph Scapa 2010-02-18Joseph Scapa

    Scapa said he was born and raised in Wichita, attending North High School, Wichita State University, and Tabor College. He was president of Association of Collegiate Entrepreneurs at WSU. He said he learned about marketing and business during this time. After working in Management for three years, he has worked as a real estate agent for ten years. He has also served as a substitute teacher in the Wichita public school system.

    Scapa said the he’s been planning to run for office for about two years. He said he is a Todd Tiahrt conservative. He wants to make Kansas one of the most business- and family-friendly states. He said the current representative of the 87th district doesn’t represent the values of the district.

    He said we should reduce the size of government, which has increased the tax burden on individuals and business. We’ve moved too far away from the Constitution, he said, and we need to return to sustainable government and the Constitution.

    People need to know that their tax dollars are being spent wisely, he said, and this requires transparency and integrity.

    Reducing the tax burden would help create jobs, and he said he would sign a no new tax pledge.

    He said that he is in favor of consolidating school districts to reduce costs. Other agencies could be consolidated where there are duplication of services. He referenced the quote: “Nobody spends someone else’s money as carefully as he spends his own,” saying that if we did that with the Kansas budget, we’d start cutting a lot of things.

    On education, Scapa said we need to produce students that are competitive in the job market. Parents need to control the direction of their children’s education, and he supports school vouchers. He said that financial literacy is important to teach. Citing his experience helping young couples buy their first home, he said this is not being taught in schools.

    Scapa said he believes in the second amendment and is strongly pro-life.

  • Meeting to support Kansas medical marijuana legislation

    Update: For coverage of the testimony presented at a legislative hearing, click on Medical marijuana testimony presented in Kansas house committee.

    Representative Gail Finney, a Democrat who represents parts of east and northeast Wichita, has introduced a bill that would allow the use of medical marijuana in Kansas. On Friday there will be a “call to action meeting” in Wichita regarding this bill.

    The meeting will be Friday, February 19th, at 2:00 p.m. The location is Watermark Books & Cafe downstairs meeting room. The address is 4710 East Douglas Ave., at the corners of Douglas and Oliver. The telephone number 316-682-1181.

    Rep. Finney says that Chairwoman Rep. Brenda Landwehr of the Health and Human Services Committee has stated she will try to give the Medical Marijuana Bill a hearing after the Feb. 20th turnaround without a specified date. She also stated that she will not work the bill despite the hearing.

    She added that without knowing whether or not there will be a hearing, a supportive group from different parts of Kansas has decided to meet. You are welcome to attend and provide suggestions. Or, if you can’t make it and would like to be included, please email me or give me a call.

    Contact Rep. Finney at gafinney5@yahoo.com or 316-768-0615. The bill is HB 2610. There is an accompanying fiscal note.

  • Kansas historic preservation tax credits audit reveals inefficiency, data problems

    Yesterday the Kansas Legislative Post Audit Committee received an audit recently completed by the Legislative Division of Post Audit. The audit, titled Kansas Tax Revenues, Part I: Reviewing Tax Credits, revealed that the historic preservation tax credit program is not efficient. Further, the Department of Revenue is not accurately tracking the cost of the program.

    Historic preservation tax credits provide funds to those who wish to renovate qualified historic buildings. Last year the legislature placed a cap on the dollar amount of credits that could be issued, and that caused some developers in Wichita to complain that their projects were no longer economically feasible. The city has made expansion of the amount of available credits a legislative priority. Wichita Governmental Affairs Director Dale Goter (in plain language, the city’s lobbyist) was present at the committee hearing, as was I.

    In the audit, the historic preservation tax credit is identified as a program that the legislature may want to re-evaluate. In this case, the program is significantly more expensive than originally planned. The fiscal note that accompanied the tax credit legislation when passed in 2001 and revised in 2002 estimated an annual cost of $1 million. In 2007, the actual reported cost was $8.5 million.

    The audit also finds that the historic preservation credit is not cost-effective:

    The Historic Preservation Tax Credit isn’t cost-effective. That credit works differently than the other three because the amount of money a historic preservation project receives from the credit is dependent upon the amount of money it’s sold for. Our review showed that, on average, when Historic Preservation Credits were transferred to generate money for a project, they only generated 85 cents for the project for every dollar of potential tax revenue the State gave up.

    The audit also found that there were data recording problems at the Kansas Department of Revenue regarding the tax credits. The audit found that some tax credits weren’t recorded in a tracking database, even though the credit had already been claimed on a tax return. Over a five-year period, about $6 million in tax credits was under-reported by the Department of Revenue. This is the information that lawmakers had concerning the cost and performance of the tax credit program.

    The audit noted “The Department doesn’t have sufficient computer controls to ensure that its database entries are accurate. … Finding problems like these in a relatively small sample raises questions about the integrity of the Department’s tax credit information.”

  • Kansas advocates for disabled face well-funded challenger

    Friday’s press event held by ACT (Advocates in Communities Team) of South Central Kansas provided an opportunity to learn about disabled Kansans and their families, and the challenges they face from reduced spending by the state.

    The stories told at the event and in supplementary materials are compelling. If there is a role for government-provided services to those who can’t help themselves, these are the people.

    But a problem that advocates for the disabled face is that the major recipient of Kansas general fund spending — that’s the K through 12 public school spending lobby — has enormous resources at its disposal. And it doesn’t like to share.

    Legislators tell me that the budget this year is a battle between the school spending lobby and everyone else. I spoke to several advocates for the disabled, and they assured me that it’s not a battle between these two competing interests. But the schools have, so far, fared very well. Figures I obtained in December from the Kansas State Department of Education indicate that spending, on a per pupil basis, is estimated to drop by 3.43% for the current school year. That’s not a lot, despite the claims of the school spending lobby.

    The school lobby is well-funded and the most powerful in the statehouse. The Kansas National Education Association (or KNEA, the teachers union) has a political action committee, which spent, according to IRS filings, $344,941 on political activity in 2008. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. KNEA itself has revenue of over $8 million annually, and can afford to pay at least four employees salaries over $100,000.

    KNEA’s sister organization — they share a well-paid lobbyist — the Kansas Association of School Boards (KASB) had revenues of $4,167,025 in 2007. It can afford to pay its executive director $201,927 in salary and benefits in 2007, along with an expense account of $11,331.

    In addition, some school districts like Wichita USD 259 employ full-time lobbyists.

    The primary purpose of these organizations and lobbyists is to keep the river of taxpayer money flowing to the government schools at the expense of everyone else, including disabled people and taxpayers. Even if a “revenue solution” (that’s a euphemism for a tax increase) is found, schools will be out front arguing that they should get the largest share.

    Cuts to schools mean that parents might have to pay for schoolchildren to participate in athletics. It might mean that class sizes grow a little, which is not a bad thing, despite schools’ claims. The school districts that have passed bond issues might consider delaying their building booms a few years.

    None of these things seem as important as care for the disabled in Kansas.

  • Wichita-area legislators to meet with public

    The South-central Kansas legislative delegation will meet with citizens on Saturday March 6 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am. The location is the Hughes Metropolitan Center at Wichita State University. There will be a presentation on the Kansas budget and written questions from the audience.

    Representative Steve Brunk is chair of the delegation.

  • Ad spotlights rise in Kansas taxes, spending

    A second ad from the Kansas Policy Institute illustrates the rapid rise in Kansas general fund revenues and spending in recent years. Click on Money Management 102 to view.

  • Kansas historic preservation tax credits should be eliminated

    It’s time to recognize historic buildings for what they are: a premium feature or amenity whose extra cost should be born solely by those who chose to own them or rent them.

    Supporters of historic buildings tell us that renovating them is more expensive than building new. Likewise, building a home with granite kitchen counter tops and marble floors in the bathrooms is more expensive than a plainer home. These premium features are chosen voluntarily by the homeowner, and it is right and just that they alone should pay for them.

    There’s no difference between these premium features and choosing to live in a historic building. Those who desire them choose them voluntarily, and should pay their full cost. Forcing everyone to subsidize this choice is wrong. It’s an example of a special interest gone wild.

    Supporters of historic building preservation subsidy tell us that these historic buildings define the character of a city. They have succumbed to the design fallacy, “the notion that architectural design is a major determinant in shaping human behavior.” It may be so for some people. Let each person decide for themselves, and then pay — or not pay — for its perceived benefit.

    It’s often true that historic preservation tax credits go to subsidize the choices of well-off people. For example, at a meeting of government officials with Wichita-area legislators in January, Wichita Downtown Development Corporation president Jeff Fluhr presented examples of several buildings in Wichita that have been rehabilitated, including the Wichita High Apartments, which he said will rent for $1,000 to $2,000. He mentioned condos in the Grant Telegraph building, which he said range in price from $300,000 to $950,000. Do the taxpayers of the state of Kansas need to subsidize people who can afford rents and prices like these?

    Wichita High ApartmentsWichita developer Dave Burk stood to pocket over $1 million in taxpayer money on this project.

    The use of tax credits, however, leads many to believe that what the state is doing is not a direct subsidy or payment. In order to clear things up, maybe we should require that the state write checks instead of issuing credits.

    Indeed, if the state issued checks to real estate developers, citizens would look at things differently. They’d wonder why they’re subsidizing the construction of apartments that rent for up to $2,000 monthly, or condos worth nearly a million dollars. They’d be angry. Using a semi-mysterious mechanism like tax credits shrouds the true economic transaction taking place.

    These expenditures of tax money — being issued as credits rather than appropriations — go through a different process than most expenditures of state money. Recently some have started to use the word “tax appropriations” to describe tax credits. These expenditures don’t go through the normal legislative process as do most appropriations.

    It’s time to recognize these historic preservation tax credits as payments to a special interest group. Unfortunately, as with most special interest groups, the group receiving the payment — tax credits in this case — has an extreme interest in the matter. They benefit greatly. But to the rest of the populace — well, does it really matter to them? John Stossel explains the problem like this:

    The Public Choice school of economics calls this the problem of concentrated benefits and dispersed costs. Individual members of relatively small interest groups stand to gain huge rewards when they lobby for government favors, but each taxpayer will pay only a tiny portion of the cost of any particular program, making opposition pointless.

    That’s the situation we face with the historic preservation tax credits. A few real estate developers will enrich themselves at state expense. Well-to-do renters and condo buyers will get a better deal. To everyone else, it’s just another way that government nickels and dimes us to death.

    It should be noted that one of the most vocal proponents of the tax credits is Christy Davis, a historical preservation consultant who operates a company that assists property owners and governments in obtaining funding for historic preservation projects. She’s the very definition of a special interest group.

  • Insurance commissioner candidate to speak in Wichita

    At the Wichita Pachyderm Club this Friday, candidate for the Republican party nomination for Kansas Insurance Commissioner David Powell will speak to members and guests.

    All are welcome to attend 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). Park in the garage just across Broadway and use the sky walk to enter the Bank of America building. Bring your parking garage ticket to be stamped and your parking fee will be only $1.00. There is usually some metered and free street parking nearby.