Category: Wichita city government
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Wichita city hall falls short in taxpayer protection
An incentives agreement the Wichita city council passed on first reading is missing several items that city policy requires. How the council and city staff handle the second reading of this ordinance will let us know for whose interests city hall works: citizens, or cronies.
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Wichita drops taxpayer protection clause
To protect itself against self-defeating appeals of property valuation in tax increment financing districts, the City of Wichita once included a protective clause in developer agreements. But this consideration is not present in two proposed agreements.
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Wichita TIF projects: some background
Tax increment financing disrupts the usual flow of tax dollars, routing funds away from cash-strapped cities, counties, and schools back to the TIF-financed development. TIF creates distortions in the way cities develop, and researchers find that the use of TIF means lower economic growth.
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Wichita loan agreement subject to interpretation
In 2009 the City of Wichita entered into an ambiguous agreement to grant a forgivable loan, and then failed to follow its own agreement. Worse yet, there has been no improvement to similar contracts. Such agreements empower the city to grant favor at its discretion.
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Wichitaliberty.TV: Special taxes for artists
In this excerpt from WichitaLiberty.TV: Wichita government spending on economic development leads to imagined problems that require government intervention and more taxpayer contribution to resolve. The cycle of organic rebirth of cities is then replaced with bureaucratic management.
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A chance for Wichita to embrace transparency
Promises of transparency were made during the recent Wichita sales tax campaign. If the city cares about government transparency, the city should implement its promises, even though the tax did not pass.
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Economic development in Wichita: Looking beyond the immediate
Decisions on economic development initiatives in Wichita are made based on “stage one” thinking, failing to look beyond what is immediate and obvious.
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The odd ethics of Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer
The Wichita city council should repeal a law that the council doesn’t follow.
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Campaign contribution stacking in Wichita
Those seeking favors from Wichita City Hall use campaign contribution stacking to bypass contribution limits. This has paid off handsomely for them, and has harmed everyone else.
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In Wichita, not much notice of a public hearing
The City of Wichita gives little notice regarding a public hearing, which does not contribute to an open and transparent government that welcomes citizen involvement.
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Wichita seeks to correct an oversight, finally
A request to modify an agreement with the City of Wichita raises the question of why, finally, is the city dealing with an apparent oversight?
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This week, Wichita has a chance to increase government transparency
The Wichita City Council can decide to disclose how taxpayer money is spent, or let it remain being spent in secret.