Tag: Kansas state government
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Wichita school bond issue not the only proposed tax increase
As the residents of Wichita consider whether to vote for the $350 million school bond issue proposed by the board of USD 259 (Wichita public school district), be aware that the bond issue and its associated increase in property taxes is not the only tax increase the public schools in Kansas would like to have.…
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Property rights should control Kansas smoking decisions
A system of absolute respect for private property rights is the best way to handle smoking. The owners of bars and restaurants have, and should continue to have, the absolute right to permit or deny smoking on their property.
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Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius scores low again
In the Cato Institute’s Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors for 2006, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius earns the grade of “D.” She earned the same grade on their previous survey.
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The Kansas legislative buffet
When Sen. Phil Journey, a legislator who is known as a conservative, uses the term “legislative buffet,” it reveals the wisdom and foresight of Bastiat, who long ago described the legislative process as this: “A share of the plunder for me, for me!”
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The collectivism of Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius
A few excerpts from Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius’s inaugural address from January 2007: Yet our opportunities will be limited only if we fail to come together around a shared vision for our state. Only a failure to act as “One Kansas” can compromise our future and dash our hopes.
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Taxes in Kansas at an All-Time High
At no other time in the state’s history have state and local governments imposed such a heavy tax burden on Kansas residents. This year, state and local taxes will capture 11.2 percent of the state’s income. The graduated income tax contributes to this all time high by creating a boom of revenue and spending during…
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The Perverse Kansas Gambling Law
As humans, we have the right to gamble, as it is an activity that people may voluntarily take part in, and it causes no harm or violence to others. As such, we have to wonder why most forms of gambling have been illegal in Kansas for so long. More importantly, what has changed this year…
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The Kansas Gambling Law I’d Vote For
Here’s the one law concerning gambling in Wichita and Kansas that I would vote for: “All laws prohibiting and regulating gambling in Kansas are hereby repealed.” That’s the only law consistent with personal freedom and liberty. The law that has been passed, however, provides more power for the state and more opportunities to regulate our…
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Disenfranchising and Dissing Kansans
When was the last time you got to vote on raising your property taxes for city, county, or other local services? How about a local bond issue that didn’t involve the government schools? This political power might be inherent but for most Kansans it is mainly invisible. In most other states these votes are routine…
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Wasteful Kansas statehousesSpending
Wasteful spending at the Kansas statehouse is nothing new. What is new is the wasteful spending on the Kansas statehouse. This building still has the ugly look of a construction site with a soaring price tag. In 2007 a bipartisan group of legislative moderates are intent on continuing this unlimited statehouse spending spree.
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Floods and whirlwind (of spending in Kansas)
Kansans are focused upon the floods as well as the results of the tornados that tore up this state in early May. The wrath of Mother Nature is upon us just as the Kansas legislature has left its own flood of spending and whirlwind of legislative changes on this state. The legislature’s fiscal wrath might…
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It’s not yours to cut
It’s the people who “give” tax money to the government, not the government who “gives” it back to the people in the form of tax cuts. If the government cuts taxes, the government gives us nothing. It simply takes less of what is ours in the first place.