Kansas state government Archives - Page 159 of 160 Voice For Liberty

Mar

Senator Ruth Teichman, Republican in Name Only?

This is an interesting analysis that I received from Karl Peterjohn, Executive Director Kansas Taxpayers Network. What Karl doesn't mention is that Senator Teichman is a Republican. Bob, This response is so interesting and the timing is so remarkable that I want to submit it for Wichita Liberty. Sen. Teichman responds to my mid-February email that I sent her opposing SB 58. Shortly thereafter, she voted to APPROVE SB 58 on the floor of the Kansas senate. March 22, 2005 the Kansas house votes for SB 58 in an unamended form so it will go directly to the governor for…

Mar

By Bob Weeks

A better way to pick judges

Contributed by John Todd and William T. Davitt. I fully agree. A recent editorial in The Wichita Eagle discussed how trial court judges in Kansas are selected by either election or appointment. We favor neither method. Election of judges invites corruption because attorneys and other special-interest groups contribute money to judges' election campaigns. It is doubtful whether one voter in 10 could even name two of the 25 judges currently on the court. And if they could name two judges, would they have any idea regarding their job performance? Thus it appears that voters do not make an "informed choice"…

Mar

By Bob Weeks

HCR 5009: An attempt to drive down property taxes

From Representative Frank Miller The Kansas Legislative Research Department provided information substantiating that property taxes increased by 126 percent since 1993, yet the inflation rate adjusted for population growth increased only 43 percent! I don't see how the appraised value of residential property could have risen 2.75 times faster than inflation adjusted for population growth! I would suggest that appraisers are encouraged to over-appraise property in order to satisfy the need for increased property taxes without increasing the mill levy. I authored this bill in the hopes of restraining appraisers from adjusting the value of your property to a value…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Court Sets Trap for Legislature

I received the following, which I thought was interesting, so I present it. I do not entirely understand the author's argument, so if anyone can help me understand, I would appreciate it. Kansas Legislative Education And Research 827 SW TOPEKA BLVD TOPEKA, KS 66612 PHONE: 785 233 8765 EMAIL: ks klear@swbell.net Contact: Bob L. Corkins Court sets Trap for Legislature The Bait: "The Kansas Constitution thus imposes a mandate that our educational system cannot be static or regressive... "...there is substantial competent evidence, including the Augenblick & Myers study, establishing that a suitable education, as that term is defined by…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Rep. Loganbill Advocates More Tax Brackets

On Saturday February 12, 2005, I attended a meeting of the South-Central Kansas Legislative Delegation. State Representative Judith Loganbill made remarks that included the fact that the maximum Kansas individual income tax rate becomes effective at taxable incomes of $30,000 for singles and $60,000 for married couples. A member of the audience spoke and expressed astonishment to learn this. I didn't think about it at the time, but I now realize that Rep. Loganbill was advocating more tax brackets with higher rates.

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Latest Federal School Finance Spending Revealed

Here is an article from the Kansas Taxpayers Network that reports on school spending: http://www.kansastaxpayers.com/editorial_fedschool.html. On Saturday February 12, 2005 I attended a meeting of the South Central Kansas Legislative Delegation. Lynn Rogers, USD 259 School Board President, and Connie Dietz, Vice-President of the same body, attended. There has been a proposal to spend an additional $415 million over the next three years on schools. Asked if this would be enough to meet their needs, the Wichita school board members replied, "No."

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Legislative Delegation, Saturday February 5, 2005

On Saturday February 5, 2005 I attended the meeting of the local legislative delegation regarding the arena tax. Representative Tom Sawyer chaired the meeting. The audience wrote questions on notecards, and Representative Brenda Landwehr read them. To the best of my recollection, the people allowed to answer questions were Sedgwick County Commissioner Tom Winters, Sedgwick County Assistant County Manager Ron Holt, Sedgwick County Director of Finance Chris Chronis, Wichita Mayor Carlos Mayans, and Wichita Downtown Development Corporation President Ed Wolverton. All of these are arena supporters. No one with an opposing view was allowed to speak, except for near the…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

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…

Jan

By Bob Weeks

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…

Jan

By 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…