The Johnson County Commission is refusing to accept an Attorney General’s opinion warning that a proposed extension of a quarter-cent “public safety” sales tax likely violates state law.
The commission was asking the public in the November 2025 general election to extend the current quarter-cent public safety sales tax for an additional 10 years. It is currently set to sunset in March of 2027. However, in the wake of the AG’s opinion, the county is now hoping to put the measure on the March 2026 ballot.
The tax was first approved in 2016 to fund the construction of a new county courthouse and a medical examiner’s facility.
The commission intends to utilize the tax, which is projected to generate $54 million annually from taxpayers, to support mental health and emergency services.
On July 22, 2025, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, in a release, stated the commission was exceeding its authority.
“The ballot proposition is not within the scope of the Board’s authority…and any measures that exceed the Board’s authority are null and void,” the Attorney General’s opinion reads.
According to the opinion, a tax renewal must be pledged and used for the construction and operation of public safety projects, but — according to Kobach’s office — under statute, mental health services and emergency services do not qualify as public safety projects.
The opinion warns that a court would find the resolution null and void.
“Imposing new taxes on the people of Kansas is something that can be done only under tightly limited situations and as specifically allowed by Kansas law,” Kobach said in the release. “Johnson County is breaking the law by imposing this new tax for this purpose.”
Sen. Mike Thompson, a Shawnee Republican, requested an attorney general’s opinion before the sales tax question is placed on the November 2025 ballot.
“An additional sales tax places a burden on everyone in the county, not just consumers. The more prices go up, the less people buy. It dampens economic activity,” Thompson said in the release. “This is just another example of a county board that’s out of control. It doesn’t seek to limit spending and protect the taxpayers. Hopefully, this opinion will encourage the board to reconsider, particularly at this time when every other tax keeps going up.”
On July 24, the Johnson County Commission issued a release of its own, challenging Kobach’s opinion.
“The Johnson County Board of County Commissioners voted … to authorize its chief attorney to review ballot language for a public safety sales tax resolution and shift the election from November 2025 to March 2026,” the release said. “The Board will consider any actions associated with these directions at a future meeting.”
In what the county describes as “a good faith effort to avoid unnecessary and costly litigation from the Attorney General against Johnson County or individual County officials,” the commission also asked Chief Counsel Peggy Trent to file a declaratory action to clarify the state statute through the court and determine whether it can move forward with the proposed public safety sales tax extension under existing statues.
“The current Public Safety Sales Tax does not expire until March 2027, which gives us time to seek clarity from the court on bringing this question to the voters on a future ballot,” said Board Chair Mike Kelly in the release. “I strongly disagree with the Attorney General’s opinion, both on our authority to bring the question to voters and to his very narrow view of what qualifies as public safety.”
Johnson County sales tax and property tax hikes provide hefty raises for employees
The failure of the Kansas Legislature to deliver property tax relief this year after promising voters it was its “#1 priority” at the dawn of the 2025 session has saddled taxpayers with another year of increased property valuations and local government coffers overflowing with revenue.
The annual compensation survey of state and local government employees, produced by the Kansas Policy Institute (KPI), the owner of The Sentinel, reveals why cities, counties, and school districts oppose property tax reform. The table above includes some of the largest pay increases awarded in 2024 to select local government employees in Johnson County, based on Open Records requests.