As expected, Kansas Democrat Governor Laura Kelly vetoed a mill rate limit property tax relief bill late Wednesday afternoon.
Senate Substitute for House Bill 2745 would allow voters to sign a protest petition to stop property tax increases that exceed inflation.
In a joint statement, Kansas Speaker of the House Dan Hawkins and House Majority Leader Chris Croft blasted the veto.
“House Republicans have made property tax relief a top priority for over two years. And for two years, while claiming they want to address affordability and property tax relief, the Governor and her allies have done nothing but stand in the way of solutions. It seems they would rather campaign on the problem than solve it,” Hawkins said. “Kansans didn’t send us to Topeka to play political games; they sent us here to deliver results. Kansas families are being crushed by rising property taxes. Across the state, they are being forced into tightening their budgets and making smarter, more fiscally responsible choices. Local government should be doing the same. This conversation is not over, and we will continue to fight to put Kansans who are suffering under out-of-control property taxes back in the driver’s seat.”
Croft added he was disappointed by her veto of the mill rate limit.
“I’m very disappointed that Governor Kelly has chosen to stand between Kansans and much-needed property tax relief,” Croft said. “This Legislature worked hard to deliver on its promise of relief, and passed a bill to give the voters the ability to stop excessive property tax hikes, yet the Governor has vetoed that effort, putting partisan politics ahead of the financial burden Kansans face every year. The people of Kansas deserve a voice in how their hard-earned dollars are taxed, and this veto ignores their needs and the will of the people. It’s time to put Kansans first and ensure real property tax relief becomes a reality.”
Despite the fact that 82% of voters say they want a mill rate limit, Kelly contends the bill “does nothing to provide” relief and “will only restrict the ability of local officials to be nimble enough to adjust to the unique needs of the communities they serve.”
Translation: The mill rate limit would restrict the ability of local governments to raise taxes at will.
Kelly proposes alternative to the mill rate limit
Kelly also put forth a “comprehensive plan” to “provide immediate and lasting tax relief.
Kelly wants to provide a one-time $250 tax credit for vehicle taxes to “be paid for by using surplus funds sitting in the budget stabilization fund.”
Kelly also wants to reinstate a plan — already rejected by the Senate — to create a $60 million fund to send bonus checks to cities and counties that increase property taxes no more than an effective rate of about 5% after exceptions for new construction and debt payments.
This is basically reinstating a failed program — the Local Ad Valorem Tax Reduction program that gave cities and counties about $60 million for theoretical property tax relief. LAVTR hadn’t been funded since 2003 because it didn’t work and was repealed by the legislature in 2024.
Kelly additionally wants “the state to have some skin in the game,” by reducing the amount of taxes paid as part of the state-mandated 20 mil levy for public education. Under current law, the first $75,000 of a home’s appraised value is exempt from the 20-mill tax. Kelly would like to see that doubled to $150,000, claiming it would provide “meaningful tax relief to over 700,000 Kansas homeowners every year.
“This proposal would safeguard funding for public education by creating a demand transfer from the State General Fund into the School District Finance Fund to ensure that public schools continue to receive their full constitutional funding.”
Kelly’s proposals are not likely to have any real effect on property taxes, and the bonus checks are already a non-starter with the Kansas Senate.