Tag: Kansas Policy Institute
Wichita rushes sales tax increase to special election in March
At its most recent meeting, the Wichita City Council approved a ballot measure that would put a 1% sales tax…
Per capita county spending drives up property tax; analysis shows efficiency opportunities
Wallace County homeowner Imtiaz Stephen was shocked to open his property tax notice to see that he owes almost $12,000…
KSBRC assists USD 361 in finding new superintendent
Unified School District 361 Chaparral has a new superintendent of schools, thanks in part to assistance from the Kansas School…
Economist pleased with private-sector infrastructure investments, warns against ‘public-private partnerships’
As the Chinese Communist Party has cracked down again on the export of rare-earth minerals essential for so much of…
Kansas ACT scores, college-readiness hit new lows
ACT scores for 2025 were released this week, showing yet another decline and hitting a new all-time low. The composite…
KSDE, State Board of Education ignore state literacy law
You might think that the State Board of Education would be laser-focused on addressing the serious literacy problem in Kansas.…
Johnson County, Overland Park plan big tax increases while sitting on millions in reserves
Despite hundreds of millions of dollars in reserve, Johnson County Commissioners are planning to raise property taxes by 6.5% next…
Commerce department continues pattern of oversight failures
After multiple audits of both rounds of the “Building a Stronger Economy” (BASE) Grant program have routinely found issues with…
Audit: faulty free lunch eligibility by school officials cost taxpayers at least $38 million
Kansas, like many states, uses the number of students receiving free lunches to determine at-risk state funding for each district,…
Kansas Attorney General releases new guidance on KOMA, KORA changes
Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach has released new guidance on the Kansas Open Meetings Act (KOMA) and the Kansas Open…
Federal court strikes down warrantless search regime in Kansas
A Cowley County couple and the Kansas Justice Institute won a major victory earlier this week after a federal court…
New polling shows Prairie Village residents overwhelmingly want to vote on proposed $30 million city hall project
New polling released today shows that residents of Prairie Village, Kansas—a small, land-locked community in the Kansas City, Kansas metro…
Kansas #15 for per-student spending, #40 in NAEP outcomes
A new analysis by Kansas Policy Institute shows that the Sunflower State ranks #15 for cost-of-living-adjusted spending per student, but…
Kansas Justice Institute files amicus brief in U.S. Supreme Court over warrantless digital searches
Americans enter their personal information into websites, use it to access bank accounts, and make digital transactions daily, never realizing…
How politics derailed property tax relief in the 2025 Legislature
Republicans and Democrats began the 2025 legislative session with much swagger about passing meaningful property tax reform. However, they adjourned…
Opponents of Westwood park sale win election victory
A small park the City of Westwood, Kansas, attempted to sell to developers for an office park and retail outlets…
Legislature passes KORA cost containment bill
In a rare unanimous vote, the Kansas House and Senate both passed a bill aimed at containing costs under the…
Senate Tax Committee preserves revenue-neutral, adds protest petition to control property tax increases
The Kansas Senate Committee on Assessment and Taxation restored the revenue-neutral transparency protections to a bill passed by the Kansas…
SB 259 promises income tax reductions based on increases in state revenue
Senate Bill 259 proposes a path to a flat income tax in Kansas based on increases in state revenues above…
Cities, counties sitting on more than $5 billion in cash reserves
City and county lobbyists are flooding the state capitol, pressuring legislators not to grant Kansans property tax relief. They tell…
Legislature proposes less funding for literacy training
Leaders of the Kansas House Committee on Higher Education Budget are declining to answer questions about stripping $8 million in…
Economist says DOGE on the right track, state-level efforts needed
Former chief economist for the Office of Management and Budget under the first Trump administration Dr. Vance Ginn said the…
Senate approves 3% limit on real estate valuation increases, but the House may not consider it
The Kansas Senate yesterday passed a constitutional amendment that, if approved by the House, would allow voters to decide whether…
KASB attempts to deceive legislators in the SB 47 fiscal note
Having a good BS detector is essential for serving in the Kansas Legislature, especially for interpreting fiscal notes that accompany…