Why does removing the small business exemption mean increasing taxes on the poorest of the poor?

Submitted by Richard Hilderbrand, Kansas District 13 Senator

There is a lot of frustration among the citizens of Kansas over the current legislature’s inability to balance the budget. This frustration is well-founded and must be addressed with a fiscally responsible solution. There is a large percentage of citizens that believe the small business exemption is the cause and want to see the exemption removed. If a tax proposal to remove the LLC exemption was ever to come before both chambers, it would likely pass by a veto-proof margin. If this is the case, then why hasn’t this happened yet? It is obvious this is the one part of the tax plan that most legislators and citizens both believe should be changed. One only needs to look at The Hays Daily News article dated May 5, 2017. In this article, it has this very revealing quote “If we take that part out of the overall tax plan, we take all of our leverage out,” said Sen. Laura Kelly, D-Topeka. Kelly said closing what is often referred to as the LLC loophole is the “politically palatable” part of the tax hikes, but it isn’t the bulk of the money the state needs to raise. “The real money in the tax cuts was not in that provision, it was in the reduction of the brackets,” she said, referring to income tax rates.

http://www.hdnews.net/news/local/lawmakers-continue-hunt-for-tax-solution/article_c688638d-2db8-5911-b855-8e2d60006045.html

In a recent Docking Institute poll, it asked how the citizens of Kansas wanted their legislators to fix the current budget crisis. This is what this poll showed: 41 percent want their legislators to cut spending, 34 percent want their legislators to cut spending and increase taxes, and 25 percent want their legislators to increase taxes to fix this budget crisis. You will notice that 75 percent think all or part of the solution is to cut spending, while none think the solution is to raise state spending.

http://www.fhsu.edu/uploadedFiles/executive/docking/Kansas%20Speaks%202017(1).pdf

Then why do the only bills that we are voting on so far have large increase in spending along with over $1 billion in new taxes to pay for it? This not only defies the wishes of our constituents, but more importantly it is reckless and is fiscally irresponsible. I have heard from those that want to pass this massive tax and spend policy that this is the hardest thing to do. I strongly disagree with this view. The hardest thing to do is continue to vote on your principles and to not be swayed by the emotions of the day. We must get our finances in order and established for a long-term solution, so that our state can get back on the road to recovery.

We do have a budget crisis and our constituents are counting on us to fix this problem. This is something that we must do, we must quit playing politics over this issue. The constituents in Kansas expect the legislators to fund education to meet the requirements of the ruling handed down by the Kansas Supreme Court. They also expect the legislators to fully fund KPERS and to quit deferring the payments that have become the norm. They also want the money that is ear marked for our highways to stay in KDOT.

Just last night the House took up SB 30. It failed on a vote of 53-yeas to 68-nays. If this bill would have passed, and subsequently passed the senate, it would have looked like this:

*It would have raised taxes on every single tax payer by $1.217 billion over the next two years.

*Lowered the minimum earned income from $5,000 to $2,500 for single filers, and from $12,500 to $5,000 for families.

*Retroactively raised the lowest tax bracket for families making $0-$30,000 from 2.7 percent to 2.9 percent for the 2017 tax year.

*Raised the lowest tax bracket for families in year 2018 from 2.9 percent to 3.1 percent.

*Retroactively raised the middle tax bracket for families making $30,001 – $60,000 from 4.6 percent to 4.9 percent for the 2017 tax year.

*Raised the middle tax bracket for families in year 2018 from 4.9 percent to 5.25 percent.

*Retroactively created a new top tax bracket for families making $60,001 and above from 4.6 percent to 5.2 percent for the 2017 tax year.

*Raised the new top tax bracket for families in year 2018 from 5.2 percent to 5.7 percent.

*Retroactively raised the lowest tax bracket for individuals making $0 -$15,000 from 2.7 percent to 2.9 percent for the 2017 tax year.

*Raised the lowest tax bracket in year 2018 from 2.9 percent to 3.1 percent.

*Retroactively raised the middle tax bracket for individuals making $15,001 – $30,000 from 4.6 percent to 4.9 percent for the 2017 tax year.

*Raised the middle tax bracket in year 2018 from 4.9 percent to 5.25 percent.

*Retroactively created a new top tax bracket for individuals making $30,001 and above from 4.6 percent to 5.2 percent for the 2017 tax year.

*Raised the new top tax bracket in year 2018 from 5.2 percent to 5.7 percent.

*Retroactively repealed the small business exemption.

http://www.kslegislature.org/…/doc…/ccr_2017_sb30_h_2129.pdf

This tax bill would have put an even bigger burden on our constituents that are struggling to make ends meet. How can we as a state ask an individual that is making only $2,500 and a family making $5,000 a year to retroactively pay for our out of control spending? It would have classified, per this new tax structure, an individual making $30,001 and a family making $60,001 as rich and taxed them the same rate as someone making $1 million. This is not a fiscally responsible tax plan.

The state has increased its spending in the general fund from $5,268,100,000 in 2010 to an estimated $6,306,030,075 for 2017. This is an almost 20 percent increase in spending over seven years. That is an average increase of 2.46 percent per year. The average rate of inflation during that same period is only 1.7 percent per year. If the state’s spending would have been the same as the rate of inflation, our spending in 2017 would only be $5,807,414,859. The estimated revenue for 2017 is $6,073,100,000. That would have left the state with $265,685,140.54 to go towards meeting some of our other needs that I highlighted earlier.

http://budget.ks.gov/publications/FY2017/FY2017_Comparison_Report–UPDATED–8-15-2016.pdf

http://budget.ks.gov/publications/FY2017/FY2017_GBR_Vol2.pdf

So, I ask this question: Why must the poorest of the poor pay for the states irresponsible fiscal policies?

 

Eric Bailey, Bourbon County’s Environmental Services Coordinator, offered his resignation to the Bourbon County Commission during their meeting Tuesday morning.

“We’re sad to see him go,” County Attorney Justin Meeks said.

Bailey served the county in his position for almost four years, remaining in contact with contractors and overseeing inspections of septic, holding tanks and lagoons. The county will need to find a replacement quickly to keep up with inspections and permits for area building projects. Bailey made a recommendation Tuesday.

“We’re going to miss you,” commissioner Lynne Oharah said.

The commissioners voted to accept his resignation, also agreeing to name June 2, as his final day as an employee.

“It’s been a wonderful experience,” Bailey said, taking time to thank the commissioners for the opportunity to work for the county. “I enjoyed every minute of it.”

Bailey said he is moving out of state in order to start his own business as a subcontractor.

 

Submitted by Krista Harding

The prolonged periods of rain and wet growing conditions is causing some issues in our area. The conditions we have had recently are ideal for many landscape fungi and diseases to appear.

One fungal disease happening to sycamore trees is anthracnose. Anthracnose is favored by cool, wet weather. The young leaves may wither and turn black. Older leaves will have a brown discoloration that follows the major veins of the leaves. In some cases, the petiole (leaf stem) is infected, which causes leaf drop. Although this is most common on sycamore trees, it can also affect birch, elm, walnut, oak and ash.

In severe anthracnose cases, the tree drops heavily infected leaves and may completely defoliate. However, healthy trees will leaf out again in just a few weeks. Anthracnose seldom causes significant damage to trees in Kansas, so chemical control is not necessary. Fungicides do not cure infected leaves, so applying fungicides now will not help.

Both my climbing and Knock Out roses look good this year and are blooming like crazy! But, I have my guard up and am on the lookout for rose slug infestations. Some people might think that the small green worm they find on roses is a caterpillar of some sort. However, it is not. It’s actually the larva of a sawfly. This insect skeletonizes rose leaves and young larvae will remove the green layer of leaf, leaving behind a clear material. As the larvae mature, they make holes in the leaf and eventually may consume all of the leaf but the major veins. Since these insects are not caterpillars, insecticides with BT will not be an effective treatment. Instead, try a strong jet of water to dislodge the slugs and make it more difficult for them to return to the plant. Other effective treatments include insecticidal soap, horticulture oils, spinosad and permethrin.

Another pesky landscape insect to be watching for is Euonymus scale. Euonymus scale looks like small, white cottony spots on affected foliage. The leaves will turn yellow and die as this insect continues to feed by sucking the plants juices. Heavy infestation happens on the undersides of leaves, twigs and stems. Labeled insecticides include malathion, permethrin and cyhalothrin. However, control is almost impossible for euonymus that has been heavily attacked and is in very poor health. In those instances, complete removal of those plants is recommended.

Finally, watch for rust on hollyhocks. This is the most common disease on hollyhock and can cause serious injury as leaves are progressively killed through the summer. Rust shows up as yellow spots on the surface of the leaves and orangish to brown pustules on the underside. The first line of defense in preventing rust is to remove all hollyhock stalks, leaves and other debris in the fall and destroy it. Remove any infected foliage you see now. A fungicide such as Immunox can be applied to protect healthy foliage. However, if you fight rust every year, I recommend a preventative fungicide application as the leaves emerge in the spring.

Should you have any horticulture questions this growing season, give me a call. As a reminder, I have office hours in each of the three locations within the Extension district. I am in the Erie office Monday, Wednesday and Friday; Iola on Tuesday and Fort Scott on Thursday.

Krista Harding is a K-State Research and Extension Agricultural agent assigned to Southwind District. She may be reached at 620-244- 3826 or [email protected].

K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Kansas Senate Republican Caucus ∙ May 19, 2017 ∙ Week Fifteen

HARD FACTS:

• Preliminary estimates reported show the April, seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 3.7 percent. This was down from 3.8 percent in March and down from 4.1 percent in April 2016. (Kansas Department of Labor and Bureau of Labor Statistics)
• This week, applications for weekly unemployment aid fell 4,000 to 232,000 – the lowest level in nearly three months. (U.S. Department of Labor)

WEEKLY OVERVIEW:

School Finance

Senate President Wagle appointed a Senate Select Committee on Education Finance early in this legislative session. The committee, chaired by Majority Leader Denning, has been working hand-in-hand with the House’s K-12 Education Budget Committee and the legislature’s outside legal counsel to produce a new school finance formula. The committees have made great strides forward this week, and we look forward to continuing that momentum into next week. The Senate Select Committee on Education Finance heard testimony from a variety of stakeholders this week and expects to pass a bill out of committee early next week, and we anticipate a vote on a school finance formula bill next week.

Debating firearms in state hospitals

Early this week, we began discussion on the Senate floor about whether guns should be allowed in state hospitals and mental hospitals. Kansans on both sides of this issue feel very passionately about this topic.

Senators engaged in a healthy conversation before ultimately voting to send the bill in question back to committee for further review. Kansans representing hospitals and the Second Amendment are actively communicating with the legislature and are working to strike a compromise to ensure Kansans feel safe and protected in hospitals and mental hospitals without infringing on your Second Amendment rights.

FLOOR ACTION:

PORT AUTHORITIES (Senate Substitute for House Bill 2132): Senate Sub. for HB 2132 allows port authorities to sell real or personal property in a negotiated sale at less than its appraised value. In order to make such a sale, the port authority would be required to declare the sale would be in the public interest due to the return of new jobs, capital investment, or increased tax revenue. Current law prohibits port authorities from selling property below its appraised value.

This bill passed the Senate Tuesday May 16, by a vote of 37-3

RULES AND REGULATIONS (House Bill 2280): HB 2280 requires that prior to July 1, 2018, each state agency review its rules and regulations to determine the impact those rules and regulations have on business and economic development, including those that negatively impact or create any barrier to success for business and economic development. Prior to October 1, 2018, after review and determination of rules and regulations, each state agency must prepare and submit a report to the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules and Regulations (JCARR) identifying those rules and regulations having a negative impact on businesses and economic development, whether the public purpose served outweighs any negative impact, and alternatives to the identified rules and regulations. The bill would require JCARR to submit a report to the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate summarizing the JCARR findings prior to January 14, 2019.

In addition, the bill alters the Rules and Regulations Filing Act by adding a new requirement to the continuing mandate that each state agency submit an economic impact statement when drafting a proposed rule and regulation or amending any rule and regulation. The bill would require the economic impact statement to include a description of businesses that would be directly affected by the proposed rules and regulations, the benefits of the proposed rules and regulations, and measures taken to minimize the impact of the proposed rules and regulations on businesses and economic development.

This bill passed the Senate Tuesday May 16, by a vote of 32-8

COMMON CONSUMPTION AREA (House Bill 2277): HB 2277 allows a city or county to establish one or more common consumption areas by ordinance or resolution, designate the boundaries of any common consumption area, and prescribe the times during which alcoholic liquor may be consumed.

This bill passed the Senate Tuesday May 16, by a vote of 35-5

CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORTS:

KANSAS SEXUALLY VIOLENT PREDATOR ACT (HB 2128): HB 2128 revises law regarding procedures for annual review, transitional release, and conditional release for persons civilly committed under the Kansas Sexually Violent Predator Act.

The Senate adopted the Conference Committee Report Wednesday May 17, by a vote of 39-0

KANSAS CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE (House Substitute for SB 120): House Sub. for SB 120 adjusts the Kansas Code of Civil Procedure. The bill provides the code shall be employed by the court and the parties to secure the just, speedy and inexpensive determination of every action and proceeding. Current law requires the Code to be liberally construed and administered for the same purpose.

The bill also amends the law granting an additional three days for action after being served via certain kinds of service. The bill clarifies it applies to a party “after being served,” rather than simply “after service.” Additionally, the bill removes service by fax and electronic service from the list of kinds of service that allow additional time to act.

In the statute listing matters on which the court must take appropriate action at a case management conference, the bill adds issues related to preservation of electronically stored information. Additionally, in determining issues related to claims of privilege or protection as trial-preparation material, the bill requires consideration of agreements made under state law controlling the effect of disclosure of information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work-product protection.

The Senate Concurred with amendments in conference Wednesday May 17, 39-0

SECURITIES COMMISSIONER OF KANSAS (Senate Bill 23): SB 23 establishes the Office of the Securities Commissioner of Kansas as a division under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner of Insurance and amend law by consolidating certain prosecutorial functions of the Attorney General.

The Senate adopted the Conference Committee Report Thursday, May 18, by a vote of 30-8

LOTTERY TICKET VENDING MACHINES (House Bill 2313): HB 2313 would allow the Kansas Lottery to use vending machines to sell lottery tickets. Lottery ticket vending machines would dispense a printed physical ticket, such as a lottery ticket, a keno ticket, a pull tab ticket, an instant bingo ticket or a coupon. Machines will allow purchasers to manually check the winning status of a Kansas Lottery ticket and display advertising, promotions and other information pertaining to the Kansas Lottery.

Furthermore, the bill would authorize moneys in the Lottery Operating Fund be used for transfers to the Community Crisis Stabilization Centers Fund and Clubhouse Model Program Fund of the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services. The Community Crisis Stabilization Centers Fund would receive 75 percent of the money deposited into the Lottery Operating Fund, while 25 percent would go to the Clubhouse Model Program Fund. These transfers could not exceed $4 million aggregate for FY 2018 or $8 million in the aggregate for FY 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022.

The bill would also repeal the sunset provision for the Kansas Lottery. Under current law, the Kansas Lottery will be abolished on July 1, 2022.

The Senate adopted the Conference Committee Report Thursday May 18, by a vote of 21-16

BILL SIGNINGS:

SB 14 – Provides for limited line insurance coverage of self-storage units.

SB 16 – Enacts new insurance holding company regulatory law and corporate governance annual disclosure law.

HB 2085 – Amends the law regarding ignition interlock devices and expungements.

HB 2153 – Establishes law within the General Corporation Code related to public benefit corporations.

HB 2301 – Amends the law related to public records and public meetings.

The Governor has now signed 73 bills into law this session and vetoed two. By law, the Kansas governor has 10 calendar days to sign the bill into law, veto the bill or allow the bill to become law without his or her signature.

NEXT WEEK:

Next week is the fourth week of Veto Session. We will continue working on our three big ticket items: taxes, budget and school finance. I hope you’ll reach out with any comments, questions, or concerns regarding these issues or others. If you are on Twitter or Facebook, I encourage you to follow along with the #ksleg hashtag for real-time updates on legislative happenings in Topeka as we work to wrap this legislative session up.

The America’s Farmers Grow Communities program has been providing funding to organizations in rural communities for a number of years in honor of participating farmers from select counties around the United States.

This year, Bob and Jan Larkin of Bourbon County participated in the program and were announced winners, selecting Care to Share to be their non-profit organization of choice to receive the $2,500 donation.

The Larkins, leaders of the community, Care to Share representatives and cancer survivors were on hand Monday, May 8, to present the check.

Eligible counties for the program include those with at least 30,000 acres of specified crops, and awarded farmers had to be actively engaged in farming at least 250 acres of those crops. The selected charities had to be recognized as non-profit organizations.

Those interested in applying for the 2018 program can visit their website here.