It’s election season, Shawnee Mission, and there are several Kansas House of Representative candidates vying for seats in area districts.
Last month, we asked Post readers what they wanted to hear candidates discuss before marking their ballots. With that input, we developed a five-item questionnaire for candidates running for seats in the Kansas House of Representatives.
We’ll be publishing candidate responses to one question each day this week. Yesterday, candidates answered a question about election integrity. Today, we’re publishing candidates’ responses to item #2:
Inflation is currently at its highest level in four decades, sending prices for everything from food to gas to medicine sharply higher over the past several months. Can the state legislature do anything to address inflation here in Kansas? What policies should it enact?
District 18
Cindy Neighbor (incumbent Democrat)
Yes. We started the “Axe the Tax” on food legislation last year. I was in favor of starting that relief July 1, 2022. We heard from grocers that that was attainable, but several legislators wanted to delay the implementation until January 1, 2023, and only implement the 2.5 percent portion instead of the original proposed reduction of 6.5 percent made by the Governor. The delay has only made issues worse for shoppers as they wait for this reduction.
Gas for everyday driving has been very costly for all of us. Fortunately, those prices are starting to come down. A lot of that is controlled by foreign suppliers that Kansas has no power to control. Within our own state, we do have the Kansas Corporation Commission that regulates gas and oil hikes for the necessity as requested by the companies. The Energy, Utilities and Telecom Committee in both the House and Senate in Kansas receive updates and reports on those requests from which we determine the need. I do have serious concerns for requests for higher rates from companies during this time of inflation, as Kansans can’t continue to pay for their heating and electric bills. I serve on this committee and am always looking for ways for us to hold the line on these issues.
Recently, a group of Democrats brought forward a bill proposal that looks for more tax relief from appraisals on property and to help local taxing entities by restoring the Ad Valorem Tax Rebate to cities that has been the law but not followed for many, many years. This would help to reduce mill levies on a local basis and return the money to the taxpayers.
Cathy Gordon (Republican)
Inflation is the highest in 40 years, our retirement savings plans, like 401-K, are plummeting. The National debt is $30 trillion and climbing. How do we like the gas prices at the pump now, once again soaring to a historic high doubling since 2020 and it appears now tripling by the end of this year. Do we just keep on printing money, 40% of our current money supply was printed in the last two years.
Kansas Legislators did an excellent job of attempting to reduce taxes for Kansans in 2022. Unfortunately, many of these bills that were passed by the legislators were vetoed. It is critical to work as a team to end inflation. We need to end the bickering, and bureaucratic control that hampers our legislative process. Kansan’s deserve better and they want it.
District 19
Stephanie Clayton (incumbent Democrat)
As most of us are aware, inflation is primarily dealt with by the Federal Reserve, not the states. But we have many options to help ease the burden of higher prices on Kansans. The first, and most important thing that we can do is to lower sales taxes of all kinds. Many of you will recall that the State sales tax was increased in 2013, and again in 2015 to shore up the budgetary hemorrhage from the failed Brownback Tax Experiment. I voted NO on those sales tax increases, because it is morally wrong to make people on fixed incomes bear the burden for poor tax decisions.
I was proud to co-sponsor a bill that would have eliminated the state sales tax on groceries completely in July, but my colleagues across the aisle had marching orders to instead put in a weaker version that would slowly walk the grocery tax to zero. I supported that bill as well, because weak tax cuts are better than none at all. I support the elimination of state sales tax on prepared food, including restaurant food. Not everyone has the luxury of the time to shop, plan, and prepare meals, and I don’t think it is fair to give food tax cuts only to those who have this time; busy families on the go deserve to save, too, which is why I supported a cut to all food sales tax (this sadly did not make it out of committee). I support, and have co-sponsored bills that would eliminate the sales tax on hygiene products. I support a summer gas tax holiday (gas taxes tend to rise significantly in the summertime). I oppose changes to the tax structure that would cause increases to our sales taxes, property taxes, or that would cut income tax for the high-earners while increasing it for normal folks like us. It has been my honor to fight for lower prices for all of us for nearly a decade, and putting tax policy in place that would dramatically decrease our daily cost of living is my top priority.
Nick Reddell (Republican)
Did not respond.
District 22
Linsday Vaughn (incumbent Democrat)
It is difficult for the state to directly address inflation since the Federal Reserve Bank sets interest rates, but one way we can help Kansans is by offsetting rising costs. The best way to do this is reducing regressive taxes, including sales and property taxes. Last session we passed a bill to eliminate the sales tax on food, but it is being implemented through a stair-step approach and will not take full effect until 2025. We have the budget surplus available to take the sales tax on food to zero immediately and provide additional relief for Kansans at the grocery store. I believe we should enact this additional relief now and expand the tax cut to dignity items, including diapers and feminine hygiene products.
I also strongly support the tax reforms outlined in Governor Kelly’s “Road Ahead” agenda. These include creating a three-day sales tax holiday for back-to-school items and reducing state taxes for seniors on Social Security making less than $100,000. We should also look at refinancing the Local Ad Valorem Tax Reduction Fund (LAVTRF). The LAVTRF was established so the State of Kansas could provide funding to local units of government for the express purpose of providing property tax relief to property owners; however, it has remained unfunded for the last twenty years. By restoring the Ad Valorem we can help local governments lower property taxes.
In addition to tax reforms, we need to invest in public education, workforce development, and affordable housing and child care. All of these things are important for addressing rising costs and empowering Kansans to participate in the economy.
Robert Colburn (Republican)
Did not respond.
District 30
Laura Williams (Republican)
We need to focus on lowering the cost of living in Kansas by finding solutions to real problems that impact our everyday lives. That starts with skyrocketing prices. As a legislature, we should accelerate the full elimination of the sales tax on food and promote affordable housing options. We should also keep inflationary spending down, focus on keeping utility costs in check, and increase healthcare options to bring costs down.
Courtney Eiterich (Democrat)
We have not seen inflation like this in many years. People need immediate ways to lower their cost of living. Here are a couple of things to help provide some relief.
- The legislature should immediately lower the sales tax to zero on groceries instead of the tiered approach that was passed last session. They should also eliminate the sales tax on hygiene products (including diapers) and over-the-counter medications.
- A neighbor told me this week that he and his wife will pay $35,000 this year for their toddler and newborn to have daycare. The legislature can make Early Childhood Education initiatives a priority to support working families and give young children the jump start that is needed to reach higher learning outcomes. This will also allow parents to remain in the workforce.
- The Legislature should allocate money in the budget for the Local Ad Valorem Tax Relief Fund (LAVTRF) to provide immediate tax relief to property owners. This is a state statute that gives a share of the incoming revenue to local counties and municipalities to directly lower the mill levy. Sadly, it has not been included in the budget in almost 20 years.
District 39
Vanessa Vaughn West (Democrat)
Like so many of you, week after week I work and earn a paycheck. I also feel the pocketbook pinch from escalating gas prices and grocery prices that continue to rise. Inflation is a real concern for Kansans and our families. Despite what we do to stretch a dollar, sometimes no matter how much we save, conserve, and reuse it just isn’t enough.
It is time for the Kansas Legislature to act to reduce taxes to provide immediate inflation relief. By reducing state taxes, residents will have more dollars to spend, thus bolstering their purchasing power. Personally, I support the immediate elimination of the sales tax on food, a faster approach than the current 3-year plan, as well as eliminating sales tax on hygiene products and over-the-counter drugs. I also support restoring state tax relief programs to help local governments lower property taxes. Furthermore, I believe retirees have been taxed enough as workers which is why we should reduce or eliminate taxes on retirement income. We can also support students continuing their education in Kansas by offering tax credits to those pursuing higher education studies.
We are fortunate to have a surplus in the state budget. With $1B in the rainy day fund and nearly $450M in surplus tax revenue, the State of Kansas is flush with money. That’s why the time is right to decrease taxes and put money back in the pockets of working Kansans to alleviate the pain of inflation.
Owen Donohoe (incumbent Republican)
Did not respond.
District 117
Adam Turk (Republican)
Inflation is currently at its highest level in four decades, sending prices for everything from food to gas to medicine sharply higher over the past several months. Can the state legislature do anything to address inflation here in Kansas? What policies should it enact?
While the cause of inflation is poor policies at the federal level, the state can and should take action to mitigate the burden on citizens. First, the state should not make it worse by spending too much money, which is what caused the inflation in the first place. Second, while the elimination of the food sales tax was a great step, accelerating its rollout is necessary. Third, they should look at other types of tax relief that help those in need, particularly small businesses, families and seniors.
Courtney Tripp (Democrat)
As I have knocked on thousands of doors in this district, there are two top issues I have heard again and again — support of our outstanding, award-winning schools and people feeling the pain of inflation, raising taxes and, in particular, property taxes.
On Sept. 26, I was also proud to join legislators in Topeka to roll out a three-pronged property tax relief proposal that would directly and immediately lower property taxes for people in our district. This includes restoring the Local Ad Valorem Tax Reduction fund, which the current majority of legislators has failed to fund for 20 years. The sole purpose of this fund is to lower local property taxes. The proposal would also offer an amendment to the Kansas Constitution to reduce the assessment level of Residential Property from 11.5% to 9%. Finally, it would amend K.S.A. 79-201x raising the residential property exemption from the statewide school mill levy to $65,000.
Additionally, I would support axing the food tax immediately, removing the tax on hygiene products and over-the-counter medications, and removing the tax on social security income. The state’s revenues have exceeded projections for 26 months straight, and these excess funds should be used to help individual Kansans who are feeling the pressure and pain of inflation by reducing taxes. We have the opportunity to do all this and fully fund education, including special education.
District 17
Jo Ella Hoye (incumbent Democrat)
Kansans should be able to support a family with their wages and benefits even when times are tough. I joined a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers to eliminate the state sales tax on food. Knowing how prices at the grocery store are impacting our constituents, we should put partisanship aside and eliminate that tax immediately when we return to Topeka in January instead of waiting for it to phase out in 2025. We should implement a 3-day Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday so that parents and educators can save on classroom and learning necessities. We are in a great financial position thanks to measured, responsible budgeting and great economic gains which means that we can afford to cut these taxes to help give families more money to buy food, school supplies, or just pay the bills. I will continue being a good steward of our taxpayer dollars while working on ways to provide financial relief for Kansans.
Emily Carpenter (Republican)
When I’m going door-to-door, I hear about the burden inflation is placing on families and seniors. Every government should be exploring ways to help people most impacted by rising prices. This includes speeding up implementation of the sales tax on food, reducing or eliminating taxes on other necessities, and easing the cost of owning a home by reforming our property tax system.
Michael Kerner (Libertarian)
Price inflation is caused by an increase in the money supply caused by Federal government spending financed by the Federal Reserve. More dollars chasing the same goods results in higher prices. This is the most basic economics. There is nothing the Kansas state government can do to stop that. All we can do is lower the burden that we place on our citizens. I would like to see the state income tax phased out but for now, we should index all deductions and tax brackets to inflation so that federal income tax bracket creep does not affect the state income tax.
Tomorrow, we’ll publish candidates’ responses to item #3:
In August, Kansas voters rejected the “Value Them Both” amendment that would have eliminated the right to an abortion from the state constitution. Are you comfortable with the current state of abortion access in Kansas? Would you like to see more restrictions on abortion in the state? Would you like to see access to abortion expanded? Please explain your position on abortion.
