The 25 highest paid employees at Johnson County Community College each took home well in excess of $100,000 in the 2017 school year and some of them received double-digit pay increases. Data provided through an Open Records request and posted to KansasOpenGov.org shows President & CEO Joseph Sopcich was paid just shy of $325,000. Two welding trainers made the top … Read More
Kansas City School District Boosts Pay but Not for Teachers
The Kansas City school district, one of several Kansas districts using taxpayer money to sue for more funding, managed to provide some pretty hefty pay increases for top management last year. Total pay for the Kansas City school district increased by 3.8 percent to $168.8 million but teachers saw very little increase. Collectively, those identified by the district as teachers … Read More
KCKCC Pay Jumps 11 Percent
An Open Records request of the Kansas City, KS Community College shows an 11 percent increase in the KCKCC pay for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2017. The adjacent table of the 25 highest paid employees shows pay changes ranging from a 1 percent decline to a 217.8 percent increase. Eleven of the twenty-five highest paid employees received a … Read More
Schools Defend Massive Income Tax Hike
As Kansans collect smaller paychecks this month because of the massive income tax hike passed by the Legislature, school districts’ lobbying arm is defending it as an ‘investment.’ The Kansas Association of School Boards recently said the tax increase “…has been defended by many as necessary to stabilize the budget and comply with a Supreme Court decision on school funding.” … Read More
Legislators Don’t Like Being Called Out for State Spending Hike
Governor Brownback’s statement on state spending at the close of the 2017 legislative session has leadership in both chambers up in arms. ““This legislative session made history, but for all the wrong reasons. Passing the largest tax hike in state history, this legislature passed the biggest budget in state history—and they’ve already spent every dime. The legislature—despite borrowing and delaying … Read More
Kansas Schools Petulantly Demand $972 Million More
Like students attempting to explain away a bad grade, school districts’ taxpayer-funded lawyers bombarded the State Supreme Court with a litany of excuses and rationalizations to justify their demand for another $972 million over the next two years. Their June 30 brief to the Court says the Legislature’s increase of $195 million in the coming school year should be pushed … Read More
Kansas Ranked 6th for State School Funding
New data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows Kansas had the 6th highest share of school funding provided by state government in 2015. State school funding comprised 66 percent of total funding in Kansas, while the national average for state school funding was 47 percent. The national average for local taxpayer support was 45 percent but Kansas local taxpayers only … Read More
School Cash Reserves Hit $203 Billion
U.S. Census data just released shows school cash reserves for 45 states set a new record in 2015 at $203 billion, up from $188 billion in 2014. Alaska, Hawaii, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and the District of Columbia are not included in the totals because Census says their schools districts’ holdings cannot be separated from the assets of their parent … Read More
$1.6 Billion Pension Payouts; Over 2,000 KPERS ‘Millionaires’
An Open Records request fulfilled by the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System (KPERS) shows record-setting payouts in 2016 of $1.6 billion. The number of KPERS ‘millionaires’ also set a new record, with 2,007 government retirees expected to receive more than $1 million in pension benefits over their first 20 years of retirement. Pensions are paid over the lifespan of each … Read More
New School Funding Formula is Bad for Students and Citizens
The new school funding formula on its way to the Governor’s desk could have been a lot worse if the education lobby got all it wanted, but it’s still bad legislation for students and citizens. The funding is much higher than necessary, causing citizens to be excessively taxed, and most important, schools are not held accountable for improving outcomes. The … Read More