Job Growth Archives - Kansas Policy Institute

Three Signs of Kansas Government Growth 0
- Tax & Spending
- July 11, 2019
How much government is too much for Kansas? Three straight years of income tax increases are sending the state budget to another historical high. However, three signs suggest that bigger is not always better. Three signs; jobs, personal income, and purchases, that link government growth to a stagnant Kansas economy. The legislature approved, and the
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“Hope” Leads to Work & Opportunity 0
- Tax & Spending
- June 24, 2019
Taxpayer-funded programs that combat poverty should operate in ways that create a pathway to economic independence. As such, welfare reforms, like the Hope Act and other efforts, truly benefitted low-income Kansans by encouraging work and lowering poverty rates. Increasing handouts, in contrast, trapped more Kansans into government dependency, stifling their potential success and self-reliance. Kansas
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Kansas Has Nation’s Highest Rural Property Tax: 2019 Green Book 0
- Tax & Spending
- May 10, 2019
Some of Kansas’s low economic performance may be tied to the fact that property taxes are growing too fast. In fact, 65 KS counties saw triple-digit property tax growth despite their populations shrinking. The Lincoln Land Institute found that Iola, KS has the highest rural property tax rate in the nation. By contrast, there is
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Coincidence or Preparation? Kansans Cut Shopping Equal to Vetoed Tax Windfall 0
- Tax & Spending
- April 15, 2019
Governor Kelly vetoed the tax windfall bill, raising Kansans’ income taxes to the tune of $50 million. Near the same time, the latest state tax report shows Kansans decreasing shopping by $40 million. Is this just a coincidence, or are Kansans preparing to pay for higher taxes again? It’s possible Kansas’s fiscal troubles and sluggish growth
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2019 Legislator’s Budget Guide: Reversing The Kansas Exodus 0
- Tax & Spending
- January 4, 2019
At the start of the year, Americans always seem resolved to make changes to their lives and routines. For many Kansans, those resolutions apparently mean migration to fast-growing states with governments that spend less, and tax less. This policy proposal is part of the Sandlian Center for Entrepreneurial Government’s 2019 Legislator’s Budget Guide. Find more
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Kansas Freedom Index provides legislative transparency 0
- Tax & Spending
- October 22, 2018
Speaking at a gathering of legislators and policy experts from multiple states recently, I was asked why the Republican-dominated Kansas legislature raised taxes last year instead of making government more efficient. In response, I asked, “What’s a Republican?” We all had a good chuckle, but the sad truth is that party labels don’t mean much
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