GOP lawmakers approve a 'flat' income tax for Kansas, but a governor's veto looms
Republican lawmakers in Kansas have passed a broad package of tax cuts promoted as widespread relief
TOPEKA, Kan. — Republican lawmakers in Kansas on Thursday passed a broad package of tax cuts promoted as widespread relief that the Democratic governor is likely to veto because she says it favors the wealthy and threatens the state’s budget in the future.
The opposing viewpoints kept the two sides locked in a political impasse as the window for meaningful tax cuts narrows.
The GOP-supermajority Legislature approved a plan to cut income, sales and property taxes by a total of nearly $1.6 billion over the next three years. But Gov. Laura Kelly is expected to veto the bill because it would move Kansas to a single personal income tax rate of 5.25% to replace three rates that now top out at 5.7%.
The measure cleared the Legislature on an 81-37 vote in the House after the Senate approved it Wednesday, 25-11. While Republicans appeared to have the two-thirds majority in the House to override a veto, the defections of two Republicans and a conservative independent in the Senate appear to leave them at least a vote short there.
A similar dispute thwarted big tax cuts last year, when a dozen other states cut taxes, according to the conservative-leaning Tax Foundation.
Kelly's office wasn't commenting Thursday, but she's been public about her strong opposition to the “flat” tax proposal, viewing it as a boon to the state's “super wealthy.” Also, her office released a projection Thursday showing that the GOP plan would cause a budget shortfall in 2029.
Democratic state Rep. Henry Helgerson of Wichita argued during Thursday's debate that lawmakers cannot enact the Republicans' tax cuts without committing to budget cuts first.
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