How do you go from having a $3 billion budget surplus and stable tax revenue to broke in just a few years? By repeatedly spending more than you take in. General Fund spending has pretty much been out of control since 2018, the year after the Legislature passed the largest tax increase in state history. […]| Kansas Policy Institute
The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) jobs report landed like a thunderclap in Washington — and it could send shockwaves to Topeka. For July, the BLS reported 73,000 net new jobs nationwide, 83,000 in the private sector, offset by a loss of 10,000 in government jobs. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2%, and […]| Kansas Policy Institute
Americans are voting with their feet, and states are either competing for them—or watching them leave. Kansas is victims to residents moving away.| Kansas Policy Institute
Kansas just got played. Again. Panasonic’s $4 billion EV battery plant in De Soto—touted as the state’s biggest economic development deal ever—is now delayed. Why? Because the federal government finally decided to stop propping up the electric vehicle market with taxpayer cash. President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” kills the $7,500 new EV tax credit and […]| Kansas Policy Institute
The Kansas budget is out of control. Despite recent increases in revenue, taxpayers are still on the hook for poor government spending habits.| Kansas Policy Institute
Data provided by the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System shows that Kansas has 4,758 KPERS ‘millionaires’—state and local government retirees who will collect at least $1 million in pension benefits over their first 20 years of retirement. That is an increase of 380 over last year. The complete list of KPERS ‘millionaires’ can be found at KansasOpenGov.org. […]| Kansas Policy Institute
Runaway property tax hikes deliver large pay increases for many local government employees.| Kansas Policy Institute
As the Kansas Legislature convenes on January 13, 2025, lawmakers face key debates, including tax reform and the push for Medicaid expansion. Amid these| Kansas Policy Institute
The Kansas Legislature should start to right this overspending by passing a budget far below the 2026 Responsible Kansas Budget. Using the average population| Kansas Policy Institute