Members of the Kansas House have rejected a bill that combined a new school funding system and a tax increase. The 91-32 vote split Republicans. Some conservatives opposed raising taxes. Other Republicans said the two big issues shouldn’t be tied together.
Democrats also opposed the bill, including Representative Cindy Neighbor. She said the proposal would not balance the budget, meaning more deficits in the coming years.
“I guess I wonder how many times we want to continue to come in and look at this? This is not the answer,” said Neighbor.
Supporters of the plan said it was a grand bargain that could help end the session, which is now the second-longest in state history.