Kansas Governor Signs Tax Relief Legislation into Law; Approves Plan to Attract Chiefs and Royals to Relocate
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) – Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has signed major tax relief legislation into law. Kelly announced Friday that she has signed Senate Bill 1, bipartisan legislation that will cut taxes by about $380 million a year. It will reduce property and income taxes, eliminate the state tax on Social Security income, and increase the standard deduction and Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit. “I am proud to be delivering on my commitment to responsible, meaningful tax relief for all Kansans,” Kelly said. “I appreciate the Legislature’s quick work to pass this tax relief package... while preserving our ability to continue fully funding our public schools, roads and bridges and the State Water Plan.”
The governor also signed House Bill 2001, which enables the use of up to $700 million in STAR (Sales Tax And Revenue) Bonds to try and lure a professional sports team to Kansas, presumably the Kansas City Chiefs or Royals, or both. STAR Bonds are an economic development tool that, in this case, would allow the state to issue bonds to finance construction of a new sports stadium. The bonds would be paid off through the sales tax revenue generated by the development of the new stadium and surrounding businesses.
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Kansas Governor Signs Bills Enabling Effort to Entice Chiefs and Royals with New Stadiums
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The governor of Kansas signed legislation Friday enabling the state to lure the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and Major League Baseball's Royals away from neighboring Missouri by helping the teams pay for new stadiums.
Gov. Laura Kelly's action came three days after the Republican-led Legislature approved the measure with bipartisan supermajorities — an unusually quick turnaround that signals how urgently Kansas officials consider making the offers.
Missouri officials have argued that discussions about building new stadiums are still in the early stages. They said construction of a new one typically takes about three years, and pointed out that the lease on the existing complex that includes the teams' side-by-side stadiums doesn't end until January 2031.
The measure Kelly signed takes effect July 1 and will allow bonds to cover 70% of a new stadium's cost. The state would have 30 years to pay them off with revenues from sports betting, state lottery ticket sales, and new sales and alcohol taxes generated in the area around each proposed stadium.
The Kansas-Missouri border splits the 2.3 million-resident Kansas City area, with about 60% of the people living on the Missouri side.
Kansas officials began working on the legislation after voters on the Missouri side of the metropolitan area refused in April to continue a sales tax used to keep up the existing stadium complex. The Royals outlined a plan in February to build a $2 billion-plus ballpark in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, while the Chiefs were planning an $800 million renovation of their existing home.
Attorneys for the teams told Kansas legislators they needed to make decisions about the future soon for new stadiums to be ready on time — though the Royals had planned to move into a new downtown ballpark at the start of their 2028 season. Some critics suggested the teams are pitting the two states against each other for the biggest government subsidies possible.
“The Chiefs and the Royals are pretty much using us,” said state Rep. Susan Ruiz, a Democrat from the Kansas City, Kansas, area who voted against the bill.
Supporters of bringing the teams to Kansas warned that if neither state acts quickly enough, one or both teams could leave for another community entirely. Several economists who have studied professional sports were skeptical that a move would make financial sense for either a team or a new host city, and both the National Football League and Major League Baseball require a supermajority of owners to approve franchise moves.
The plan had support from throughout Kansas, including about half of the lawmakers from western Kansas, 200 miles away from any new stadium.
Kansas lawmakers approved the stadium financing plan during a single-day special session Tuesday. Kelly, a Democrat, called the session for the Legislature to consider tax cuts after she vetoed three previous tax plans and legislators adjourned their regular annual session May 1. On Friday, she also signed a bill that will save income and property taxpayers a total of $1.23 billion over the next three years.
Although the financing law doesn't specifically name the Chiefs or Royals, it is limited to stadiums for National Football League and Major League Baseball teams "in any state adjacent to Kansas.”
“It’s fairly clearly about how you poach,” Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas said during a news conference after Kansas lawmakers approved the measure. He added that his city would “lay out a good offer” to keep both teams in town and that the teams ”are in an exceptional leverage position.”
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Panasonic Battery Factory Nearly Halfway to Completion
UNDATED (KCUR) – The four billion dollar Panasonic electric vehicle battery factory in De Soto, Kansas, is nearly halfway done. KCUR reports that the giant facility eventually will employ about 4,000 people – that’s about 60 percent of the population of De Soto. Allan Swan, president of Panasonic’s North American arm, says the small city and surrounding areas should expect to see an increase in other jobs and spending. "There should be three additional jobs that go with one job, which is obviously potentially service industries as well was toolmakers, small engineering shops, et cetera," he added.
The facility will begin production early in 2025. The over 5 million square foot facility plans to have 500 employees starting by the end of the year. Kristen Walters, vice president of human resources, says the majority of the employees will be from Kansas, but won’t necessarily live in De Soto. "Some people might choose to locate very close to the site but right now people are choosing all across the Kansas City metro as their, as their home where they already live or if they’re relocating in," she explained.
The plant will begin operation early next year, but it will take about two more years for it to be fully completed and staffed. When it’s completed, the De Soto factory will be the largest electric vehicle battery factory in North America.
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Wichita Abortion Clinic Says It Plans to Re-open Later This Summer
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – The Wichita abortion clinic Trust Women says it’s working to reopen to patients this summer. The Kansas News Service reports that Trust Women stopped seeing patients at its Wichita clinic in late May amid a dramatic leadership shakeup. The clinic’s board fired several leaders including its executive directors and medical director. A majority of its doctors then reportedly quit. Trust Women’s board now says it’s appointed three interim medical directors and an interim finance director. It’s also hired a national health care consulting firm to provide interim leadership. The board said it will provide more updates in the coming weeks.
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Kansas Board of Regents Approves Tuition Hikes for Public Universities
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) - The price tag of a college education will go up for most Kansas students this year. The Kansas Board of Regents voted Thursday to allow five of the six major state universities to raise tuition. The increases range from a 2.8% increase at K-State to a 6% jump at Fort Hays State. The University of Kansas will increase tuition by 3.5%, across the board for resident and nonresident, undergraduate and graduate students. Emporia State is the only university that has not proposed a tuition hike. Leaders say they’ll use one-time state funding and cash reserves to balance their budget. Other university administrators say raising tuition will help offset inflation and make up for tuition freezes imposed during the pandemic.
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Kansas Turnpike Moving to Cashless Toll System Beginning July 1
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (KNS) – The Kansas Turnpike will soon be going cashless. Starting July 1, drivers on the highway from the Oklahoma border to Kansas City will no longer need to pull over to pay their toll. The Kansas News Service reports that the Kansas Turnpike Authority offers K-Tags, which are small stickers for vehicles that allow drivers to be charged automatically when they go through a cashless toll. Drivers without K-Tags will be identified by their license plate and will receive a bill in the mail. Rachel Bell of the Kansas Turnpike Authority says the new system is safer, and drivers who use cashless tolling in Texas and Colorado wanted it in Kansas too. “We do hear from customers who say 'when can we have a system like theirs, where everybody keeps moving?'”, she added. Bell says drivers can learn more about cashless tolling by visiting DriveKS.com.
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Questions Loom About Transparency of Possible Chiefs Stadium Deal in Kansas
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) -Kansas lawmakers have passed a bill that aims to bring the Kansas City Chiefs or Royals to the state but some legislators are raising concerns about whether the process will be transparent enough. A small group of lawmakers called the Legislative Coordinating Council, or LCC, would review negotiations with potential stadium developers. That means the public would not know the details of a project worth hundreds of millions of dollars until after stakeholders have reached a deal. Democratic House Minority leader Vic Miller says the process should be more open. “If we’re gonna ask the LCC to approve something so huge, the public ought to have some notice,” Miller says. But supporters like Republican Representative Sean Tarwater say secrecy is necessary to compete for large projects like this. “The problem with making an offer public for a long period of time is that every other state that’s trying to pull these teams away will know what we’re offering.” The bill awaits approval by Democratic Governor Laura Kelly.
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Kansas Plan to Lure Professional Sports Team Could Inflate STAR Bond Debt Past $1 Billion
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - A proposal is now in place, but some state lawmakers are wondering whether Kansas can really afford to lure the Chiefs and the Royals to relocate from Missouri to Kansas. Some wonder whether the state biting off more than it can chew. The state could soon issue about $700 million in STAR bonds for construction of a new sports stadium. Kansas already has more than half a billion dollars in STAR bond debt. The state has issued STAR bonds for 23 projects since 1998. Those bonds are paid off with the sales tax revenue each project generates. Some lawmakers are concerned that a new stadium for the Chiefs or Royals would be much more costly than any existing project. Representative Henry Helgerson, a Democrat from Sedgwick County, was one those vopicing concerns during Tuesday's special legislative session. “If we spend this money on the Chiefs, you will have a billion dollars less to spend for schools, or for property tax reduction," he said. Children’s Mercy Park is the biggest project so far, receiving $150 million in STAR bonds. State officials say 80% of its STAR bond projects are on track to be paid off on time.
So far, no project has come close to the estimated $700 million in bonds it would take to construct a new sports stadium for the Chiefs or Royals. Republican State Senator Virgil Peck, from Montgomery County, says lawmakers weren’t given enough time or information to weigh the financial impact of building a new professional sports stadium. “I'm not voting 'no' to the Kansas City Chiefs. I’m voting no to the rapidity of the process that we went through today," he said Tuesday.
Want to learn more? KMBC TV reports on the history of STAR Bond projects in Kansas.
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Some Kansas Lawmakers Say Property Tax Relief Isn't Sufficient
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP/KPR) - The Kansas Legislature approved major tax cuts during its special, one-day session. Yet, some lawmakers were frustrated by the lack of serious property tax relief. The Legislature cut income and property taxes by a total of $1.23 billion over the next three years. But many lawmakers say not enough was done to reduce property taxes. Under the measure approved this week... the owner of a $250,000 home will save about $76 a year.
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U.S. Mayors Discuss Homelessness and Other Issues in Kansas City
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KSHB) — City mayors from across the country have been meeting in Kansas City, Missouri, this week. KSHB TV reports that dozens of members of the United States Conference of Mayors have been meeting to discuss issues facing their cities. One of the major topics of conversation is pervasive homelessness. As summer weather continues to become hotter, cities are struggling with how to deal with the potentially life-threatening dangers for people experiencing homelessness during the summer months. Kansas City, Missouri officials are working to convert the city’s winter warming centers to summer cooling facilities but Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas says, while that measure does save lives, it's ultimately a short term solution for a deeper, ongoing problem. The mayors agreed that transportation is another, related issue Because if someone wants to work to change their life and move into stable housing, they need a way to get to a job.
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Farm Bill Proviso May Increase Awareness of "Forever Chemicals"
UNDATED (HPM) - The U.S. Senate’s version of the Farm Bill includes money to help farmers whose land was contaminated by “toxic forever chemicals” called PFAS. It would replicate a program in Maine put in place in 2022. More than 70 farms in that state were found to be contaminated by PFAS-tainted biosolids fertilizer. Sarah Alexander leads the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association. She says the proposed $500 million fund could encourage states to test biosolids for PFAS and address contamination on farms. “They're going to be offered an opportunity to have their farm bought at fair market value, so that they can start over somewhere else. And then other farmers have been able to get that direct income replacement and pivot their businesses," she said. Two years ago, the state of Michigan shut down a farmer who used fertilizer tainted with PFAS, leaving the century farm on the brink of bankruptcy. “We're hopeful that having a safety net in place will allow states to start being a little more proactive," Alexander said. The Farm Bill is still in its early stages, but Alexander believes PFAS relief has "universal support.” The current farm bill expires in September.
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New Move from Some Livestock Industry Groups to Revive Meat Labeling Requirements
UNDATED (HPM) – Some livestock groups want all meat products to clearly disclose where the livestock was born, raised and processed. As Harvest Public Media reports that they’re hoping Congress will reinstate mandatory labeling in the upcoming farm bill. The USDA recently finalized a rule that only allows meat from livestock born, raised and processed in the U.S. to be labeled a “Product of USA”. But that label is voluntary. Some in the livestock industry say country of origin labels on meat products should be required. That's something Congress halted in 2015. Tim Gibbins of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center supports mandatory labels. “One of the main purposes of a representative democracy is to enforce antitrust laws so that markets are open, fair and competitive… country of origin labeling is a first step in ensuring competition in markets,” he explained. Others argue the costs of the mandate would outweigh any benefits. There is currently no provision in either the House or Senate version of the Farm Bill. (Read more.)
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Celebrations Scheduled for Return of Sacred Boulder to Kaw Nation
UNDATED (KCUR) – Celebrations for the return of a giant, sacred boulder to a Native American tribe in Kansas are scheduled for this weekend (Saturday, June 22). KCUR reports that the Sacred Red Rock’s traditional name is Iⁿ‘zhúje‘waxóbe. In March, the 24-ton quartzite boulder was moved to land the Kaw Nation owns near Council Grove. Now, Tribal Council Vice Chair Jim Pepper Henry says it’s time to welcome the stone. “We're bringing the stone back to our motherland, so it's a way for our people to reconnect with the stone and have the stone in our stewardship on our tribal lands in Kansas,” he explained. Lawrence residents first took the boulder in 1929, for a monument to the city’s white founders. That was despite the Kaw Nation’s centuries-long relationship with it. The City of Lawrence formally apologized to the tribe in March of 2021 and pledged to return the stone. It was moved from a park in Lawrence in August 2023, and it was moved to Allegawaho Memorial Heritage Park in Council Grove, Kansas on March 20 of this year.
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Kaw River Roots Festival in Downtown Lawrence
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - Downtown Lawrence will be buzzing with the sounds of folk, bluegrass, and old-time music this weekend at the 4th Annual Kaw River Roots Festival. Grammy winning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tim O'Brien is the headliner at this year's festival. His band will be featured Saturday night and festival co-producer Mike Hannah says O’Brien’s band is always a crowd pleaser. “To have him and his band headlining on the main stage is going to be really special," he said.
Also among this year’s highlights: the return of Kansas favorites Split Lip Rayfield after a five year hiatus. More than 20 acts will appear on three stages Friday and Saturday followed by a Bluegrass Brunch on Sunday. Hannah says the music will be non-stop. “If you want to see a lot of bands in a short amount of time and not have to pay a lot, this is the kind of music festival you want to go to," Hannah said.” The Kaw River Roots Festival will be held at Abe and Jake’s Landing in Downtown Lawrence.
Find more information on this weekend’s festival at kawriverroots.com.
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Former Jayhawk Defensive End Jailed for DUI in Key West
KEY WEST, Fla. (KCTV) - A former University of Kansas Jayhawks football player is in jail in Key West, Florida after he allegedly drove his SUV into a restaurant in the resort town. The Monroe County, Florida Sheriff’s Office says 23-year-old Lonnie Phelps, a defensive end for the Cleveland Browns, was arrested Wednesday night following an alleged DUI incident. KCTV reports that Phelps has been charged with a single count of DUI damage to property and remains behind bars without bond. Police say Phelps refused to take a breath test multiple times after the crash. The Cleveland Browns announced Thursday that Phelps had been waived by the team. After his only season at KU in 2022, Phelps was signed to the Browns as an undrafted free agent. A hearing has been set for July 2.
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Authorities Investigate Deadly Early Morning Crash on I-70 Near Lawrence
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KSHB) - The Kansas Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly crash that happened on Interstate 70 early Friday morning. The Lawrence Journal World reports that authorities were called to a two-vehicle accident in the westbound lanes of I-70 at milepost 190, between Lawrence and Topeka, just after 2:20 a.m. A LifeStar air ambulance was dispatched to the scene. Firefighters at the scene report one person was killed in the crash. No other details are available.
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2 "Weak" Tornadoes Touched Down in Southwest Kansas
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Two tornadoes touched down in southwest Kansas this week but neither caused any damage. The National Weather Service says the tornadoes touched down Tuesday - one about 16 miles northwest of Kalvesta, in Finney County, and the other one near the town of Ensign, in Ford County. KSNW TV reports that both twisters were rated EFU, the weakest level on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, because no damage could be detected by weather survey teams.
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