Let's cut to what's really special....

No it's not about a costly special session, it's about cutting taxes for Kansas families

I wrote out a long piece earlier about the special session that’s been called on Nov. 22 to address the long, strong grip of the federal government, vaccine mandates, and legitimate questions about the conflicts of Constitutional rights.

But I decided I don’t want to waste much time on that because a.) this special session is a waste of time and taxpayer money, and b.) when it’s over the people who absurdly think they’re enduring the same abuse as Holocaust victims still won’t be appeased.

I will, however, offer a few possible explanations for the special session kerfuffle. Then we’ll go on to topic that actually matters to most people - like answering your questions about the exciting news that Kansas is at last poised to eliminate the sales tax on food.

A few possible reasons for the special session drama -

1. This is part of a long and continuing ad campaign for extremist lawmakers who are inflaming debate about vaccines for political gain. And they’re spending a lot of your tax dollars to do it - $65,000 or so for each day of a special legislative session. These politicians who are openly, and with hostility, working to keep people angry, scared, and divided are doing more to destroy our country than any terrorist group could ever hope to achieve. There is a way to have a conversation about the proper role of the federal government without the rhetoric of abuse, war, and destruction.

2. It’s an easy distraction from the conversation about state revenues and the fact that after years of rejection by the ruling party in the Kansas legislature, we have a Governor who has managed the state’s budget in a way that we can finally cut taxes for the average family - starting with the obnoxious sales tax on food.

3. Sen. Ty Masterson, who is spearheading the special session effort and championing the cries of “overreach” risks losing his Koch-funded job at Wichita State University. The Kansas Board of Regents recently indicated that several universities fall under the federal rules, and must comply or risk losing federal contracts. Sen. Masterson has been a vocal vaccine opponent, and his most recent Statement of Substantial Interest indicates that he is employed by WSU. (You can look it up here if you don’t want to take my word for it). I can’t say for certain if that’s the driving factor, but it sure seems like a legitimate question someone ought to ask. (Full disclosure - I, for a short time several years ago, worked on a contract basis for a division of WSU).

   Now, let’s get on to something that actually matters

   On Monday, Gov. Kelly unveiled her plan to eliminate the state sales tax on food - an issue that she campaigned on in 2018, and an issue that has long been a topic of conversation in the Kansas Legislature.

   A lot of Kansans are interested in repealing this tax, but as the news unfolded last week, it seems a lot of people had questions, too. I’m going to do my best to answer some of those questions here. If there’s something I’ve missed shoot me a message and I’ll try to find an answer.

   Q. Does this include food sold at restaurants?

   A. The proposal will likely only apply to unprepared food. The legislation will have to make it through the next session, and it could come out with a number of changes. But generally, when we talk about not taxing food, we are talking about the groceries you buy for home.

   Q. Will I still pay local sales taxes on the groceries I buy?

   A. Yes. I’m sure you don’t want to get into a detailed and boring conversation about the mechanics of state and local sales tax collections, but the simple answer is that local taxes will remain in place. Local voters have approved those, and that state can’t come in and undo those unilaterally. Also, local sales taxes are often used to offset property taxes, so taking out the local tax on food could lead to budget challenges for local governments.

   Q. How much will I save?

   A. That’s going to depend on how much you buy. But the early estimates are that this will save Kansas families on average around $500 per year. Probably much more if you have teenagers in your home.

   Q. Where does this tax currently go or how is it spent?

   A. The sales tax collected on food goes into the state general fund. Once there, it is distributed on state spending through the legislative budgeting process. There’s not a good way to draw a direct line between every penny of sales tax on groceries collected and where it’s ultimately spent. But like much state spending, it’s pooled together and then spent on state functions.

   Q. How much money will this be? How will we replace this loss of state revenue?

   A. This was an interesting question - because it’s one I seldom hear when we’re twisting ourselves in knots trying to give tax money away to giant corporations year after year after year. Suddenly, now that we’re looking to create a real tax break for Kansas families, it seems budget hawks are crawling out of the woodwork. But fear not - our budget is currently in exceptional shape. The estimated cost of the tax cut is between $400 and $450 million a year. But according to the most recent revenue estimates that came out on Nov. 10, Kansas has experienced robust tax collections in the past year, and that is expected to continue in the coming year.

   Q. Will other taxes go up to pay for this tax cut?

   A. Again, I found this interesting since I seldom hear this question raised when we’re giving away truck loads of money to corporations. But the short answer is no - there’s no need to raise other taxes. There’s more than enough surplus to cover the cost of eliminating the sales tax on food.

   Q. Will this include Farmer’s Markets?

   A. Yes, that’s the plan.

   Q. Didn’t the Attorney General come out with this idea too?

   A. This one makes me laugh. Out Loud, even. It’s true that GOP Gubernatorial candidate Derek Schmidt sent out a hastily scribbled note the Friday before Gov. Kelly announced her plan on Nov. 8. I suspect his people caught wind of the governor’s plan for Monday and decided to pre-empt her with an anemic Friday evening message. But when Gov. Kelly came out Monday with organized press events, graphics and a real plan, it was clear that her staff had been working on this for a considerable time. (I know there have been internal conversations well before Schmidt’s announcement) And it was equally clear that Schmidt’s team was weakly attempting to steal the thunder. The truth is that Republicans have run the legislature for all but about three sessions in Kansas’ entire history. They could’ve eliminated the sales tax on food anytime, but it hasn’t happened.

   A. Didn’t Gov. Kelly veto a reduction in the food sales tax last year?

   Well, she vetoed a tax bill that had a 1-cent reduction in the food sales tax that was included in a bunch of other tax packages - including letting corporations not pay taxes on income they’ve been hiding overseas. That’s not the same as a real and substantive reduction or elimination of the food sales tax. The truth is that there have been many attempts to significantly reduce or eliminate the sales tax on food in the legislature - in fact Democrats attempt to amend just about every tax bill that comes up to cut the food sales tax. But hey have consistently been rejected by the ruling party, whittled down to almost nothing, combined with tax cuts for rich folks, or tied to other tax increases to offset the cost.

   Q. Is it just food, or other necessities, like toiletries and hygiene products?

   A. One step at a time, man! Sure we’d all like to exempt these items from taxes. But let’s get the food part done first, provide meaningful relief to Kansas families, and then over time add some of these other elements into the mix.

   Q. How long, and why, have we been taxing food in Kansas?

   A. In response to the challenges of the Great Depression, Kansas and many other states enacted sales taxes in the 1930s. Twelve states had a tax in 1930, while 30 states, including Kansas (1937) had a tax by 1940.

   The tax was increased a number of times over the years:

   1937 – 2.0% 

   1958 – 2.5% 

   1965 – 3.0% 

   1986 – 4.0% 

   1989 – 4.25% 

   1992 – 4.9% 

   2002 – 5.3% (planned drop to 5.0% later repealed) 

   2010 – 6.3% (planned drop to 5.7% later amended) 

   2013 – 6.15% 

   2015 – 6.50% 

In 1978, there was a recognition that taxing food affected elderly and lower income families unfairly - and the Food Sales Tax Rebate program was created to rebate some tax on food. That was expanded in 1986, 1998, 2002, and 2010. Under Governor Sam Brownback, who needed to pay for his income tax cut for wealthy individuals and companies, the program was eliminated and the sales tax twice increased.

If you have other questions, send them my way.

As we move closer to the 2022 Legislative session and the debate on eliminating the state’s sales tax on food, it will be important that Kansans insist on a clean bill addressing the sales tax issue. There will undoubtedly be an effort to mix this in with other tax cuts as a way to challenge people to vote against it, or to draw a veto from the governor. But Kansans can push back on this - we all need to demand a clean bill on eliminating the sales tax on food. If lawmakers must explore their corporate tax cut desires, they can do it in a different piece of legislation.