Helena Buchmann

Feb 25 2021

Lawmakers target governor’s powers in new emergency act proposal (KSNT)

Lawmakers are debating who should have authority and how much power the governor should have during a public health disaster.

The current disaster declaration for coronavirus runs through the end of March.

A new bill in the Kansas Senate would restrict the governor during a state of emergency. If passed, she would lose some of the powers she currently has.

“This is moving at a breakneck speed,” said Kansas City Senator David Haley. “There is an attempt to limit or muzzle the ability of a governor, specifically in this case, a Democratic governor.”

But Republicans feel like this is necessary oversight.

“When we have an elected official held accountable, somebody is held accountable to the people for the orders that are put in place,” said Leawood Senator Kellie Warren, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee where the bill is being debated.

The governor was criticized for closing businesses during the first part of the pandemic. A new bill would not allow churches to be closed, and would also take away the ability to close schools, leaving it up to local school boards.

It would also create a new committee that can decide whether to approve the governor’s executive orders and put them in place. Haley said the committee would hamper Kelly’s powers.

“Will certainly cause a disparate impact on the ability for the governor to govern,” Haley said.

Republicans said decisions by the governor need to be reviewed.

“The body closest to the people who can review the orders, is their justification for it, is there scientific evidence behind it, and the people, the citizens can know where this order is coming from,” Warren said.

The House is also working on a separate bill that is less restrictive of the governor. It was discussed for the first time Wednesday.

This article originally appeared on the KSNT website, here.

Feb 23 2021

Kansas Republicans seek amendment for legislative veto over regulations, state agencies (KC Star)

Kansas Republican lawmakers, seeking more power over what one dubbed “a fourth branch of government,” are calling for a constitutional amendment that would allow them to veto regulations issued by state agencies.

The legislative veto was proposed Tuesday by senior lawmakers and Attorney General Derek Schmidt. It would allow the legislature to review and eliminate regulations put forth by executive agencies such as the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Kansas Department of Labor.

Lawmakers passed a legislative veto measure in 1984, but the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that it violated the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers. The U.S. Supreme Court made a similar determination on the federal level in 1983.

Schmidt said Tuesday, that several states with similar rulings had since adopted constitutional amendments providing for the veto. Senior GOP legislators said Kansas needed one.

“Unfortunately over time a fourth branch of government has arose and that’s government bureaucracy,” said Speaker of the House Ron Ryckman, an Olathe Republican. “What the attorney general’s bringing forward today is something that restores the checks and balances and allows the people of Kansas to have a say in how to regulate.

It is the latest in a series of moves by Republicans, who hold a supermajority in both houses of the legislature, to limit Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s power since her election in 2018. This amendment, Schmidt said, would not impact executive orders

It would, however, limit the rulemaking power of the executive agencies under her control.

Lawmakers severely limited Kelly’s emergency powers after she issued sweeping stay-at-home orders during the pandemic. They have also blocked her administration’s efforts to merge the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability with the Kansas Department for Children and Families.

Kelly’s spokesman denounced the proposed amendment.

“Instead of doing their constitutionally-mandated work, today’s announcement is further proof that Republican leaders have no interest in doing the serious work of helping Kansas respond and recover from this crisis, they are only fixated on trying to stop the Governor from doing her job,” Kelly’s spokesman, Sam Coleman, said in a statement.

The proposed constitutional amendment must pass with a two-thirds majority in both chambers but does not need the governor’s signature. If approved, it will be one of two constitutional changes brought to voters in 2022.

In August 2022 voters will decide whether to amend the constitution to remove a right to abortion. Lawmakers have proposed that the legislative veto be placed on the November 2022 ballot.

Schmidt acknowledged that he and Republican lawmakers had become more focused on oversight and regulation following the COVID-19-related regulations issued by Kelly last year.

“This is an issue that perhaps we’ve discovered as a result of having to deal with that issue but this is an issue more generally of what should the lawmaking and rule making process look like in Kansas,” Schmidt said. “I think ultimately it ought to look much more similar to the legislative process than it does to the administrative process.”

In a statement Senate minority leader Dinah Sykes, a Lenexa Democrat, called the proposal partisan gamesmanship.

“The Legislature already has oversight over agencies in the executive branch,” Sykes said. “The proposed amendment is nothing more than yet another attempt by Attorney General Derek Schmidt and Republican leadership to undermine Governor Kelly and her cabinet while providing considerable latitude to these same politicians when they inevitably seek higher office.”

Schmidt, rumored to be planning a run for Governor in 2022, did not directly answer questions about his possible candidacy. He did deny that the proposal was related to the election.

“It’s trying to get some good policy enacted,” he said.

This article originally appeared on the Kansas City Star website, here.

Feb 23 2021

Kansas Chamber leading charge to torpedo state Board of Tax Appeals nominee (Kansas Reflector)

The behind-the-scenes campaign led by the Kansas Chamber to defeat Gov. Laura Kelly’s nominee for the state Board of Tax Appeals boiled over Tuesday as members of a Senate committee waded into the high-stakes legal fight over appraising Walmart, Home Depot and other big-box outlets for property tax purposes as if those retail buildings were vacant.

Kelly recommended Robert Marx, a Fairway appraiser with 45 years of experience in the field, in April 2020 to serve on the Kansas board that resolves disputes between taxpayers and taxing authorities. The COVID-19 pandemic prevented the Kansas Senate from voting on the appointment of Marx, who the governor said would act “impartially and thoughtfully to ensure tax fairness for all Kansans.”

His nomination ran into trouble when the Kansas Chamber launched an effort to convince the GOP-led Senate that Marx’s professional work created conflicts of interest in pending tax appeals and court cases. In particular, the Kansas Chamber argued his view on appraisal of big-box buildings rendered him unacceptable to the business lobbying organization.

Some of the Kansas Chamber’s members are involved in legal battles designed to compel cities and counties to value occupied large commercial properties as if “dark” and available to a future hypothetical user. One concern about the dark-store interpretation applicable to giant retailers would be that a greater portion of the property tax burden could be shifted to smaller businesses on Main Street.

In confirmation testimony before the Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee at the Capitol, Marx said he had earned the respect of peers in the appraisal business on a state and national level.

“This appointment would demand a broad spectrum of experience,” he said. “Experience, training, judgment to give the taxpayers a fair shake. The current economic crisis has made valuation even more difficult. I’ve had plenty of time to think this over. I think it’s time for me to step up and serve in public service.”

Eric Stafford, a statehouse lobbyist with the Kansas Chamber, distributed a letter in 2020 and more recently forwarded materials to senators in opposition to the nomination of Marx. He argued members of the Board of Tax Appeals ought to avoid the appearance of impropriety and that Marx had “both a client conflict and an issue conflict” if placed on the tax appeal board. He said Marx’s employment at appraisal firm Bliss Associates included work for Johnson and Wyandotte counties as an outside expert.

“That relationship results in a client conflict of interest. As those two counties make up 60% of all cases pending at BOTA, he would be precluded from participating in over half of all matters before the board,” Stafford’s letter to lawmakers said. “Mr. Marx was retained by Johnson County to appraise five locations in the Walmart property tax case.”

Stafford said Marx had an issue-driven conflict of interest because he represented himself as an “advocate” for rejection of the dark-store theory of appraising bit-box retailers.

In rebuttal, Marx said he had not advocated the cause or interest of any client or on any valuation matter as alleged by the Kansas Chamber.

“I’ve appraised many big-box retail stores for both county appraisers and store owners,” Marx said. “It’s the same issue no matter who I work for. I’m an independent. I trust that I’m not disqualified because I’m overqualified. I will follow the law if I’m appointed to this board. I’ll be a workhorse.”

Sen. Caryn Tyson, the Parker Republican who chairs the Senate tax committee, said she was apprehensive Marx would be a voice against the dark-store appraisal theory if confirmed to the Board of Tax Appeals. She anticipated he would operate like some judges in the state who strive to create law rather than interpret statute.

“We have people legislating from the bench in Kansas,” Tyson said. “My concern is that you may take that upon yourself to legislate from the bench and not follow the letter of the law.”

Marx said Kansas law didn’t require appraisers in Kansas to assume large commercial properties were boarded up and empty.

“There’s nothing in the law that says for me to make that hypothetical assumption, but if the courts say to do so, I am absolutely prepared to take that approach,” he said.

Sen. Tom Holland, a Baldwin City Democrat and member of the Senate tax committee, posed questions during the confirmation hearing to both Marx and Stafford, who had distributed to Senate committee members materials in the past week intended to undermine the nomination. Holland asserted the Kansas Chamber, through its membership, had a conflict of interest on the nomination due to ongoing legal disputes on property tax issues.

“You actually have members who have open cases before the court,” Holland said.

“I think it doesn’t matter,” Stafford said. “I think we’re doing what we can do to represent our membership.”

“The point I’m trying to drive home here is that I think you’re conflicted yourself,” Holland said.

Tyson suspended the confirmation hearing of Marx to allow time for gathering of additional information on the nominee that could be of use to the Senate committee.

This article originally appeared on the Kansas Reflector website, here.

Feb 12 2021

Kansas Senate passes bill expanding student tax credit to private school students (WIBW)

The Kansas Senate has passed Senate Bill 61 23-14, which expands the eligibility criteria for an educational financial assistance program.

Originally available for public school students eligible for free lunches and attending the 100 lowest-performing elementary schools, the Tax Credit for Low Income Student Scholarship Program now includes any student who receives free or reduced lunches. The bill also nixes the public school requirement.

Senate Democratic Leader Dinah Sykes added the bill to a list of recent defeats Democrats are displeased with.

“The Kansas Senate has had quite the month,” Sen. Sykes said. “We began by stripping Kansans of their constitutional rights, then put on a political show about vaccines, and on Tuesday, we blew a $1 billion hole in the state budget. Now we’re rounding out our fifth week with an attack on our public schools. What games should Kansas families expect from us next week?”

Sykes expressed concern over the lack of accountability private schools face.

“Families choose to put down roots in Kansas because of our excellent public schools,” Sen. Sykes said. “Equal access to education creates stronger communities, attracts businesses, and develops a well-prepared workforce, all of which lead to a more prosperous state. Yet Senate Republican leadership is putting public dollars in the hands of private schools, which can discriminate freely and operate without accountability to Kansas taxpayers. While high-achieving students are hand-picked by private schools, struggling children are left behind with fewer resources and under-funded schools. Senate Bill 61 is bad policy for our students and represents yet another attack on Kansas families by Senate Republican leadership and their special interest supporters.”

Senate Republicans say the new criteria helps more students.

“The current program aids hundreds of students by providing their parents new options to ensure their child’s success,” Sen. Baumgardner said. “SB 61 would simply extend this hope and opportunity to more low- and middle income students in Kansas.”

“This is about students. By expanding this targeted tax-credit program to more low-and-middle income families, we are meeting our obligation to provide all of our kids in Kansas the best opportunity to learn and excel,” Sen. Renee Erickson said.

“SB 61 embraces a student-focused mindset by empowering more low-and-middle income families in Kansas the ability to provide hope and opportunity for their kids,” a joint statement from President Ty Masterson, Vice President Rick Wilborn, and Majority Leader Gene Suellentrop reads. “The Tax Credit Low-Income Scholarship Program has already helped hundreds of families in Kansas, and through SB 61, it will help hundreds more.”

The bill now goes to the Kansas House.

This article appeared on the WIBW website, here.

Feb 12 2021

Kansas tax-cut fight revives memories of past GOP experiment (Salina Post)

Republican lawmakers in Kansas are struggling to contain their impulses to slash state income taxes, conjuring memories of a past, nationally notorious GOP tax-cutting experiment as they try to enact some reductions over Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s objections.

Some Republicans worried Wednesday that action on a tax bill by the GOP-controlled Senate actually moved them a step backward in their efforts to provide relief to individuals and businesses paying higher state taxes because of federal tax changes in 2017. Senators on Tuesday tripled the size of a GOP tax relief bill so that it would cost the state more than $1.3 billion in revenues over three years — and possibly cause budget shortfalls.

Democrats quickly suggested that Republicans were moving Kansas back toward income tax cuts enacted in 2012 and 2013 under GOP Gov. Sam Brownback. Those cuts were largely repealed in 2017 following massive, persistent budget shortfalls that forced GOP lawmakers to repeatedly cut spending and boost other taxes to keep lower income taxes.

Sen. Ethan Corson, a freshman Kansas City-area Democrat, called the Senate’s bill “a budget buster” and added: “This is a bullet train to Brownbackville.”

Brownback remains a potent political reference in his home state. Under him, Kansas became the example for other states of how not to do tax policy; he was deeply unpopular when he left office in 2018, and Kelly won the governor’s race that year largely by running against his fiscal policies.

Some Republicans had misgivings about this year’s tax bill, and four joined the Senate’s 11 Democrats in voting no.

“Fool me once, but you won’t fool me twice,” Sen. Jeff Longbine, an eastern Kansas Republican, said in explaining his no vote, adding that he would support a “reasonable” plan.

The Senate’s 24-15 vote sent the bill to the House and indicated that Republicans generally liked changes to extend tax relief to more individuals. But the bill fell three votes short of the two-thirds majority that would be necessary to override a veto from Kelly, who had earlier in the day criticized the smaller GOP plan as “unthinkable” and “particularly irresponsible” during the coronavirus pandemic.

While Democrats invoked Brownback during the debate, this year’s legislation doesn’t embody his push to phase out state income taxes or include other policies he advocated. Instead, top Republicans are focusing on returning extra state revenues generated from the federal tax changes in 2017, which were championed by former President Donald Trump.

Those federal changes discouraged people from claiming itemized deductions on their federal tax returns. Kansas law doesn’t allow people to itemize on their state returns if they don’t on their federal returns.

Republicans have argued that the state’s revenue windfall is like finding someone’s lost wallet full of cash on the sidewalk. The Senate began with a bill that would allow people to itemize on their state returns whether they do or not on their federal returns. It also contained tax breaks for businesses, with the relief totaling $423 million over three years.

Kelly vetoed two similar GOP tax relief bills in 2019, arguing that they would undermine funding for public schools and critical state services. Kelly and other Democrats also argue that the itemization and business tax relief proposals favor wealthy individuals and large corporations.

Anticipating a Kelly veto, Republicans and their allies are looking for a plan that garners supermajorities in both chambers — and that means keeping the cost to the state down, even as GOP lawmakers want broader cuts. Eric Stafford, a lobbyist for the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, said the Senate’s debate “went in the opposite direction.”

“The endgame is to get something passed, to the taxpayers,” said Senate tax committee Chair Caryn Tyson, another eastern Kansas Republican. “If we’re not producing products, then it’s not good for anybody.”

During their debate Tuesday, senators added provisions to exempt Social Security and other retirement income from taxes and a proposal from Kelly to increase the state’s standard income tax deductions by 35% over two years. But the Senate rejected Kelly’s proposals to pay for her measure by imposing the state’s 6.5% sales tax on online music, movies and streaming services and on the sale of goods on websites such as Amazon, eBay and Etsy.

Democrats said the changes broadened a bill that they initially saw as focused on helping wealthy individuals and large corporations.

Yet Sen. Tom Holland, a northeast Kansas Democrat, said, “Overall, I think it’s got some massive problems.”

The GOP-controlled House has yet to debate a tax-cutting bill, and Taxation Committee Chair Adam Smith, a western Kansas Republican, said it’s not clear yet what its Republican majority sees as its upper limit on tax relief.

But, he said of the Senate’s bill, “that’s probably not going to be feasible.”

This article appeared on the Salina Post website, here.