Effort to eliminate food sales tax falls short in Kansas Senate

An effort to force a vote on eliminating the state’s sales tax on food failed Tuesday, although a majority of senators supported the idea.

Sen. Tom Holland, D-Baldwin City, tried to bring to a floor vote a resolution to phase out the food tax. The resolution was in legislative limbo at the bottom of the Senate calendar.

Holland’s motion drew support of 21 senators, to 19 in opposition.

But that simple majority wasn’t enough. If Senate leadership doesn’t want a bill to come to a vote, it takes 27 senators’ votes to override that decision.

The measure is Senate Concurrent Resolution 1612, which would amend the state Constitution to reduce the food tax to zero in three steps. It would need approval by two-thirds of both the House and Senate and by the public.

The state sales tax on food purchases would drop from the current 6.5 percent to 4 percent in July 2017, 2 percent in 2018 and zero in 2019.

Senators supporting the phase-out contended that Kansas has some of the highest – possibly the highest – sales taxes on food. Many states, including neighboring Missouri, have lower rates for food purchases than other products and some states exempt food from sales taxes entirely.

“I think everybody understands this (food) is a necessity for our constituents,” said Sen. Kay Wolf, R-Prairie Village.

Opponents worried about the cost to the state of giving up the tax revenue: $155 million the first year, $305 million the second year and $464 million in the third year.

“I think it’s a good idea to take a look at the sales tax on food; this isn’t the place to do it,” said Sen. Steve Abrams, R-Arkansas City.

Phasing out the food sales tax would put pressure on the Legislature to revisit some of the income-tax relief it approved in 2012, particularly the zero tax rate for owners of limited liability companies, corporations organized under subchapter S of the federal tax code, and some other businesses.

That would strike at the heart of Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax policy, which is based on reducing and eventually eliminating income taxes and relying more on sales and other consumption taxes to fund government.

Brownback has said he would veto any bills that tamper with his income-tax cuts.

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 5:40 PM with the headline "Effort to eliminate food sales tax falls short in Kansas Senate."