Hard legislative session about to begin
No legislative session is easy. But the one that convenes Monday will be especially challenging, as state lawmakers must plug a large budget shortfall and draft a new school funding formula.
But the election of many new lawmakers also raises hope that a new bipartisan majority will reverse some of the disastrous policies of Gov. Sam Brownback and right the state’s financial ship.
The most immediate challenge will be the budget shortfall. It is currently projected to be about $900 million over the next 18 months – but that total could increase substantially after the Kansas Supreme Court rules on whether the state is adequately funding K-12 public education.
Brownback didn’t enact any budget allotment cuts this fall – and won’t reveal his budget plan until later this week. But his plan likely will include more reliance on one-time money – such as raiding the state’s long-term investment fund.
Such moves may be necessary to get through the current fiscal year, given its short time frame. But solving the state budget problems for next fiscal year and beyond will require both spending cuts and more revenue.
Most of the new lawmakers campaigned on reversing some of the tax cuts that Brownback championed. In particular, they – and a large majority of the public, according to a recent poll – want the state to eliminate the tax exemption on pass-through business income.
Other possibilities might include returning some or all of the individual income tax rates to their previous levels and increasing the gasoline tax.
None of these actions would be easy politically – especially when Brownback is still in denial about his tax policies.
The other huge challenge is crafting a new school funding formula. This was made necessary after Brownback and the Legislature unwisely scrapped the previous formula without first developing a replacement.
Agreeing on a new formula could be difficult, as it must account for the wide range of sizes, locations and needs in the state’s school districts. These variances can make it challenging to find the legislative majorities needed to approve a new formula, especially when the state already has money problems.
If these legislative challenges weren’t enough, most of the new lawmakers – and the public – also want the state to expand Medicaid, which Brownback opposes. Also, Rep. Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, and other lawmakers want to reverse Medicaid reimbursement cuts enacted by Brownback, and there are serious concerns about the state’s social service programs.
That’s a lot to resolve in one session. But the problems created by Brownback and previous legislatures have festered for too long. It’s time to clean up the mess.
This story was originally published January 8, 2017 at 5:05 AM with the headline "Hard legislative session about to begin."