Kansas Secretary of Transportation Mike King is asking lawmakers not to touch one of KDOT’s funding sources. Lawmakers will be looking for ways to fill a budget gap, and the money could be attractive. KPR’s Stephen Korandareports four-tenths of a percent of the state sales tax goes to KDOT for road projects.
Secretary King says the sales tax funding is a steady source of income, which is important when they’re borrowing money.
“The people that are loaning us money, they want to see what are your assets, what’s your cash and what’s your salary look like. Our salary has included this four-tenths,” says King.
King says diverting that sales tax money away from KDOT would impact construction projects.
“You take that four-tenths away from us and you take our borrowing ability away from us. We would cut projects, and we would cut projects in this calendar year,” says King.
Governor Sam Brownback hasn’t proposed taking the sales tax money, but he’s asking to divert other dollars from the state highway fund.