The League of Kansas Municipalities is planning to push legislation that would allow greater flexibility in increasing property taxes without first seeking voter approval.
As The Topeka Capital-Journal reports, the organization, which represents Kansas’ local governments, said it supports amending a 2015 property tax lid law that requires cities and counties to seek voter approval before they can adopt a budget that increases the spending of property tax revenues beyond a five-year average rate of inflation.
There are currently two pending measures relating to the tax lid – one that would repeal it altogether and another that would make bigger budgets subject to protest petitions, not automatically requiring an election. That measure is supported by the League of Kansas Municipalities.
Erik Sartorius, the league’s executive director, said local governments would prefer to see the tax lid repealed entirely, but they don’t see that as a possibility this year.
The tax lid is of significance now because Kansas cities and counties are beginning to prepare their budgets for calendar year 2018.