Staff Attorney Chris Atkins and I recently traveled to Kansas to promote our upcoming study on Kansas’ tax climate. The Kansas chapter of Americans for Prosperity and the Flint Hills Center for Public Policy provided tremendous support during our venture. To read some of the news coverage from our trip, click here. We presented our preliminary findings to elected officials, business leaders and community activists and their response was overwhelming. Momentum is building in Kansas for a reduction in marginal tax rates and the adoption of a Taxpayer Bill of Rights. In 2005, residents of Kansas paid the 15th highest state and local tax burden in the nation and our most recent Business Tax Climate Index ranks Kansas 34th nationally. The current debate over additional education funding will surely not disappear anytime soon. However, we pointed out that lawmakers need to consider investing surplus tax dollars to improve Kansas’ business tax climate and make Kansas a more attractive location for capital investment. The final version of our Kansas report should be available on our website in the near future.
