Letter to the Editor

To the Editor:

This week, the Kansas House of Representatives sent House Bill 2117 to the desk of Gov. Sam Brownback for signature or veto. The bill drastically cuts Kansas income taxes and makes other significant changes to the Kansas tax code. It is an initiative that Gov. Brownback has advocated for since taking office. The fiscal impact of this tax bill is astronomical. Our non-partisan Kansas Legislative Research Department projects that it will turn our current $600 million surplus into a $2.5 billion deficit within just four years. To add to the crisis, House Bill 2117 will create tax policy that will grow Kansas into a deficit of $4.5 billion by 2018.

The tax bill will reward big corporations and our wealthiest citizens with massive tax breaks on the unproven claim that tax cuts for corporations and the rich will automatically create new jobs. At the same time the bill increases taxes on the poor. In order to pay for his tax plan, Gov. Brownback is risking all the public investments that have been empirically proven to strengthen the economy -- schools, infrastructure, etc. It is nothing short of high-stakes gambling.

Kansas schools have endured hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts over the last few years. USD 235 has felt the pain firsthand as we eliminated programs, laid off staff and raised mill levies. The state will never be able to afford to restore any of those funds if we're bleeding $800-plus million a year in revenue for tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the wealthy. The dismal level of funding your school currently receives will soon become a level that is below our imagination. There is no way to know specifically how much more school funding will be cut as a result of this legislation. For example, the $250 million in cuts schools have absorbed so far were implemented to help fill a "mere" $1 billion deficit (a much smaller figure than $2.5 billion). If you translate previous cuts into comparative numbers, USD 235 would lose approximately $750 per FTE (adjusted full-time equivalent enrollment) or a total of $696,375 since we have an FTE of 928.5 students

House Bill 2117 will have a negative impact on our local mill rates, our local communities, our local school districts, county services and in general the total quality of life we appreciate as Kansas citizens.

If you want to protect your school and your community from being pushed into a permanent state of fiscal crisis, I urge you to write a letter or call your legislator and to call or write a letter to Gov. Brownback's office. Voice your displeasure and urge the Governor to veto House Bill 2117. If this tax bill becomes law, it will run the state of Kansas into bankruptcy.

If you care about schools and if you care about the financial solvency of Kansas, contact your legislator and your governor and let them know how you feel.

Randy Rockhold

Superintendent USD 235

Uniontown