There may well be tax relief coming for Kansas residents before lawmakers end their official work this year.
Members of both the House and Senate overwhelmingly passed House Bill 37 on Tuesday, setting the stage for $2.3 billion in tax relief over a five-year period if Governor Laura Kelly approves.
This version of a plan championed by Republicans keeps the party’s two-rate system from other recent versions as opposed to the single-rate plan from early in the session or the three-rate setup in the governor’s plan, but it moves the top rate down from 5.7 percent to 5.57 percent and it lowers the bottom rate from 5.25 percent to 5.2 percent. It also exempts Social Security income from the state’s individual income tax, eliminates the groceries sales tax on July 1, increases standard deductions and personal exemptions and raises the property exemption for school finance purposes from $42,000 to $100,000.
The bill passed the Senate by a 25-9 vote despite concerns the governor may veto this version due to concerns about sustainable revenues the next three to five years. 17th District Senator Jeff Longbine of Emporia was absent and did not vote. It also passed the House 108-11. 13th District Representative Duane Droge of Eureka and 76th District Representative Eric Smith of Burlington were both in favor. 60th District Representative Mark Schreiber of Emporia was absent and did not vote.
