Kansas lawmakers have finished their work.
Lawmakers adjourned the 2026 veto session early Saturday, and they did so with some success in resetting property tax policy — but not complete success. 17th District Senator Mike Argabright of Olpe says lawmakers OK’d a petition process in case local property tax revenues go above 3 percent of the prior year.
Argabright voted for the bill despite some misgivings about the local work that may be coming.
60th District Representative Mark Schreiber of Emporia says the House and Senate had different goals in mind. The House bill that ultimately passed was about local spending, while the Senate focused on valuations.
Schreiber says the bill also blunts chances for a small minority to run a local budget process.
Lawmakers did not pass a bill that would have used a rolling average for determining property tax reductions. Argabright mentioned concerns about the bill leading to lower property taxes for some people but not everybody, while Schreiber’s concern was potential increases in mill levies if valuation increases were limited. There were also concerns about components that would have seen lawmakers set policy on how long the new system would be in place and exactly how it would work.
