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Tom Sawyer feels that we made some progress in cutting waste, but more work needs to be done.  He feels we need to budget carefully so that we cut the waste but don't take a meat ax to vital state programs and our children's education. 

Tom also feels that the state should pay its debts off during the good times so that we won't have to raise taxes or cut vital programs during the bad times.

In 2017 Tom Sawyer led the fight to close the tax loophole that allowed over 330,000 business owners (some of which make many millions of dollars) to pay no Kansas income tax.  That reckless tax plan devastated our budget and it is going to take awhile for our state to recover. 

Tom is fighting hard to continue the rebuilding process and work against those that want to once again give big tax breaks to the wealthy.  We can't afford to go back.  We must learn from our mistakes and we can not afford to repeat them.

Tom Sawyer values a good education system that is accountable to the public

He feels that the state could improve our children's education by reducing class sizes in the early grades.  Tom feels that class sizes need to be small and administration should be even smaller.  He feels that teachers can make a huge difference in our children's lives and we need to do everything we can to retain our good teachers. 

Our children's education needs to be our top budget priority instead of a last minute afterthought at the end of the session.  The reckless 2012 tax plan forced many school districts to make deep cuts.  In 2018, Tom Sawyer supported a 5 year plan that has been approved by the courts to restore our children's education funding to constitutionally accepted levels.  In 2022 the legislature passed a budget that fully funds our children's education for the fourth straight year. 

Tom Sawyer values a society that takes care of its seniors. 

He has fought to protect our senior citizens. He has worked to keep them from paying state income taxes on their social security, to increase their homestead tax refund and supported programs that help them

to stay in their homes as long as possible.  Tom has received awards and honors recognizing him for his work in behalf of our seniors.  In 2022 we passed a law that gives a tax rebate to homeowners 65 & over (who make $50K or less) that covers the entire annual increase in their property taxes. 

Unfortunately the reckless 2012 tax plan put some of our senior programs in jeopardy.  We are rebuilding our programs for seniors but it is going to take some time to get them fully restored. 

Tom Sawyer values good paying jobs.  

When Tom Sawyer previously served in the house, he worked to pass a bill that could bring a thousand new high paying aircraft maintenance jobs to Wichita.  Tom also supported the BioSciences bill that could bring us many high paying jobs in the future.  And when Tom Sawyer found out that the State was outsourcing call center jobs overseas, he offered an amendment that put a stop to it!  

Tom also feels that we need to make it easier for our kids to get a higher education. He feels that the state should use some of its lottery and gaming money for college scholarships.  One of the best ways to attract new high paying jobs to Kansas is by providing companies with a well educated, highly trained workforce.

In 2020, Tom Sawyer worked across party lines to extend unemployment benefits and to end the one week waiting period to receive unemployment compensation.  

Last year Tom Sawyer introduced a 9 point plan to bring more good paying jobs to Wichita. This session several of these provisions were passed, including a bill that will keep and even increase aviation jobs in Kansas. 

Tom Sawyer on the house floor leading the debate against the huge 2015 tax increase.  Unfortunately he lost that battle as the pro Brownback forces were able to get the bare minimum number of votes needed to give Kansas the second highest tax on food in the nation. Tom Sawyer has been dedicated to reducing and eventually eliminating the Kansas sales tax on food. Kansas is one of just 14 states that still tax food at all.   This session the Governor signed into law a bill that cuts the food sales tax to 0% phased in over 3 years. 

Tom Sawyer values a fair tax system that allows families to succeed and prosper. 

In 2022, Tom Sawyer supported laws that will cut our State Sales Tax on food to 0% over 3 years, doubles the homestead property tax exemption- giving every homeowner a $92 tax cut,  and a tax rebate for seniors & disabled veterans that is equal to any increase in their property taxes. 

But that is not new for Tom Sawyer.  He has a long history of cutting taxes for Kansas families and Seniors:

In 1992, as House Majority Leader, he led the effort to rewrite our school finance formula that reduced our property taxes by 29%.  In 1995, he led the effort that cut our motor vehicle taxes by 50% over 5 years.  In 1996, he led the effort to give us a homestead exemption that cut every homeowners property taxes. 

In 2015, Tom led the fight against the Brownback tax increase that gave us the second highest tax on food in the country.  

Since 1999 our property taxes have risen by 94%.  In 2016 he worked with a bipartisan group of legislators to put a property tax lid in place so that property taxes don't go any higher. 

In 2017, Tom Sawyer led the fight to end the tax loophole that allowed over 330,000 business owners to pay no Kansas Income Tax (some of which make millions of dollars). 

Tom Sawyer has long called for the elimination of the sales tax on food.  He promised that once the state had recovered from the 2012 reckless tax plan and the economy improved, he would once again push to eliminate this unfair tax. 

  In 2021 Tom Sawyer introduced HB 2487 that would eliminate the food sales tax by July 1, 2022.  In 2022, the Governor signed into a law, a bill that cuts the food sales tax to 0% over 3 years. 

Tom Sawyer values a safe community. 

He feels that if we aren't safe in our homes nothing else matters much.  Tom Sawyer is a strong supporter of Community policing and supports giving law enforcement the tools they need to keep us safe. 

 Tom Sawyer also supports Criminal Justice Reform.  He feels that our prison space should be occupied by dangerous criminals, while those with substance abuse problems need to be in treatment programs. 

The Kansas State Troopers Association recognizes his work and have endorsed him over the years.

Tom Sawyer values good, affordable health care.

Tom feels that Doctors and Patients should be in charge of health care decisions.  He is working to make prescription drugs more affordable and to make health insurance more affordable and available to all Kansans.  He is working to expand Medicaid coverage so that 150,000 more working Kansans can have health insurance.  He is also working to make cannabis a legal option for those in pain and against bills that further restrict women's health care options.

Tom Sawyer values an open government that is accountable to the voters. 

He  led the fight to improve the campaign and ethics laws in Kansas government.  As chair of the House Ethics and Elections committee in 1991 he led the effort to pass the biggest ethics reform law ever passed in Kansas. 

He continues his fight to reduce the influence of special interest lobbyists and to make Kansas Government more accountable to the public.  In the 2008 session he co-sponsored a bill that will make it easier for the district attorney to prosecute violations of the Kansas Open Meetings Act.

For years He has been pushing to have all legislative hearings and committee meetings broadcast over the web.  In 2021, He got the job done.  Now ALL Legislative Committee meetings and floor sessions are broadcast LIVE on the internet and can be watched again later on You Tube.  You can watch & even participate in Legislative committee meetings from the comfort of your home.  NO MORE SECRET MEETINGS!