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Information about State Representative Tom Sawyer
Following is a summary of some of the key issues that were debated this past session. You can let me know what you think of these and other issues by texting me at 316-265-7096 or on facebook or by emailing me at reptomsawyer@gmail.com. It is a pleasure representing you in Topeka and I always enjoy hearing your ideas and concerns.
-Tom
Governor Kelly signs bill into law to implement new 988 Mental Health Hotline
The Kansas Legislature passed SB 62 into law this year which funds and implements the new 988 Mental Health Hotline.
Starting July 16, Kansans can call or text 988 from any phone and be connected to a mental health crisis center 24 hours a day.
988 is for anyone who is need of mental health support for themselves or a friend or loved one.
Governor Kelly signed the new bill into law at a ceremonial bill signing in Wichita at the Sedgwick County Courthouse.
State Axes Food Tax
The Governor signed into law, a bill that phases out the state sales tax on food over 3 years.
The law cuts the state food tax to 4.5% on January 1, 2023, then to 2% on January 1, 2024 and then to 0 on January 1, 2025.
I introduced HB 2487 which would have cut the state sales tax on food to 0% on July 1, 2022.
While I wanted to cut if faster, I did support the bi-partisan compromise bill that phases out the tax over 3 years.
I do intend to introduce another bill this December to take the food sales tax to 0% on April 1, 2023. State revenues have come in very strong since we passed the food sales tax phase out bill and I do believe that the votes are now there to take the food sales tax to 0% immediately.
Property Taxes Cut for all Homeowners
The Legislature passed HB 2239 which increases the Homestead property tax exemption for the 20-mill levy for public schools from $20,000 of valuation to $40,000 starting in tax year 2022.
This exemption will provide homeowners with an annual $92 reduction in their property taxes.
I was a strong advocate of implementing the original $20,000 homestead exemption and have fought off numerous attempts over the years to eliminate it. I was happy to help get it increased this year.
HB 2239 also includes Property Tax Rebates for Seniors & Disabled Veterans
HB 2239 also provides property tax rebates for seniors 65 & older or disabled veterans whose household income is $50,000 or less.
The Homeowner would get a rebate equal in amount to any increase in their property taxes over the base year (2021) or from the previous year they joined the program whichever is later.
For example, if the homeowner's property taxes were $900 in 2021 and they were $990 this year, they would get a $90 rebate. If their property taxes go up to $1090 next year, then they would get a $190 rebate in 2023.
I supported this bill, the Homestead exemption helps all homeowners. I also feel that seniors & disabled veterans have given us a lot and deserve to live without having the worry of being taxed out of their homes.
Kansas House passes historic bill to legalize Medical Cannabis- bill stalls in Senate
For the first time in Kansas History, the House passed a bill that would legalize the use of cannabis for medical purposes.
I worked closely with House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins (R-Wichita) to get the bill passed. All 39 Democrats voted for the bill as well as 40 of the 85 Republicans- making it a truly bi-partisan bill.
A sweeping number of states across the country have legalized cannabis in one form or another. Kansas remains one of only a few states where marijuana use is still wholly prohibited and would have been the 48th to legalize medical access. Advocates for the bill point to evidence of unique health benefits and economic boons in states with legalized medical access to cannabis as reason to embrace this policy in Kansas.
The bill now sits in the Senate, where the Senate President has promised to work the bill next session.
While this battle is far from over, Medical Cannabis has a real shot at becoming law next year
All Legislative Committee Meetings and Floor Sessions Now Broadcast Live on the Internet
For years I have supported broadcasting all Legislative meetings live on the internet. Last year we were finally able to upgrade ALL legislative committee rooms and both the House and Senate floors with new audio and visual equipment so that every meeting could be broadcast live.
Now you can watch and even participate in any Legislative committee meeting or full session from home over the internet. It is a huge opportunity for more transparency and for more people to participate in the legislative process. Meetings are also available to watch later on you tube. NO MORE SECRET MEETINGS!
Disabled Veterans & Teachers Get An Income Tax Break
This years Tax bill also includes an income tax cut for Teachers and Disabled Veterans. Veterans who were Honorably Discharged and disabled through military service now receive an extra personal exemption on their income taxes. The additional exemption will reduce their state adjusted gross income by $2250.
Teachers will receive an income tax credit equal to the amount of money they spent on classroom supplies during the past year. The teacher supply tax credit is capped at $250 per year.
These are two well deserved tax breaks.
Legislature Passes Bill to Keep & Increase the Number of Aviation Jobs in Kansas
One of the proposals in my 9 point plan to increase jobs in Wichita and Kansas is a bill to provide educational tax credits for aerospace industry workers. The provisions of that bill passed this year in HB 2239:
The bill encourages workers to consider a career in the Kansas aerospace industry by creating a $5,000 tax credit for taxpayers who become qualified employees during the taxable year and for four succeeding years of employment. This $25,000 incentive over five years is designed to attract Kansans and out-of-state workers to remain or locate to Kansas for available aviation jobs.
The bill also provides a tax credit to employers for paying for tuition for their workers. As an incentive to increase the aerospace industry talent pool in Kansas, the bill encourages aviation employers to offer tuition reimbursement for their employees by providing a tax credit for tuition, capped at 50% of the total reimbursement, paid to qualifying employees who graduate from an accredited engineering or technology undergraduate or graduate degree program, an associate of applied science degree program, or a career technical program. This credit can be claimed if the qualified employee graduates from a qualified program within one year of obtaining employment and may be claimed each year for up to four years.
Oklahoma has successfully used this program to increase their aviation jobs and frankly steal workers from Kansas. This program should help keep and increase good paying aviation industry jobs in Wichita.
Sports Betting Passes
Starting September 1, 2022 Kansans will be able to place bets legally on sporting events. SB 84 allows both online betting and in-person sports wagering at the four Kansas state owned and operated casinos and at 50 other locations across the state designated by the casinos. Provisions of the bill will also allow the Native American Nations to provide sports wagering at their casinos.
Proponents of the measure argued that many Kansans already do sports betting and that it was time for the state to regulate and tax this activity. The bill also provides that some of the money will go into a problem gaming fund to help those with addictions.
The bill passed with a large bi-partisan majority.
State Spending should reflect our values
The most powerful
expression of our values appears in the form of the annual state
budget. I believe that the state should budget like a family.
A family lives within its means while taking care of its children and its
seniors.
I feel that the state should budget like we are on a low sugar diet. We need to cut waste while improving the efficiency & effectiveness of state programs.
While we made progress in coming up with real savings and making state government more efficient, we need to do more. For example, in 2009 we implemented a plan to make our state buildings more energy efficient. This plan should save us millions of dollars over the next 20 years.
In 2012 the Legislature passed a reckless tax plan that devastated the state budget. Part of the decline was anticipated, but the reduction in state income tax revenue was much greater than expected.
Overall the state was taking in about $700 million less annually than it did before the reckless 2012 tax plan was implemented. As a result both Moody's and Standard & Poors downgraded the state's credit rating.
As the state spent more than it took in, the Governor Brownback used transfers from the State Highway Fund, the state retirement fund and the Children's Initiative Fund to balance the state budget.
MORE ON THE STATE BUDGET
In 2015, the Legislature passed a huge tax increase (hailed by many newspapers as the largest tax increase in Kansas History). This huge tax increase gave Kansas the second highest sales tax on food in the country. I led the floor debate against this huge tax increase on working families and seniors. Unfortunately we lost as the Pro-Brownback forces were able to get the bare minimum number of votes needed to pass the bill.
Instead of higher food taxes, we needed the 330,000 business owners who were removed completely from the income tax rolls in 2012 to pay their fair share.
State budgeting is a complicated process that involves tough choices,compromise and prioritizing at several levels of government. I am committed to keeping our budget priorities in touch with the priorities of everyday Kansans. I will also continue to work in a bi-partisan manner to balance the budget without tax increases on working families or seniors.
Unfortunately after the passage of the 2012 tax plan, the "Slash & Burn" approach mostly won out over those of us advocating for cutting waste and improving efficiency.
The budget ignored or dramatically reduced funding for a number of key items that are critical to Kansas communities, such as in-home services for seniors, cuts to the food sales tax refund program, many good experienced state employees left state service because they went 10 years without a pay increase, our prison system became overcrowded and understaffed, our colleges and universities took cuts, our schools were forced to make cuts, our highway program was gutted, and it took money away from early childhood and education programs. Just to name a few.
Though lawmakers faced challenges from a state income tax that was vanishing, we had a responsibility to invest in our children, our aging parents and our neighbors in need. Failing to provide for vulnerable seniors, refusing to fund healthcare measures and eliminating necessary social services for Fiscal Year 2016 only moved Kansas in the wrong direction. It was time to redirect our priorities so they reflect the most important values of our state.
It was also time to step up our efforts to cut out waste and make state government run more efficiently. We have made some progress, but we have a lot of work left to do.
So in 2017 I led the fight to repeal part of the 2012 tax plan. The loophole that allowed more than 330,000 business owners to pay no Kansas income tax was repealed. We then began to rebuild our State from the damage done by the reckless 2012 tax experiment.
We have now properly funded our schools for four straight years, once again trying to take care of our vulnerable citizens, re-staff our prison system, fully fund our highway program, restore the cuts made to higher education and the rest of state government. It took some tough decisions and hard work but we have re-stored our state and fully recovered from the 2012 tax plan disaster. It actually happened much faster than I ever thought possible.
The strong budget we passed this year that payed off debt, put $1 Billion in a rainy day fund and left us with a $2 billion (25%) ending balance puts Kansas in great shape to face future recessions without having to burden Kansans with huge budget cuts and future tax increases.
Legislature Passes 10 year "Eisenhower Legacy" Highway Plan
Governor Kelly introduced a new 10 year Transportation Plan that requires no tax increases. The legislature passed the plan with huge bi-partisan majorities, making a few minor changes.
The New plan replaces the 10 year T-Works plan that never got funded because Governor Brownback diverted over $2 Billion over 7 years to help balance the state budget to make up for the shortfalls caused by the reckless 2012 tax plan.
Fully funding the Transportation plan is one of the proposals in my 9 point plan to increase jobs in Kansas.
The New plan is called the Eisenhower Legacy Plan (one of the minor changes made by the Legislature) and also includes funding for Broadband.
Improving our Children's Education
Funding our children's education is always one of the most important debates we have in the Legislature. Funding of K-12 education takes up about one half of the state general fund.
The House approved legislation in 2008 that increased state funding for public schools by $37.2 million in the 2009-2010 school year. It added a fourth year to the school finance plan originally passed in 2005. The legislation was debated at length and explored differing needs between rural, suburban and urban school districts. Under this plan, base state aid per pupil (BSAPP) increased to $4,492 beginning in the 2009-2010 school year, increasing the rate in place at the time by $59. That is a 1.3% increase in the base funding over 2008. A small increase but it was important because it allowed school districts to almost keep pace with inflation. .
Unfortunately in 2011, the legislature passed and then Governor Brownback signed into law, the largest cut to school funding in our state's history. This law cut the base aid per pupil from $4492 to $3800. This cut more than wiped out all of the progress made in school funding from 2005-2009. This cut forced many local school districts to raise property taxes, lay-off teachers and close schools.
It took several years, but after repealing part of the reckless 2012 tax plan in 2017, the Legislature in 2018 finally passed a 5 year plan to fully fund our schools. By 2023, our schools will once again receive funding equivalent to what was passed in 2008. The Kansas Supreme Court has looked at the funding plan and said it does meet the Constitutional requirement that the legislature suitably fund our schools. I will fight to protect this funding.
This year for the fourth year in a row, we fully funded our schools based on the 5 year plan approved by the courts.
I am also fully committed to improving our children's education. Class sizes should be smaller. I feel that the state should set a goal of reducing class sizes to 17 children or less in grades 1 through 3. Those are the most vital grades for children to learn how to read, write and to do basic math. Children who don't learn the basics in the early grades get behind in school and almost never catch up. Most rural districts already have small classes, Wichita children should get the same benefit.
No Kansas Income Tax on Social Security Benefits for those seniors making $75,000 or less
One of the questions I get asked a lot is "does the State of Kansas tax social security benefits?"
In 2008 we passed a law exempting those making $75,000 or less from paying any state income tax on their Social Security benefits.
I supported this tax cut, I feel that seniors have given us a lot and deserve to retire without having the burden of paying state income tax on their social security benefits.
The Kansas House passed a Bill to expand Medicaid Coverage in Kansas, Senate failed to Act
Kansas is one of a dozen states that still has not passed Medicaid Expansion. When the Congress passed the Affordable Care Act a decade ago, it expanded Medicaid coverage to those families that were 38% above the poverty rate. The federal government paid 100% of the excess cost to expand Medicaid for 3 years, and has paid 90% of the additional cost since then.
Because Kansas has failed to pass Medicaid Expansion, 150,000 Kansans go without Health Care insurance.
These people fall in the gap, they make too much money to qualify for the current Medicaid program but not enough money to receive subsidies under the Affordable Care Act to buy health insurance on the Health Care Exchanges. Without the subsidies, they can not afford the premiums.
The failure to pass Medicaid Expansion has also put a huge financial strain on our hospitals. Hospitals must accept patients that come in for Emergency care whether they can afford to pay for it or not. People without Health Insurance wait until their health needs become dire and seek services in expensive emergency rooms where they can't be turned down.
In 2018, I was a Leader in the fight to pass Medicaid Expansion in the Kansas House. We successfully passed a bill with strong bi-partisan support 69-55. Unfortunately the bill sat in the Senate Health Committee awaiting passage. The Senate later introduced a bi-partisan Medicaid Expansion bill with 22 co-sponsors (11 Democrats and 11 Republicans) which was one more vote then they need to pass a bill. They just needed the Senate Leadership to run the bill, which never happened.
I will continue to work to improve health care coverage for all Kansans to make health care more accessible and affordable, this includes passing Medicaid Expansion.
Wind Power means more jobs in Kansas
One of the bright spots of the Kansas economy has been the wind power industry. Kansas ranks #2 out of all the States in total potential wind power, behind only Texas.
So far 13,000 new jobs have been created in Kansas by the wind energy industry. And Kansas ranks #1 in the the nation in the number of wind turbines under production.
I believe that the State should continue to encourage the growth of this very important industry in Kansas
We will be holding
an in-person Town
Hall Meeting this
fall
Senator Mary Ware and myself plan on holding another in-person town hall meeting this fall.
During the pandemic, we switched to virtural town halls. But they just weren't the same. In April 2022 we switched back to holding in-person meetings. We both enjoyed being able to talk and answer your questions in-person again.
Look for a postcard in your mail box with the details of the Town Hall. Right now we are planning to hold it at the Advanced Learning Library at 2nd and McClean Blvd. I will post the date and time on this web-site as soon as it is set.
Unemployment Benefits Period Temporarily Extended to 26 weeks
In 2020 I worked with our Sedgwick County Delegation Chair to pass a bipartisan bill to extend Unemployment insurance in Kansas from 16 weeks to 26 weeks. The bill also got rid of the one week waiting period to receive unemployment benefits.
We began working early in the session to get the bill passed to deal with the large number of layoffs at Spirit here in Wichita. But by the end of the regular session, the corona virus pandemic made it clear that the need for the bill was much broader.
Governor Kelly Put Plan in place that stepped up COVID-19 testing and immunizations and phased out the Emergency Declaration
Protect Yourself: COVID-19 Tips from the CDC
How to Protect Yourself and Others
Know how it spreads
• There is currently no vaccine to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
• The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus.
• The virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person.
» Between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet).
» Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes
or talks.
» These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.
» Recent studies suggest that COVID-19 may be spread by people who are not showing symptoms.
Everyone should:
Clean your hands often
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds especially after you have been in a public place, or after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
Avoid close contact
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Stay at home as much as possible.
• Put distance between yourself and other people.
» Remember that some people without symptoms may be able to spread virus.
» This is especially important for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick.
Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others
You could spread COVID-19 to others even if you do not feel sick.
Everyone should wear a cloth face cover when they have to go out in public,
for example to the grocery store or to pick up other necessities.
» Cloth face coverings should not be placed on young children under age 2, anyone who has trouble breathing, or is unconscious, incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance.
The cloth face cover is meant to protect other people in case you are infected.
Do NOT use a facemask meant for a healthcare worker.
Continue to keep about 6 feet between yourself and others. The cloth face cover
is not a substitute for social distancing.
Cover coughs and sneezes
If you are in a private setting and do not have on your cloth face covering, remember to always cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze or use the inside of your elbow.
Throw used tissues in the trash.
Immediately wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not readily available, clean your hands with a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
Clean and disinfect
Clean AND disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily. This includes tables, doorknobs, light switches, countertops, handles, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets, and sinks. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/ disinfecting-your-home.html
If surfaces are dirty, clean them: Use detergent or soap and water prior to disinfection.
Tom at 18 months old with his mom (age 20) at their house in south Wichita. To the left Tom at age 6 with three of his four sisters.
TOM SAWYER WAS AWARDED THE OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD BY THE NATIONAL TAX FOUNDATION FOR HIS WORK IN UNDOING MUCH OF THE UNFAIR 2012 BROWNBACK TAX EXPERIMENT.
TOM SAWYER AND HOUSE TAX COMMITTEE CHAIR STEVE JOHNSON (R-ASSARIA) BOTH RECEIVED THE AWARD FOR MAKING THE KANSAS INCOME TAX SYSTEM FAIRER FOR WORKING FAMILIES IN 2017-2018.
This web-site, TOMSAWYERFORKANSAS.COM, is paid for and authorized by TOM SAWYER FOR STATE REPRESENTATIVE, Tom Sawyer, Treasurer
Contribute to the Tom Sawyer for State Representative Campaign with a credit or debit card by clicking on this link! Donations to Political Campaigns are not tax exempt
Tom Sawyer at the bill signing for HB 2044- a law that increases job opportunities for people with disabilities:
