Title

Information about 
State Representative 
Tom Sawyer

Tom Sawyer fights for Jobs in Wichita!       

As a youngster, Tom Sawyer started his own business selling candy and books from his room.  Years later, Tom would start his own successful small business.  He understands the value of hard work and good paying jobs. 

When Tom Sawyer previously served in the Kansas House he worked hard to bring jobs to Wichita. When he found out the state of Kansas was out sourcing call center jobs to India, he offered an amendment in 2004 that put a stop to it!  Now when you call a state agency, a Kansan will answer the phone.

Now Tom would like to return to Topeka to help to once again bring more high paying jobs to Wichita.  In 2020 He announced a 9 point plan to help create more Kansas jobs.  Many of his proposals passed into law this year.   He is working to get the rest of the plan done.   (see the 9 point plan further down on this page)

Fighting to Keep and Increase Aerospace Industry Jobs in Wichita

One of the proposals in his 9 point plan to increase jobs in 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.  


Bringing High paying Aircraft Maintenance Jobs to Wichita!

Tom Sawyer helped pass a bill in 2004 that brought hundreds of new high paying aircraft maintenance jobs to Wichita.

Bringing New Bio Science Jobs to Wichita!

Tom Sawyer supported the 2004 Bio Sciences Bill that is already bringing new high paying jobs to Wichita and should bring a lot more in the future!

Bringing New Aviation jobs to Wichita!

In 2007 Tom Sawyer supported a bill to amend the Economic Revitalizationand Reinvestment Act that brought some new aviation jobs to Wichita and kept us from losing some of our current jobs in the Aviation industry. 

 Helping Small Businesses to succeed! 

Most new jobs in Kansas are created by small businesses.  Kansas has had an unfair tax that hit small businesses particularly hard- The Kansas Franchise Tax.  In 2007, Tom Sawyer supported a bill that cut this tax and began to phase it out.  Since 2011, this burden on small businesses is completely gone!

Helping laid off Workers by extending Unemployment benefits 

In 2020 Tom Sawyer worked across party lines to help pass a law that extends Kansas Unemployment benefits from 16 weeks to 26 weeks.  The bill also eliminated the one week waiting period, so that laid off workers could receive their benefits faster. 

Tom Sawyer's 9 point plan to help create jobs in Kansas

  • Provide income tax credits for workers enrolling in qualified training for aerospace jobs  Oklahoma already offers this program and it has been very successful. PASSED INTO LAW IN 2022- See details above.

  • Expand funding for workforce development programs, including Excel in CTE initiative, the National Center for Aviation Training (NCAT) and apprenticeships CTE INITIATIVE AND MORE FUNDING PASSED INTO LAW IN 2022

  • Grow the Kansas and local economy through applied research and private-public partnerships, like the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR), university/business innovation programs (Wichita State's Innovation Campus), and the aviation pathway for high school students. INCREASED FUNDING PASSED IN 2022

  • Expand support for STEM learning initiatives- Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), including support for computer science classes in schools INCREASED FUNDING PASSED IN 2022

  •  Protect the Kansas Highway Program, which will create over 175,000 jobs over the next 10 years.  IN 2022 FULL FUNDING WAS RESTORED TO THE KANSAS HIGHWAY FUND.

  •  Offer tax credits to small businesses that offer apprenticeship programs.

  •  Create resources for small businesses to promote equality and remove economic barriers

  • Pass criminal justice reform that includes enhanced re-entry programs that will encourage and  provide the support that ex-offenders need to  successfully re-enter the workforce. SOME CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM MEASURES WERE PASSED IN 2022- MORE NEEDS TO BE DONE.

  • Promote Wind Energy in Kansas.  Since we passed the Renewable Portfolio Standards in 2009, 13,000 new wind energy jobs have been created in Kansas.  We have the 3rd most amount of wind than any state in the Union..  We need to take full advantage of this natural resource.

 

 

 

 

 

Donate to this campaign using this cash-tag $TomSawyer4Kansas

Tom Sawyer has worked hard over the years to bring more jobs to Wichita and Kansas.  His work has earned him the endorsements several times over the years of both the Greater Wichita Chamber of Commerce and the Wichita Federation of Labor. 

Today's Stock quotes:

Tom Sawyer, age 7 at work in his store in his room.