By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The phrase of the week for tax-paying entities around Kansas has been "Revenue Neutral Rate." With mill levies being decided, organizations must decide whether to keep last year's mill levy or modify it to stay revenue neutral based on updated property tax valuations.
Senate Bill 13 is posing significant problems for county clerks around the state. With the primary election scheduled for Aug. 2, clerks must also send out mailers to citizens regarding the revenue neutral status of all tax-paying entities in the county by Aug. 10.
Postalocity submitted the lone bid for Barton County's mailing. County Clerk Bev Schmeidler anticipates between 17,000 and 18,000 pieces of mail at a cost of roughly $9,000.
"We have the primary election Aug. 2," Schmeidler said. "The canvas will be the 8th, and the notices have to be out the 10th. I just don't see how it's even possible for our staff to do it."
According to Senate Bill 13, the state of Kansas will pay back the counties for mailings in 2022 and 2023, then the counties may recoup costs from individual entities who wish to be listed starting in 2024. Using a third-party mailer may end up saving the county money on bulk mailings, but the move will still cost taxpayers around the state for something the commission deemed unnecessary.
"I just want to clear one thing up," said Commission Chair Shawn Hutchinson. "We are not going to exceed revenue neutral. At least that's the consensus of this commission at this time. But because of the way the state set this new law up, Senate Bill 13, it requires us to send out an intent to break revenue neutral, which is just absolutely absurd. The way they set it up goes by the mill levy versus by the dollars levied. If they would have done it by the actual dollars levied, we would not be sending these mailers because we are not going to break revenue neutral."
Tax-paying entities have until July 20 to submit their intent to the county clerk's office. Those that do not respond by that deadline will be locked in at their current rate. Those wanting to adjust their levies may express an interest in exceeding the revenue neutral rate, thereby generating the mailer, but may not exceed the neutral rate when levies are finalized.
"I just want the taxpayers to know, we do not intend to exceed revenue neutral," said Hutchinson. "With double-digit inflation, that's been a difficult budget process. We've really done what we can do to keep taxes from going up. Last year we cut taxes. Between last year cutting taxes and double-digit inflation this year, we're really doing the best we can do. But with the way the state words their laws - I can't think of a politically correct way to say this - but they are hurting us."