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THE GAZETTE, EMPORIA, KANSAS
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“An editor is not all wise. He judges only by what
he sees and hears.”
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Monday, February 22, 2016
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“Here, both in content and in timing, was leadership at its highest.”
WILLIAM LINDSAY WHITE
WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE
VISUAL VOICES
TEG
William Allen White, 1895-1944
William Lindsay White, 1944-1973
Kathrine Klinkenberg White, 1973-1988
Christopher White Walker
Editor and Publisher
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Ashley Knecht Walker
Editor
NEWSROOM
Brandy Lee Nance
Online and News Editor
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Regina Denise Murphy
Features Editor
MANAGEMENT
Margie Sue McHaley
Production Manager
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Heather Dale Wedel
Advertising Manager
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Leann Marie Sanchez
Regional Publications
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Barbara White Walker
Senior Editor
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Paul David Walker
Publisher Emeritus
EDITORIAL
Lift the ‘tax lid’ law
T
C O M M E N TA RY
Time to Opt Out
HE SO-CALLED “Tax lid” on local
government is a bad idea.
This jury-rigged law passed last year
with an implementation date of Jan. 1, 2018. Now
Gov. Sam Brownback wants to move that date up to
July 1 of this year.
The law requires an election if the value of appraised property pushes property tax revenue above
the rate of an adjusted Consumer Price Index. That
index would be established by the state. If voters do
not approve, a city, county or school district would
have to go back and raise its mill levy by the appropriate amount.
The idea is to make revenue increases from property taxes more transparent. But the complications of
dealing with budgets, mill levies, election dates and
the diversity of local units of government will almost
surely mean expensive special elections.
In our opinion, local government should be complimented, not hamstrung, when the value of appraised
property in its jurisdiction rises. That happens when
homes are built, commercial enterprises open or industry expands, often as a result of what local government does to help.
This law is counter-productive for growing areas.
Its dependence on inflation leaves it unpredictable.
For rural areas, it is a slap in the face of progress.
Our lawmakers should take the opportunity this
session to rescind this ill-conceived law, not hasten its
implementation.
Winfield Courier
THE PEOPLE SPEAK
Demand transparency
AFTER THE HOUSE Education Committee
voted to suddenly advance a controversial bill to
eliminate Common Core standards in our schools,
I contacted state representative Peggy Mast to express my dismay that the bill was not allowed a hearing for those on both sides of the issue to present
testimony.
In the email exchange with Rep. Mast, she gushed
about the wonderful presentation that was allowed by an
anti Common Core supporter (the schedule for the committee that day listed a presentation on Educational History). She elaborated about how informative it was and
how grateful she was to have seen it. She stated “Wish you
could have been there.”
I wish I could have been there as well. But, like most
folks, I cannot make it to Topeka to watch legislative proceedings. Nearly every other state in the Union recognizes that common citizens cannot be present for legislative
proceedings and makes available audio/video streaming
to the public. But, for some reason, Kansas continues to
block its citizens’ access.
HB 2148, referred to as the Kansas Transparency Act,
provides that all legislative committee meetings be live
streamed in audio format. It is a bi-partisan bill sponsored
by 24 legislators to make available to the public open access to legislative decisions that affect our lives. The bill
was passed out of committee, but for some reason has
been blocked by House leadership from being considered.
One would think that Rep. Mast, being a part of House
leadership, would do more to allow this bill to be heard
on the House floor given her statement to me that she
wished I could have been at the committee hearing.
Implementing this bill should not be a problem. During the Capitol remodel, every committee room was
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