hcj

KS - April 3 2025

Modest tax relief; Goddard school bond for growth; Federal funds cut; Vaccination rates decline; Wichita Boeing jobs

Greg Loving

03 Apr 2025 • 5 min read

Kansas Lawmakers Deliver Modest Property Tax Cut

Goddard Schools Seek Bond for Growth

Kansas Loses $22.6M in Federal School Funds

Measles Cases Rise as Vaccinations Drop in Kansas

Moran Presses Boeing CEO on Wichita Jobs

GET THE CITIZEN JOURNAL APP - FREE!

1. Kansas Lawmakers Deliver Modest Property Tax Cut

Kansas lawmakers promised property tax relief throughout the campaign season. When they left the Statehouse on March 27 at the end of the legislative session, the most significant tax cut reduces the state’s mill levy by 1.5 mills. The state’s total mill levy was 21.5 mills, which is applied to the assessed value of property. One mill is equal to $1 per $1,000, and assessed value in Kansas is about 11.5% of the appraised value, which is the estimated actual market value of the home. Of Kansas’s 21.5 mills, 20 are used to fund schools and 1.5 are funds for state educational buildings and state institutions. Kansas lawmakers cut the 1.5 mills set aside for construction and maintenance of buildings and institutions. Estimates of what property owners save show limited savings for the average homeowner: * A $150,000 homeowner would save $25. * A $230,000 homeowner would save $39. * A $500,000 homeowner would save $86. * An $800,000 homeowner would save $138. * A $1.5 million homeowner would save $258. The average home value in Kansas is $227,854, according to the real estate company Zillow, meaning the average Kansan will see home value taxes reduced by about $40.
Source: CJ Online

2. Goddard Schools Seek Bond for Growth

New numbers show the future growth of the City of Goddard and its schools. The school district said it will see a 30 percent increase in student population over the next decade, and it is asking for a multi-million-dollar bond to help meet the demand. More housing developments in Goddard is one reason why the school district is seeking additional funds. The district said a 2024 study found 53 separate housing developments in Goddard, with more than 5,900 residential units planned within the district. The district includes parts of west Wichita. Goddard could get two new elementary schools if its $196 million bond passes. The district said the bond is needed to meet future demands. The bond would also be used to convert Oak Street Elementary into an early learning center. The bond would improve athletics facilities and invest in maintenance and infrastructure repairs district-wide. The election is set for May 13.
Source: KWCH

3. Kansas Loses $22.6M in Federal School Funds

State education officials have lost $22.6 million in federal funding that was going to be used to address pandemic learning loss. The Kansas State Department of Education announced April 3 that it had been notified about a week earlier about the federal funding changes by the U.S. Department of Education. The move comes amid a broader effort by President Donald Trump's administration to eliminate the Education Department. The lost funding was the remaining funds from the Education Stabilization Fund, a COVID-era program that included the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, or ESSER.
Source: CJ Online

4. Measles Cases Rise as Vaccinations Drop in Kansas

Five of the six southwest Kansas counties reporting measles cases have seen kindergarten vaccination rates drop, one showing a 24 percentage point dip over a four-year period. As of April 2, Kansas has 24 confirmed measles cases in Grant, Gray, Haskell, Kiowa, Morton and Stevens counties, with one case added in the last week. For herd immunity to be achieved — the point where enough people are vaccinated that those who are unvaccinated will be protected — 95% of a population must be vaccinated against measles, according to the World Health Organization. The Kansas measles immunization rate of kindergarteners dropped from 94.47% in 2019 to 90.21% in 2023, Kansas Department of Health and Environment data shows. Jennifer Bacani McKenney, a family physician and county health officer in Wilson County, said she saw vaccine hesitancy increase after the COVID-19 pandemic. “COVID made it more OK for people to decline vaccines for themselves and for children,” she said. The idea, though, that some counties are seeing kindergarten vaccination rates drop — such as Gray County, where the rate declined from 85% in 2019 to 61% in 2023 — is concerning, Bacani McKenney said.
Source: Kansas Reflector

5. Moran Presses Boeing CEO on Wichita Jobs

The future of aviation in Wichita was addressed on Wednesday during a hearing on Capitol Hill. U.S. Senator from Kansas Jerry Moran questioned Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg during a Senate hearing. ““It was indicated to me that without the acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems, the new generation of any aircraft developed by Boeing would not involve work in Wichita or work in Kansas,” Moran said during the questioning. “You are going to build a new aircraft someday, what’s the plan for where that work will take place?” Boeing is set to acquire Wichita’s Spirit AeroSystems, and Ortberg said there are no plans to move work out of Wichita. Boeing’s acquisition of Spirit is expected to be finalized this year.
Source: KWCH

SUBSCRIBE ONLINE TO GET THE HEARTLAND CITIZEN JOURNAL IN YOUR INBOX - FREE!