Advocacy groups gathered at the Kansas Statehouse today and asked lawmakers to reverse tax cuts passed in recent years.
The organizations include unions, the Kansas Contractors Association and a group that advocates for children. Annie McKay, with the Kansas Center for Economic Growth, is a frequent critic of the governor’s tax policies. She says the state can’t cut its way out of the budget shortfall.
“We are going to be in this situation year after year after year, because we will be facing budget shortfalls and gaps year after year after year until we address the structural issue that we face,” McKay says.
She says the state needs a long-term budget fix. McKay says without one, growing costs for services such as education and Medicaid will produce continued budget deficits.
That plan will be a tough sell in the Statehouse. Gov. Sam Brownback and his supporters in the Legislature maintain the tax cuts are helping boost the economy. They also say now is not the time to raise taxes.