The Star’s recommendations for Johnson County sheriff, Lee’s Summit parks tax and Jackson County car tax

A wide variety of candidates and issues will be on the ballots in the Kansas City area in the Aug. 2 elections.

Here are The Star’s recommendations in selected races in Johnson, Jackson and Wyandotte counties.

Johnson County

▪ Sheriff: Voters fortunately can choose from three candidates who had solid, previous records of service in the sheriff’s office. All three properly are committed to keeping the office an elected spot. And in interviews on Thursday all vowed that they would improve the agency’s relations with local police departments.

Calvin Hayden stands out given his additional and valuable experience as an elected Johnson County commissioner from 2008-12. Hayden was involved in crucial budget discussions while on that commission, and was known as a more conservative member on fiscal issues.

The Sheriff’s Department has been embroiled in disputes with the commission over spending for overtime as well as hiring practices and how long they take. Hayden has the potential to handle those concerns and benefit his office as well as taxpayers.

The other candidates are Dennis Hammer and John Resman.

The Star previously has recommended candidates in crucial, contested primaries for the Kansas Legislature, generally favoring challengers who want to bring a fresh approach to Topeka in solving the state’s deep financial problems.

▪ Senate

11th District, Republican: John Skubal

21st District, Republican: Dinah Sykes

21st District, Democrat: Logan Heley

▪  House

8th District: Patty Markley

14th District: Leesa Gabel

15th District: Kim Palcic

17th District: Tom Cox

20th District: Jan Kessinger

21st District: Dorothy Hughes

27th District: Timothy James Harmon

28th District: Joy Koesten

30th District: James Dingwerth

38th District: Mitra Templin

39th District: Shelee Brim

43rd District: Donald Roberts

78th District: Ron Ryckman

Jackson County

▪ Question 1: The Star recommends a “no” vote on this issue, which appears on the ballots of several cities in the county, including Independence, Lee’s Summit, Blue Springs and Raytown.

These cities are required by state officials to ask voters to allow them to keep collecting a local sales tax when people get their titles for motor vehicles, trailers and boats bought from sources other than a licensed Missouri dealer.

The cities could lose sales tax revenue — around $800,000 a year in Independence, for instance, and more than $300,000 annually in Blue Springs — if the tax is discontinued.

Here’s the catch: Because of the way the ballot is worded, voters must say “no” to Question 1, because it specifically asks if voters want to “discontinue” collecting the local sales tax on these out-of-state purchases.

“We’re not used to asking people to vote no,” Independence Mayor Eileen Weir said Thursday, making the case for such a vote.

If the tax is discontinued in any or all of the cities, that would put vehicle dealers on the “Miracle Mile” in Independence or Blue Springs, Raytown or other cities at a competitive disadvantage. Residents on the Missouri side could buy a car in Kansas, for instance, but not have to pay the local sales tax when titling that vehicle in Missouri. That would give an unfair advantage to Kansas-side dealers.

To be clear, this is not a tax increase.

▪ Question 2, Lee’s Summit: The Star recommends a “yes” vote on extending the current quarter-cent sales tax for parks for 15 years in this fast-growing suburb.

Since voters first endorsed the initial tax almost 20 years ago, Lee’s Summit officials have kept their promises to build first-class recreation amenities such as the popular Legacy Park Community Center and Summit Waves Aquatic Park. The city has added well-used athletic fields, an amphitheater and other amenities, while also making renovations to parks in older neighborhoods.

Looking forward, the city has prepared a strong list of priorities on how to best use the estimated $3.5 million a year created by the sales tax. The projects include building new parks, upgrading current ones, extending trails and adding community centers.

▪ Sheriff: Incumbent Mike Sharp is seeking his third term and deserves re-election. The challenger is Brice Stewart.

Wyandotte County

▪ District attorney: Incumbent Jerome Gorman has earned a reputation as a strong prosecutor since taking office in 2005, particularly while he and his staff deal with violent crime cases that afflict parts of Kansas City, Kan. He has earned re-election. The challenger is Mark Dupree.

▪ Senate

5th District, Democrat: Bill Hutton

▪ House

36th District, Democrat: Kathy Wolfe Moore

This story was originally published July 21, 2016 at 5:42 PM with the headline "The Star’s recommendations for Johnson County sheriff, Lee’s Summit parks tax and Jackson County car tax."