Johnson County’s future is imperiled by incompetent lawmakers in Topeka

Years of incompetent leadership by Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback and the Legislature are roiling Johnson County like never before.

The state’s self-created financial fiasco — plus the ideological hatred of local government by many Republican lawmakers in Topeka — are imperiling the county’s high quality of living for residents and businesses.

The stakes are larger than they’ve ever been for the biggest county in all of Kansas in population, jobs and economic impact.

▪ Stable funding for the county’s excellent school systems is in constant danger, as columnist Steve Rose notes.

▪ The Legislature is pushing through onerous changes to a property tax lid that could require costly elections on city and county spending.

▪ State funding for crucial road improvements, children’s programs, social services and public safety across Kansas and in Johnson County has been pared back, reallocated or otherwise monkeyed with.

Almost all of this is being done because the income tax cuts that Brownback and the ultraconservative GOP forces pushed through in 2012 have failed on multiple fronts. They did not spur increased revenue or a huge influx in jobs, as Brownback pledged.

Fortunately, top officials in the county are finally speaking out more forcefully about the problems. Kudos to County Commission Chairman Ed Eilert and Overland Park Mayor Carl Gerlach for taking up the cause.

“Why would legislative leaders want to put the brakes on economic growth and job creation” in the county “with the restrictions of tax lids and special elections?” Eilert pointed out in his state of the county speech Tuesday.

Gerlach in a speech earlier this month criticized the hypocrisy of the tax lid: “This new legislation is nothing more than a pair of handcuffs on local representative governments, which the state did not apply to themselves. The effect is to diminish the essence of representative democracy at the local level.”

But Eilert and Gerlach need more help. Johnson County’s civic and business leaders as well as residents will have to rally in the future to create real change in Topeka.

So far, the 2016 session that’s now in recess until late April has featured a large share of inane legislation, including bills aimed at reducing the ability of local governments to control their own futures.

Consider how Johnson County Manager Hannes Zacharias feels as he watches the debacles unfold in the Capitol. He presides over a county that has long had AAA bond ratings thanks to solid and dependable streams of tax revenues.

Yet Brownback and too many legislators — who can’t balance a budget and each month anxiously watch revenue numbers to see whether they’ll have enough money to pay the bills — are arrogantly telling Zacharias and others in the county what to do.

Zacharias has spoken out against the original tax lid approved in 2015 plus the newer versions this year, pointing out how they tie the hands of responsible county staff as well as elected officials.

Here’s one reason that matters.

Last year, Eilert and the commission approved a much-needed property tax increase to pump tens of millions of dollars into major upgrades in the county’s parks, libraries and public transit system. It was the kind of forward-looking decision that has served Johnson County well in the past and promises to do so in the future as it gains about 10,000 people a year.

Yet the tax lid bill now in the Legislature would have forced the county to seek a public vote on the levy increase at a cost of up to $1 million for the election.

Overland Park, Olathe, Lenexa and other cities all have lengthy track records of responsibly using tax dollars to provide good public services.

Johnson Countians have shown over the years that they want to invest in top-flight communities. They aren’t interested in slashing taxes, thus causing a race to the bottom, one that too many Kansas GOP lawmakers seem intent on winning.

“Overland Park and cities across Kansas have done well managing their own circumstances for decades,” Gerlach accurately noted.

They will continue to try to do that despite the woes created by an irresponsible Legislature.

The long-term challenge is for Johnson Countians to elect more reasonable House and Senate members who can promote positive policies for the county, not try to shackle it to an ultra-conservative agenda.

In the coming months, Brownback and the GOP establishment will mount intense bids to keep their inept gang in charge. In response, moderate Republicans and Democrats will have to find top-notch candidates to run for legislative seats in August and November.

Amateur hour in Topeka has lasted long enough.

This story was originally published March 26, 2016 at 7:05 AM with the headline "Johnson County’s future is imperiled by incompetent lawmakers in Topeka."