In bid to eliminate state income tax, fears of another Kansas
In July 2012, two months after GOP Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback signed a substantial state income-tax cut into law, he issued a forecast: “Our new pro-growth tax policy will be like a shot of adrenaline into the heart of the Kansas economy.”
The economic jolt that ensued was perhaps not what Brownback envisioned.
From the end of 2012 to early 2016, Kansas’ GDP grew at less than half the national rate. Cuts in state revenue forced K-12 schools to close early and led to funding reductions for universities. To balance the budget, Brownback siphoned hundreds of millions of dollars from state highway funds. Moody's twice downgraded the state's bond rating. As of November, Kansas was still laboring to close a $345 million budget hole.
The 2012 cut was to be, according to those who advised Brownback, the first step toward eliminating that state's income tax.
Read more: http://www.bridgemi.com/public-sector/bid-eliminate-state-income-tax-fears-another-kansas