There is a time when, as a college kid you struggle to make your way through the world. Dine out? Take a girl out for a night on the town? All of these things have cost. The basics you simply can't avoid. Books. Tuition. Rent. No matter what you do, some basic bills are always there for you.
Now Kansas is about to learn some harsh realities.
http://www.kansas.com/...
Republican legislators have already begun dividing into two camps about how to solve the state’s budget woes, foretelling a fight that’ll play out within the party that controls both the Kansas House and Senate.
Kansas must cut $279 million from its budget before July just to be dead broke with a balance of zero in its checking account.
Gov. Sam Brownback can choose to make allotments, automatic spending cuts that don’t require the Legislature’s approval. He can also enact administrative policy changes at state agencies to save money. The governor has yet to make a public comment on the budget since the revised revenue numbers were released Monday evening.
Democrats in the State House face an uphill battle with Republicans, who have said that they will not consider raising revenues.
Republicans hold supermajorities in both the House and Senate, so it’ll be up to the GOP leaders to find a solution and get their members to pass it.
Public statements from Senate President Susan Wagle, R-Wichita, and House Speaker Ray Merrick, R-Stilwell, have signaled a potential conflict within the party on how that will play out in the coming months.
Wagle has said that lawmakers have a duty to balance the budget and that they would look at both taxes and spending to come up with a solution.
Merrick, on the other hand, borrowing a line from President Ronald Reagan, has said the state does not have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem.
“My opinion is, Susan left the door open on both sides of the equation. And Ray didn’t,” said Rep. Mark Hutton, R-Wichita. “Ray slammed the door.”
http://www.kansas.com/...
House Republicans, who will present a super majority for the now outnumbered Democrats are making the argument that no means of income growth will be considered, it is cuts all the way.
Speaker Merrick continues:
Merrick called delaying or reversing income tax cuts a nonstarter in an interview before the election. He argued the tax cuts would spur economic growth, while government spending would not.
He said that former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius “spent money like a drunken sailor” and argued that government jobs do not contribute to the health of the state’s economy.
“Government employees produce nothing. They’re a net consumer. And you got that cost forever and ever and ever because they’re on the KPERS (pension) plan, they’re on all the government insurance and everything,” Merrick said. “That is employment to Democrats. Hire more (government employees). And that was Kathleen; she’d brag about her employment number, ‘Oh, I got a lot of people employed.’ Yeah, you got a lot more government employees employed. That doesn’t stimulate the economy.”
Merrick, who currently receives at least some of his income through his position as speaker of the house (admittedly, not a lot, by my math, income in the Kansas legislature is paltry, sub $20k a year), seems to be at odds with himself over what good government employees are to the community. I suppose he's never had to deal with crime, firefighters, etc. Or, as Gail Finney, Democrat from Wichita points out:
http://www.kansas.com/...
“I’m just really concerned about what might happen (to social services),” said Rep. Gail Finney, D-Wichita. “You know we’re going to be up there advocating, trying to maintain at least what we have, but it’s going to be a difficult session.”
The Kansas City Star has taken to referring to this problem as a "Kansas Black Hole"
http://www.kansascity.com/...
Kansas must cut $280M from the upcoming budget. It will need to cut another $436M from the 2016 budget.
The question most Democrats in this state face is a serious one: without any legislative power (super majority R in both houses) do you scream and make noise? Or do you quietly let this happen?
We may find out the answer to that question soon enough.