Kelly recommending one-time $445 million tax rebate to 1.2 million Kansas taxpayers

Democrat enters re-election year with proposals for tax rebate, food sales tax reform

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — Gov. Laura Kelly said the flow of state tax revenue was sufficient to propose Wednesday a $445 million tax rebate to Kansans who filed tax returns in the 2021 calendar year.

The Democratic governor said the recommendation would deliver a one-time $250 rebate to individual taxpayers. The 2022 Legislature, which is led by Republicans, would have to concur with her strategy.

“Thanks to our fiscal responsibility and record economic development success, we can return money to taxpayers and give every Kansas resident who filed taxes in 2021 a $250 rebate. These are significant savings for every family to be delivered by summer of 2022,” she said.

The governor, who will be seeking re-election next year to a second term as governor, previously recommended elimination of the state government’s 6.5% sales tax on groceries. Kansas has the nation’s highest sales tax on food, when local sales tax rates are factored.

Under the tax rebate proposal, Kelly said it would take the form of a non-taxable direct payment of $250 for every Kansas resident tax filer. Resident tax filers who filed as married and who filed jointly would be eligible for a $500 direct payment. All other filing types would be eligible for a $250 direct payment.

The Kelly administration estimated 1.2 million Kansas resident taxpayers would qualify for the tax rebate.

Kelly said the plan would have “no impact on the state’s ongoing ability to collect revenues that fund critical services.”

She said the tax refund proposal would be paid for with Kansas’ current budget surplus. The state has experienced income and sales tax revenue collections in excess of analysts’ projections. In addition, Kansas has benefitted from billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 and economic revitalization funding.

“Since 2019, my administration has carefully worked to get Kansas’ budget back on track after years of mismanagement,” Kelly said.

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