Pinched between rising expenses, citizen expectations, and property tax discontent, the Unified Government Board of Commissioners reached out for another revenue source Thursday, voting to place two sales tax questions on the November 2026 ballot. The first, a county-wide measure would fund health care programs. The second, specific to KCK, would pay for parks and infrastructure.
The board also slowed its own budget timeline. Commissioners agreed to delay a final vote on the 2027 budget into September, after several said they needed more time to review figures that reached them only that morning.
Despite all the tax talk, the meeting opened with the topic on everyone’s mind, Wednesday’s damaging storm and its aftermath.
Emergency declaration issued
Mayor Christal E. Watson announced a countywide emergency declaration tied to the severe storm that struck Wyandotte County the day before. The storm knocked out power to more than 16,500 Board of Public Utilities customers early Wednesday, roughly a quarter of the utility’s total, and toppled trees across northern KCK. Watson said the declaration documents the county’s losses and positions it to seek state and federal aid. “Recovery will take some time, but WyCo, you are so resilient, and the UG is committed to helping residents through every stage as we get back to normal for all residents,” she said.
Interim County Administrator Alan Howze said the UG and BPU were assessing damage to roads, utilities, businesses, and private property to build a case for reimbursement. He said every fire station stayed online through the emergency. Watson said no deaths or serious injuries were reported. Both urged residents to report damage and non-emergency assistance requests by calling 3-1-1.
Two sales taxes will be on the November ballot
The two separate tax measures reached the commission from the Administration and Human Services standing committee, which which debated the issues on Aug. 17, then fast-tracked them to the full board without a recommendation on passage.
The first, a countywide sales tax of 1/4 percent, would finance health care services allowed under Kansas law, including indigent care, behavioral health, substance abuse, preventive care, and the county health department. Staff said the money could expand the fire department’s paramedicine outreach, add mental health crisis teams, and pay for services that help the homeless. Deputy Chief Counsel Wendy Green said the revenue would stay in the county rather than pass to cities. The board approved the resolution 6-3.
The second is a citywide sales tax of 3/8 percent for KCK only. Staff estimated it would raise about $16 million a year, roughly $160 million over 10 years. A first version, splitting the revenue between parks and infrastructure with no set formula, failed 4-5. Commissioner Andrew Davis (District 8) then moved a version that dedicates half the revenue to park projects, including community centers and trails, and half to infrastructure such as roads, bridges, and sidewalks. That measure passed 6-4, with Watson voting in favor.
If both taxes were adopted, KCK’s effective tax rate would increase from 9.125% to 9.75%, which includes 6.5% for the state. In addition, many commercial locations in the county, such as the Legends and Wyandotte Plaza, are in Community Improvement Districts that impose an additional 1 to 2 percent sales tax. Sales tax rates in the Homefield and Kaw River Bridge CIDs, among others, would be the county’s highest at 11.75%.
Green told the board the ballot questions can stay broad, without committing to specific expenditures. The commission would choose specific projects later through the budget process, as long as the money serves what she called “public funds that must be used for public purposes.”
A resident survey this year found mixed support. About 39 percent of respondents were supportive, 34 percent were not, and 27 percent were neutral. Among residents open to a special sales tax, homeless services and affordable housing ranked as the top funding choice.
Commissioner Christian Ramirez (District 3) pressed for infrastructure only and voted against both city versions. “If we’re going to ask our community to make an investment, we need to have a central problem. And I think on the city side, our central problem is our infrastructure,” he said. “We can continue to beautify our parks and put investments in small business development and economic development, but if we continue to have failing infrastructure, all of that is for what? It’s for nothing.”
Public Works staff made a similar case. Brandon Grover, the road and bridge program manager, urged the board to concentrate the money rather than spread it thin. “Pick a problem. And it doesn’t have to be just one, because there’s obviously going to be $160 million coming in. It’s a lot of money. You can solve a lot of problems, but if we spread it out, we’re not going to get anything accomplished,” he said.
Others weighed the cost against the benefit. Commissioner Andrew Kump (at-large District 2) noted that sales taxes fall hardest on lower income families, while Commissioner Jermaine Howard (District 1) framed the tax as investment in areas that have long gone without.
Commissioner Carlos Pacheco (District 5) argued that the revenue could offset property taxes and give residents free or low-cost amenities in return. “Because we’re offsetting property taxes, it’s actually a net wash for the taxpayer, but you get those things. You get the better roads, you get the better parks,” Pacheco said.
Three commissioners opposed the whole package. Commissioners Bill Burns (District 2) and Chuck Stites (District 7) joined Kump in voting no on every measure.
Commission recaps 2027 budget changes, pushes out final vote
After last-week’s series of detailed committee-level workshops, the UG budget staff reviewed the entire $551 million document again with the board. Personnel accounts for about half of all spending, and reserves remain a concern. The city’s fund balance sits near 21 percent, below the government’s 25 percent target, and the county’s near 5.5 percent, with deficits forecast in upcoming years.
Several changes were noted from the initial plan. The budget funds 12 of the 17 firefighters now paid by an expiring SAFER grant, plus $180 thousand in capital, and would seek a grant extension to hold the rest. The new plan brings Sunflower Hills Golf Course management in-house and adds an in-house veterinarian for animal services.
Commissioners praised a new online budget book and data portal that lets residents drill down to individual line items. Kump called it a milestone for transparency. “There’s a difference between being technically transparent, as in it’s somewhere online, and being easily digestible for the average person,” he said.
However, in the rush to finalize the budget document, Commissioner Melissa Bynum (at-large District 1) and Ramirez said they had not seen a packet of supplemental figures until that morning. Howard pressed staff on the timing. Davis moved to slow the process down. “I don’t even know if I can vote on the budget at this point next week,” he said. “And if we are confused on the formatting, and then the numbers aren’t lining up, I can only imagine what our community is watching.”
The board reached consensus to push final adoption of the budget into September, with Davis suggesting Sept. 3. A joint public hearing on the proposed budget and the revenue-neutral rate remains set for Monday, Aug. 24. Commissioners also asked staff for clear figures showing the effect of the proposed mill increase.
2026 budget overruns draw scrutiny
The night’s sharpest exchange came over the amended 2026 budget, the routine step of bringing the current year’s spending plan in line with actual costs. The changes would draw more from reserves than the original plan, mostly to cover higher-than-projected costs for sheriff’s office personnel, jail billing, and fuel.
Although, both general funds overall are still ending the year stronger than they were approved, Watson objected to leaning on the fund balance, telling staff she did not understand why the government kept making exceptions to its own budget. Kump pressed the same point, questioning whether department spending limits mean anything and asking whether the budget is “a suggestion.” “Where I work, if you spend your budget in August, tough,” he said.
Davis pushed for a structural fix. Now in his fifth budget cycle, he said mid-year changes like these “should not be made administratively.” He called for a rule that any department that overspends its approved budget by more than 3 to 5 percent should return to the commission to explain. He also urged reviving a committee to study the jail population, the cost driver behind much of the county overrun.
Bynum noted that state statute requires the government to fund the sheriff, the largest single increase on the county side. Ramirez traced the recurring problem to conservative budgeting, pointing to a 6 percent delinquency assumption against a roughly 3 percent actual rate and suggesting a smaller cushion.
Other business
Before the sales tax debate, the board voted 9-0 to approve a memorandum of understanding with Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 4. The three-year agreement provides 3 percent raises in each year and runs through 2028.
Watson closed the announcements with two community items. A dedication ceremony will rename Campus Boulevard to Officer Hunter Simoncic Boulevard on Wednesday, Aug. 26, at 2 p.m., near the State Avenue entrance to the community college, a year after the officer’s line-of-duty death. And the K-5 bridge over the Union Pacific tracks has reopened ahead of schedule, restoring a key route into the Fairfax industrial district.