By Lindsay Smith/The Wichita Eagle
In about a month, Wichita voters will head to the polls to decide whether to implement a 1% citywide sales tax.
If voters approve the measure, Wichita would join several of its suburbs in having such a tax, including Derby, Haysville, Maize and Park City.
Wichita’s 1% citywide tax would go on top of an existing 1% sales tax in Sedgwick County, making the total sales tax in the city 2%.
Because this election is not an ordinary one, you likely have questions. We gathered answers to common questions about the sales tax to help you make your final decision before Tuesday, March 3. Here’s what to know about the proposal.
What is the ballot wording for the sales tax initiative?
Here’s what voters will see on their ballot March 3
- Shall the City of Wichita, Kansas, be authorized, pursuant to K.S.A. 12-187 et seq., to impose a one percent (1.0%) city-wide retailers’ sales tax to be effective July 1, 2026, and which will terminate no later than June 30, 2033, the revenues derived therefrom to be applied as follows?
A. An amount not to exceed $225 million dollars of such tax applied to Public Safety costs for support of City police and fire facility construction and maintenance, the acquisition of vehicles, apparatus and equipment and other purposes related to providing Police and Fire Services for the City;
B. An amount not to exceed $250 million dollars of such tax applied to pay the costs for Revitalization of Century II (not to exceed $25 Million) and Upgraded and Expanded Convention Center Improvements (not to exceed $225 Million);
C. An amount not to exceed $150 million dollars of such tax applied for Property Tax Relief;
D. An amount not to exceed $150 million dollars of such tax applied to establish a restricted-special fund, with earnings from such fund to be reinvested into this special fund, to support Homeless and Housing Services by funding affordable housing projects and programs, shelter facilities, a multi-agency center and its operations and related services for people experiencing homelessness; and
E. An amount not to exceed $75 million dollars of such tax applied for Development and Construction of a New Downtown Public Performing Arts Center.
Voters will be given two choices: yes or no. “Yes” signifies a positive vote for implementing the sales tax, while “no” votes indicate you do not support the additional charge
Who can vote in Wichita’s sales tax election?
Anyone who resides in the city limits is eligible to vote on the tax question in March. Residents not yet registered to vote must do so by Tuesday, Feb. 10.
What is Wichita Forward?
A nonprofit coalition called Wichita Forward created the sales tax proposal and is now campaigning for it.
The organization is made up of business officials across the city, started by Aaron Bastian of Fidelity Bank; Ben Hutton of Hutton and Jon Rolph of Thrive Restaurant Group.
Why is the election in March?
Because this is a special election called by the Wichita City Council, it will be held outside the usual election cycle, in this case March 3.
The election will cost the city $170,000 to conduct, $20,000 of which is being used for alternative polling locations.
Sedgwick County Election Commissioner Laura Rainwater said some of the polling location changes were to be more cost-efficient or because sites already had scheduling conflicts.
What does the $850 million fund?
The sales tax is estimated to bring in $850 million over the next seven years.
Of that, the current plan would set aside up to $25 million for Century II, the city’s convention and performing arts center, while dedicating up to $225 million to a convention center expansion and up to $75 million for a new, private-public partnership to build a $150 million performing arts center.
Up to $225 million would go to unspecified public safety capital improvement projects, while up to $150 million would go to a nonprofit to run the city-owned Second Light homeless services — or any other “multi-agency center” — and an affordable housing fund, although the share of funding each of those projects would receive is unclear.
Finally, up to $150 million would go to property tax relief.
Will Wichita’s proposed sales tax also be applied to grocery and food purchases?
Yes, the 1% sales tax would apply to groceries and food.
This is due to a Kansas law that requires all sales taxes in the state to be uniform, which does not allow the city to select what it wants to be taxed and what to exempt. A bill in the Legislature seeks to change this, but its outcome is uncertain.
Will SNAP and WIC be taxed?
No. Any purchases using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, or Women, Infants and Children, WIC, benefits will not be taxed. That’s because of Kansas Statute 79-3606, which exempts SNAP and WIC benefits from such taxes, the Kansas Department of Revenue confirmed to The Wichita Eagle
With a population of more than 530,000 people, Sedgwick County has more than 20,000 households that receive SNAP benefits, data from the Kansas Department for Children and Families shows. That’s 47,980 individuals, more than 22,000 of them children.
How long will this sales tax last?
The proposal would implement the tax for seven years, through 2033.
Has Wichita tried to approve a sales tax before?
This is not the first time Wichita has put a sales tax proposal on its ballot.
In 2014, the city asked for a 1% tax to pay for new water supply and several other city developments. However, that proposal was overwhelmingly rejected by voters.
How much would the tax proposal save me in property taxes?
Part of the plan for the sales tax revenue, if the proposal passes, is $150 million the city would put toward property tax relief. The amount that would allow the city to lower its mill levy rate by about four mills, president and CEO of Fidelity Bank and Wichita Forward co-founder Aaron Bastian told The Eagle.
That would equal $46 in savings for every $100,000 in appraised home value.
How will the sales tax directly impact Wichita families?
According to the city’s conservative estimates, the 1% sales tax would cost an average Wichita family an addition $352 a year.
A married couple with two children making the median household income of $63,072 would pay an additional $183 a year, according to an IRS Deduction Calculator.
The Wichita Eagle’s Kylie Cameron and Chance Swaim contributed to this report.
This article was republished here with the permission of: The Wichita Eagle