Wichita legislative report: Sunflower Summers gets $1 million; council monitors bills on municipal whistleblowers, affordable housing credits and Starbond funds

During the Feb. 7 agenda review, legislative staff provided the Wichita City Council an update on state legislation the city is monitoring. The report covered several bills currently moving through committees, funding allotments and items on which the city has provided testimony.

Key items the legislative report listed: - Sunflower Summers: staff said the Department of Commerce budget that includes the Sunflower Summers program was allocated $1,000,000 in the appropriations committee. The allocation is smaller than originally requested, and staff said the Legislature instructed Commerce to reduce its budget by 10 percent. - Municipal whistleblower protections: staff reported Senate Bill 120 (reported in the transcript as “senate bill 1 20”) would provide statutory protections for municipal employees who report unlawful conduct; hearings were underway. - Local deposit requirement: the Bankers Association bill under consideration would require a majority of municipal deposits to be placed in Kansas banks; staff said many larger communities expressed opposition and that negotiations are ongoing. - Film tax credits and passenger rail: the report said film tax credit bills were heard in the Senate Commerce and House Tax committees, and Senate Bill 86 (passenger rail revolving fund) was heard in the Senate Ways and Means Committee; Wichita provided testimony in support of the film tax credit and the rail fund measure. - Affordable housing tax credits: staff said House Bill 2119 (reported as “house bill 21 19”), which would eliminate certain affordable housing tax credits, had a hearing and drew many opponents; staff noted legislators' concern about the program's fiscal growth and said the city is hoping for negotiated changes that preserve the program. - Starbond food sales tax replacement: staff said House Bill 2211 (reported as “house bill 22 11”) would address funding gaps for STAR Bonds districts created by reductions in the state food sales tax; discussions are ongoing about revenue replacement.

Council members asked clarifying questions during the update about which programs were implicated (for example, whether the affordable housing bill referred to low‑income housing tax credits). Staff confirmed that the affordable housing discussion included the housing tax credit program; the staff update also said the city testified in support of the film tax credit and passenger rail funding measures.

Ending: Staff said it will continue to monitor the bills and report back as hearings and fiscal notes develop.