Senate committee hears testimony on bill to end Kansas affordable housing tax credit

A state Senate committee heard more than a dozen speakers on a bill that would end Kansas’s state affordable housing tax credit program, House Bill 21-19, and voted on no formal action during the hearing.

The bill, as amended in the House, would discontinue the Kansas Affordable Housing Tax Credit Act on July 1, 2025, while preserving credits allocated under the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC) qualified allocation plan (QAP) through the 2025 QAP. Supporters of the state credit warned that ending the program would sharply reduce the production of low-income housing; opponents and KHRC counsel raised legal and drafting concerns about the amendment’s wording.

Supporters said the state credit has materially expanded affordable housing production in Kansas. Dustin Hare, economic security policy advisor for Kansas Action for Children, cited statewide data and personal experience and urged the committee "to keep housing in the budget." He said rents have risen roughly 20% on average since 2019, 43% of Kansas renters are now cost-burdened, and unsheltered homelessness rose about 395% between 2019 and 2024. "With the rate of homelessness ... quadrupling over 5 years, that's a systemic problem that needs to be addressed," Hare said.

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