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Committee hears Labette County bill to ask voters for 0.125% sales tax to support fire departments
Summary
Senate Bill 303 would allow Labette County to submit a question to voters for a 0.125% countywide sales tax to support rural fire departments for five years; conferees from fire chiefs and county officials urged support, and Leavenworth County officials discussed a separate quarter-cent communications tax amendment.
The Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee heard Senate Bill 303 on Jan. 29, a bill that would authorize Labette County to submit a proposition to voters for a countywide retailer sales tax of 0.125% (one-eighth of one cent) to fund fire departments. The tax would expire five years after it is first collected and revenue would be remitted to and retained by the county for fire-service support.
Amelia summarized the bill and said revenue would be pledged to support county fire departments; she noted the bill would take effect after publication in the statute book. Keith Keller, representing the Southeast Kansas Fire Chiefs Association and a 26-year volunteer, told the committee rural departments face rising operating costs and identified personal protective equipment as a top priority for funding.
Labette County Commissioner Terry Wider said department leaders requested the county pursue a ballot question to sustain volunteer fire coverage and sought the committee’s permission to place the measure before voters. "We have been asked by all the fire departments...to help them figure out what they can do to keep the fire coverage done," Wider said.
Leavenworth County representatives also appeared: Sheriff Deneke said he supported the bill and Senator Klump outlined a proposed Leavenworth amendment to authorize a quarter-cent sales tax for emergency communications. Klump explained the quarter-cent proposal is intended to support and maintain a P25-compliant radio system; he said changes to the composition of 9-1-1-related revenue had reduced collections and that Leavenworth County is budgeting more than $400,000 a year from the general fund to sustain the system.
Committee members asked procedural questions and the chair noted these countywide sales-tax measures go to a public vote before collection and historically face few legislative obstacles. The hearing closed without a committee vote on the bill in the transcript.
What’s next: The hearing record and conferee testimony will inform the committee’s work when the bill is scheduled to be worked; because the measure authorizes a local ballot question, final approval depends on county voter approval if the bill is enacted.
