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Policy & Finance Committee backs amended 2026 legislative agenda, urges limits and sunsets for sales-tax exemptions
Summary
The Topeka committee approved amendments to its 2026 legislative priorities, removing infeasible language limiting exemptions to only the state portion of sales tax and adding a recommendation that the state limit new sales-tax exemptions and consider sunsets; the amended agenda was forwarded to the full governing body.
The Policy & Finance Committee voted Nov. 12 to forward an amended 2026 legislative agenda to the full governing body, including new language urging the state to limit sales-tax exemptions and to consider expiration dates for future exemptions.
Staff introduced Cale Beam of Beam Consulting Group as the city’s lobbyist for the 2026 session. "Looking forward to working with the city of Topeka this this legislative session," Beam said after being introduced.
Committee members debated a line in the draft that would have attempted to limit sales-tax exemptions to the state portion only; staff and legal counsel warned that language could be infeasible and might imperil interstate tax-collection compacts. The chair moved to strike the sentence and replace it with a simpler statement: "The state should limit sales tax exemptions and consider sunsets on any exemptions." The committee approved both the strike and the replacement language by voice vote.
The chair said the sunset concept has growing support in the legislature and cited examples where long-standing exemptions have not been reviewed. The amendment also signals municipal concern that unchecked exemptions shift revenue burdens to property taxes.
The committee also asked staff to add a statement supporting consideration of allowing the revenue-neutral property-tax rate to account for inflation measures such as the consumer price index, a change the chair said is likely to be discussed at the legislature this year.
The committee approved the amended legislative agenda and directed staff to put it before the full council in time for outreach to county delegation meetings in December so the city’s lobbyist can represent the positions.
Next steps: staff will transmit the amended agenda to the governing body for final approval and provide the lobbyist with council guidance for upcoming delegation meetings.
