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Riley County officials outline implications of property‑tax bill 2745 and new protest‑petition rules
Summary
County counselor Jacob Hanson told commissioners that House/Senate bill 2745 would let counties raise their property‑tax budgets up to 3% or match regional CPI (whichever is less) without triggering a protest petition; the bill also creates a protest petition process requiring 10% of registered voters and reimburses counties for notification costs for five years.
Jacob Hanson, Riley County counselor, told the commission March 30 that recently passed property‑tax legislation identified as "2745" would change how counties calculate allowable increases and how citizens may launch protest petitions.
Hanson said the bill limits tax‑budget increases to either 3% or the Consumer Price Index for the Midwest Region, "whichever is less," and that if a county’s adopted budget increase exceeds that threshold a protest petition process could be triggered. "The protest petition is 10% of the registered voters," Hanson said, describing the threshold commissioners would face if they exceed the allowed increase.
Why it matters: under the change, a successful protest petition could roll a taxing subdivision’s budget back to the prior year’s level rather than a compromise rate, a mechanic Hanson described as a significant penalty for exceeding the new threshold. He also noted the process timelines are compressed and that the Kansas Department of Administration will provide petition forms for public use.
Hanson said the bill includes a provision to reimburse counties for required notification costs for five years, which he called a modest offset to the new administrative burden. He warned the commission the legislation remains subject to a possible veto: "It did not pass with veto‑proof majorities in either chamber," he said, and the county will monitor whether the governor signs or vetoes the measure.
Commissioners asked practical questions about timing and how the protest period would interact with existing revenue‑neutral timelines. Hanson said the window for submitting protest petitions runs roughly from August 15 through September 15 under the law as written and that counties will need to be "nimble" to process petitions and publish required budget notices in the narrow timeframe the bill contemplates.
Next steps: Hanson said he will notify the commission as soon as there is certainty about the governor’s action and will provide additional guidance on notice language and implementation details.
