Fact Sheet: Unified Government Budget and Finances

The Unified Government is in compliance with all State budget laws and accepted governmental accounting practices. It is a balanced budget which accurately reflects the policy decisions adopted by the Unified Government Board of Commissioners.

The increase in property tax rate was necessary to avoid further cuts in service, employee lay-offs and rebuild cash reserves. Even with the tax rate increase property owners will pay less in city-county property tax for the 2012 budget than they paid in 2009. The property tax rate is still much lower than before the Unified Government was created. In 1997 it was was 97 mills. Now its 81.6 mills.

The Unified Government receives less than half of the total tax bill paid by a Wyandotte County resident.

A number of other cities in the KC metro and across Kansas also increased property taxes to fund their 2012 budgets. Overland Park increased its property tax nearly 40% because it had spent its cash reserves from a high of $63-million in 2007 to $18-million by the end of 2011.

Unified Government debt, the money borrowed to pay for streets, sewers and other public improvements, is in line with other communities. The total Unified Government bonded debt per citizen is $1,741. The total city-county debt per person for Overland Park is $1,536. The total city-county debt per person in Olathe is $2,108.  

The Unified Government can and will pay off the money it’s borrowed. While the Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s credit rating agencies expressed caution about low cash reserves, both give the Unified Government a “AA” bond rating. Statements that the Unified Government is on the verge of bankruptcy are lies.

The Village West and Kansas Speedway development is an economic success. The STAR Bonds used to finance the development will be paid off in 2017, four years ahead of schedule freeing up millions a year in sales tax now used to retire the STAR Bonds.

Unlike the Power and Light District in downtown Kansas City or the Bass Pro development in Independence, the taxpayers of Wyandotte County are not at risk if the Village West development would fail and the bond payments fall short. That’s because the STAR bonds are backed by private investors, not taxpayers.

The Unified Government will soon collect millions a year in property taxes and gaming revenues from the Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway.

3 months ago