A deeply divided Unified Government commission voted to raise property taxes for residents of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, Monday night.
On an 8-3 vote, the commission approved a tax hike of about $96 a year on a $200,000 house in Kansas City, Kansas. The hike would be about $57 for the same home in the county. Property appraisals increased in Wyandotte County this year, also increasing property taxes.
Commissioners Chuck Stites, Phil Lopez and Tom Burroughs voted no. During budget hearings, all advocated for no tax increase and more belt-tightening.
After the vote, Mayor Tyrone Garner, who is not seeking reelection, called a short recess. After reconvening, he promptly vetoed the increase. "Under what little authority I have left as mayor, I cannot, in good conscience, support this budget at this time," he said. He also vetoed the overall budget.
The vetoes were just as quickly overridden, with Stites, Lopez and Burroughs backing the mayor.
The commission also voted to slightly raise fees for sewer service and trash pickup.
Taxpayers in Kansas City, Kansas, and Wyandotte County should brace for additional tax hikes. All school districts in the county, along with most other taxing authorities, have voted against a revenue-neutral budget, according to Unified Government staff.
Commissioners also voted to reduce the payment in lieu of taxes for Board of Public Utilities residential customers by 1 percentage point. The residential PILOT fee will drop to 9.9%, the lowest since 2009. Commercial BPU customers will pay an 11.9% PILOT fee.
After property taxes, residents complained most about the PILOT fee. "This is real relief for some of our residents," Mayor Tyrone Garner said. "It's a real win for them."
Even with a property tax increase, the Unified Government budget is in peril. Currently, 44% of the general fund goes toward interest on more than $858 million in bonds. At a budget meeting in July, Commissioner Tom Burroughs said the Unified Government has a “systematic fiscal problem.”
The commission did vote to use 10% of additional future revenue from projects like the Margaritaville Hotel to pay down that debt.
The county is also gearing up for what it hopes is an influx of World Cup tourists and money. The Kansas City organizing committee predicts $650 million in economic impact across the metro.
The Unified Government’s World Cup Readiness Task Force report said there is a “high likelihood” that a national team would select the Compass Minerals National Performance Center as a team’s base camp for the entire tournament. The report also says teams are expected to use Children’s Mercy Park for practice a day ahead of each match at Arrowhead Stadium.
Right now, the Unified Government budget does not include any World Cup expenditures.
