Plan B Forum

Tax cuts in Kansas have cost the state money — and job creation’s been terrible


By Christopher Ingraham June 27

Brownback's administration is facing questions about whether income tax cuts he championed are to blame for revenue shortfalls in April and May. (John Hanna/AP)

Gov. Sam Brownback of Kansas took to the pages of the Wall Street Journal last month to tout the success of his economic program, particularly several rounds of income tax cuts amounting to the largest in the state's history. "We supported small business by taking away all income taxes on small businesses," Brownback wrote, "allowing them to reinvest in their businesses, creating jobs and growth. ... By giving these companies more money to reinvest in their businesses, we are enabling them to hire more people and invest in needed equipment."

The only problem? That job growth hasn't exactly materialized. In fact, as Josh Barro notes in a must-read over at The Upshot today, job growth in Kansas has actually lagged behind the U.S. average, especially in the years following the first round of Brownback tax cuts in 2012.

Kansas was supposed to be the GOP’s tax-cut paradise. Now it can barely pay its bills.

Updated by Andrew Prokop on July 8, 2014, 10:30 a.m. ET @awprokop andrew@vox.com


In 2012, Kansas governor Sam Brownback signed a massive tax cut into law, arguing that it would boost the state's economy. Eventually, he hoped to eliminate individual income taxes entirely. "Our place, Kansas, will show the path, the difficult path, for America to go in these troubled times," he said.

""we've got red ink until the cows come home""

National conservative activists raved. Patrick Gleason of Americans for Tax Reform said Kansas was "the story of the next decade." The Cato Institute praised Brownback's "impressive" tax cuts and gave him an "A" on fiscal policy. And the Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol said that, if reelected, Brownback would be "a formidable presidential possibility."

Yet though Brownback is running for reelection this fall in a deep red state, he's trailed his Democratic challenger in 3 of the 4 most recent polls — and his marquee tax cut appears to be the main reason. Kansas is now hundreds of millions of dollars short in revenue collection, its job growth has lagged the rest of the nation, and Moody's has cut the state's bond rating. "Governor Brownback came in here with an agenda to reduce the size of government, reduce taxes, and create a great economic boom," says University of Kansas professor Burdett Loomis. "Now there's been a dramatic decline in revenues, no great increase in economic activity, and we've got red ink until the cows come home." ... '

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