Rural Kansans are concerned about the direction of state government, and in tighter times they deserve a more efficient one, a candidate for governor says.
Mark Hutton, a Wichita contractor and former state lawmaker, is seeking the Republican nomination for governor. The Kansas primary is Aug. 7.
With the decline in grain prices in recent years farmers and ranchers have had to adjust their budgets and the state must do the same. Landowners are feeling the pinch of increasing property taxes, too, a result of values being set when commodity prices were higher.
During a swing through southwest Kansas, Hutton said he has been meeting farm groups to hear about the challenges their members faced.
A continuing theme he hears is the need for workforce development, particularly for vocational skills and also to work with the federal government for immigration policy reform. Ag needs a pool of workers and that includes an immigrant workforce, Hutton said.
The highway program must get back on track and the emphasis has to be first on maintenance, which he said in recent years has been scaled back. Dedicating federal funds and fuel taxes is the best way to fund maintenance and enhancements.
While school funding is in the headlines a governor should not overlook other priorities.
“We have roads that need fixed. We know KanCare needs fixed,” Hutton said. “We have problems in our departments that oversee foster children and mental health. We need to make priorities.”
That has to be tempered with a mood not to increase taxes.
“There is a general sense taxes are high enough,” he said in visiting with Kansans. “Are we spending our tax money in the right places in the right priorities?” he said.
His approach relies on his business background, which means not always spending more money but rather reallocating resources that accomplish the highest priorities.
Hutton also believed the state should work toward reducing the state sales tax on groceries as a commitment to helping working families and was symbolic of an agriculture state. He’d like to see the tax phased out, acknowledging it would be a while as the state has to “get its financial house in order first.”
He is a believer in momentum and when people see a more efficient government in place they appreciate it.
Dave Bergmeier can be reached at 620-227-1822 or [email protected].
