Kansans should applaud the House Taxation Committee and its chair, Representative Steven Johnson of Assaria, for their political backbone in making property taxes an option in addressing the legislature’s school finance dilemma.

The Kansas Supreme Court has ruled the current structure of school finance unconstitutional and ordered state lawmakers to fix it by early April. Some estimate that will cost as much as $600 million in new revenue.

State lawmakers enacted a uniform, statewide 32-mill levy for schools in 1992 that cut property taxes statewide by $260 million. That mill levy was reduced to its present level of 20 mills in 1997, further shrinking state-mandated property taxes for schools. A 10-mill increase would now generate roughly $320 million in new revenue, which represents a 7 percent increase in total property tax revenues statewide.

Sales or income tax options are nonstarters.

State and local sales tax rates are approaching thresholds that threaten competitiveness, particularly for the border counties of Kansas. Combined tax rates exceeding 10 percent and more are becoming common. State lawmakers have gone to the sales tax twice in the last five years, six times since 1986; and local officials are enacting and raising local sales taxes even more frequently.

Kansans are fatigued from seven years of income tax debate and want to give further discussion here a rest. Last year Johnson helped assemble a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers that ended the disastrous Brownback experiment and partially restored rates to earlier levels. As a result of that, plus the boost occurring due to federal tax reform in December, individual income tax revenues are up by $270 million over estimates for the first eight months of the fiscal year. These likely revenues could become part of the answer on school finance as well.

On property taxes business representatives lined up before the House Taxation Committee last week to denounce a bill that would raise the state mill levy for schools. Owners of business and commercial properties do bear a substantial portion of the property tax burden, currently 27 percent, but their share has declined over earlier highs. They benefited from state property tax cuts in 1992, 1997, and 1998, and voters granted them a special constitutional reduction in 1992.

Further, the Tax Foundation’s 2018 assessment of “business tax climate” ranks Kansas 19th lowest on property taxes among the 50 states, a significant improvement over Kansas’ ranking of 27th just three years ago.

Local officials cautiously but regularly tap into property taxes often with voter endorsement for a variety of local purposes–which suggests they view the property tax as well administered and fair. Apart from constitutional exemptions granted by voters, property taxes are levied based on property value, so the more one owns, the more one pays. Ninety-nine percent of all property tax revenues go to local governments and schools.

Except for the Brownback relapse, Kansas tax policy has sought balance and diversity in taxes in order to assure lower tax rates overall, reduce competition with other states, and promote tax fairness. Economic growth, bolstered by recent upticks in income and sales tax revenues, will likely maintain this balance—even with an increase in the state mill-levy for schools.

Property taxes in Kansas are fair and not out of line with other states; and a state levy has not been raised for over 20 years. If new revenue is required for school finance, property taxes should be part of the solution.

H. Edward Flentje is professor emeritus at Wichita State University and formerly served with Kansas Governors Bennett and Hayden.

One of the many things I love about Fort Hays State University is that our focus is not only on students. We focus on all learners. Fort Hays State is about each of us – students, administrative assistants, service workers, staff, professors and president – becoming better versions of ourselves while contributing to a better FHSU every day.

An organization that has learners at its center focuses on a culture that respects inquiry, risk-taking, and experimentation while embracing the notion that the best thinking happens in community. I love Benjamin Franklin’s quote: “If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking.”

Learner-centered organizations are also focused on the creation of knowledge and on innovation – core values at FHSU. Because we expand our capacity to learn, new fields emerge and new majors are created to respond to emerging new careers. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor indicates that 65 percent of today’s school children will eventually be employed in jobs that have not even been imagined! To prepare future students for a career that has not even been conceived is a daunting task that will require nimble, experimental universities like FHSU.

I learn every day by paying attention and listening to students, staff, and faculty. Learning is not necessarily one-directional. I know faculty will tell you that they learn from their students constantly and that students learn much from their peers, not just from professors.

Here are a couple of other examples of learning in action at FHSU:

Our Teaching Innovation and Learning Technologies unit provides the FHSU teaching community with a range of programs and services centered on effective teaching and new ways of learning. Our goal is to enhance student success and professional development by providing workshops, individual consultation, course development support and special programs.

Dr. Andreas Maheras, track and field coach, published an article in the February 2018 issue of “Techniques,” the official publication of the U.S. Track and Field Association. The article, “Biomechanical Observations in Hammer Throwing: Distinguishing the Static and the Dynamic,” analyzes the biomechanical aspects of the hammer throw event. The article challenges existing coaching practices and presents little-known characteristics of the basic phases of the hammer throw.

Undergraduate research takes many forms within departments at FHSU, but the unifying concept is collaborative faculty-student work on scholarly projects with the goal of developing generalizable, peer-reviewed work as a final product. Undergraduate research can be one of the most meaningful experiences at Fort Hays State. Students can learn through hands-on work outside the classroom, develop research skills, identify their academic and career interests, develop working relationships with faculty mentors and get a glimpse into graduate or professional school life.

As I write this, several members of our student affairs staff are learning alongside colleagues who share the responsibility for a campus-wide focus on the student experience. I know they will return to campus with expanded knowledge and the inspiration to continue to advance student success.

Our students often engage in community service projects. When those experiences are learner-centered, students enter the project with a deeper understanding of the issue the service project is designed to address. Then they follow up the activity with more profound conversations on what they learned. This process develops “engaged global citizen-leaders” – FHSU’s mission.

Fort Hays State is a magnet for learning opportunities outside of the classroom. We create makerspaces and host numerous lectures, workshops, concerts, and wellness events. We even have our very own Center for Entrepreneurship to promote interdisciplinary innovation and entrepreneurial initiatives.

As for me, I have been busy learning more about the Kansas Legislature as well as the current state of excellence at Fort Hays State. I have thoroughly enjoyed my visits to academic departments and am gaining a strong sense of our cutting-edge distinction as well as challenges and opportunities in our midst.

I have also spent a lot of time thinking about how we make decisions at the university. I have enjoyed in-depth conversations with our vice presidents, deans, presidents of the faculty and staff senates, as well as student government leaders and a myriad of others. I look forward to more conversations about how we lead together – what we do well and how we can improve both individually and collectively. Those conversations require courage and authentic communication – and through them I always learn a lot about myself and about our leadership team. Those discussions help me think differently and more deeply about leading FHSU.

John F. Kennedy once said, “Leadership and learning are indispensable to one another.” I agree, and I’m excited to rediscover that learners are the heart of Fort Hays State University.

Dr. Tisa Mason is president of Fort Hays State University.