By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Democrat Eber Phelps and challenger Republican Barbara Wasinger for the 111th District House seat sparred Tuesday night on issues including Medicaid expansion, taxes and education funding.
They debated at the Fort Hays State University Memorial Union in a forum sponsored by the Student Governing Association. Moderators were Jay Steinmetz and Wendy Rohleder-Sook, both assistant professors of political science.
Both Wasinger, a current Ellis Count commissioner, and Phelps, an 18-year veteran in the Kansas House, agreed the biggest challenge the state is facing is the budget.
“We need to stop taking money from KDOT and KPERS,” Wasinger said. “We need to start repayment on that. We need to stop speculative spending and start living within the actual revenue figures the state has. A common-sense approach to spending taxpayers dollars is always important, and more government isn’t always the answer.”
Phelps said everything revolves around the budget.
“Because without the money, you are not going to be able to fund programs or agencies or whatever the case may be,” he said. “We got back on track and had some fiscal responsibility restored in Topeka. So as we enter this 2019 session, obviously the focus is on the budget. We need to again practice the fiscal responsibility that we did in the last two years and also keep up with our funding of schools.”
The candidates were asked about how they would promote economic development in the state.
Gov. Sam Brownback tried to enhance economic development through his tax plan, but Phelps said it had the opposite effect.
“I look at funding education as economic development,” he said.
He noted many people in the city of Hays are employed by K-12 as well as post-secondary education, including FHSU, NCK Tech and Hays Academy of Hair Design.
“That is 2,500 people who are being paid wages, they are paying taxes, they are buying homes, they are buying cars and so forth. That really adds to our economic development in the community,” Phelps said.
He also supported Medicaid expansion and investment in agriculture and ag research, specifically noting the K-State ag research facility in Hays, as means of economic development.
Wasinger said northwest Kansas has a very low unemployment rate and needs to look at workforce issues. This includes housing as well as quality of life issues.
“We need to think outside of the box to solve these problems, just as Osborne has done as they built houses for companies coming into Osborne with the help of grants, local businesses and banks,” she said.
“We need to keep from putting on any new taxes on individuals and remove some burdensome regulations from small businesses to make it easier for them to get into the marketplace.”
When asked about Medicaid expansion, Wasinger said she thought the KanCare system should be fixed, but noted expanding Medicaid would be costly — about $56 million to add 150,000 people, assuming the federal government continues to reimburse at 90 percent.
“Work requirements would also be essential to any expansion and would ease the unemployment issues in the state,” she said.
Phelps noted he voted in favor of Medicaid expansion in the Legislature in the past, including in 2017, when an expansion bill passed in both houses, but was vetoed by Gov. Brownback.
By not expanding Medicaid, the state has forfeited $2.9 billion. He said the state probably would not have had the education lawsuit or other budget problems had it accepted the Medicaid money.
Phelps said he doubted the negative rhetoric about expansion. Thirty-four states have expanded the Medicaid program. He gave Michigan as an example of a state that was able to come up with the 10 percent to pay for the state share.
“I don’t buy into the fact that we can’t sustain it because it is too expensive,” he said.
When asked about education, Phelps said Kansas had some of the best test scores in the nation in 2009 before funding cuts were initiated. By repealing the Brownback tax cuts, the Legislature was able to reinvest in education and send an additional $525 million to schools over the next five years. As revenue continues to be above expectations, the additional dollars required by the Supreme Court should be able to be added.
However, he said work still needs to be done.
Kansas teachers are No. 40 of the 50 states for pay.
“We are now, I think, in a position right now we can start attracting those young people to stay here and teach,” he said.
Wasinger said it is vital to show the additional funding goes to classrooms and teacher salaries.
“Shawnee raised its administrators’ salaries by 13 percent. Russell built a $1.5 million sports complex,” she said. “I would like to see more accountability for additional funding. If adequate means raising reading comprehension, test scores and teacher salaries, I’m in.”
A member of the audience submitted a question on transportation.
Phelps said now that the state has revenue flowing again, transportation can be funded again.
“That was one of my suggestions for economic development in our state,” he said. “Instead of borrowing money from the comprehensive plan, actually build things and put people to work.”
Wasinger said she would vote to stop taking money out of KPERS and KDOT for the general fund.
“The first job of a government is to provide security and safety for their resident and take care of their residents. You can’t get a police officer to a person’s house or anywhere or fire truck if the roads aren’t good,” she said.
Wasinger and Phelps were both asked about term limits. Wasinger said she thought they are absolutely necessary. Phelps said it is up to the people to set term limits for their elected officials through their votes.
“Politicians being there too long is a little like leftovers,” she said. “Sometimes it is time to get them changed and clean them out.”
Phelps said, “We have term limits. It is called an election. I stand before the people in this district every two years and let them make the decision. All over the state, we have legislators doing that, and we have Congressmen doing that — standing before the people.
“I am very proud of my record. I have nothing to hide. I am not ashamed that I am in my 18th year in the Legislature. I feel these last two years we made some great progress.”
The candidates were asked what they thought of gubernatorial candidate Kris Kobach’s idea to decrease taxes if he is elected to office.
Phelps said he did not agree with that plan.
“The Secretary of State if elected wants to go back and do an identical plan that Gov. Brownback had. We have all seen how disastrous that was. You have no idea how close the state was to bankruptcy. We saw two or three bond downgrades. The debt was doubled. We cut education. We cut higher education.”
He said he favored cutting taxes on food. Kansas has one of the highest tax rates on food in the nation.
“That is a tax cut that I believe would affect everyone in this room and everyone in this district and everyone in this state as opposed to doing a similar thing that Gov. Brownback did, which benefited a few and harmed many,” Phelps said.
Wasinger said, “I don’t support anything being done with taxes at this time, certainly not raising new taxes. I think the biggest thing we need to concentrate on is the regulations we impose on businesses that make it less attractive to locate in Kansas. I think that is where we need to be concentrating.”
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