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As Wichita prepares to award a large construction contract, let's hope the city acts in an ethical manner this time.

 

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A Wichita Eagle headline reads "Wichita aircraft supplier plans 45 new jobs with $7.5 million bond request," but important information is buried and incomplete.

 

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Census data show Sedgwick County continuing to fall behind the nation in two key measures.

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Representative Leo Delperdang joins Bob Weeks to discuss the recent election and the upcoming session of the Kansas Legislature. View here. Episode 220, broadcast December 2, 2018.

 

For the Wichita metropolitan area in October 2018, jobs are up, the labor force is up, and the unemployment rate is down, compared to the same month one year ago. Seasonal data shows a slowdown in the rate of job growth.

 

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For the second quarter of 2018, the number of jobs in Sedgwick County grew slightly slower than the nation.

For the second quarter of 2018 there were 12,600 establishments in Sedgwick County employing 250,800 workers. That is an increase in jobs of 1.2 percent from the same time the previous year, a proportional rate which ranked 176 among the nation's 349 largest counties. For the same period, the national job growth rate was 1.5 percent. (Ranked by number of jobs, Sedgwick County is the 123rd largest county.)

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: A look at some economic development incentive programs in Wichita and Kansas. Second in a series. Tax increment financing (TIF) is prominent in this episode. View here. Episode 219, broadcast November 25, 2018.

One would hope that after helping elect a new female governor and a new congresswoman, who is Indian and lesbian to boot, contributors to the Wichita Eagle would shove the "victim" card back up their sleeves, but no such luck. From The Sentinel.

 

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The City of Kansas City, Missouri, sold its citizens on the idea of a brand new terminal with the oft-repeated mantra, "The airlines are going to pay for it."

Maybe, maybe not. As the projected cost of the terminal has climbed 50 percent or more before the first shovel of dirt has been turned, at least two airlines are saying they will not be able to afford the proposed showcase. From The Sentinel.

 

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The Kansas Division of the Budget publishes monthly statistics regarding tax collections. I've gathered these and present them in an interactive visualization. Updated with data through October 2018.

 

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For all metropolitan areas in the United States, personal income rose by 4.5 percent. For the Wichita metro area, the increase was 2.3 percent. Of 383 metropolitan areas, Wichita's growth rate was at position 342.

While the Wichita area has kept up with national personal income growth and even surpassed it in some years, that is no longer the case. Wichita's income has stalled while national income continues to grow.

 

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General Michael Scholes epitomizes "duty, honor, country." I repeatedly saw this demonstrated in the past, as well as more recently as he continues to demonstrate his personal integrity, writes Karl Peterjohn.

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: A look at some economic development incentive programs in Wichita and Kansas. First in a series. View here. Episode 218, broadcast November 18, 2018.

For October 2018, an expanding labor force in Kansas, and a slight increase in jobs from September.

 

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In the second quarter of 2018, the Kansas economy grew at the annual rate of 4.7 percent, the seventh-best rate in the nation. This is a sharp jump in the rate of growth from the first quarter of 2018, when the rate was 0.5 percent, with only three states having lower rates.

 

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I appeared on a panel discussing the results of the November 2018 elections. The host of this show is Pilar Pedraza. The other panelist was Russell Fox. View here. 

This visualization holds salaries of Kansas school superintendents, principals, and teachers. The visualization shows the average for each of these categories for each school district. The values are adjusted for inflation to the most current year values. Some data is presented on a per-pupil basis using full-time equivalent student counts.

 

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The State of Kansas is heading towards a cliff despite reports of budget surplus and campaign rhetoric. State budget analysts show Kansas deficit spending next year, and empty reserves by 2022. From Kansas Policy Institute.

 

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From the Wichita Pachyderm Club: Wichita State University Political Science Professor Mel Kahn speaking on the results of the 2018 General Election. This informative and entertaining presentation was recorded on November 9, 2018. Introduction was by Dalton Glasscock.

 

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Kansans need of a new way of thinking. They won't get that from a Democrat or Republican as governor, writes Michael Austin, Director of the Sandlian Center for Entrepreneurial Government at the Kansas Policy Institute.

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Bob and Karl look at election results nationally, in Kansas, and in Sedgwick County. View here. Episode 217, broadcast November 11, 2018.

Troubleshoot why you aren't getting email from Voice for Liberty or other senders.

 

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The Sedgwick County Commission scandals are an outrage for me. I must speak out against the appalling revelations that provide explicit evidence of illegal misconduct in our county government, writes Karl Peterjohn.

 

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Choosing Freedom with Dave Trabert is an initiative of Kansas Policy Institute, and will air weekly on multiple stations across the State. Choosing Freedom will cover the most pressing issues impacting our personal freedoms in Kansas.

 

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Wichita City Council Member Pete Meitzner (district 2, east Wichita) is running for a position on the Sedgwick County Commission.

He's running on his record of economic development. His website says: "Pete's seven years on the City Council has proven to be a large part of the positive momentum we have recently experienced."

Let's take a look at the record. Click here to view a presentation of the numbers.

From the Wichita Pachyderm Club: Robert L. Bradley, Jr. He is CEO and Founder of Institute for Energy Research, visiting fellow at the Institute of Economic Affairs in London, and an adjunct scholar at both the Cato Institute and the Competitive Enterprise Institute. His topic at the Pachyderm Club was "The Contra-Capitalist Corporation (In Search of Heroic Capitalism)." 

 

Click here for the audio recording and visual presentation.

 

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In the heat of campaign season Kansans have heard it's good to tax X and not Y, or we should spend taxpayer dollars on A and not B. Coincidentally under all of this debate comes the Wayfair Decision handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court. The court ruled that states have the authority to tax online sales in certain circumstances. However, Kansas already receives sales tax from Amazon and other large retailers because they are physically present in Kansas. As a result, a discussion on taxing online sales has been focused on smaller, and more elusive, out-of-state businesses. From Kansas Policy Institute.

 

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Unlike most of the very rich pouring money into Kansas, the Kochs are from Kansas and have made many Kansans wealthy. Their extraordinary generosity to liberal institutions, including Chapman University, has merited them very little, not security and not even a passing stab at the truth. From The Sentinel.

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Sedgwick County Commissioner Richard Ranzau explains the current problems with corruption in the county. Then, Renee Duxler tells us why she's running for Sedgwick County Commission. View here. Episode 215, broadcast October 28, 2018.

The WestEd school funding cost study commissioned earlier this year by the Kansas legislature has been cited by some education officials as saying school efficiency is very high, meaning there is little room to reduce costs in the state's 286 school districts.  But that's a misinterpretation.  Dr. Lori Taylor, lead author of the study, graciously took time to respond to several questions about the study's reference to efficiency. From Kansas Policy Institute.

 

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Many are unaware that Kansas state government participates in its own lottery. However, the difference between this type of government gamble and buying a MegaMillions ticket is that if the state makes the wrong bet, the taxpayer could end up living paycheck to paycheck. From Kansas Policy Institute.

 

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What is the condition of Kansas highways?

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Republican candidate for Congress Representative Ron Estes explains why he should continue to be our representative in the United States House of Representatives. View here. Episode 214, broadcast October 21, 2018.

From Karl Peterjohn, an account of why the Wichita Pachyderm Club is a valuable civic institution.

 

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A look at actual spending on Kansas highways, apart from transfers.

 

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Charts of Kansas school spending presented in different forms.

One of the most important charts shows state spending per-pupil, adjusted for inflation. It shows the total of state and local spending, which is useful because in 2015 the state made a change in the way revenue is allocated between state and local sources. It also shows base state aid per pupil, which is an important number as it is the starting point for the school funding formula.

Why is total state and local spending higher than base state aid? Weightings add to the base to compensate school districts for things like at-risk children, English language learners, and other items. These weightings have grown over time, so as base state aid has generally fallen, total spending has generally risen.

A second chart shows the ratio of total state and local spending to base state aid.

This is not simply a technical matter. In discussions of school policy, sometimes only the base aid figure is used. As it has fallen, some formulate an argument that school spending has been cut. That is easily refuted by looking at total state and local spending.

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Author Lenore Skenazy talks about today's children and the free-range kids movement. View here. Episode 212, broadcast October 7, 2018.

A look at some of the large economic development programs in Wichita and Kansas.

Here's video of a presentation I gave at the Wichita Pachyderm Club this week on economic development incentives. The video was produced by Paul Soutar of Graphic Lens. View here.

Currently there is discussion in Wichita on whether higher education is valued by residents. Following, from April 2011, a look at the educational achievement of the Wichita City Council.

 

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The Wichita economy shrank in 2017, but revised statistics show growth in 2016. For 2017, the Wichita metropolitan area GDP, in real dollars, fell by 1.4 percent. Revised statistics for 2016 indicate growth of 3.8 percent for that year. Last year BEA reported growth of -1.4 percent.

 

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What is the importance of agriculture to the Kansas economy?

The table shows that for 2017, agriculture counted for 3.2 percent of the Kansas economy. For the period 1997 to 2017, it was 2.7 percent. There are many industry groups with greater output than agriculture.

 

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An interactive visualization of gross domestic product by metropolitan area and industry. An example from the visualization compares Wichita metro GDP growth to that of the nation's metropolitan areas.

 

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Must the City of Wichita spend its share of Sedgwick County sales tax proceeds in a specific way?

Excerpt: We often hear that half the city's share of the sales tax is pledged for Kellogg construction. In actuality it is pledged to "Wichita road, highway and bridge projects."

But really, it isn't even pledged to that. The pledge is in the form of a city ordinance. It may be changed at any time at the will of four council members.

Yes, the ordinance says the city intends to continue using the tax revenues in the same way "as a matter of faith and trust." Unfortunately, that trust has been destroyed in many ways, one being council members who tell us things that aren't true.

 

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From the Wichita Pachyderm Club: Kansas Treasurer Jake LaTurner. This was recorded on September 14, 2018.

 

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Kansas tax receipts by category, presented in an interactive visualization.

 

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Kansas has more state government employees per resident than most states, and the trend is rising.

 

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It may be very expensive for the City of Wichita to terminate its agreement with the Wichita Wingnuts baseball club, and there are questions.

 

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Among nearby states, Kansas collects a lot of taxes, on a per-resident basis.

 

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We have a lot of neat stuff in Wichita. Other cities do, too.

Excerpt: It's great to love your city. But we can't afford to be lulled into complacency - a false recognition of achievement - when all the data says otherwise.

 

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As part of an ongoing transparency project, I asked the City of Wichita for check register data. I've made the data available in a visualization using Tableau Public. This visualization is updated with data through August 31, 2018.

 

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Kansas has nearly the highest number of local government employees per resident, compared to other states.

For all local government employees, Kansas had 50.59 per thousand residents in 2016, higher than all states (and areas) but the District of Columbia and Wyoming. These employees had an annual payroll of $2,141.16 per resident. Ten states were higher.

 

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A lawsuit claims that when the City of Wichita refinanced its special assessment bonds, it should have passed on the savings to the affected taxpayers, and it did not do that.

 

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: The end of a Sedgwick County Commission election, the Wichita Eagle editorializes on school spending and more taxes, and Wichita Mayor Jeff Longwell seems misinformed on the Wichita economy. View here. Episode 207, broadcast August 26, 2018.

A Wichita Eagle editorial argues for higher property taxes to help the city grow.

 

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The Douglas Design District proposes to transform from a voluntary business organization to a tax-funded branch of government (but doesn't say so).

 

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The Wichita Eagle editorial board wants higher taxes. Relying on its data and arguments will lead citizens to misinformed and uninformed opinions.

 

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A recent editorial by the largest newspaper in Kansas misinforms its readers. Opinions may vary on spending more or less on schools. But our state's largest newspaper isn't giving its readers the information they need to form an informed opinion.

 

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A look at ranked-choice voting and how it might have worked in the Kansas Republican gubernatorial primary election in August 2018.

 

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From Kansas Policy Institute: An interactive visualization of spending by Kansas school districts.We compiled this Fact Book because scientific surveys show that citizens are largely misinformed on many pertinent facts of public education in Kansas. Aid and spending per-pupil are much higher than many Kansans believe, and student achievement is lower than understood.

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An interactive visualization of spending by Kansas school districts.

 

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On a televised call-in show, Wichita Mayor Jeff Longwell is proud of the performance of the city in growing jobs.

 

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When the Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee endorses a candidate, consider what that means.

 

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Recently Kansas Policy Institute, along with Americans for Prosperity and Kansas Chamber of Commerce, held a series of briefings for candidates for the Kansas Legislature. The presentations in Wichita were recorded, and are available here:

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Kansas has a lot of government employees when compared to other states, and especially so in education.

Click here for the full story and interactive visualization.

If Kansas government doesn't have enough money to meet spending requests, it's not for the lack of collecting taxes.

Airport traffic data presented in an interactive visualization, updated through 2017. A few observations regarding Wichita airport traffic as compared to the nation:

• Since 2014, passenger traffic at the Wichita airport is slightly higher, while rising sharply for the nation.
• The number of departures has been declining in Wichita, while level and now increasing for the nation.
• The number of available seats on departing flights from Wichita has been mostly level, while rising sharply for the nation.

To view and use the interactive visualization, click here .

Sedgwick County jobs

Sedgwick County had fewer jobs in 2017 than in 2016.

From December 2016 to December 2017 Sedgwick County employment was level, changing by 0.0 percent. According to the BLS news release, that ranked 317 of the 347 largest counties.

Using the monthly average job count, Sedgwick County had 248,772 (monthly average) jobs in 2016. For 2017 that fell to 247,022, a decline of 1,750 jobs or 0.7 percent.

As can be seen in the chart of change in job levels, 2017 continues a trend of slower job growth in Sedgwick County, with the growth trend turning negative.

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There has been much public and private investment in Downtown Wichita. What has been the trend in business activity during this time?

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An ongoing study reports that property taxes on commercial and industrial property in Wichita are high. In particular, taxes on commercial property in Wichita are among the highest in the nation.

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Wichita continues to decline in economic vitality, compared to other areas.

NewGeography.com is a joint venture of Joel Kotkin and Praxis Strategy Group. Its annual "Best Cities for Jobs" project ranks metropolitan areas according to growth in employment.

Of 422 metropolitan areas considered, Wichita ranked 383, dropping 28 spots since the previous year.

Among 100 medium size metropolitan areas, Wichita ranked 93, dropping 5 spots from the previous year.

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Despite promises, Wichita fails to inform citizens on important activities of its government.

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Several Wichita city officials have noted that the population of the City of Wichita now exceeds that of Cleveland. This, to them, is a point of pride and sign of momentum in Wichita.

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How much, if anything, do tax abatements cost?

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An interactive visualization of tax collections by state governments.

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Liquor enforcement tax collections provide insight into the economic impact of hosting NCAA basketball tournament games in Wichita.

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Hotel tax collections provide an indication of the economic impact of hosting a major basketball tournament.

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Census data shows that some counties in Kansas are growing faster than others. In the chart, we can see that some Kansas counties are doing better than others. Notably, Sedgwick County shows a decline in employees and payroll in 2016.

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: United States Senator Dr. Tom Coburn wrote the foreword to the book "What Was Really the Matter with the Kansas Tax Plan -- The Undoing of a Good Idea." He's here to tell us what went wrong, and what we need to do. View here. Episode 193, broadcast April 21, 2018.

When properly considered, Kansas often underperforms the nation in the most recent assessment of "The Nation's Report Card."

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As in years past, a truthful accounting of the finances of Intrust Bank Arena in downtown Wichita shows a large loss.

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As Project Wichita gets ready to gather information and set goals, let's be aware that we've done this before, and not long ago.

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The City of Wichita property tax mill levy declined for the second year in a row.

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An important detail regarding Naftzger Park in downtown Wichita is unsettled, and Wichitans have reason to be wary. 

Excerpt: Recently I asked the city if this master calendar had been created, or if there was a framework for determining how many private events can be held. According to the city, decisions are ongoing, and "According to Park & Recreation officials, what can be shared now is that the City will create and maintain a master calendar of events and programming. The developer will share in the programming responsibility and host several events throughout the year. Collaborating will ensure that the park is programmed well and active." Wichitans should not take comfort in learning this. 

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Employment in metropolitan areas

An interactive visualization of labor force, employment, and unemployment rate for all metropolitan areas in the United States.

The example from the visualization shown below shows the Wichita Metropolitan Statistical Area and All Metro Areas. Data is through January 2018. Of note regarding Wichita:

• Since the Great Recession ended, the unemployment rate in Wichita has fallen, as it has nationwide.
• At the same time, employment (the number of people working) in Wichita, has been steady or rising slightly. Nationwide, employment has been growing.
• At the same time, the civilian labor force in Wichita has been mostly falling, while rising nationwide. 

Click here for the full story. 

Following the Wichita Mayor, the Chair of the Sedgwick County Commission speaks on economic development.

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A column written by Wichita Mayor Jeff Longwell ignores the reality of Wichita's economy.

Excerpt: I sincerely hope the mayor is not aware of the poor performance of the Wichita-area economy. Because if he is aware, and he promises to "continue our growth pattern," we're in for continued trouble. Did you know that the Wichita-area economy shrank from 2015 to 2016? That is, we produced fewer goods and services in 2016 than in 2015, after accounting for inflation. Is this the growth pattern the mayor promises to continue?

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There is a movement to increase the transparency of government in Kansas, but there's much to be done, starting with attitudes.

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In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Dave Trabert of Kansas Policy Institute joins Bob and Karl to discuss his new book What Was Really the Matter with the Kansas Tax Plan -- The Undoing of a Good Idea. View here. Episode 186, broadcast March 3, 2018.

Metro Monitor from Brookings Institution ranks metropolitan areas on economic performance. How does Wichita fare?

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The use of PEAK, a Kansas economic development incentive program, varies widely among counties. 

 

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Wichitans might be surprised to learn the cost of cultural attractions. The price of adult admission to the Wichita Art Museum is $7.00, or free on Saturdays thanks to the generosity of Colby Sandlian, a Wichita businessman.

But the cost of admission is much higher. For 2016, Wichita city documents report a cost per visitor of $54.71

 

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Wichita city hall failed to uphold the terms of a development agreement from five years ago, not monitoring contracts that protect the public interest.

Beyond this, we now know that neither the city nor the WaterWalk developer followed the terms of the deal. The annual reports were not supplied by the company, and they were not requested by the city. As it turns out the annual reports purport to show that the city was owed no money under the profit sharing agreement.

But that's not the point. The issue is that the city did not enforce a simple aspect of the agreement, and the private-sector company felt it did not need to comply. Taxpayers were not protected, and we're left wondering whether these agreements were really meant to be followed.

 

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The claim of 26,000 workers in downtown Wichita is based on misuse of data so blatant it can be described only as malpractice. 

 

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Critics of school choice say there is no accountability outside the traditional public schools. Here are the standards Kansas used to hold its schools accountable.

 

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