Opinion

Congress protected small businesses in the One Big Beautiful Bill

GUEST COLUMN, Nate Roy, Small business owner in Northeast Kansas

The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) has ignited a strong debate about its merits, but there is one provision that is a definite good for the American economy: the state and local tax (SALT) deduction for pass-through businesses — such as family farms, independent retailers, contractors, and service providers. While it hasn’t received as much attention — especially in rural states like Kansas, where many farms are pass-throughs — it is essential for the flourishing of small businesses across the country.

OPINION – Crucial questions for former colleagues

GUEST COLUMN, J. Basil Dannebohm

On Aug. 16, a special op/ed I penned for the Topeka Capitol-Journal was published across several of Gannett’s Kansas newspapers. The subject matter was something I’ve championed since my brief stint in the Kansas Legislature: medical marijuana.

As I outlined in the op/ed (which can also be read at www.dannebohm.com), in 2015 I took a LOT of heat as the sole GOP legislator standing in support of HB2011, a bill in the Kansas House that would have made medical THC products more accessible. As the piece mentions, I supported the legislation because a constituent in a neighboring district came to me with a heartfelt plea for her son suffering from Dravet syndrome. My endorsement of a cause that went against the platform led to attacks, hit pieces, and ultimately the end of my political career. To this day, I have no regrets. I only wish I could have done more.

OPINION – Town hall a great place to begin conversation about challenges

L&T Publisher Earl Watt

A solid group of concerned citizens attended the Seward County town hall meeting Thursday, and they were reacting to their recent tax RNR statements that listed the potential of a 29 mill tax increase for Seward County. I’ll explain the 29 mills later.

The mill increase would result in a 71 percent increase in property taxes levied by Seward County alone.

The City of Liberal has a zero percent change in mill levy proposed, Seward County Community College is proposing a 0.7 percent, less than 1 percent, increase, and USD No. 480 is proposing a mill levy increase of 3.9 percent.

OPINION – Just a little anxious

THE POSTSCRIPT, Carrie Classon

I’ve been trying to meditate a bit more.

I am a little anxious, and meditation calms me. It helps me not to fly off in six directions at once. “What have you forgotten to do?!” anxiety is always screaming at me, and since I’ve obviously forgotten it, I never have a good answer. Except meditation. Meditation is a good answer.

Meditation says, “Oh! Look at that. It’s an anxious thought.” Anxiety does not appreciate this, being relegated to a mere emotion, transitory and (let’s face it) not terribly important. It can’t really work itself into a full-blown panic with that kind of attitude.

OPINION – Kansas is losing the competition for people—and it’s not just a Kansas problem

GUEST COLUMN, Vance Ginn, Kansas Policy Institute

Americans are voting with their feet, and states are either competing for them — or watching them leave.

Data posted by the Committee to Unleash Prosperity at VoteWithYourFeet.net make it painfully clear: Kansas is hemorrhaging residents. Over the last decade, it had a net loss of nearly 100,000 people to other states. That’s not just bad optics — that’s economic decline in motion.

A graph showing states gaining from domestic migration and those losing, across the US. Kansas is -97k from 2012-2022.