Washington, D.C. – Club for Growth Foundation has released its 2025 State Economic Scorecard in Kansas, offering residents an understanding of how legislators evaluate limited government policies in Topeka.
The Scorecard analyzes policies and votes to assign an Economic Growth Score from 0 to 100, with 100 representing the highest support for pro-growth policies. In 2025, the Foundation’s study examined over 650 floor votes and, in the end, included 14 Kansas House and 16 Kansas Senate Votes.
“Kansas lawmakers took real steps toward economic freedom in 2025,” said Club for Growth Foundation President David McIntosh. “Legislators overrode a gubernatorial veto to put income and corporate tax rates on a path to a flat 4%, overrode a second veto to require legislative approval before agencies can expand Medicaid, and tightened work requirements across the state’s welfare programs. But those wins were undercut by a profligate budget agreement that raised state spending 8% over the prior baseline and is projected to create a $460 million deficit by FY2028. Lawmakers also repealed the state’s Truth in Taxation notice requirement, clearing the way for municipalities to raise property taxes without warning residents, and handed a crony, 20-year sales tax break to hand-picked data center corporations. Wins cannot be offset by self-inflicted errors if Kansans want sustained economic success.”
Click here to view the full 2025 Kansas State Economic Scorecard from the Club for Growth Foundation.
Key Highlights from the 2025 Kansas Scorecard:
Kansas House:
- Average Republican Score: 74%
- Average Democrat Score: 15%
- Highest Rated Republican(s): Rep. Brian Bergkamp (HD-93): 93%
- Highest Rated Democrat(s): Rep. Henry Helgerson (HD-83): 57%
- Lowest Rated Republican(s): Rep. Marl Schreiber (HD-60): 38%
- Lowest Rated Democrat(s): Rep. Nikki McDonald (HD-49): 0%
Kansas Senate:
- Average Republican Score: 77%
- Average Democrat Score: 18%
- Highest Rated Republican(s): Sen. Virgil Peck (SD-15): 100%
- Highest Rated Democrat(s): Sen. Patrick Schmidt (SD-19): 26%
- Lowest Rated Republican(s): Sen. Brenda Dietrich (SD-20): 50%
- Lowest Rated Democrat(s): Sens. Ethan Corson (SD-07), Cindy Holscher (SD-08), Pat Pettey (SD-06), Dinah Sykes (SD-21), and Mary Ware (SD-25): 16%
Notable Pro-Limited Government Policies:
HB 2027 – ENHANCED WELFARE REFORMS
- Prohibits individuals from being eligible for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program if they voluntarily quit employment
- Prohibits the state from enacting board-based categorical eligibility provisions in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), better known as food stamps
- Implements work requirements for able-bodied adults aged 18 through 59 without dependents in the food stamp program
- Implements tighter eligibility criteria for child care subsidies
HB 2240 – SIGNIFICANT MEDICAID REFORMS VETO OVERRIDE
- Prohibits state agencies from expanding eligibility, coverage, services, or benefits without express approval from the state legislature
- Prohibits agencies from implementing any state Medicaid plans or waivers that increase taxpayer costs without similar legislative approval
SB 269 – INCOME TAX REDUCTION VETO OVERRIDE
- Ratchets down the state’s two individual income tax brackets from 5.58 percent and 5.2 percent to 4 percent, provided specific revenue metrics are met
- Once the individual rate is reduced, the bill also reduces the state’s corporate income tax rate to 4 percent, pending revenue metrics
Notable Anti-Limited Government Policies:
HB 2396 – HARMFUL PROPERTY TAX REFORMS
- Repeals the state’s “Truth in Taxation” requirement for direct public notice and greenlights municipalities to propose and pass property tax increases without limitation
- Provides recourse for citizens through a mechanism requiring signatures from 10 percent of voters in the previous presidential election, with a 30-day deadline to collect those signatures to halt these tax increases
- Creates an Acknowledging Stewardship of Tax Revenue and Appropriations (ASTRA) Fund that would send an estimated $60 million in state funding to municipalities with a permanent 2 percent annual increase
SB 98 – CRONY DATA CENTER TAX HANDOUT
- Provides qualified corporations with a tax refund on state sales taxes for software, information technology equipment, and other capital expenditures for 20 years, provided the corporation invests at least $250 million in the first 5 years and creates 20 jobs
- The determination of eligibility is put in the hands of the Secretary of Commerce, creating an obvious incentive for dealmaking that rewards well-connected entities
SB 125 – PROFLIGATE BUDGET AGREEMENT
- Increases total state spending to $27.1 billion for FY2025 and $25.6 billion for FY2026 (8 percent increase over compared to the FY2025 baseline)
- Estimates report the spending binge will create a $460 million deficit by FY2028
- Includes:
- A 2.5 percent across-the-board pay increase for state employees at a cost of $106 million
- Authorizes the Kansas Development Finance Authority to issue crony STAR bonds
- Spends $102 million in federal ARPA funds to subsidize numerous crony capital construction projects
- Allocates $75.5 million in increased Medicaid reimbursement payments for long-term care
- Infuses nearly $66 million in federal funds into a summer lunch welfare program
Note: This Scorecard is based on selected votes and does not reflect a legislator’s entire voting record. The Club for Growth Foundation does not endorse or oppose any legislator for public office.