When I asked which tax causes the greatest concern, the response was, without exception, the property tax. One businessman presented me with figures comparing the higher productivity of the same operation in another state compared to the one here. Retired couples shared their concern about how long they can continue to live in the house they have lived in for so many years. A gentleman who moved to Topeka from Texas admitted he was not used to an income tax in Texas but was totally flabbergasted when he went to purchase a license for his car. I was afraid of losing my credibility because increases in the local levy have offset the reduction.
Property taxes are, by and large, a local tax.
With the exception of 35 mills collected by the state and dispersed back to local schools and 1.5 mills levied for state buildings and universities, property taxes are levied by local units of government to fund locally adopted programs. In Shawnee County, we have 59 taxing units, according to a 1991 Kansas Government Journal. We are a county of 160,000 residents. Or Washington, a population of 7,073 with 79 taxing units. The average Kansas county has 38.3 units.