POLITICS/TAXES: “For six years, Gov. Sam Brownback carried out a signature philosophy of cutting taxes and shrinking government across Kansas, a state dominated by his fellow Republicans.
But on Tuesday [6-6-17] night, the state’s Republican-held Legislature overrode Governor Brownback’s veto of a bill that would undo some of the tax cuts he pushed. The state Senate and House moved swiftly, voting only hours apart to turn back Governor Brownback’s rejection of a tax increase aimed at raising about $1.2 billion over two years.
It was a remarkable rejection of the state’s tax-cutting approach after years of mounting uncertainty and unhappiness in the state over whether the tax cutting was working. That led to all-out revolt by Republican lawmakers who had grown increasingly frustrated over limits on the state’s spending on education and over state budget shortfalls.
For Governor Brownback, a onetime presidential candidate who has grown increasingly isolated in Kansas, it was a devastating blow — a final rejection by some of his own allies for his centerpiece doctrine.”
-Monica Davey, “Kansas Lawmakers Override Brownback Veto, Undoing Tax Cuts,” The New York Times online, June 6, 2017