It looks like Kansas lawmakers will reject Governor Laura Kelly’s plan to take longer to pay off the State’s Pension debt.
A committee in the Kansas House advanced the bill to the full Chamber Monday, but not because they liked the idea. Multiple lawmakers criticized the plan, which would extend the deadline to pay off a $9 billion deficit in the Kansas Public Employees Retirement system.
Republican lawmakers say approving the delayed payoff schedule would set a dangerous precedent and every time the State needed money they would look to extend it again. Kelly has said the State’s Pension payments will balloon in the coming years and extending the payoff will make the debt more manageable, however, critics point out that adding 10 years to eliminate the $9 billion deficit would mean more that $4 billion in additional costs.
