FACT CHECK: Brownback for Kansas Ad Record AUGUST 14, 2014 Ive been confused/concerned with the television ads citing Gov. Governor Sam Brownbacks successes and specifically all hes done for education which I know isnt true. In terms of his claims for adding monies to education, seems hes using the funding for teacher retirement in his reports. In fact, the greatest cuts to education in terms of money spent in the classroom have occurred in the past several years. See below for an explanation of his claims and decide for yourself. Also note the citations --- a variety of non-political, national and local agencies/media outlets. Kansas can do better. CLAIM: When I started as governor we had a bad situation. No job creation. No money in the bank. With $876.05 in the states checking account. FACT: When Sam Brownback took office, there was $238 million cash on hand. “Brownback cash reserves claim not the full story”, [Wichita Eagle, 5/15/14] “The state did have $876 on hand at one point — at the end of fiscal 2010, six months before the governor took office. At the beginning of January 2011, a week before Brownback took office, the state’s cash on hand was about $238 million, according to the nonpartisan Kansas Legislative Research Department.” [Citation here] CLAIM: We ended this fiscal year with right around $400 million. FACT: Kansas ended this fiscal year $338 million below estimates and a $1.3 billion deficit is projected within five years. “New Kansas budget projections show shortfall by mid-2016; lower cash reserves” [Associated Press, 8/8/14]; “Kansas falls $338 million short of revenue estimates over past year” [Kansas City Star, 6/30/14] “State now operating on thin margin” [Lawrence Journal World, 6/30/14] “State ends fiscal year $338 million in the red” [Associated Press, 6/30/14] CLAIM: And weve grown jobs. Weve got over 50,000 new private sector jobs. FACT: Kansas’ job growth is lagging our neighboring states and the country as a whole. Kansas was one of only five states in the entire country to lose jobs over the last six months. [U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, July 2014] Based on total nonfarm employment in June according to seasonally adjusted figures, Kansas has lost 200 jobs since November of 2013. Missouri has gained 18,100 jobs since November of 2013. Kansas thus remains one of a handful of states across the nation that actually has fewer employees now than it had at that point last year. Since Brownback’s Tax Policies Put in Place, Nearly 9,000 Jobs Lost in Kansas. “In December 2012, the month before the Brownback income tax cuts took effect, the Kansas unemployment rate was 5.5 percent. This August, eight months after the tax cuts kicked in, the Kansas jobless rate had actually jumped, to 5.9 percent. Put another way: Kansas has lost more than 8,800 jobs this year.” [Kansas City Star, 10/9/13] Kansas 45th in new business development in 2013. [Kauffman Entrepreneurial Index] CLAIM: Record number of people working. FACT: The Kansas labor force participation rate is at record lows and Kansas has not recovered all jobs lost during the Great Recession. There are over 10,000 fewer jobs in Kansas now than there were in May 2008. Current Employment Statistics (CES) pertain to the number of jobs in the state. According to CES data (CES = jobs), there were 1,396,900 Kansas jobs in May 2008 and there are 1,384,700 Kansas jobs as of June 2014. Kansas is one of the few states in the country that has not yet recovered all jobs lost during the Great Recession. [US Bureau of Labor Statistics] In the Kansas Department of Labor 2013 Annual Report, the Governor’s own administration said “the number of people in the Kansas labor force declined for the third consecutive year, causing some concern. People have gone from being unemployed to completely out of the labor force, indicating they may “have become discouraged and believe there are no jobs for them currently.” The labor force participation rate has decreased every year Brownback has been in office, now making it the lowest in Kansas since 1985. CLAIM: Were putting more money in public education. FACT: Brownback is using an accounting gimmick to hide the fact that he made the largest cut to public education in Kansas history and declared it a “victory” for Kansas. In January 2011, Brownback changed the way school funding had traditionally been reported, despite the fact that education officials confirmed that base state aid is the most accurate descriptor of dollars into the classroom. [“Governor’s new budget cuts per-pupil state aid to schools”, Lawrence Journal World, 1/14/11] According to the Kansas Department of Education, Sam Brownback’s $232 per pupil cut to public education funding was the largest single cut to base state aid per pupil in Kansas history. CLAIM: One of the lowest unemployment rates in America. FACT: Kansas unemployment ranking has declined from 10th to 14th since December 2010, and Kansas was one of the only states in the nation with increased unemployment in June 2014. Kansas’ unemployment rate is ranked 14th lowest in the country. In December 2010 Kansas was ranked 10th nationally. [US Bureau of Labor Statistics] A 4.9% unemployment rate is the 38-year average (1976-2014). Brownback’s claim uses only the increase in the number of private sector non-farm jobs from January 2011 through November 2013. There were 1337.1 (in thousands) Kansas jobs in the private sector in January 2011 and the preliminary numbers in November 2013 was 1383.2. That’s roughly an increase of 46,000 jobs or 3.4%. [US Bureau of Labor Statistics] To compare: Selecting a pre-recession period, January 2004 until November 2006, you find that there were 1312.5 jobs in January and 1359.1 jobs in November. This is an increase of 46.6 thousand jobs or 3.5%. Virtually identical. CLAIM: The sun is shining in Kansas and dont let anyone tell you any different. This statement is factual. The sun is shining today. # # #
Posted on: Tue, 02 Sep 2014 19:42:34 +0000
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