TOPEKA, Kan. – The Kansas Legislature approved a bill to allow the Kansas Department of Commerce to incentivize major professional sports franchises to move to Kansas in a special session on Tuesday.
The possibility of the Kansas City Chiefs, the Kansas City Royals, or both making a move to Kansas arose after voters in Jackson County, Missouri declined to impose a sales tax increase to make improvements to Arrowhead and Kauffman Stadiums.
“They [Kansas City Chiefs] have a catchment area of six states. There are six states where people literally come in and spend the weekend taking in the Chiefs. That means they are going to have a hotel stay, they are going to be spending money on restaurants, and various shoppings,” Dan Hawkins, Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives said.
Legislative Debate
Possible concerns arose during two and a half hour Senate debate regarding the bill including whether or not:
- If the land used for either stadium will take up currently used farmland.
- If the STAR bonds will pay for a practice facility since it is not currently planned for it to be at the same location as the stadium.
- If the additional traffic on game days could cause potential health and safety concerns to the regular commuters of the county.
Some members of the Senate were hesitant about passing this bill and gave explanations to their votes before the final vote was tallied.
“What we have in this bill is an undefined framework that leaves too many questions unanswered, and too many assumptions accepted as fact,” said Senator Mike Thompson, a Republican from Shawnee, who voted no on the bill.
Senator Alicia Straub, a Republican from Ellinwood, also voted against the bill.
“I don’t think it’s an opportunity, it’s a gamble. If you want to gamble, gamble on the NFL… this is a gamble I’m not willing to take with the Kansas taxpayers dollars,” Straub said.
Ultimately, the bill outlining what the Department of Commerce can offer a professional sports team passed in the House 84-38, and 27-8 in the Senate.
Economic Impact
“The Chiefs are a nationwide recognizable organization… and with a domed stadium, we’re probably going to have an opportunity to have a Super Bowl within five to six years, which has the effect of $1 billion economic impact on the city it’s held in…It’s going to be an awesome opportunity for us to really be able to have a quality organization, and it’s really going to put us on the map,” Hawkins said.
Voters in Kansas were asked if they supported the transfer of the team from Missouri to Kansas. 63% of the Kansas voters supported the Chiefs moving to Kansas, while 20% were not in favor of the move, leaving 16% of voters unsure, according to a survey by data and research company co/efficient.
“The Kansas Legislature has been presented with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ensure the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs remain in the region for generations to come,” said Ryan Munce, President and Managing Partner of co/efficient regarding the Kansas STAR bond proposal.
‘Scoop and Score,’ an organization formed to support incentivizing the Chiefs and Royals, said STAR Bonds will not mean new taxes if either of the teams make a permanent move into Kansas.
“Support for the use of the state’s Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) Bonds to facilitate the move without any new cost to Kansas taxpayers is high, with 57% of voters in favor. Furthermore, this plan has bipartisan support, being favored by nearly two-thirds of Republican primary voters and a majority of Independents,” according to a news release.
STAR Bonds
According to the Kansas Legislature Division of Post Audit, 2021 audit of the STAR Bond Financial Program, Kansas has approved the use of STAR Bons for 13 major projects. These projects have accumulated more than $1.1 billion worth of STAR bonds. The five projects with the highest price tags include:
- Kansas City Village West – $725.7 Million
- Wichita Sports Forum – $71.3 Million
- Overland Park Prairiefire at Lionsgate – $65.0 Million
- Wichita River District – $60.0 Million
- Derby Field Station: Dinosaurs – $34.8 Million
In 2021, $873 million in newly generated tax revenue was used to help pay off these bonds, of which $668 million came from Kansas sales and use taxes and $205 million came from local sales, use, and guest taxes.
“Most of our big STAR bonds pay off early, for instance our speedway was paid off in seven years. It was a 20 year bond, and it paid off 13 years early,” Hawkins said.
If the Chiefs decide to build in Kansas, projections show that the stadium would cost at least $2 billion, whereas a baseball stadium for the Royals would cost at least $1.5 billion.
Hawkins said a new stadium would not be the only driver of economic growth. Additional hotels, bars, restaurants, retail establishments, and possible condominiums in the area will continue to bring in more economic activity to the state of Kansas.
Public Support
Hawkins said that the public support he has seen from Kansans regarding the possible move for the Chiefs has been favorable. Nearly 300 emails have been received by Hawkins regarding the Chiefs relocation, and only five or six of them were negative.
“The enthusiasm around it is just immense…it’s been amazing the amount of engagement on social media and that has resulted in a lot of emails to me and our various members,” Hawkins said.
According to the 2021 Star Bonds Legislative Post Audit, attractions that use STAR bonds should draw both long-distance visitors and out-of-state visitors. For the attraction to meet the Department of Commerce’s goals, it must have 20% of visitors from out-of-state, along with 30% of visitors from more than 100 miles away.
