Kansas and Republican policies in the news

Yes sir, good old Governor Sam Brownback and his Republican cohorts in the Topeka Statehouse are certainly, repeatedly in the news lately, aren't they?

Just not in any good way:

Budget Cuts Force Homeless Shelter To Close As Tax Breaks Go To Wealthy Kansans

Notes:

A shelter for homeless families in southeastern Kansas will close its doors next week amid a funding shortfall.

The CHOICES Family Emergency Shelter houses approximately 350 homeless people every year, the majority of whom are children. There are currently nine families, including 26 children, living in the shelter. According to the AP, three other families were set to move in as well.

The closure is coming after an unexpected budget shortfall this year. The shelter depended on state funding to keep its doors open, but for 2014 it received less than half the approximately $200,000 it needed to continue operating. The Kansas Housing Resources Corporation, which distributes money to shelters across the state, changed its formula for doling out funding this year to send more money to western Kansas, though it’s not entirely clear why.

And we all know the good part, right?

While the state isn’t offering enough money to keep all its homeless shelters open, it is doling out large new tax cuts to rich Kansans. Last year, Gov. Sam Brownback (R-KS) signed a package of nearly $1.1 billion of tax breaks that will predominantly go to the wealthy. It’s not just homeless shelters that are losing out. These tax breaks are also coming at the expense of funding for poor school districts, people who rely on food stamps to eat, and the state’s overall economic health.

Funny, I never knew and so, don't remember this Sam Brownback:

Sam Brownback circa-2006 would have trouble recognizing Sam Brownback today. The then-Kansas Senator kicked off his presidential campaign by spending a night in a Louisiana penitentiary in order to highlight problems with recidivism and the poor treatment of prisoners. He also garnered a humanitarian reputation after championing social justice causes, such as funding to fight AIDS in Africa and sponsoring the Prison Rape Elimination Act. 

Hopefully, Kansans have gotten these messages in the media.