KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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A public administration expert says tension between the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, and the Board of Public Utilities is nothing new, but it’s impact is having present-day impacts on residents, particularly regarding the PILOT fee.
Residents like Fannie Hill say they’re done taking things at face value, even utility bills.
“You don’t know who to trust anymore,” Hill said.
Hill — a Wyandotte County resident for the past 40 years — lives in Kansas City, Kansas', Northeast neighborhood.
"This is really the most poverty-stricken area there is," Hill said. "There’s a lot in the county to fight about, but it seems like we can’t get past the PILOT because nobody can come up with a solution."
Hill was paying attention when the KCK Mayor and Wyandotte County Administrator directed the Board of Public Utilities to remove the PILOT, or payment in lieu of taxes, fee from bills on Oct. 1.
That deadline passed weeks ago, and the fee’s still there.
"The most devastating thing was when they walked it back," Hill said. "I thought, 'How fancy, walked it back.'"
Hill’s trust has eroded since the PILOT saga started. She looked to county leaders for answers only to be let down.
"If they told me something, I believed it," Hill said. "And now I want to know why that happened and you didn’t say anything."
BPU and UG leaders say a lack of communication caused the problem of the PILOT not being removed on time.
"They both have responsibilities to the voters," said Dr. Susan Keim, an associate professor of public administration at Park University. "So, they can't just change something without some thoughtful conversation."
Keim worked in Wyandotte County for two decades before working at Park University. The PILOT fee’s not a new topic for her.
“It was money that was coming back to the Unified Government for Payment in Lieu of Taxes, but it was coming out of BPU bills,” Keim said. “So rate payers had questions about why were they paying the BPU and what was this money going towards?”
Her background knowledge of Wyandotte County coupled with research led her to a conclusion.
"There was always dynamic tension between the Board of Public Utilities and the UG and the Payment in Lieu of Taxes," Keim said. "Part of it is around the responsibility of each governmental entity."
One of the county’s charter ordinances classifies the Board of Public Utilities as an “administrative agency” within the Unified Government.
But when the Unified Government consolidated in 1997, the BPU had already been around for decades.
"The BPU is really not part of consolidation," Keim said. "And so, the BPU board members are elected, and so are the county commissioners, so they’re separate entities and they’re kind of sovereign in their responsibilities."
In short: it’s complicated, Keim admits.
But those complications have an impact on taxpayers like Hill, whose trust is already down the drain.
"I just knew that they were going to be honest with me at all costs," Hill said. "And I’m definitely going to let them know that I am shattered."
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