GARDEN CITY, Kan. (AP) Kansas counties that sued the state over payments from a trust fund might be getting more money.
Gov. Sam Brownback’s announced earlier this week that he is proposing an increase in payments from the Oil and Gas Depletion Fund to many counties.
The Garden City Telegram reports nearly half of the state’s 105 counties, and all the counties in southwest Kansas, sued last fall, saying they should have received twice as much money as the total sent to counties in October.
Brownback said in a news release Tuesday that a “misunderstanding” between counties and legislators led him to propose increasing the payments by $7.5 million. The Legislature still must authorize the funding.
The trust fund is designed to offset decreases in property tax revenues in oil- and gas-producing counties.