New laws in the new year will bring some changes in Kansas and its bordering states.
Kansas is cutting individual income taxes by dropping the top tax rate, increasing a credit for child care expenses, and exempting all Social Security income from taxes, among other things. Kansas is also eliminating its 2% sales tax on groceries. Taxpayers in Kansas are expected to save about $320 million a year going forward.
A new law in Oklahoma will expand voting privileges to people who have been convicted of felonies but had their sentences discharged or commuted; this includes commutations for crimes that have been reclassified from felonies to misdemeanors.
In Missouri, drivers holding their cellphones could face new fines. Law enforcement officers in Missouri have spent the past 16 months issuing warnings to motorists that handheld cellphone use is illegal. Starting with the new year, penalties will kick in: a $150 fine for the first violation, progressing to $500 for third and subsequent offenses, and up to 15 years imprisonment if a driver using a cellphone causes an injury or death. But police must notice a primary violation, such as speeding or weaving across lanes, to cite motorists for violating the cellphone law. Montana is the only state that hasn't banned texting while driving, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Minimum wage workers in more than 20 states will receive raises in January. The second-largest minimum-wage increase is scheduled in Nebraska, where a ballot measure approved by voters in 2022 will add $1.50 to the current minimum of $12 an hour.