Kansas House votes to approve STAR bonds bill

TOPEKA (KSNT) – The STAR bonds bill, an attempt to lure Chiefs and the Royals to Kansas, was approved by the House 84-38 in a special legislative session on Tuesday. The bill now heads to the Senate.

In its current form, the bill covers 70% of stadium construction costs. The minimum capital investment would be $1 billion.

The money would be paid back through sales tax on alcohol sales made within the stadium district, along with the revenue the state receives from sports gambling and lottery gaming.

Governor Laura Kelly also weighed in on the legislature’s attempt to get the teams across the state line. Her chief of staff told lawmakers that she’ll sign the bill if it passes the legislature in its current form.

“I’m impressed by the ‘full court press’ that’s being made to get these teams to consider moving across the river. It’s not something I’m going to invest a lot of energy in, I think this is something for the legislature to work through.”

GOV. LAURA KELLY, (D) KANSAS

For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.