Advocating for county to establish relations with economic development groups in Shawnee County

Here in Jackson County, we have a lot going for us, including lots of great businesses. Just look at all the great businesses advertising in this week’s Spring Showcase special section, and elsewhere in this edition, for example.

The population of the county is steady, actually growing a little, for example. With a population of 13,361, the county had about a .97 percent growth rate over the last year or so, it was reported.

We have a good community with a strong workforce, good schools and churches and an excellent quality of life.

We are located within a short drive on a four-lane highway to Kansas City, Lawrence, Manhattan and Topeka.

While population trends are one good indicator of the economic health of a county, the county’s tax rate is another and ours is considered a little higher than average in the state, with a median effective rate of 1.60 percent (as of early 2025), which is above the 1.40 percent Kansas median, it is reported.

The effective tax rate figures the tax bill as a percentage of the property’s market value.

Regarding property tax rates, Jackson County ranks 20th highest out of the 105 counties, it has been reported. 

If a county is not actively seeking to increase its tax base, and the county tax base is not growing much (other than by annual valuation increases), it does not take long before it is costing each taxpayer who lives here a little more in taxes each year to keep up with the growing expenses of operating a county government and all the services that residents expect in a modern society, such as employee salaries and benefits, law enforcement, fire protection, road and bridge maintenance, etc.

Comments made at a recent town hall meeting indicated real concerns from several people about our local taxes, despite the best efforts of our local elected officials to keep local taxes as low as possible.

This week, we are advocating for the establishment of formal relations with the economic development organizations that exist in our neighboring county to the south - Shawnee County - and in Topeka. This is something that only can be established by official representatives from our cities and county.

The economic development organizations in Shawnee County and Topeka appreciate the importance of the workforce in our county.

Jackson County should be represented on these economic development organizations’ boards of directors as the county is an important economic “catchment area’’ for Shawnee County, just as are the other adjoining counties to Shawnee.

A total of 53.3 percent of the workers in Jackson County, about 2,060, travel outside the county, or outside the state, for employment, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, while 46.7 percent of the county’s workforce works in the county.

Establishing relationships with the economic development organizations in Shawnee County and Topeka - and being represented on these boards - will be a good first step  to determine what kinds of new manufacturing and industry might be a good fit for Jackson County.