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Kansas To Increase Payments From Oil And Gas Fund To State Counties

Kansas will increase payments from a trust fund to several counties that had sued over the annual disbursements.

Governor Sam Brownback's administration announced earlier this week that the state will increase payments from the Oil and Gas Depletion Fund to many counties.

Nearly half of the state's 105 counties, and all the counties in southwest Kansas, sued last fall.

They said they should have received twice as much money as the total sent to counties in October from the trust fund.

Brownback said in a news release Tuesday that a "misunderstanding" between counties and legislators led him to increase the payments by $7.5 million.

The trust fund is designed to offset decreases in property tax revenues in oil- and gas-producing counties.

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