By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Treasurer candidate Michael Austin is an economist by trade and he sees the movement in Kansas population from rural to urban centers in the 2020 census as driven by economics as much as anything.
"People want to move where there is opportunity," Austin said. "That opportunity can show itself in many different forms. One of the most straightforward ways is, of course, the availability of a job. That doesn't necessarily mean that there are no open jobs where people are leaving, but it does mean that people have more options."
For those areas that are losing population, Austin argues that economic growth is the way to stem the tide.
"If you're in the role of government, what does that mean for a policy perspective?" Austin said. "That means you have to make it as easy as possible for small businesses to grow. If we look at the span of just Kansas in the past 30 years, if it weren't for small businesses, the state of Kansas wouldn't see any job growth."
Austin also sees government as interfering with growth through its unemployment policy. Also, the increased ability to work from home is its own economic disruptor.
"For some individuals, it's completely fine, let's say those that are of high-skill jobs, that don't necessarily need to come in," Austin said. "There are also other jobs, in which you do physically need to be at a workplace, but people aren't making that decision, because they are getting money from the government in order to stay home."
Austin notes that Kansas hasn't fully recovered from the job losses brought on by the pandemic. For more information on his State Treasurer campaign, go to https://austinforkansas.com/.
Below is the full interview with Austin, where he also addresses the idea of a potential election audit in Kansas.