Unemployment rate, taxable wage base, minimum wage and withholding
Federal payroll rules are identical everywhere; the money differs by state. What Kansas assigns a new Florence employer, what wage base it applies, and what its minimum wage requires are below with state sources.
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Kansas assigns new employers a state unemployment tax rate of 1.75% (base rate on wages up to a taxable base of $15,100 per employee per year, which is the state-set portion of every Florence payroll and moves with claims experience over time.
Kansas sets its minimum wage at $7.25, the floor every Florence hourly rate has to clear before overtime, tip credits and local ordinances are applied on top.
Employers in Florence's county pay about $38,468 a year per employee on average across 2,677 covered jobs (Census County Business Patterns 2023) - the wage base every unemployment rate and withholding schedule is applied to locally.
Federal payroll rules are identical in every state; the expensive differences are local. Kansas assigns a state unemployment tax rate and a taxable wage base, sets a minimum wage that may sit above the federal floor, and runs its own withholding registration and deposit schedule. Any Florence payroll quote that does not account for those is a quote for a different business.
Two Florence businesses with identical payrolls can owe materially different amounts because of Kansas's unemployment tax alone: new employers are assigned a starting rate, experience moves it within a statutory band, and the taxable wage base decides how much of each salary the rate applies to. Both figures are published by the state and shown below with sources.
Put a state payroll setup review out to competing quotes before you compare prices
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account. Competing quotes are the only reliable way to see what your headcount actually prices at.
External links go to the marketplaces' own sites and forms. This site may earn a referral fee at no cost to you - it never changes the data above, and no individual payroll provider pays to appear in our research.
What Kansas adds to every payroll
| Question | Kansas answer |
|---|---|
| State unemployment tax - new employer rate | 1.75% (range 0.00% - 6.95%) |
| Taxable wage base per employee | $15,100 - STALE-FIGURE WARNING: payroll-vendor tables commonly still publish a $14,000 Kansas wage base - that value is outdated; the US DOL figure effective January 2026 is $15,100 |
| State minimum wage | $7.25 - K.S.A |
| State income tax withholding | graduated, roughly 5.2%–5.58% |
Kansas can assign a 0.00% rate to entire rate groups when a credit or solvency schedule is in force, meaning a qualifying Kansas employer can owe no state unemployment tax at all for the year.
This page is independent research, not legal, tax or accounting advice. Federal deposit rules and state wage, unemployment and final-paycheck laws change - verify current requirements with the IRS and your state labor and revenue agencies, or with a licensed CPA or attorney, before acting.
Why two identical Florence payrolls owe different amounts
Unemployment tax is charged as a rate against a capped amount of each employee's wages, and both halves of that formula are state decisions. A new Florence employer is assigned a starting rate; once there is claims history the rate moves within the state's statutory band. The wage base decides how much of a salary the rate touches - which is why a state with a high base and a low rate can cost more than the reverse. Neither number is negotiable, but both are worth knowing before comparing payroll quotes that quietly assume one state.
What this means in Florence
A late deposit costs 2% to 15% of the deposit; a full year of payroll processing for a small Florence employer costs less than one such penalty on a modest payroll. Price the service second and the failure mode first.
This page is independent research, not legal, tax or accounting advice. Federal deposit rules and state wage, unemployment and final-paycheck laws change - verify current requirements with the IRS and your state labor and revenue agencies, or with a licensed CPA or attorney, before acting.
Put a state payroll setup review out to competing quotes before you compare prices
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account. Competing quotes are the only reliable way to see what your headcount actually prices at.
External links go to the marketplaces' own sites and forms. This site may earn a referral fee at no cost to you - it never changes the data above, and no individual payroll provider pays to appear in our research.
Common questions
How much does a payroll service cost for a small business?
In 2026 published pricing, payroll services charge a monthly base fee of roughly $20-$150 dollars plus $4-$15 dollars per employee per month. A ten-employee business commonly lands between $70 and $250 dollars a month before add-ons. Full outsourced processing is often quoted per person instead, at roughly $30-$100 dollars per employee per month. These are directional market ranges, not quotes.
When does a final paycheck have to be paid?
That is set by state law, and it differs for employees who are fired versus employees who quit. Several states require immediate payment on termination; others allow the next regular payday; a few add a penalty that accrues per day until the check is delivered. Unused vacation payout is likewise state-specific. The rule for Kansas is on this site's final-paycheck page with its source.
What hidden fees do payroll companies charge?
The recurring surprises are year-end W-2 and 1099 filing at roughly 4-8 dollars per form, additional state tax filings at 6-20 dollars per state per month for remote employees, off-cycle or bonus runs at 5-50 dollars each, setup or implementation fees, charges for mailed paper checks, and per-employee fees that continue for terminated staff. Ask for the full fee schedule in writing, not the pricing page.
What is the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty?
Withheld income tax and the employee share of Social Security and Medicare are held in trust for the government. When those amounts are not paid over, the IRS can assess a penalty equal to the full unpaid trust-fund amount personally against any responsible person who willfully failed to pay - an owner, officer or bookkeeper. It is one of the few business tax liabilities that reaches through a corporation or LLC to an individual.
Is payroll priced per employee or per payroll run?
Both models exist. The common structure is a monthly base fee plus a per-employee fee, which is predictable regardless of how often you run payroll. A per-run model charges each time you process, which favors businesses paying monthly and penalizes weekly payrolls. Ask for the all-in annual total under your actual pay frequency - that single number makes the two models comparable.
Put a state payroll setup review out to competing quotes before you compare prices
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account. Competing quotes are the only reliable way to see what your headcount actually prices at.
External links go to the marketplaces' own sites and forms. This site may earn a referral fee at no cost to you - it never changes the data above, and no individual payroll provider pays to appear in our research.