Kansas Pays Him $85,000/year.

Ty Masterson’s billionaire donors pay him over $217,000 per year for his NO-SHOW ‘job’ at WSU.

It would take nearly 14 years at minimum wage to make what Masterson makes at his ‘side hustle’ in a single year.

Did he EARN it?

How’s that compare with your ‘side hustle’?

Ty Masterson has spent years collecting two paychecks — one from Kansas taxpayers, and a bigger one tied to some of his campaign's wealthiest backers.

Kansans pay Ty Masterson roughly $85,000 a year for his job as a state senator. But that has never been his only income. For more than a decade, Masterson has also served as director of GoCreate, a workspace at Wichita State University funded by Koch Industries and the Fred and Mary Koch Foundation. Over that time, he has been paid more than $1.1 million through the role — recent reporting puts his annual pay from it at $163,000 to $217,000, on top of his legislative salary.

Masterson isn't the only one to question how much work that job actually requires. During the Republican primary, a rival candidate - Phil Sarnecki - raised the same "no-show job" concerns Kansans are now asking about. Masterson's campaign denies it, saying he's on-site two to three days a week. But when asked, Wichita State declined to confirm his hours or release his contract.

Masterson took a leave of absence from the role in August 2026, after winning his primary.

$85,000 from Kansas taxpayers.

$217,000+ ANNUALLY from Koch-backed donors. Ty has collected over $1.1 MILLION from these billionaires since 2017.

Who does he answer to?  

Why it matters now

Kansas is a state where cost of living, wages, and government accountability are on every voter's mind. A candidate who has spent over a decade collecting a six-figure salary — funded by out-of-state billionaire interests — for a job he won't document, is asking Kansans to trust him with the entire state budget. Voters deserve a straight answer to a simple question: if he won't be transparent about this job, how transparent will he be as governor?

Sources

WSU Foundation compensation reporting · 2026 Kansas Republican primary campaign coverage (Sarnecki campaign statements) · Wichita State public-records response declining to confirm hours/contract details.

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