It’s hard to believe that we are already at the end of Week 4 of the 2010 Legislative Session. Time sure flies when you’re having fun :) Committees are meeting, hearings are being held and bills are being worked, but there is a tension and expectation in the air of the capitol. Everyone here knows that we are in a critical budget crunch with a looming 2011 deficit of over $400 million and many people huff and puff about what should or shouldn’t be cut or raised, but I don’t think anyone is willing to put an actual budget plan together until we see what happens with the February and March state revenues. In the meantime, we will discuss primary seat belts, statewide smoking ban, helmet laws, death penalty, transportation and other issues important to Kansans, knowing that before any of us can go home we are going to have to work together to develop a responsible budget, which may include cuts and increased revenues. -Kelly
IN THIS ISSUE:
$ Last Week for Individual Bill Introductions
$ Elections Bill To Benefit Military Personnel Overseas Is Forwarded to House of Representatives
$ Taxpayers Will Not be Charged $25 Fee for Paper Returns
$ Gaming
$ Organ Donor Bill Unanimously Approved by Senate
$ January Revenues Down
$ Banning of K2, The New Marijuana Passes Both Houses
$ Public Forums to Assess Needs of Brain Injury Survivors
$ Useful State Phone Numbers
LAST WEEK FOR INDIVIDUAL BILL INTRODUCTIONS
Two important dates highlighted what was a relatively quiet week at the Statehouse. Wednesday, February 3rd , marked the last day for individual bill introductions, while Friday, February 5th, was the last day for most committees to request the introduction of bills. Exempt from this second deadline are the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee, the Ways and Means Committee, and other select committees.
In the next two weeks, Senators will be working early in the morning and into the evening in conference committees preparing for February 20th turnaround – the deadline for most bills to clear their house of origin to stay alive in the current session.
I am honored to serve as your Senator and am humbled by the support I receive from my community. I want to thank the people of the 5th District for allowing me this opportunity. My office is located in room 124-E. Please feel free to visit, or to contact me at (785) 296-7357, if you should have any questions.
Complete daily calendars are available for you to follow at www.kslegislature.org along with live broadcasts of Senate and House proceedings.
ELECTIONS BILL TO BENEFIT MILITARY PERSONNEL OVERSEAS IS FORWARDED TO HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
On Tuesday, the Senate approved on voice vote Senate Bill 426, which is intended to offer overseas military personnel and their families a better opportunity to vote using an absentee ballot.
Current state law prohibits overseas absentee voters from voting on local issues, including state constitutional amendments and political party precinct committee positions, among others. The bill would eliminate these exclusions and clarify that all overseas voters should be allowed to vote on any local issue that is on the ballot for other Kansas voters.
The bill would also allow overseas military personnel and their dependents to file for and return an absentee ballot by e-mail.
It now rests in the hands of the House Elections Committee, and will likely receive a hearing in the next couple of weeks.
TAXPAYERS WILL NOT BE CHARGED $25 FEE FOR PAPER RETURNS
A number of you have contacted my office this week with concerns about a proposal by the Kansas Department of Revenue that would impose a mandatory $25 fee on Kansans who plan to file a state tax return on paper.
I too shared your concerns and was pleased to hear that Revenue Secretary Joan Wagnon on Tuesday offered to support amendments cutting the $25 fee from the House Bill.
Although the State of Kansas is faced with a $400 million budget deficit, I believe that such a fee would be unfriendly to Kansas taxpayers – especially those who are low-income or do not feel comfortable filing online.
GAMING
Proponents of SB 401, which would amend the state’s Expanded Lottery Act, testified before the Senate Federal & State Affairs Committee last week. The opponents will have their opportunity to testify on Feb. 8. Among other changes, this bill reduces state and local government’s share of the slot revenue at racetracks, reducing the state’s share from 27% to 22% to increase the tracks’ profit margins and share the money with breeders and associations statewide.
Kansas Entertainment LLC, the developers of the proposed casino on Turn Two of the Kansas Speedway, are telling legislators that changing the gaming rules at this time could jeopardize the $386 million project. They state that their current contract with the state and local government is based on the provisions set forth by SB 66, which narrowly passed the legislature, and that the owners of the racetracks agreed to these rules over four years ago.
REPEAL OF DEATH PENALTY TO SENATE FLOOR
The Senate Judiciary Committee sent to the full Senate on a 7-4 vote a bill that repeals the Kansas death penalty and substitutes a life without the possibility of parole sentence for crimes committed on or after July 1, 2010.
Key to the bill’s movement was the cost of death penalty prosecutions, often more than $1 million, and that the death penalty may be losing its deterrent effect because nobody has been executed in Kansas in 15 years since the death penalty was reinstated.
ORGAN DONOR BILL UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED BY SENATE
The Senate voted unanimously this Wednesday on a bill making it easier for organ donors to have their wishes fulfilled. Senate Bill 391 would allow Kansans to change or reverse a donor registry by directly accessing a Web site and clarifies that online registries cannot be overruled by family members. Currently, state law dictates that the next-of-kin can overrule donation requests made via a Kansas state driver’s license.
According to the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network, more than 100,000 people are currently awaiting an organ transplant. Approximately 300 new transplant candidates are added to the waiting list each month – and unfortunately, the number of people requiring a life-saving transplant continues to rise faster than the number of available donors.
As many of you know, my husband Dan, had a kidney and pancreas transplant in 2002 and we give thanks every day to the donor family for their priceless gift.
A single organ donor can change the lives of dozens of people awaiting transplants. I urge you to seriously consider becoming an organ donor today. To find out how, please visit http://optn.transplant.hrsa.
JANUARY REVENUES DOWN
Kansas’s financial forecast continues to look grim, as reports from the Kansas Department of Revenue this week indicate that the state took in $18.4 million less in tax-only revenues in January than previously estimated.
Several factors played into the below-estimated receipt, including corporate income taxes, which came in $12.8 million below estimates and sales tax receipts which were $3 million short. Cigarette taxes were also down by more than 21 percent, a nearly $2 million shortfall.
This latest report brings the state to a nearly $34 million shortfall for the year – a factor which will have to be accounted for as the legislature continues working toward a balanced state budget for Fiscal Year 2010.
BANNING OF K2, THE NEW MARIJUANA PASSES BOTH CHAMBERS
A bill banning the buying or selling of a new synthetic drug called K2 has passed both houses and will be going to the Governor for signature soon. K2 is commonly referred to as the new marijuana and it appears to be gaining popularity among high school students, parolees and persons on probation in areas of Kansas because while having the same physiological effects as high quality marijuana, K2 does not show a positive reading in an urinalysis test.
PUBLIC FORUMS TO ASSESS NEEDS OF BRAIN INJURY SURVIVORS
Kansans can help their fellow citizens with traumatic brain injuries lead full lives by attending one of three public forums on needs assessment and strategic planning.
The Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) and the Brain Injury Association of Kansas and Greater Kansas City are sponsoring the forums to develop a five-year strategic plan providing needed services to people with traumatic brain injury (TBI), their friends, family and caregivers.
Brain injuries can result in physical, psychological, behavioral or emotional impairments and may be temporary or permanent. In Kansas, about 2,500 residents are hospitalized each year due to TBI and about 600 Kansans die each year.
The forums are scheduled from 8:30 – 4:30. There is no cost to attend and breakfast, lunch, and snacks are provided free.
February 10 – Overland Park
10100 College Blvd
Doubletree Hotel
February 16 - Wichita
7001 W. 21st St. N
Education Building,
Sedgwick County Extension
February 24 - Topeka
420 SE 6th Ave.
Ramada Convention Center
For more information or to register to attend, please visit www.biaks.org/tbineeds or call the Brain Injury Association at (800) 444-6443.
USEFUL STATE PHONE NUMBERS
The following is a list of numbers I often receive requests for during the legislative session. You can find these as well as many others online at the following Web site: http://da.state.ks.us/
Attorney General’s Office
(888) 428-8436
Child/Adult Abuse Hotline
(800) 922-5330
Crime Tip Hotline
(800) 572-7463
Crime Victim Referral
(800) 828-9
Driver’s License Bureau
(785) 296-3963
KPERS
(888) 275-5737
Governor’s Office
(877) 579-6757
Highway Conditions
(800) 585-7623
Housing Hotline
(800) 752-4422
KS Department on Aging
(800) 432-3535
Kansas Jobs
(785) 235-5627
Kansas Lottery
(785) 296-5700
Legislative Hotline
(800) 432-3924
Live Homework Help
Lt. Governor’s Office
(800) 748-4408
School Safety Hotline
(877) 626-8203
Social Security
(800) 772-1213
SRS
(785) 296-3959
Tax Refund Status Info
(800) 894-0318
Taxpayer Assistance
(800) 259-2829
Unclaimed Property
(800) 432-0386
Vital Statistics
(785) 296-1400
Voter Registration
(800) 262-8683
Welfare Fraud Hotline
(800) 432-3913
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