SENATE HIGHLIGHTS
Last week marked the fifth week of session with the first half of the legislative session almost behind us. As we approach “turn-around” which is February 28th, one hundred and ninety-nine bills have been introduced into committees with Friday as the last day for non-exempt committees to accept bills. Six Senate bills have been sent over to the House for consideration. This week will be the last week for committees to hear and work bills before the half-way point of 2019 session.
SNAPSHOT OF THE KANSAS LEGISLATURE 2019
The Kansas Senate consists of forty Senators – twenty-eight Republicans, eleven Democrats and one Independent with fourteen women and twenty-six men. Fifteen Senators live in cities of 100,000+ population, nine with 20,000 to 100,000, six with 5,000-20,000 and six with 2,000-5000 and four with 0-2000. The Kansas House of Representatives consists of one-hundred twenty-five members with eighty-four Republicans and 41 Democrats with thirty-one women and ninety-four men.
FLOOR ACTION
ACCESS OF CRIMINAL DEFENDANT’S PRESENTENCE INVESTIGATION REPORT SB 19– changes the statute governing the presentence investigation report prepared in criminal cases.
JUDICIAL BRANCH SURCHARGE SB20 – makes the judicial branch surcharge permanent. The Legislature reauthorized the surcharge (HB2041) in 2017 which funds non-judicial personnel.
ATTORNEY GENERAL ENTERING INTO DIVERSION AGREEMENTS SB 18 – allows the attorney general to enter into diversion agreements pursuant to statutes; add a provision specifying that any diversion costs or fees collected under a diversion agreement entered into by the attorney general would be deposited in the Fraud and Abuse Criminal Prosecution Fund.
VEHICLE DEALERS AND MANUFACTURERS LICENSING ACT SB19 – identifies that the dealer may establish its average percentage markup for parts or its labor rate, by submitting to the manufacturer or distributor copies of sequential retail service orders paid by the dealer’s customers, or all of the dealer’s retail service orders paid by the dealer’s customers in a 90-day period.
CONDEMNING THE ENACTMENT OF NEW YORK’S REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH ACT SCR 1606 – Senate Concurrent Resolution 1606 condemns the enactment of New York’s Reproductive Health Act (RHA).
ELECTION COMMITTEE
Constitutional Amendment on Population Adjustments – SCR 1605
On Wednesday, Secretary of State Scott Schwab testified in front of the Senate Ethics, Elections and Local Government Committee in support of a constitutional amendment that would end the revision of population figures to reflect where military members and college students reside for the purpose of redistricting. Secretary of State Schwab told the committee that Kansas would have to spend an estimated $834,000 to adjust the 2020 U.S. Census figures to prepare for redrawing political boundaries for House and Senate districts. “The adjustment requirement is burdensome, antiquated and expensive,” Schwab told the committee. “Kansas is the only state in the nation that continues to adjust census numbers. I think this provision of the constitution is a waste.” Secretary of State Schwab explained that the population report relied on for redistricting would be delayed three to six months while a private consultant contacted college students and military personnel in Kansas to determine where they want to be counted as residents. The district maps are based on population. The adjustment of census figures was originally done to allow rural areas -for redistricting- to retain people who had moved elsewhere to serve in the military or attend college. While the original purpose was to help rural areas, the revisions favored urban centers after the 2010 census. For SCR 1605 to be placed on a statewide ballot, it would require the approval by two-thirds majorities of the House and Senate.
Update from the League of Kansas Municipalities and the Association of Counties
The League of Kansas Municipalities and the Kansas Association of Counties presented in the Elections and Local Government Committee on February 5 and gave an overview of Kansas cities and counties. Did you know cities existed before Kansas was a state? It’s true – Leavenworth became a city in 1854 (Kansas became a state in 1861). Thirty-six counties were also created during Kansas’ territorial days. There are 105 counties and 625 cities in Kansas. Counties act as an administrative arm of the state government for elections, taxation, judicial administration, and land records. Counties also provide local services to their respective counties. Cities provide localized services to their residents in the form of public safety, utilities, parks and recreation, infrastructure, economic development and other locally determined services. Cities were granted “Home Rule” by Kansas voters in 1961 which means that local governments, and their officials, are allowed to make policy decisions locally on many issues that affect their cities. There are many challenges city and county leaders see as concerns for local governments. They cited continued struggles to provide quality services at the best price while dealing with a local “tax lid” which was enacted in 2015. Cities continuously cite concerns over providing quality, affordable housing; a trained workforce; and ensuring technology is available across Kansas to connect residents to the Internet for work and educational purposes.
POST AUDIT JOINT COMMITTEE
Auditing has always been a part of State government in Kansas. The original 1859 Kansas Constitution provided for an elected state auditor. A constitutional amendment in 1971 did away with the auditor as an elected position, and the 1971 Legislature passed a bill that created the Legislative Post Audit Committee and the Legislative Division of Post Audit. (The “post” in “Post Audit” refers to auditing transactions after they occur.) Today, the Legislative Post Audit Committee is a 10-member, bipartisan, joint legislative committee made up of five senators and five representatives. To help guarantee the committee’s independence, the members, once appointed, serve for the duration of their term, and the committee chair is elected by the members themselves. The committee directs and oversees the work of the Legislative Division of Post Audit, a 25-person legislative staff agency that audits government programs for efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance with the law. It issues 20+ audit reports a year, on topics ranging from computer security to foster care to the state’s economic development activities. The division also contracts with accounting firms to do various financial audits, including those relied on by bond rating agencies and investors. All audits are either required by state law, or selected by the Legislative Post Audit Committee. The division’s mission is to provide accurate, timely, and unbiased information to legislators to help them make informed decisions about the myriad issues affecting Kansans.
The staff recently introduced the latest Audit of an Online Sales Tax review to the committee noting Kansas could see an additional $35M-$60M in additional revenue a year if this tax was collected from on-line companies. This audit and others can be viewed at www.kslpa.org.
From the State Library
The public can find reliable and age appropriate information online with Britannica – Public Library https://kslib.info/eor from the State Library of Kansas. Three levels of learning (Children, Young Adult, and Reference Center) offer continually updated entries, multimedia, primary –source material, maps, and links to expert websites. Double–click any word in the article for the definition to pop up with audio pronunciation. Also available at https://kslib.info/eor, Britannica – Academic includes more scholarly content. Another link https://kslib.info/kids takes you to Britannica – School for learning about any subject for all grades and reading abilities. If you have questions for the librarians – visit the website at [email protected] or call 785-296-3296.
Good News for Senate District #36
The Department of Commerce Small Cities Community Development Block Grant Program has awarded 23 projects across the state. Seven cities in Senate District #36 will receive these grants: City of Greenleaf – $300,000 for housing, City of Washington – $600,000 for water, City of Tipton – $102,000 for storm drainage, City of Beloit – $300,000 for housing, City of Downs – $600,000 for water, City of Russell – $600,000 for water and City of Phillipsburg – $462,000 for water. For additional information on the grants from the Department of Commerce call 785 296-3610.
T-WORKS Modernization and Expansion Projects and Schedule
One of six projects proposed in the Governor’s Budget is US-281 in Russell County (15th street in Russell to 3 miles north) which is a three-mile stretch, two-lane reconstruction project with the planned schedule start date in the spring of 2020. Seventeen projects pending funding include US 281 in Russell County of 12 miles of two-lane reconstruction with a possible schedule date of 2023 and K-383 in Phillips County reconstruction and added shoulders also to start in 2023.
VISITORS FROM SENATE DISTRICT #36
The fifth week of session was one of the busiest of the legislative year so far. The Kansas State Fire Fighters Association held their annual reception for legislators at the Historic Fire Station #2 in downtown Topeka. Kansas Board of Emergency Medical Services members attended their annual meeting and visited with their legislators – Kathy Coleman representing the city of Miltonvale and Region IV stopped in between her meetings. Members from home with the North Central-Flint Hills Area on Aging had lunch with us for Older Kansans Day and stayed to watch the Senate session. Kansas Livestock Association members attended their annual event and dinner on Wednesday and Leadership Mitchell County invited Rep. Susan Concannon and myself to join them for lunch and a legislative update from us. Kansas Farm Bureau members met with legislators for lunch. County Treasurers and the members of the Kansas Chiropractic Association met us on February 14th for their annual visit with legislators.
I always encourage you to stay informed of the issues under consideration by the Kansas Legislature. Committee schedules, bills, and other helpful information can be easily accessed through the legislature’s website at www.kslegislature.org. You are also able to ‘listen in live’ at this website. The House meets at 11:00 a.m. and the Senate at 2:30 p.m.. Please do not hesitate to contact me with your thoughts, concerns, and suggestions. An email is the best at this point in the session.
Thank you for the honor of serving you!
Senator Elaine Bowers
Kansas State Capitol Building
Room 223-E
300 SW 10th St.
Topeka, KS 66612
[email protected]
785-296-7389
www.kslegislature.org
Elaine Bowers, R-Concordia, is the 36th Dist. state senator and serves as the Senate Majority Whip. The 36th Senate District includes Cloud, Jewell, Lincoln, Mitchell, Osborne, Ottawa, Republic, Rooks, Russell, Smith and Washington counties and portions of Marshall and Phillips counties.