Candidates for state and federal office in Kansas would have to prove their citizenship under a bill approved by a Kansas House committee.

Critics say the bill approved Wednesday by the House Elections Committee is inspired by the so-called birther movement, which has
questioned President Barack Obama’s U.S. citizenship.

But Rep. John Rubin, a Shawnee Republican who voted for the bill, says if the state is going to ask its citizens to prove they are U.S. citizens, candidates should face the same requirement.

Rep. Ann Mah, a Democrat from Topeka, said called the bill “silliness to get at the president.”

Sprouts from the sandwich chain Jimmy John’s have been linked to an outbreak of foodborne illness again.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that 12 cases of E. coli poisoning in five states are linked to clover sprouts eaten at Jimmy John’s restaurants. The outbreak comes a year after sprouts from one of the chain’s suppliers were linked to 140 salmonella illnesses. Sprouts from the chain were also linked to a 2009 salmonella outbreak in several Midwestern states and were suspected in an E. coli outbreak in Colorado in 2008.

The CDC reports more than 30 sprout outbreaks in the last 15 years. Sprouts need warm and humid conditions to grow, encouraging bacterial growth.

Illnesses were reported in Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Wisconsin.

Gov. Sam Brownback and several wind energy officials are touting efforts in Kansas to develop the power source and asking that a federal tax credit for the industry not be allowed to expire.

At a news conference Wednesday, the Republican governor said Kansas is among the national leaders in wind energy production, with several new wind farms scheduled for completion this year.

But there’s concern that Congress won’t extend a tax credit that makes it worthwhile for wind developers to invest in new turbines. One industry official said Wednesday that without the tax credit, construction of wind equipment at a plant in Hutchinson could end next year.

Brownback said that while the tax credit shouldn’t be permanent, it’s important to provide support as the renewable markets grow.

By Fred Gough ~ Hutch Post

A Lyons man will spend more than 27 years in prison after being found guilty of two counts of rape. 53-year-old Stanley W. Points, pled to the charges in December.

Judge Hannelore Kitts Wednesday sentenced Points to 330-months in the Kansas Department of Corrections.

The case was investigated by the Lyons Police Department.

The Kansas Board of Education has approved the state’s request for a waiver from some provisions of the federal No Child Left Behind law.

Members voted Wednesday to support the waiver’s submission to the U.S. Department of Education. If granted, Kansas schools would no longer face a 2014 deadline for ensuring that 100% of their students perform well on state tests.

After Congress failed to change the law, President Barack Obama told states last fall they could seek a waiver around the unpopular proficiency requirements in exchange for actions his administration favors.

Kansas officials plan to submit it by Feb. 28, the deadline for the second round of requests. Ten states were granted waivers last week from the first round of requests.

Protesters are hoping to draw people from across the nation to Wichita over the President’s Day weekend for an “Occupy Koch Town” event.

Wichita is the home of Koch Industries and the three-day event is billed as a protest against Charles and David Koch. The group contends the Koch brothers exemplify corporate dominance of politics and distortion of science that is perpetuating bad energy policy.

The heart of the protest is opposition to the Keystone-XL pipeline that that would carry Canadian oil to refineries along the Texas Gulf coast. Opponents say the dirty, highly corrosive oil it would carry endangers the Ogallala Aquifer and farms along its route.

Rallies, speakers and marches are planned Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

A state agency has been asked to study ways to save money at the Kansas Neurological Institute in Topeka.

Rep. David Crum, a Republican from Augusta, says the discussion could include transitioning KNI from an institution for people with severe developmental disabilities to residential housing for the disabled.

But Crum said Tuesday that the discussion is only in preliminary stages. He says he asked the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services to make recommendations after a 2-day legislative break in March.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the House Social Services Budget Committee approved Gov. Sam Brownback’s recommendation to provide $28.6 million for KNI, with $10.3 million from the state general fund.

Last year, Brownback recommended closing the KNI but lawmakers rejected the proposal.

The Salina Human Relations Commission has voted to delay a decision on a proposal to change the city’s equality ordinance.

The Salina Journal reports that more than half of those who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting opposed a proposal to add sexual orientation and gender identity to the city’s protected classes.

The ordinance would mean people can’t be discriminated against in public accommodations, housing and employment. Some businesses and landlords would be exempt.

The commission voted to delay action on the ordinance until March, after the city holds three public hearings on the issue.

Supporters of a Kansas bill described as an attempt to protect religious freedoms are now citing President Barack Obama’s ill-fated mandate on insurance coverage of contraceptives as a reason for the measure.

But gay rights advocates testified Tuesday that the real motives behind the bill before the House Judiciary Committee remain the same. They say it’s an attempt to nullify local ordinances and university policies barring discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

The committee took no action but is expected to vote on the measure by Monday.

Supporters said Obama’s attempt to require that even religious organizations offer their employees coverage for birth control shows the bill is needed.

But opponents said the measure will inspire lawsuits against policies protecting gays and lesbians from discrimination.

A plan from Kansas House Republicans would divert $320 million from transportation projects to replace revenue lost by a cut in state income taxes.

A Department of Kansas Transportation spokesman says highway, rail and air projects could be delayed or shelved if the proposal is approved.

St. Marys Republican Rep. Richard Carlson, chairman of the House Tax Committee, says financing for the transportation department would stay the same in fiscal years 2014 and 2015, before climbing again in 2016.

The GOP plan is an alternative to one proposed by Gov. Sam Brownback, who wants to extend a 0.6 percent increase in statewide sales tax. The House plan would let the sales tax fall back to 5.7 percent and replace the revenue with KDOT money.

A group of Kansas lawmakers have proposed a bill that would require a third of Kansas welfare recipients to pay to be tested for drugs.

Under the proposal, the state will refund the cost of the tests to anyone who tests negative for drugs. Someone who tested positive would have to undergo a drug evaluation and possibly be required to attend an education or treatment program.

A second positive test would require the person to attend an education or treatment program and remove him or her from welfare for a year. A third positive test would cause permanent removal from welfare.

The Kansas City Star reports a household that includes someone who is banned from the program would have to get aid from a state-approved third party.

A gay rights group is mobilizing against a bill before a Kansas House committee that supporters say is an attempt to preserve religious freedom.

The House Judiciary Committee scheduled a hearing on the measure Tuesday afternoon.

The bill would declare that state and local government policies shall not “substantially burden” people’s right to exercise their religious beliefs without showing a compelling interest and imposing the burden in the least restrictive way possible.

The measure also would allow people to sue state and local government agencies if they feel their religious freedoms have been abridged

The Equality Kansas Coalition argues that the bill would nullify local ordinances and state university policies barring discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.