Governor Laura Kelly Signs Redistricting Maps for State House, Senate, Board of Education

~~Governor Vetoes S Sub For HB 2448, H Sub for Sub SB 286, SB 58, and SB 160~~

TOPEKA – Today, Governor Laura Kelly signed the redistricting maps for the Kansas state House of Representatives, the Kansas state Senate, and the Kansas Board of Education into law and vetoed Senate Sub for House Bill 2448, House Sub for Sub Senate Bill 286, Senate Bill 58, and Senate Bill 160.

The following veto message is from Governor Laura Kelly regarding her veto of S Sub for House Bill 2448:

“Every Kansan feels the price of the pandemic-induced inflation at the pumps and at the grocery store. The cost of food alone is one of the most significant contributors to inflation overall.

“With the rising costs of these necessities, we should be helping people afford the basics. This bill would unnecessarily burden nearly 30,000 hard-working Kansans, including people caring for their families and impacting those with children.

“Therefore, under Article 2, Section 14(a) of the Constitution, I hereby veto S Sub for House Bill 2448.”

The following veto message is from Governor Laura Kelly regarding her veto of H Sub for Sub Senate Bill 286:

“This bill includes valuable provisions that I support, such as expanding telemedicine and criminal penalties for violence against health care workers in hospital settings.

“During the pandemic, I worked with hospitals, frontline care workers, and stakeholders on a narrowly tailored compromise to protect our doctors and nurses responding to COVID-19 while ensuring Kansas patients still had appropriate protections. This was important for those working around the clock, caring for our loved ones during the height of the pandemic.

“However, a last-minute provision was inserted into this bill which gutted our original carefully crafted compromise and indiscriminately broadened protections for health care providers, substantially reducing protections for Kansas patients.

“I will work with the Legislature in a bipartisan fashion on a bill that returns the liability provisions to the original compromise language and include the provisions for telemedicine and enhanced criminal penalties for violence against health care workers in hospital settings so that both Kansas patients and our hard-working healthcare providers are protected.

“Therefore, under Article 2, Section 14(a) of the Constitution, I hereby veto H Sub for Sub Senate Bill 286.”

The following veto message is from Governor Laura Kelly regarding her veto of Senate Bill 58:

“Throughout the pandemic, parents had to step up and do the impossible. Go to work. Take care of their children. Teach, tutor and facilitate their children’s learning. When it comes to their children’s education, parents can and should play a vital role. We know that parental engagement in their child’s education greatly impacts the outcome.

“This bill, however, is about politics, not parents. Over one hundred Kansas parents testified against this bill. It would create more division in our schools and would be costly. Money that should be spent in the classroom would end up being spent in the courtroom.

“That’s unacceptable, especially after our efforts to bring Democrats and Republicans together to fully fund our schools for the last four years.

“I look forward to working with the Legislature in a bipartisan fashion on a bill that gives parents a seat at the table without harming school funding or exacerbating the issues facing our teachers.

“Therefore, under Article 2, Section 14(a) of the Constitution, I hereby veto Senate Bill 58.”

The following veto message is from Governor Laura Kelly regarding her veto of Senate Bill 160:

“Both Republican and Democratic Governors have joined me in vetoing similar divisive bills for the same reasons: it’s harmful to students and their families and it’s bad for business.

“We all want a fair and safe place for our kids to play and compete. However, this bill didn’t come from the experts at our schools, our athletes, or the Kansas State High School Activities Association. It came from politicians trying to score political points.

“This bill would also undoubtedly harm our ability to attract and retain businesses. It would send a signal to prospective companies that Kansas is more focused on unnecessary and divisive legislation than strategic, pro-growth lawmaking.

“Therefore, under Article 2, Section 14(a) of the Constitution, I hereby veto Senate Bill 160.”

April 1, 2022

The legislature finished the 2022 regular session and will begin the 2022 veto session on April 25.  There were several pieces of legislation passed by the legislature.  Let’s hope the Governor doesn’t veto them.

Fairness in Women’s Sports, Conference Committee Report (CCR) 160, is to ensure participation in women’s sports is for biological women.  The Senate vote was 25 to 13.  The Senate would need 27 votes for a veto override.  I voted Yes and will vote Yes on a veto override.  Last year the Governor vetoed the legislation and there were not enough votes for an override.

Election Security was addressed in three CCRs, 2138, 2056, and 2252.  CCR 2138 had several provisions like requiring watermarked paper for ballots starting in 2024, cleaning up voter rolls, and language for election audits in even-numbered years of four counties, different each election – one with a population greater than 90,000; one with a population between 20,000 and 90,000; and two under 20,000.  It passed the Senate 28 to 8.  CCR 2056 would limit the county election offices use of drop boxes to one for every 30,000 voters.  There are currently no restrictions on these drop boxes, so this is an improvement.  Twenty-seven Senators voted Yes and 12 voted No.  CCR 2252 would block the Governor or Secretary of State from altering election law without approval by the legislature.  It passed 27 to 12.  I voted Yes on all three CCRs.

I’ve seen press releases that Mississippi passed a law to block Zuckerberg and other money from influencing elections.  Last year, I introduced several amendments to protect our elections and they became law, including stopping Zuckerberg and other money being used in Kansas elections.  It took a veto-override of 2/3 legislators to become law, but election security prevailed.

Redistricting map for the State Board of Education (name of the map: Apple 7) board members passed 31 to 8, Senate Bill (SB) 557.  I voted Yes.  The U.S. Congress map that passed the legislature early in session, has been challenged in court.  We should hear the results of the court case before April 25.  The Kansas Senate map (Liberty 3) and Kansas House map (Free State 3F) were put in CCR 563, along with Apple 7.  The maps could have been drawn several different ways.  As with most legislation, there was good and bad.  The negative outweighed the positive on CCR 563 for Senate District 12 and other districts so I was a No vote.  It passed 29 to 11.

Banned: Sanctuary Cities and Counties that restrict law enforcement from cooperating with federal authorities and allow the use of municipal identification cards to satisfy proof of identity, including for voter identity, will be banned when House Bill (HB) 2717 becomes law.  It passed the Senate 29 to 10  and the House 84 to 38.  I voted Yes.

A proposed Constitutional Amendment will be on the November 2022 ballot, allowing voters to decide if the Kansas Constitution should be amended to require County Sheriffs to be elected, except for Riley County.  Some counties were attempting to appoint a Sheriff like they have been doing in Riley County for years.  A majority of legislators teamed with local Sheriffs to pass HCR 5022 allowing voters to decide.  I was a part of that team and voted Yes supporting the Sheriffs.  It passed the Senate 39 to 1.

More legislation that passed can be found at www.KSLegislature.org.  I’ll include more items in a later update.

It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12^th District State Senator.

Caryn

It was an intense time in the 2022 regular session of the Kansas Legislature, ending on April Fool’s Day.  It turned out the joke was on legislators who had worked diligently just to be shut down.  Friday around 1:30 am, the House Majority Leader made a motion to adjourn until April 25^th at 11 am. – leaving several items to be addressed in Veto Session, including removing state sales tax on food, K-12 funding, and other issues.  The Senate President and Senate Majority Leader worked diligently to complete our work in regular session and not leave work to be finished in Veto Session.  I applaud their efforts.

You may have heard the quote, “Expect the best. Prepare for the worst. Capitalize on what comes.”  Well, that is what I did the last couple of weeks to get tax relief for Kansans.  I worked diligently to find solutions and to pass legislation to help Kansans this year and for years to come.  As chairman of the Senate Tax Committee, I was able to develop and work to pass tax cuts – including property tax relief for homeowners and cutting state sales tax on food.  It was great to work with the chairman of the House Tax Committee and other conferees to produce Conference Committee Reports (CCRs) 2239, 2597, and 2106.

To give you some background on conference committees, tax bills that passed either chamber could be worked in a Tax Conference Committee.  It was difficult this year because the House did not debate one tax bill on the House floor, even though the House Tax Committee debated and worked bills.  Conference committees are about negotiating to find common ground with the other chamber on bills that have passed both chambers in different forms.  It’s difficult to negotiate when the House hasn’t voted on these items.  However, the House was willing to accept many Senate positions as we negotiated tax relief policy for Kansans.

The first product of the Tax Conference Committee was CCR 2239.  It passed the Senate unanimously, the House 103 to 10.  Here is a sampling of items that will become law:

• a property tax freeze via an income tax rebate for low-income seniors and veterans 50% or more disabled
• up to $250 tax credit each year for teachers who purchased school supplies with their own money
• over $40 million in property tax relief – presently there is a $20,000 exemption on the valuation of the 20 mil of property taxes for K-12, this legislation would increase the exemption to $40,000 and increase it each year based on valuation and inflation increases – it hasn’t been increased since 1997
• removing state sales tax on delivery and postage costs
• exempting sales tax on fencing materials for agriculture
• allowing county commissioners an option to abate property taxes on property destroyed by a natural disaster
• creating a tax credit program for donors to technical and community colleges, capped at $5 million a year
• making the sales tax exemption on vehicle manufacturer rebates permanent
• doubling the personal income tax exemption for 100% disabled veterans from $2250 to $4500
• provides an option for Kansas taxpayers on State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction who are limited by the federal $10,000 cap

The House would not accept this good tax policy unless a provision to create a taxing authority in Shawnee County for the Zoo, Gage Park, and Discovery Center was included.  The Senate accepted the offer since it would be voted on by the people of Shawnee County.  We didn’t want to lose all the good Senate tax positions and good tax policy for Kansans.

The other two tax CCRs, 2106 and 2597, are still in play and will hopefully be passed in Veto Session.  CCR 2106 would remove state sales tax on groceries within three years. Starting January 1, it would decrease from 6.5% to 4%, in 2024 it would drop to 2%, and in 2025 it would go to 0%.  Groceries means that prepared foods would not be included.  Beginning January 1^st would provide time for vendors to implement the sales tax reduction.  You may think it is simple to implement, but an example is rotisserie chicken at the grocery store is cooked and ready to eat, so you would think it is prepared food and not exempt.  However, according to the Department of Revenue, it would be exempt unless utensils to eat the chicken were provided.  It would have been simpler to remove state sales tax from all edible items, but many legislators would not support that effort.

Another tax bill negotiated but delayed until Veto Session was CCR 2597.  It had several tax cuts to help Kansans.  There are too many to name, but a few items included are:

• gradually removing all state income tax on Social Security
• decreasing income tax on retirement accounts
• increasing standard deductions using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) formula for inflation
• removing state sales tax on commercial electric and other utilities, matching the residential exemption
• up to $5,000 property tax relief for businesses shut down by the Governor during COVID-19

I will be working with others to get this legislation passed during Veto Session.

Fairness in Women’s Sports, CCR 160, is to ensure participation in women’s sports is for biological women.  The Fairness legislation passed both chambers last week and was sent to the Governor.  The CCR passed the House and Senate.  The Senate vote was 25 to 13.  The Senate would need 27 votes for a veto override.  I voted Yes and will vote Yes on a veto override.  Last year the Governor vetoed the legislation and there were not enough votes for an override.

Election Security was addressed in three CCRs, 2138, 2056, and 2252 which passed to the Governor’s desk.  CCR 2138 had several provisions like requiring watermarked paper for ballots starting in 2024, cleaning up voter rolls, language for election audits in even-numbered years of four counties – one with a population greater than 90,000; one with a population between 20,000 and 90,000; and two under 20,000.  It passed the Senate 28 to 8.  CCR 2056 would limit the county election offices use of drop boxes to one for every 30,000 voters.  Twenty-seven Senators voted Yes and 12 voted No.  CCR 2252 would block the Governor or Secretary of State from altering election law without approval by the legislature.  It passed 27 to 12.  I voted Yes on all three CCRs.

I’ve seen press releases that Mississippi passed a law to block Zuckerberg and other money from influencing elections.  Last year, I had several amendments to protect our elections that became law, including stopping Zuckerberg and other money being used in Kansas elections.  It took a veto-override of 2/3 legislators to become law, but election security prevailed.

There are many more pieces of legislation that have passed.  It can be found at www.KSLegislature.org.  I’ll include more items in a later update.

It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12^th District State Senator.

Caryn

April 1, 2022

It was an intense week in the Kansas Legislature, ending on April Fool’s Day.  It turned out the joke was on legislators who had worked diligently just to be shut down.  Friday around 1:30 am, the House Majority Leader made a motion to adjourn until April 25^th at 11 am. – leaving several items to be addressed in Veto Session, including removing state sales tax on food, K-12 funding, and other issues.  The Senate President worked diligently to complete our work in regular session and not leave it to do in Veto Session.  I applaud his efforts and did what I could to support taxpayers in producing some great tax relief for Kansans.

Tax bills that passed either chamber could be worked in the Tax Conference Committee.  It was difficult this year because the House did not debate one tax bill on the House floor.  Conference committees are about negotiating to find common ground with the other chamber on bills that have passed both chambers in different forms.  It’s difficult to negotiate when the House hasn’t voted on these items.  However, the House was willing to accept a majority of Senate positions and we negotiated some tax relief policy for Kansans.

There were three tax Conference Committee Reports (CCRs) negotiated.  The first, CCR 2239, had several provisions: a property tax freeze via an income tax rebate for low-income seniors and disabled veterans; up to $250 tax credit for teachers who purchased school supplies with their own money; over $40 million in property tax relief – presently there is a $20,000 exemption on the valuation of the 20 mil of property taxes for K-12, this legislation would increase the exemption to $40,000 and increase it each year based on inflation – it hasn’t been increased since 1997; removing state sales tax on delivery and postage costs; exempting sales tax on fencing materials for agriculture; allowing county commissioners an option to abate property taxes on property destroyed by a natural disaster; creating a tax credit program for donors to technical and community colleges, capped at $5 million a year; making the sales tax exemption on vehicle manufacturer rebates permanent; and many other tax provisions.  The House would not accept all of this good tax policy unless a provision to create a taxing authority in Shawnee County for the Zoo, Gage Park, and Discovery Center was included.  The Senate accepted the offer since it would be voted on by the people of Shawnee County.  We didn’t want to lose all of the good Senate tax positions and good tax policy for Kansans.  It passed the Senate unanimously and the House 103 to 10.  Hopefully, the Governor will not veto the CCR.  If she does, it appears we have the votes to override a veto.

The other two tax CCRs,  2106 and 2597, are still in play and will hopefully be passed in Veto Session.  CCR 2106 would remove state sales tax on groceries within three years. Starting January 1, it would decrease from 6.5% to 4%, in 2024 it would drop to 2%, and in 2025 it would go to 0%.  Groceries means that prepared foods would not be included.  Beginning January 1^st would provide time for vendors to implement the sales tax reduction.  You may think it is simple to implement, but an example is rotisserie chicken at the grocery store is cooked and ready to eat, so you would think it is prepared food and not exempt.  However, according to the Department of Revenue, it would be exempt unless utensils to eat the chicken were provided.  It would have been simpler to remove state sales tax from all edible items, but a majority of legislators would not support that effort.  Another tax bill negotiated but delayed until veto session was CCR 2597.  It had several tax cuts to help Kansans.  There are too many to name but a few items included are: gradually removing all state income tax on Social Security and decreasing it on other retirement accounts, increasing standard deductions, and removing state sales tax on commercial electric and other utilities, matching the residential exemption.

As chairman of the Senate Tax Committee, I was able to develop and work with others to pass tax cuts – including property tax relief for homeowners.  There is still work to do in lowering  income taxes and removing sales tax on food.

It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12^th District State Senator.

Caryn

DHE Announces Recipients of Waste Tire Product Grants
28 grants distributed to recipients across Kansas

TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) Bureau of Waste Management has announced the recipients of waste tire product grants. These annual waste tire grants are awarded to local municipalities and public and private schools K-12 across the state. The grants totaled $436,172.81 and were awarded to 28 organizations to fund projects that include the use of recycled tire products, including playground surfacing and picnic tables. The grants are funded by revenue collected through the tire excise tax, a $0.25/vehicle tire fee.

• Cherokee County K-State Research and Extension, Cherokee County
• City of Burden, Cowley County
• City of Dighton, Lane County
• City of Fort Scott, Bourbon County
• City of Garnett, Anderson County
• City of Geneseo, Rice County
• City of Grenola, Elk County
• City of Harveyville, Wabaunsee County
• City of Herington, Dickinson County
• City of Lebanon, Smith County
• City of Williamsburg, Franklin County
• Holy Trinity School, Miami County
• Kansas State School for the Deaf, Johnson County
• Manhattan Catholic Schools, Riley County
• Marshall Middle School, Sedgwick County
• Sacred Heart Elementary, Thomas County
• Sedgwick County
• Sedgwick County Extension Education Foundation, Inc., Sedgwick County
• USD 257 Iola, Allen County
• USD 274 Oakley Elementary, Logan County
• USD 289 Wellsville, Franklin County
• USD 308 Graber Elementary, Reno County
• USD 311 Pretty Prairie, Reno County
• USD 367 Sport & Fitness – Ozone, Miami County
• USD 430 Everest Middle School, Miami County
• USD 463 Udall Elementary, Cowley County
• USD 493 Park Elementary, Cherokee County
• West Elementary School, Sedgwick County

Please visit our website for information about their projects and dollar amounts awarded. https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/700/Waste-Reduction-Public-Education-Gra

You may have heard the quote, “Expect the best. Prepare for the worst. Capitalize on what comes.”  Well, that is what I did the last couple of weeks in an attempt to get tax relief for Kansans.

Tax Relief in Senate Substitute for House Bill (Sen Sub HB) 2239: Property tax freeze via an income tax rebate for low-income seniors and disabled veterans, known as the Golden Years, passed the Senate for at least the third year in a row.  Hopefully our friends in the House will help this legislation become law.  The bill had a few other provisions: it would increase the standard income tax deduction by 10%, providing real tax relief for all Kansans who pay income tax; it would provide an option for Kansas taxpayers on State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction who are limited by the federal $10,000 cap; it would allow taxpayers who got caught in the carry back carry forward conflict between federal and state statutes from 2018 to 2021 to subtract the loses and carry forward on their state income tax; it would allow exemptions for the federal Work Opportunity Tax Credit and the Employer Retention Credit programs; it would create a tax credit program for donors to technical and community colleges, capped at $7 million a year; and it would create a museum voluntary checkoff program so that individuals may donate to museums of their choosing when they file income tax returns.  This tax bill passed 36 to 2.  I voted Yes.

Small Business Property Tax Relief: For some reason a bill that came out of the Judiciary Committee had property tax language making changes to property law that had passed last year.  The language would have had unintended consequences, so I worked with others to clean it up.  Tax bills should be run thru the tax committee and not thru other committees like Judiciary.  I also took the opportunity to amend the bill so that businesses that were shut down by the Governor in 2020 could apply for up to $7,500 to help pay for property taxes owed even though they could not conduct business.  It was language that had passed the Senate and had been negotiated with the House. However, politics got in the way and the language was lost on the last day of session last year.  This could be paid for with the hundreds of millions of dollars in federal SPARK money that are unspent and help businesses still feeling the pain of the 2020 Governor shutdown.  Sen Sub HB 2416 passed 26 to 11.  I voted Yes.

Early in session the Senate Tax Committee, that I chair, passed legislation to remove the state sales tax on food and allow local governments an option to remove local sales tax.  That bill was never debated on the Senate floor.  The House did not have one tax bill debated on the House floor this year.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the final days of session.  I will continue to work diligently for Kansas taxpayers.

Last week the Senate worked over 50 bills on the Senate floor in less than three days.  Senators would get a list of bills late in the evening and it would take most of the night to read them.  It was difficult to get amendments because of the number of bills and the burdensome level of work for the lawyers writing the amendments and others involved in the process.  Obviously, there were too many bills to cover in this update.  The activity can be found at www.KSLegislature.org under the Senate journals.

It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12^th District State Senator.

Caryn

TOPEKA – The Kansas Cold Weather Rule ends on Thursday, March 31. That means Kansans who are behind on electric and natural gas utility bills will be subject to disconnection of service unless they contact their utility company to make payment arrangements.

The Cold Weather Rule is in effect from November 1 through March 31 each year. It provides protection from disconnection to residential customers served by utilities regulated by the Kansas Corporation Commission’s (KCC). When that protection ends on Thursday, failure to make arrangements or failure to adhere to an already established payment plan could result in disconnection. Reconnection after March 31 may require past due balances be paid in full, depending on the utility’s policy. That is why it is important to call now – while regulated utilities are still required to offer the Cold Weather Rule 12-month payment plan.

The Cold Weather Rule 12-month payment plans require an initial payment of 1/12 of the overdue amount, 1/12 of the bill for current service, the full amount of any disconnection or reconnection fees, plus any applicable deposit owed to the utility. The balance is billed in equal payments over the next 11 months in addition to the regular monthly bill.

The KCC adopted the Cold Weather Rule in 1983 to protect customers during cold winter weather by providing a reasonable and organized method of paying past due and current bills. It is important to note that the KCC does not regulate co-ops or municipal utilities, although many of those utilities also offer a cold weather plan. For a complete list of utilities regulated by the KCC visit: http://kcc.ks.gov/about-us/jurisdiction

To find out more about utility assistance programs in your area, please contact your utility or the KCC Consumer Protection Office at 800-662-0027 or 785-271-3140. Utility assistance program information is also posted on the KCC’s website.

KDHE Announces Photo Voice Project for Healthy Kansans 2030

TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) and the Healthy Kansans 2030 (HK2030) project team are inviting photographers to submit photos to be considered for inclusion in a State Health Assessment Report being published later this spring.

“For many people, photographs are a vital way to convey important messages,” Jade Ramsdell, MBA, LSSGB, Performance Improvement Director at KDHE, said. “We are delighted to invite amateur and professional photographers across the state to help us explore and tell the story of the health of Kansas in a different and deeper way.”

The project is seeking photos to help visualize health in Kansas. Entries should answer one or both of the following questions

• What does healthy living look like in your Kansas community?
• What makes it easy or hard to stay healthy in your everyday environment?

Entries can be submitted until April 15. Winners will receive print credit in the report and will be notified of their selection by April 29. A panel of KDHE staff and the HK2030 project team will review and judge each entry.

Complete photo entry details, FAQs and supporting documents are available on the Healthy Kansans 2030 webpage, kdhe.ks.gov/201/. Questions about the project should be directed to [email protected].

Make a difference in your community and help the environment at the same time – join the Adopt-A-Highway program in Kansas.

Litter is unsightly and unsafe, and it has a negative impact on both residents and visitors to Kansas. But every section of highway right of way cleaned by participating groups adds up to many miles of nice-looking roadsides for everyone to enjoy. This helps to raise awareness on the negative effects of pollution and the positive aspects of a clean community.

Groups are asked to sign a two-year agreement with the program, and there is no cost to the group. The Kansas Department of Transportation, which sponsors the program, provides each group safety training, trash bags and orange vests. Groups have clean-ups three times a year at their convenience and are recognized for their efforts with signs marking their sections of highway.

Adopt-A-Highway groups are gearing up for the annual Clean Up Kansas Campaign, which takes place during the month of April. All Adopt-A-Highway groups are encouraged but not required to participate in the statewide event.

Any non-profit group that does not discriminate upon the basis of race, religion or gender can join. Members must be at least 11 years old and have adequate adult supervision. For more information, contact the KDOT office in your area (listed below).

To adopt a section of highway, KDOT phone numbers listed below

(Ask for the Adopt-A-Highway coordinator in the KDOT office located closest to you.)

Northeast Kansas

Topeka, (785) 296-2291

Kansas City Area –

Bonner Springs, (913) 942-3040

Olathe, (913) 942-3100

North Central Kansas

Salina, (785) 823-3754

Northwest Kansas

Norton, (785) 877-3315

Southeast Kansas

Chanute, (620) 902-6400

South Central Kansas

Hutchinson, (620) 860-7400

Wichita, (316) 744-1271

Southwest Kansas

Garden City, (620) 765-7074