We began to see some movement here in Topeka during the fourth week of the session.  We finally started to see some bills on the House floor and committees are in full swing.

From The Statehouse: Week 4

The House Appropriations Committee finally began work on the FY 2010 rescission bill and passed it out of committee on Thursday.  I am hopeful that we will see it on the floor early next week so we can get focused on FY 2011.

The House adjourned on Thursday for the weekend, and due to inclement weather many legislators headed home.

Budget Update

The House Appropriations Committee finally began work this week on the FY 2010 rescission bill, which reconciles last year’s budget and is supposed to ensure we end the fiscal year with a positive ending balance.  Unfortunately, revenue estimates have been consistently lower than anticipated, and we learned late last week that we will still be almost $40 million short by July, even with the latest round of cuts included in this bill. 

Of course I am deeply concerned about further cuts, but the House Appropriations Chairman’s job is to pass a balanced budget bill out of committee, which he failed to do (despite having four weeks of session and six extra working days during the interim).   The Legislature is constitutionally required to end the year with a positive ending balance, so now we must either hash out $40 million more in cuts as a chamber when the bill comes before the House body, or force the Governor to make additional cuts later- with only a month or two left in the fiscal year- giving agencies very little time to make the adjustments to their operating budgets.

The Governor’s original recommendations were accepted for the most part, with the exception of the following amendments:

• Rep. Doug Gatewood attached an amendment limiting the number of leadership days that leaders of the Senate and House can claim in any one fiscal year to 25.  This would be a retroactive measure, starting on June 1st 2009 until June 1st of 2010.
• Rep. Ray Merrick proposed an amendment with an 11.1% reduction in legislative pay, totaling $247,000. This would be a 5% salary cut (not per diem), a $7 a day cut in per diem, and three furlough days. Overall, this is equivalent to a 15%  reduction in legislative compensation. 
• On a failed amendment from Rep. Jerry Henry, $180,000 would have been transferred from the hazardous mitigation fund to the Kansas National Guard.  The funding would have allowed the 18 National Guard Armories slated for closure to remain open until the end of the fiscal year.  It would not have stopped the closing of the armories but would have allowed time to set up procedures to close armories with dignity and respect.  This would have allowed the state to work with local communities to make sure the closures would happen as seamlessly as possible.   

With a $40 million gap still left to fill in FY 2010,  this is far from the final product.  The committee passed the bill out on Thursday.  We will hopefully see it on the House floor next week so we can begin to work through some of those tough decisions.

K2 bill passes both House and Senate

On Wednesday, the House followed suit with the Senate by passing a bill that will add three chemicals to the state’s list of illegal drugs.  Two of the chemicals, called “K2" or “Spice”, are added to herbs and smoked like marijuana.  The substance is typically sold as incense.  The third is a form of the drug Ecstasy.  Under this legislation, it will become illegal to possess or sell those chemicals, just as it is for marijuana.  No other state has banned this substance.

Of course I want to do my part as a lawmaker to keep drugs off the street, but this bill was a bit of a knee-jerk reaction based on one particular newspaper story last summer and no scientific evidence.  Additionally, it has been argued for years that marijuana has a medicinal effect.  If K2 is a synthetic version of marijuana, illegalizing it so quickly eliminates one possible option for easing the discomfort of cancer patients without exposing them to THC.

The bill passed the House 110-11.  There are some differences between the House and Senate versions, so the two chambers must reconcile those differences before the legislation can go to the Governor for his signature or veto.   A ban would take effect within two weeks of the Governor’s signature.

Proposal repeals some licensing requirements for teen drivers

Amid the difficult financial climate, important programs and services are being drastically scaled back or eliminated all together.  Although nonessential, many of these programs serve important purposes and contribute to the overall safety and well-being of the state.  Driver’s Education is an excellent example of one such program. 

The statistics are clear: traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for teens.  Unfortunately, many schools are eliminating driver education due to budget constraints.  As a result, the House Committee on Transportation has been forced to consider repealing some previous licensing requirements because students’ ability to fulfill them has become much more difficult. 

House Bill 2483 repeals the requirement that 15-year-olds must complete Driver’s Education before obtaining a restricted license (the bill still requires at least 25 hours of adult supervised driving).  Private driver training can cost a student $300-$400 for a four-week session. This is not always affordable for students, especially those in rural Kansas. In many areas private driver education is not available at all.  Proponents argue that it is unreasonable to expect fulfillment of this course before obtaining a restricted license when the course is no longer available in many public schools. 

This is not a preferred solution or popular proposal.  Drivers Education teachers from across Kansas came to speak at the hearing in opposition to the bill. Their testimonies cited statistics of improvement in safety tactics of 16-19 year-old drivers who had received formal driving education. 

The Legislature has made great strides in recent years preparing teens for the important responsibility of operating a vehicle, most notably with the passage of a graduated driver’s licensing law in 2009.  I completely agree that lessening the effectiveness of that law now would be highly counterproductive and potentially dangerous to everyone on the road.  Unfortunately, these are the type of difficult decisions that become necessary when a $400 million budget shortfall looms and no revenue streams are being explored. 

The committee has taken no action on the bill at this time.  I will keep you posted if it moves forward in the legislative process.

Secretary of State briefs House Elections Committee

Secretary of State Ron Thornburg briefed the House Elections Committee Wednesday about the 2008 election cycle, predictions for 2010, and various tactics that have been enacted to protect the voters and the voting process.

Kansas saw a record breaking turn out of registered voters in 2008, as did the rest of the country. In our state specifically, the way voters are choosing to cast their ballot has dramatically shifted.  Between 2006 and 2008, there was an increase from 22 percent to 34.7 percent of votes cast prior to the election (advance balloting). In counties such as Sedgwick and Johnson County, an astounding 50 percent of votes were cast prior to Election Day.  Satellite voting has also helped this increase of advanced voting options for constituents. This is terrific news for Kansas and for the Democratic process.  The Secretary of State predicts that the 2010 election should be another successful election year with regard to turnout, although not record breaking. The turnout of voters during presidential election years is often much higher than gubernatorial cycles.

Also, for the first time every voter now has the right to a secret ballot thanks to the Help America Vote Act. Voters with a disability were previously required to have someone with them to help them vote, that is no longer required. 

I was very encouraged to hear about the increased voter turnout and increased voting options in Kansas.  Democracy doesn’t work unless the people participate.  As technology continues to advance, even more voting options will be offered for your convenience.  In fact, just this year online voter registration was made available to Kansas citizens for the first time ever.  If you are not registered to vote, if you’ve gotten married, or if you’ve moved in the last year, I encourage you to visit this website and register today: https://www.kdor.org/voterregistration.  The 2010 election is just around the corner, and it is critically important for you to make your voice heard next November.

Department of Revenue suggests implementing fee
for filing paper tax returns

In an effort to increase efficiency and decrease administrative costs, the Department of Revenue has advocated for a “user fee” on Kansans who file a paper tax return as opposed to electronically filing. 

House Bill 2521 will institute a $25 for filing a paper return, $10 for requesting a paper refund check and $5 for submitting a paper sales tax report. The new fees are recommended to offset the cost incurred by processing paper returns and to encourage individuals or businesses to submit documents electronically. If approved, it will reduce the Department’s administrative expenditures by $860,000.

 Although lawmakers are never anxious to impose new fees onto constituents, this is what happens after five rounds of budget cuts.  The Department simply cannot afford the staff it requires to process paper returns.  Recent layoffs within the Department already risk a backlog in sending 2009 refunds to taxpayers.  When it comes to being more efficient and streamlining government, paper use is one thing that state government- as a whole- must reduce.

I share all of your concerns about this proposal, believe me.  I know how difficult it will be for seniors or disadvantaged individuals to comply and I wish we didn’t even have to talk about it.  Unfortunately, this is yet another example of how you and your family will be impacted by what is happening in Topeka this year if the Legislature is forced to make $400 million more in budget cuts.  When agencies have to lay off staff or furlough employees, there will be inconveniences to Kansans who rely upon the everyday services of state government. 

Moving forward, if you hear legislators talk about the need to “trim the fat from state government,” I strongly encourage you to ask them where that fat is.  House Bill 2521 seems like evidence to me that we have cut state government to the bone.