Legislature Adjourns Until Veto Session

The Legislature is expected to have first adjournment as of Friday and return for the Veto Session on Wednesday, April 29. The House Appropriations Committee and Senate Ways and Means Committee will return the week prior in order to develop the Omnibus Appropriations Bill.

The House voted against a Senate plan to requiring seatbelt use and allowing police to pull over and ticket those in the front seat who fail to buckle up. Current law says drivers have to buckle up, but can't be pulled over for failing to unless they've done something else like speeding or running a red light.  The seat belt bill failed in the House 55-65.Supporters argued tougher seat belt rules would save lives and make the state eligible for $11 million in additional federal highway funds. But opponents countered that highway deaths are on the decline anyway, and that it’s not the state’s business to ticket those who choose not to wear seat belts.

A day after the Kansas Senate passed another bill (gutting bill 2221, a childcare bill, and inserting language to ban smoking statewide) to ban smoking in bars and restaurants across the state, House lawmakers offered a compromise proposal: Allow restaurants and bars to allow smoking as long as it’s limited to a physically separate smoking section, and insist that employees not be required to serve customers in those sections. The House smoking ban proposal has lesser penalties for violators, and more exemptions than the proposal which passed the Senate Tuesday. And it would allow cities and counties that already have smoking bans to keep them in place, even if weaker than the state ban. Many in the House oppose mandates on private businesses, and argue smoking bans are best done at the local level. The Senate has twice passed a statewide smoking ban that would apply to all bars and restaurants. But the House has yet to vote on the legislation.

Should lawmakers work out a deal on the proposed ban, it’ll go to a final vote in both chambers, likely this week.

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The Governor signed the Graduated Drivers Licensing bill (HB 2143) into law March 27. The bill will make the following updates to our state's drivers licensing system: (1) Learner's permit. Requires every teen to hold a learner's permit for 12 months before obtaining a restricted or a full license. (2) Passenger limitation. Limits teen drivers to no more than one teen passenger in the vehicle during the first six months of full licensing. (3) Late-night limitations. Limits late-night driving to 9 p.m. during the first six months of full licensing unless driving to and from work or school. (4) Cell phones. Use of wireless devices prohibited while driving until teens complete the six-month period of passenger and late-night driving restrictions. An exception is in place for reporting emergencies.

After making minor changes in conference committee, the Legislature passed SB 225 on April 1. This action made permanent the KIDS College Savings Match Program, which encourages low-income Kansas families to save for their children's education in a 529 account and matches up to $600 of the family's contributions per year. Funds from 529 accounts can be utilized for educational expenses, including expenses incurred at universities, community colleges and technical schools. A number of legislators spoke on the House floor last week in favor of the KIDS program, including Rep. Terrie Huntington (R-Fairway), Rep. Ann Mah (D-Topeka), Rep. Tom Moxley (R-Council Grove), Speaker Pro Tem Arlen Siegfried (R-Olathe), Rep. Deena Horst (R-Salina), Rep. Mario Goico (R-Wichita), and Rep. Jo Ann Pottorff (R-Wichita). Without passage of SB 225, the KIDS program, which was originally established as a pilot program, would have sunset in June.

Funding for the HealthWave expansion was included in the FY 2010 budget and agreed to by both chambers. The expansion, which the Legislature approved last year, will draw down federal SCHIP dollars to expand the eligibility level of our state's HealthWave program from 200% to 250% of poverty. On March 17, Kansas Health Policy Authority announced that the economic downturn and rising un-employment rate in Kansas were already causing a backlog in processing applications for medical assistance and that agency officials expect the problem to continue getting worse in the months ahead. KHPA, the organization that administers and oversees the Medicaid and SCHIP program, is experiencing cutbacks that could adversely affect these programs.

The Senate conference committee accepted the combined contents of bill 84. The Legislature is expected to vote and pass the personal financial literacy legislation. The education conference committee combined the contents of SB 84, which strengthens the requirements for teaching personal financial literacy in public schools, with SB 41. Among other things, the conference committee agreement will require that the State Board of Education includes personal financial literacy questions in state assessments for math or social studies beginning in 2010. 

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The Legislature last week passed HB 2201, which will streamline the process for using professional license sanctions to encourage parents to pay past-due child support. This legislation provides one more tool to help SRS increase compliance with child support orders in Kansas, and ultimately improve well-being for Kansas children in single-parent households.

HCR 5019 was introduced last month by the House Federal and State Affairs Committee and referred to the House Taxation Committee. This legislation is a Constitutional amendment that would adopt TABOR, the most restrictive tax and expenditure limitation in the country. The concept requires that increases in overall tax revenue be tied to inflation and population increases rather than to the actual costs associated with maintaining our public structures in today's economy. For more information on TABOR and the impact it would have in Kansas, visit www.tabortruth.org.

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A conference committee agreed to maintain funding for the Kansas Coordinated School Health program. The House committee had previously recommended cutting nearly half of the program's budget. The program provides resources and advice for Kansas communities to improve health, physical activity and nutrition in schools.

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