State government
Latest
Kansas Senate overturns governor’s veto of anti-trans ‘bathroom bill’
The Kansas Senate overturned Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto on Tuesday, putting the state one step closer to forcing people to use bathrooms in government buildings that match their biological sex at birth.
Want more state government news?
You can read Associated Press coverage of Kansas stories and more online for free here.
KCUR also has paywall-free news from around the state at this link.
We post many, but not all, stories from the Kansas Reflector. Read more of their coverage here.
We also frequently post stories from the Kansas News Service. Read more of their coverage here.
TOP TAGS
Civil rights • Voter rights • Anti-trans legislation • Abortion • Immigration • Municipalities’ local control • Kansas State Board of Education
MORe STATE GOVERNMENT NEWS
Kansas cell phone ban applying to both public and private schools clears House
TOPEKA — Cell phones are one step closer to disappearing from Kansas classrooms after the […]
Kansas governor vetoes ‘bathroom bill’ aimed at transgender people
Democratic Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a GOP-led bill on Friday that bans transgender people from using restrooms and locker rooms according to their gender identity.
Landlord-friendly bill would roll back Lawrence’s protections for low-income renters
A Kansas property owner wants to impose a restriction across the entire state because of Lawrence’s ordinance protecting low-income renters.
Kansas Senate passes bill scrutinizing free lunch families, dodging challenges from some Republicans
A contingent of Kansas Republicans narrowly advanced a bill that would increase scrutiny of households that qualify for free and reduced lunch, but it fielded pushback from Democrats and fellow Republicans.
Forty individuals, organizations object to Kansas Senate bill adding barriers to food and health aid
Melissa Sabin and dozens of others opposed a Kansas Senate bill that would aggressively expand the state’s process of verifying eligibility for Medicaid, SNAP and other public assistance programs.
Kansas House committee reshapes proposed K-12 student cellphone ban into a mere suggestion
The House Education Committee sent the full House a bill recommending, rather than mandating, that public and private schools take cellphones and other devices away from students throughout the school day.
Bill would require Kansas schools to stock naloxone, provide fentanyl prevention education
Parents, first responders and educators are urging lawmakers to require schools to stock naloxone and provide fentanyl prevention education to prevent overdoses and deaths.
Trans Kansans and allies use Statehouse restrooms in act of ‘malicious compliance’
For many trans Kansans and allied activists, Friday’s “pee-in” wasn’t their first time in the state Capitol building in Topeka. Years of commitment to the cause led to the day’s event.
Kansas House responds to complaints, unveils bill revamping Board of Nursing’s authority
Three people recounted traumatic nursing regulatory experiences in Kansas House testimony supporting a bill written to force administrative changes at the Kansas State Board of Nursing and void some of the board’s disciplinary actions.
‘Do better’: House Democrats castigate majority party for cutting debate short
Republican legislators abruptly cut off debate on a bill that stops people living unlawfully in the country from getting public benefits, passing it out of the House with an amendment the Senate already defeated.
Kansas House committee plunges paring knife into state’s public university budgets
A Kansas House committee recommended a budget that cuts grants to KU, reduces need-based student aid, ties funding to elimination of DEI, offers faculty one year instead of two to fix their academic shortcomings before they are potentially fired and more.
Kansas GOP House members renew attacks on DEI, CRT at public universities
Kansas House Republicans stirred an academic hornet’s nest Tuesday with a bill imposing a ban on diversity, equity and inclusion as well as critical race theory in most classes counted toward degree requirements at the state’s public universities.
Kansas bill eliminates mail-in ballots if court strikes down signature verification law
A Senate bill would end advance voting by mail if a court strikes down state law requiring election officials to verify a voter’s signature. The prospect of such a ruling is playing out in Shawnee County.
House Republican forces hearing, despite no support, on restrictions for delivering advance ballots
House Democrats heckled Leavenworth Republican Rep. Pat Proctor’s latest idea to undermine advance voting after he forced a hearing on a bill that nobody was willing to support.
Kansas schools could be required to verify family income for every student receiving free lunch
A proposed bill would require school districts to verify the gross household income of every student who receives free or reduced-price lunches. Federal law requires schools to verify a random sample amounting to 3% of recipients.
Don’t miss a beat … Click here to sign up for our email newsletters
Click here to learn more about our newsletters first



