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GOP legislative leaders enlist former Emporia State president to slash Kansas university budgets
Republican legislative leaders agreed to pay former Emporia State University president Ken Hush $50,000 to spearhead their efforts to slash spending at public universities.
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Civil rights • Voter rights • Anti-trans legislation • Abortion • Immigration • Municipalities’ local control • Kansas State Board of Education
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Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector; file
Don’t Tread on Me license plate draws concerns from legislators for ‘vile, racist’ connection
A bill passed Thursday by the Senate allowing Kansas to print “Don’t Tread on Me” license plates came under scrutiny by Democrats for its association with a former slave owner.
Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector
House, Senate GOP leaders pledge to derail new mask order if re-issued by Kelly
Kansas Republican leaders of the House and Senate pledged to move swiftly to thwart Gov. Laura Kelly’s issuance of a new executive order April 1 directing statewide reliance on face coverings during the pandemic.
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
Senate, House put seal of approval on liquor bills for state fair and Sunday sales
“I do believe the state has gone too far for opening up alcohol sales and encouraging consumption as early as 9 in the morning on Sundays,” one rep said.
Screenshot
Lawrence rep’s bill on missing and murdered Indigenous people headed to governor
A bill that allows for the Kansas attorney general to coordinate training for law enforcement […]
Noah Taborda/Kansas Reflector
House committee considers major changes to proposed Kansas medical marijuana act
Proposed amendments to a bill creating the framework for medical marijuana legalization in Kansas would loosen the most restrictive regulations on patient-physician relationships and qualifying conditions.
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
Anderson County property owner compares wind farms to menacing strip clubs, landfills
Senate Bill 279 would establish state-crafted regulation of wind generation facilities from the turbine to power line.
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
Kansas’ 6th correctional facility employee dies of COVID-19
Originally published by Kansas Reflector on March 22, 2021: TOPEKA — A 54-year-old corrections officer […]
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
Wind energy advocates argue Senate bill pulls plug on growth in $14B industry in Kansas
A Senate bill scheduled for public debate Monday would heap an unprecedented level of government regulation on Kansas’ thriving wind industry that in two decades attracted $14 billion in investment to a state economy struggling to find new opportunities for growth.
Sherman Smith/@Sherman_News
KU researcher says hostile policies impact well-being of LGBTQ youths
A researcher at the University of Kansas who studies mental health in transgender and LGBTQ youths said there is ample research showing how some legislation can have a negative mental health impact on trans kids.
Pool photo by Evert Nelson/Topeka Capital-Journal via Kansas Reflector
Kansas measure creating penalties for infrastructure damage prompts questions of intention, necessity
A Kansas bill creating new crimes for damage of critical public or private infrastructure prompted inquiries into the need for more stringent protection of these sites and possible restriction of free speech.
Noah Taborda/Kansas Reflector
Gov. Kelly denounces Kansas Senate’s budget plan as ‘sabotage’ of K-12 education system
Gov. Laura Kelly responded with contempt to a feeling of deja vu after the Kansas Senate voted to rely on federal COVID-19 funding rather than Kansas tax dollars to cover as much as $568 million in public education obligations in a proposed two-year state budget.
Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector; file
Kansas Senate passes transgender sports ban after ‘incredibly insulting’ debate
Originally published by Kansas Reflector on March 18, 2021: TOPEKA — As tensions boiled over […]
Screen capture/Kansas Reflector
Children of exoneree Olin ‘Pete’ Coones plead for judicial reform to prevent similar tragedy
Melody Bitzer shared deeply personal appeals for judicial reform on behalf of her father, because the former prison inmate can no longer speak for himself.
Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector
Kansas lawmaker says Senate’s obsession with genitals warrants crime for outing LGBTQ kids
Rep. Brandon Woodard introduced legislation Wednesday that would make it a crime to disclose a child’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector
Kansas Senate majority leader hands off duties a day after drunk driving arrest
Senate Majority Leader Gene Suellentrop said Wednesday he would transfer duties of his leadership position while resolving matters relating to his drunk driving arrest a day earlier.
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