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Kansas Supreme Court chief justice to retire by early February
Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert will step down from her position at the start of the new year and retire within weeks, she announced Friday.
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Civil rights • Voter rights • Anti-trans legislation • Abortion • Immigration • Municipalities’ local control • Kansas State Board of Education
MORe KANSAS NEWS
Former Marion police chief had ‘pizza party’ after raid, turned off body cam, new lawsuit says
Former Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody did not remember the Miranda warning when he forced Marion County Record newspaper staff out into the nearly 100-degree heat during a raid that drew international condemnation.
Wave of opposition hits Kansas House bill inviting challenges to public school accreditation
A renewed assault on public education, defended Monday by Republicans on the House K-12 Budget Committee, would set the stage for districts to be stripped of accreditation. The bill wouldn’t hold private schools to comparable accreditation standards.
More than 100K Kansans could be booted from Medicaid by end of redetermination process
Kansas is close to determining who will remain eligible for Medicaid after months of glitches and ongoing confusion over how to reapply. Current estimates suggest thousands of Kansans will be removed from the system.
A transgender Kansas state employee says she was harassed at work after her transition
Shelly Lamb argues in a federal lawsuit that coworkers and inmates at the Kansas Department of Corrections harassed her and the department violated her civil rights and committed sex discrimination because she is a transgender woman.
Kansas disciplinary board dismisses complaint with prosecutor’s false account of police shooting
A secretive Kansas disciplinary board has dismissed a complaint against Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe for releasing a false narrative about the 2018 police killing of John Albers.
Kansas GOP leaders: House — not Senate — possesses votes to override Kelly’s tax veto
Republican leaders of the Kansas Legislature said a two-thirds majority of House members were committed to overriding Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto of a tax reduction bill but a supermajority hadn’t crystalized in the Senate to complete the maneuver.
Kansas governor vetoes ‘reckless’ flat tax proposal
Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly announced her veto of a sprawling flat tax proposal Friday, calling the plan “reckless,” and one reminiscent of former Gov. Sam Brownback’s disastrous tax cuts.
Bill blocks Kansas counties from sending unsolicited advance ballot applications to voters
The organization of Kansas county election officers told legislators they opposed a Republican-sponsored bill that would prohibit counties from continuing the practice of mailing unsolicited advance ballot applications to registered voters.
Kansas edges closer to ban on planting Callery pear trees; critic warns: ‘Stay out of my yard’
Under a permanent quarantine the Kansas Department of Agriculture has endorsed, the Callery pear tree couldn’t be sold or planted anywhere in Kansas after Jan. 1, 2027.
Kansas prosecutor, disciplined after she complained about a judge, laments ‘broken’ legal system
Former Montgomery County prosecutor Lisa Montgomery appeared before a judicial ethics panel in May to face retribution for breaking a cardinal rule. She had complained publicly about a sitting judge.
Kansas GOP leaders tout flat tax plan that would save Charles Koch $875K annually
A plan by Republican legislative leaders to flatten income tax rates would save billionaire political donor Charles Koch an estimated $875,000, while most of the state’s workers would save between $37 and $84 annually.
Kansas foster care system has seen ‘great progress,’ DCF secretary says
Kansas Department for Children and Families secretary Laura Howard on Monday said the number of children in foster care has dropped, marking some improvement in the state’s long-criticized child welfare system.
Thousands of students in Kansas and Missouri have left public education. Here’s why
Kansas and Missouri public schools enroll thousands of fewer students compared to before the pandemic, in part, because of a homeschooling boom and declining birth rates.
Kansas lawmakers propose new restrictions on abortion providers
The Kansas Legislature will consider bills that would amend the state’s ‘born alive’ law and prevent abortion providers from purchasing liability insurance from a state fund.
Kansas House sends flat income tax bill to the governor for a possible veto
The Republican-controlled Kansas House of Representatives on Thursday approved legislation that would set a single rate on state income taxes, setting up a likely veto from the Democratic governor.
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