The Kansas Bureau of Investigation director said the agency’s new data tracking system is about halfway complete and will create a better overview of the state’s crime problem, including a potential rise in fentanyl cases.
Kansas House Democratic leader Tom Sawyer, first elected to the Legislature in 1986, said Tuesday he didn’t intend to seek the leadership job entering the 2023 session.
Kansas legislators leveled criticism at programs designed to serve children subjected to abuse or neglect, alleging attorneys fell short of expectations and asserting a volunteer initiative failed to mirror diversity of children served.
The Kansas Republican Party’s chairman said sanctions against party members were suspended due to appeals filed by people who were to be penalized for signing a petition leading to placement on November ballots of an independent candidate for governor.
The Lawrence school district’s budget for next year awaits state legislative decisions regarding school funding. That means two scenarios to plan for.
Independent gubernatorial candidate Dennis Pyle’s post-election critique of why Republican Derek Schmidt lost to Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly did nothing to soothe Kansas Republican Party leaders frustrated by Pyle’s insurgent conservative campaign.
School districts have been forced to shoulder the burden of paying for special education services that are underfunded by the Kansas Legislature. Advocates say there’s a dire need for more money.
Republicans preserved a two-thirds supermajority in the Kansas House to mirror the GOP-dominated Kansas Senate and keep in place this substantial legislative barrier in a second term for Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.
Unofficial results show four seats on the Kansas State Board of Education were won by conservative candidates who want to restrict how race and social-emotional learning are taught in schools.
Kansans voted to keep all six state Supreme Court justices up for retention on the November ballot. The justices were returned with more than 60% voter support, including two who voted in favor of abortion rights.
