Good morning everyone:
It was a week of speculation, rumors and gossip, whether it was about Congressman Steve Watkins or Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s plans for running for the U.S. Senate.
A lot out there on both those fronts, including lewd speculation about Watkins on Twitter and phones burning up with gossip and guessing about what’s was going on with the congressman.
The Watkins story took on Seinfeldian proportions — a show about nothing, or in this case a story essentially about nothing (at least nothing that could be confirmed by anyone).
No, he’s not resigning. And nothing was ever established about why he should resign.
But it was good for a couple stories, including this one from the KC Star about the “whisper campaign” against the congressman from the 2nd District who apparently has been rewriting his bio on Wikipedia.
Let me get this straight…. I have to deny a resignation that no one called for. Got it. Done. K, going back to work. See you in November.
— Rep. Steve Watkins (@Rep_Watkins) August 23, 2019
Here’s a recap of our best stories that we published along with our summary of big political news of the past week, some you likely didn’t miss and others that may have flown under the radar.
- A coalition of public health advocates plans to ask the Legislature to raise the age for tobacco sales and electronic cigarettes.
- The secretary of state’s office purchased 1,000 rounds of ammunition in 2017 that vanished. It took the FBI to find the ammo, which was purchased when Kris Kobach was secretary of state.
- Democratic Manhattan Mayor Pro Tem Usha Reddi appears to be staffing up for a run for the U.S. Senate.
- Invitations have been sent out to Amanda Adkins’ planned announcement next month to run for Congress.
- The firm that runs a state literacy program fought back vigorously last week against claims that it improperly spent state welfare funds.
House District 41 in play?
State Rep. Jeff Pittman hasn’t yet announced his candidacy for the state Senate, but a retired Army colonel is already positioning for the House District 41 seat.
Pat Proctor is out going door to door collecting signatures to get on the ballot to run for the House seat Pittman has held since 2017.
He has not filed or announced his candidacy, but he already has a website and plenty of campaign literature to distribute. Proctor said he’s already collected about 300 signatures. He said he needed about 60.
Proctor, a Republican, served in the Army from 1989 to 2019. He and his wife came to Leavenworth in 2006 so he could attend the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. He retired this summer.
He and his wife now own a chain of Baan Thai restaurants in Leavenworth, Manhattan and Lawrence.
House District 41 includes Leavenworth County and part of the city of Leavenworth. Most of the voters in the district — 38% — are unaffiliated. Thirty-one percent are Republicans, and 29% are Democrats.
Gov. Laura Kelly carried the district by about 500 votes over Republican Kris Kobach in last year’s governor’s race.
The district went for President Donald Trump with about 51% of the vote in 2016, for former Gov. Sam Brownback with 47.2% in 2014 and Mitt Romney with about 51% of the vote in 2012.
However, Pittman, a Democrat, defeated former conservative Rep. Tony Barton in 2016 with 55% of the vote and again in 2018 with 57% of the vote.
Pittman is now looking to run for the Senate seat currently represented by Kevin Braun, who was appointed to replace Steve Fitzgerald. An announcement is expected at some point.
Koch’s passing
By now, the death of Kansas industrialist David Koch on Friday is well known. Here is a collection of stories published Friday, recalling his legacy in business and his influence on the American political system. Here’s coverage from The Associated Press, NBC News, Fox Business and Forbes.
There was a rather off-beat piece that appeared in Forbes last year that looked at the inside of Koch’s office, which includes everything from a glass brontosaurus that he received from the American Museum of Natural History to a plaster cast of a 3.2 million-year-old skeletal hand fossil. Love him or hate him, the piece gives you a sense of the personal side.
We’ll leave you lastly with a New Republic interview with the author of “Kochland: The Secret History of Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America.” The interview focuses on Koch’s climate legacy.
For the other perspective, here is Vox’s interview with Nick Gillespie, editor at large of Reason Magazine. Gillespie talks about Koch’s influence on politics and what everyone — liberals and conservatives alike — didn’t understand about the wealthy donor.
Pompeo watch
A day doesn’t seem to go by without the question being asked: Will Mike Pompeo run for the U.S. Senate? So we bring you the latest collection of stories from last week. Pompeo says he’s not running, while others say he is still leaving the door open.
First, there was the New Yorker story that profiled Pompeo last week, tracing his rise from a congressman who supported Marco Rubio to a survivor in the Trump administration, first as director of the Central Intelligence Agency and now as secretary of state.
Then there is the Washington Examiner story where he appears to shut the door on running for the U.S. Senate. There’s also this piece from Reuters that says the president and Pompeo have discussed the Senate race and the president doesn’t want him to leave.
Supreme Court strikes down fee
The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday, in two separate cases, struck down as unconstitutional a $50 fee for an administrative review of a driver’s license suspension.
The court ruled that the law did not provide for someone who might not be able to afford the fee and as a result denied them due process.
The requirement “is unconstitutional on its face because it requires payment of a fee, without provision for indigency, before a motorist can obtain procedural due process to which he or she is entitled before a driver’s license is suspended or revoked,” the court ruled in one case.
The cases arose from two drunk-driving arrests in 2014 in which the drivers challenged the suspension of their licenses.
Among other things, they claimed the police did not give them the paperwork notifying them that their license would be suspended for refusing the test. They also challenged the constitutionality of the $50 fee.
In both cases, the Supreme Court affirmed the license suspensions, but also struck down the fee.
The court said imposing a fee for an administrative service is not necessarily unconstitutional, but only when it doesn’t provide for someone who is less affluent.
“The Kansas scheme makes no provision for indigency and a court has no discretion to waive the fee or to provide for a delayed payment in order for a licensee to exercise his or her right to procedural due process,” Justice Lee Johnson wrote for the majority in one of the cases. .
“On its face, the statute constructs a barrier to due process that is potentially insurmountable,” the court wrote.
In one case stemming from an October 2014 drunk-driving arrest in Gardner, the court directed that the $50 fee be refunded.
However, in the second case involving a March 2014 drunk-driving arrest in Olathe, the court struck down the fee but did not order it refunded.
The court in the Olathe case ruled that the driver did not didn’t appeal the district court’s finding that the issue was moot as it applied to him because he had already paid the fee.
A.G. contests wrongful conviction compensation
The Associated Press provides this account of the attorney general’s office fighting compensation for the wrongful conviction of Lamonte McIntyre for the fatal shooting of two men in Kansas City, Kan., in 1994.
McIntyre, who spent 23 years in prison, was one of the reasons the Legislature last year passed a bill providing $65,000 for each year someone wrongfully spends in jail and no less than $25,000 for each year they spent on parole or post-release supervision.
The law also provides educational assistance, health care benefits and nonmonetary relief such as counseling, housing assistance and personal financial literacy assistance.
The AP reports that the attorney general’s office is fighting compensation in this case because it found that “the record of prior judicial proceedings” in McIntyre’s case to be “insufficient.”
Finger printing system at risk
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation last week warned lawmakers that the computer system used for tracing finger and palm prints to criminal suspects was out of date and at risk of failing.
The system, which stores more than 2 million print records, is now 12 years old and is no longer supported by the vendor.
Vendor maintenance ends in fiscal year 2022, although it could be extended through 2025 but it would not be considered a “full maintenance structure.”
The KBI warned that there is a “significant risk” the system will fail if it’s not replaced, which would “cripple” law enforcement and public safety across the state.
The agency noted that a failure also would limit the ability to do background checks for teachers, child care workers and the like.
It noted there are more than 60 laws that mandate records checks for those types of positions, and most of those require finger print checks.
The cost of replacing the system is about $8 million and will take about two years. The KBI said money for the replacement will be its top priority in the upcoming session.
Here’s some coverage of last week’s legislative hearing from Government Technology and the Capital-Journal via the Salina Journal.
Here’s a link to the audio feed of the hearing, if you want to listen for yourself. The KBI part of the hearing starts at about the 11:32 mark.
Medicaid expansion news
Utah: Lawmakers’ decision to override a public vote and only expand Medicaid for people earning up to 100% of the poverty level is costing the state about $2.5 million more a month than if it fully expanded the program.
Voters approved a ballot measure that called for expansion up to 138% of the poverty level, but lawmakers opted for a more limited program. However, the federal government recently told Utah it would not cover 90% of the funding for partial expansion. Here’s more coverage from KSL television and Fox 13 about the issues confronting Utah.
Louisiana: Legislators here found a way to expand Medicaid and reduce the number of beneficiaries. As a result, the number of Medicaid beneficiaries in the Pelican State has dropped by about 55,000 since April because the state requires annual renewals and quarterly wage check, the Baton Rouge Advocate reports.
The state sends a letter to enrollees who appear to make too much money to be in the program. If they don’t answer in 10 days, they lose coverage. Also, the state’s enrollment system initially closed beneficiaries out of Medicaid if they didn’t answer yearly renewal letters. The state has since suspended that part of the Medicaid program.
Aetna management shuffle
Kansas News Service on Friday reported that Aetna Better Health of Kansas has changed management as it grapples with how to comply with its contract to provide managed care services to Medicaid beneficiaries. KNS reports the company’s chief executive officer is out, a move confirmed by state regulators of KanCare.
The company could be in danger of losing its contract with the state if it is unable to comply with the terms. Lawmakers will convene next week as part of their oversight of KanCare. Expect this to be a big topic.
Breaking ground in corrections
The Department of Corrections last week named Shannon Meyer as the new warden at the Lansing Correctional Facility starting today. She will be the facility’s first female warden. She replaces Ron Baker, who is retiring after 35 years with the department.
Meyer, who started as a corrections counselor at Lansing, climbed the ranks of the agency before joining the agency’s reentry division in Topeka.
Starting in 2006, she served as the division’s assistant director, where she was responsible for implementing evidence-based programs and services throughout the state.
She was named the director of community corrections in 2011 before returning to Lansing as the East Unit administrator in 2013. Meyer then was named a Lansing deputy warden in 2014.
In 2016, Meyer was appointed to her current position as warden at Topeka Correctional Facility, the state’s only correctional facility for women.
One of her first major projects will be managing the ongoing reconstruction project at Lansing, which is set to be completed by next year.
Colyer to Georgetown
Former Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer will join the Georgetown Institute of Politics and Public Service as a new political fellow this fall at the McCourt School of Public Policy. He will be part of a class of fellows that includes Jonathan Burks, former chief of staff to Speaker Paul Ryan; Olivia Alair Dalton, former spokeswoman for first lady Michelle Obama; Karen Travers, White House correspondent for ABC News; and Stephanie Valencia, former deputy director for the White House Office of Public Engagement for President Barack Obama’s administration.
Jousting with wind turbines
The state may be the leader in wind production, but that didn’t seem to prevent the Sedgwick County Commission last week from bringing an end to the development of large wind farms.
It’s a sign of the times as the state’s hottest new industry has been running up against angry neighbors who oppose wind farms for anything ranging from diminished property values to aesthetics to perceived health threats. In this case, the county imposed the restrictions with the goal of protecting airport operations.
Last year, neighbors from across the state asked lawmakers to put restrictions on wind turbines, but the legislation was turned down in a committee. Critics said the proposed law would have implemented the most stringent siting requirement across the nation.
Here’s coverage from last week’s development from The Wichita Eagle, KSNW, KMUW public radio in Wichita and Solar Industry, a trade publication.
Injection well investigation
The Kansas Corporation Commission last week launched an investigation of injection well activity in Reno County as part of an effort to find the cause of a spike in earthquakes in the Hutchinson area.
The investigation came after the area was shaken by a series of earthquakes from Aug. 15 through last Sunday, including six tremors that were reported Aug. 16.
The KCC’s investigation will home in on a 15-mile radius of where the earthquakes have been occurring.
In 2015, the KCC ordered a reduction in injection rates in parts of Harper and Sumner counties after earthquakes in that area began to mushroom.
In 2016, regulators limited injection in other parts of Harper and Sumner counties as well as parts of Kingman, Sedgwick and Barber counties when earthquake activity there started rising.
Here’s other coverage of last week’s KCC announcement from The Wichita Eagle, the Hutch News and KWCH.
Meanwhile, Democratic state Rep. Jason Probst talked to the Hutch News about his earthquake bill that would direct the KCC to levy a $100 fee on the operators of class II disposal wells, which are used to inject fluids associated with oil and natural gas production into deep confined rock formations.
Proceeds of the fee would pay for drilling monitoring wells to better understand the source of the quakes. The bill is still awaiting action in committee.
Secretary of Administration’s new role
Gov. Laura Kelly last week announced that Kansas Department of Administration Secretary DeAngela Burns-Wallace will be the state’s new chief information technology officer.
The appointment to oversee the Kansas Office of Information Technology Services was effective immediately. The information technology office was set up under former Gov. Sam Brownback.
Previously, it was known as the Division of Information Systems and Communication and was part of the Kansas Department of Administration.
The OITS is an independent agency, but the two agencies keep close operational relationships in some areas because the transition was never completed.
“The relationship OITS has had with the rest of state government has been challenging, and communication between the agency and its customers has been difficult,” Kelly said in a statement.
“This was not the fault of the agency’s previous leadership,” she said.
“It is, however, a direct result of the fact that the previous administration split OITS from the Department of Administration and then failed to properly support the move, convey its mission and get buy-in from the rest of state government.”
Here and there
Kansas political operative Carly Miller is going to Iowa to join President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign as state director there.
Miller has been involved in political campaigns in Kansas since 2008, working for Congressman Ron Estes when he was state treasurer, serving as the First District director for U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts and doing some fundraising for former Congressman Tim Huelskamp.
In 2016, Miller landed a job with the Trump campaign as its Kansas state director. She also worked as the campaign’s regional field director in northern Colorado.
Miller has served in the Trump administration as White House liaison at the U.S. Department of Agriculture before assuming the role of deputy director of intergovernmental affairs at the Department of the Interior.
She graduated from Wichita State University with a bachelor’s in political science and a master’s of public administration.
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Gov. Kelly’s comms office has turned to another newspaper person, this time a former reporter from the Joplin Globe.
Rayna Karst has joined Kelly’s team as communications coordinator, the role previously held by Lauren Fitzgerald before she was promoted to press secretary. Dena Sattler, a newspaper veteran, is the comms director.
Karst received a bachelor’s degree in English from Emporia State University, where she was the editor of the student newspaper, The Bulletin. She worked as the Newton County reporter for the Joplin Globe.
1st District Democrat
We’ve written a lot about the traffic jam of Republicans lining up to run for Congress in the 1st District if incumbent Roger Marshall runs for the U.S. Senate. A big “if” depending on what Mike Pompeo does.
However, there is a Democrat out there in the wild west campaigning, and her name is Kali Barnett. We wrote about Barnett’s interesting in running back in May, and now it’s official. She officially announced her campaign recently, and here’s some coverage from the Garden City Telegram, KVOE in Emporia and the Hays Daily News.
Barnett, 34, is a Garden City native and a graduate of Friends University. She earned a master’s degree in elementary music education from Wichita State University. She’s been an elementary school teacher for the last 12 years.
