Good morning everyone:
Other than major decisions out of the U.S. Supreme Court, it was kind of a ho-hum week in state politics — maybe the first truly mundane week we can recall. The news was largely perfunctory except for a dustup over transgender rights in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate. Let’s get on with our recap of the news from the last week, starting with the significant stories that we published and continuing with news you may have missed but need to know…
- The coronavirus pandemic will leave Kansas without daily train service.
- Evergy reports almost 200,000 customers have past-due bills.
- The coronavirus pandemic has cost state agencies about $17 million.
- The commerce secretary reported an uptick in business recruiting.
- A new finalist has emerged for the Kansas Court of Appeals.
- Lawmakers approved $25 million in supplemental spending, including money for replacing an outdated fingerprinting system critical for law enforcement.
- The Board of Regents raised tuition at four state universities.
- The State Finance Council dealt out more than $400 million in federal coronavirus relief funding.
- The attorney general responded to the U.S. Supreme Court decision finding that federal employment discrimination law protects LGBTQ workers. Kansas was one of 16 states that had asked the court to reconsider a lower court ruling that found a Michigan funeral home had violated federal law when it fired a transgender employee.
- The governor named a former Kansas transportation secretary to the Turnpike Authority board.
Abortion amendment spending
Supporters of a constitutional amendment on abortion spent more than $60,000 this year lobbying for the measure, which would have reversed a state Supreme Court ruling that found the right to the procedure is protected by the state constitution.
The latest report filed with the state shows that Kansans for Life’s two lobbyists spent about $45,200 before the Legislature shut down March 19.
The Kansas Catholic Conference reported spending $8,130 and the Family Policy Alliance of Kansas spent $7,117.
Meanwhile, Planned Parenthood Great Plains laid out $7,578 opposing the amendment.
The amendment failed, receiving the two-thirds support it needed in the Senate but coming up four votes short in the House.
The spending leaders for the first 2 1/2 months of the session didn’t change much from what we have already reported.
Topping the list was Americans for Prosperity ($88,465), followed by Kansans for Life ($45,252), the Kansas Cable Telecommunications Association ($16,685), the Heartland Credit Union Association ($16,336), Kansas Electric Cooperatives ($15,110), Kansas State Council of Firefighters ($12,514) and the Kansas Association of Realtors ($12,121).
The credit unions were engaged in a battle at the statehouse this year over legislation they said would tilt the credit marketplace in favor of banks, allowing them to enjoy not-for-profit benefits even if they’re for-profit.
They ultimately agreed on a compromise with the banks, but the governor vetoed the bill.
The telecommunications association pushed a bill prohibiting local governments from levying taxes or fees for mounting micro wireless facilities on company-owned cable strands running from pole to pole.
The cable companies said cities had been trying to double tax them for hanging devices on their cable strands. The cities said the bill would put the public at risk by exempting cable operators from regulations governing safety and the public right-of-way.
Ultimately, the governor signed the bill into law.
Overall, lobbyists spent $544,401 through March, according to the latest ethics report. It was down from $629,866 for the first three months of last year.
New Leavenworth prison
The federal government has started work on building a new $356 million federal prison and satellite camp in Leavenworth.
The U.S. Bureau of Prisons has begun the environmental assessments needed to lay the groundwork for the new 1,800-bed complex, which will replace the current prison that opened more than 100 years ago.
Work on the project may not be completed until 2024.
The bureau expects to start soliciting construction bids in late 2021 or early 2022. It could take six months before the contract is awarded.
Officials believe it will take about 2 1/2 years to complete the prison and satellite camp once construction starts.
From 1903 to 2005, the federal penitentiary at Leavenworth was the largest maximum-security federal prison in the United States.
But in 2005, it was downgraded to a medium-security facility while retaining its U.S. penitentiary designation for historical reasons.
“This project will bring the Leavenworth prison system into the 21st century, while also providing hundreds of jobs during the multi-year construction of the facilities,” U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran said in a statement.
“At a time when federal prisons are closing around the country, this project will secure jobs for Kansans for decades.”
The prison currently has 339 positions, of which 303 are currently filled.
The prison and the camp have a total capacity of about 2,100 beds. The prison now houses 1,294 inmates, while another 310 are confined at the satellite camp.
The new prison is expected to have capacity for 1,500, while the satellite camp will house 300. It is a slight reduction because the facility is now medium security.
Marshall’s court case
The Kansas City Star on Sunday morning raises questions about how Republican U.S. Senate candidate Roger Marshall got a conviction for reckless driving reduced to a lesser offense stemming from a May 2008 incident in which he was accused of hitting a Great Bend resident with his truck. The newspaper explores Marshall’s relationship to the prosecutor in the case, who was reportedly the son of his business partner and neighbor. The issue surfaced during Marshall’s 2016 congressional race, but The Star says his connections to the prosecutor have never been reported.
Supreme Court, Kansas & concealed carry
The U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal last week to hear challenges to two state laws — one in Maryland and another in Illinois — could prevent Kansans from carrying a concealed gun there even if they’re licensed in this state.
Attorney General Derek Schmidt had argued that “extreme restrictions” by other states on out-of-state concealed carry licenses unconstitutionally deprived Kansas travelers of their Second Amendment rights.
The court refused to hear a legal challenge to a Maryland law, which places the burden on residents to demonstrate a “good and substantial reason” to obtain a permit to carry a handgun outside the home.
Kansas is different. It has a “shall issue” licensing system that generally grants concealed-carry licenses to law-abiding residents who demonstrate reasonable proficiency with a gun.
Schmidt had joined with other 20 state attorneys general to ask the Supreme Court to reconsider a lower-court ruling that upheld the Maryland law.
Schmidt argued that Maryland’s licensing requirements make it impossible for a state like Kansas to have its licenses recognized in Maryland.
In the second case, the court decided against hearing a challenge to an Illinois law that only recognizes concealed-carry permits issued there.
Out-of-state residents are allowed to apply for an Illinois permit only if the laws in their state of residence are considered “substantially similar.”
But Schmidt contended that the decision about whether another state’s law is “substantially similar” is made exclusively by the Illinois State Police with no means for an appeal.
At this time, concealed-carry licenses in only four states — not including Kansas — meet the Illinois requirements.
They were among 10 gun-rights cases the Supreme Court decided not to hear last week.
Kansas travel ban
Buried in all the news last week out of the U.S. Supreme Court was a small development in the lawsuit over California’s travel ban to Kansas and 10 other states with laws the California attorney general deems discriminatory.
The justices last Monday asked the U.S. solicitor general to weigh in on a Texas lawsuit challenging a 2016 California law that prevents state agencies, public universities and boards from funding trips to states with laws that discriminate against the LGBTQ community. The is no deadline for the solicitor general to file the brief.
California bans travel to Kansas because it objects to a 2016 law that prevents public colleges and universities from denying funds or campus resources to religious groups that require members to adhere to the group’s religious beliefs.
Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt recently joined with 18 other attorneys general in a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that California’s travel ban to Kansas and the 10 other states is unconstitutional.
Planned Parenthood leader
The former president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains is running into accusations of abuse, racism and fiscal malfeasance.
Now overseeing Planned Parenthood of Greater New York, Laura McQuade is facing demands for her immediate removal because she has “proven to be a toxic leader and autocrat.”
The New Republic was the first to report on the letter from current and former staffers of Planned Parenthood’s New York office seeking her removal.
The Kansas City Star followed up with a report that looked at McQuade’s work at the affiliate in the Kansas City area.
The newspaper talked to former lobbyist Elise Higgins, who said the concerns in New York are similar to what was seen locally.
Higgins told the paper about extensive turnover at Planned Parenthood Great Plains as well as instances of McQuade yelling at employees and ridiculing them.
McQuade was at Planned Parenthood Great Plains from 2014 to 2017.
Before that, she was executive vice president/chief operating officer and acting chief executive at the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Rural census difficulties
The Associated Press reports that response rates to the census in southwest Kansas are lagging behind other parts of the state. The self-response rates in Morton County as of Sunday morning was 41.1% while in Stanton it was 41.2%, Hamilton it was 40.9% and Kearny it was 34.4%. The statewide response rate is 65.4%. It’s a problem not unique to rural parts of Kansas. Roll Call looks at the issue nationally. It’s also an issue confronting Maine, North Carolina and Wisconsin. It’s a particularly big deal in Montana, which lose a chance at gaining back a seat in Congress.
Weir takes on Adkins
Republican congressional candidate Sara Hart Weir last week criticized primary rival Amanda Adkins for sending a campaign staffer to stand in for her at an upcoming Republican Women’s Zoom forum.
“From the very beginning of Sharice David’s campaign for Congress two years ago, Republicans have rightly criticized her avoidance and excuses for not attending public appearances,” Weir said in a statement.
“Based on the campaign she is running, Amanda Adkins seems intent on heading down the same path,” Weir said.
“Mirroring the current congresswoman’s weaknesses is not how you defeat an incumbent in one of the most competitive seats in the nation.”
The event is being held by the Northeast Johnson County Republican Women. The virtual debate is set for June 22 at noon.
Besides Weir, Mike Beehler, Adrienne Vallejo Foster and Tom Love are expected to participate. A surrogate will fill in for Adkins.
Adkins already had previous commitments, campaign manager Matt Patterson said.
“Amanda is pretty much booked up that entire day and has been for a couple months at this point,” Patterson said.
He would only describe that previous engagement as a “campaign event.”
The Adkins campaign has designated campaign staffer Stacia Mendoza to fill in at the event, he said.
Mendoza is a student at Kansas State University and is working as an engagement and grass-roots coordinator with the campaign, he said.
Kobach & transgender athletes
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kris Kobach last week promised that if he’s elected, he will introduce legislation denying Title IX funding to colleges and universities that allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports.
“These women and girls trained their whole lives to win championships only to have the prize snatched away by a biological male,” Kobach said.
Kobach’s statement came the day after the U.S. Supreme Court found that federal discrimination laws protect LGBTQ workers. Kobach also simultaneously released a video on the issue (see below).
Equality Kansas responded to the statements on Twitter, saying that Kobach’s “bigotry has hit a point where he feels he must completely dehumanize us.”
“Kobach’s legislation puts a target on the back of every LGBTQ kid. If funding for sports gets denied, it’s denied for everyone,” Equality Kansas posted.
“And guess who gets scapegoated? You got it: LGBTQ kids. And what’s the end result? We all know how kids can be to each other. It won’t be good.”
Here’s an overall look at the three Republican Senate candidates – Kobach, Bob Hamilton and Roger Marshall – who are now running ads on the transgender rights issue.
New campaign ads
Here’s the latest round of campaign ads/videos from across the state, just in case you missed any of these flashing across your television screen, including one responding
Bob Hamilton/False attacks
Steve Watkins/2nd District
Barbara Bollier/Senate
Kris Kobach/Transgender athletes
New interim committees
The Legislative Coordinating Council last week authorized four new interim committees to study topics ranging from the state’s economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic to foster care and the state’s emergency management laws.
The 13-member committees are:
- Economic Recovery Interim Study Committee: Review the state’s current economic policies and programs and make recommendations to the Legislature regarding the state’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee will study taxes, regulations, business financing and programs offered by the Commerce and Labor departments.
- Special Committee on Kansas Emergency Management Act: Review the Kansas Emergency Management Act, the state’s new COVID-19 response bill, and the oversight and emergency management approaches employed in other states. It will make recommendations to the Legislature on any improvements or changes.
- Foster Care Oversight Committee: Collect input from families, social workers and others on progress and shortfalls in the state’s child welfare system, including tracking educational outcomes for children in foster care, the quality of care for foster children and access to health and mental health services, among other issues. The committee will recommend additional improvements and oversight needed to improve the state’s child welfare system.
- Kansas Mental Health Modernization and Reform Committee: Study the state’s behavioral health system to ensure that inpatient and outpatient services are accessible. It will review the capacity of the state’s current behavioral health workforce, study the availability and capacity of crisis centers and substance abuse facilities, assess the impact of recent changes to state policies on the treatment of individuals with behavioral health needs and make recommendations on steps needed to make Kansas a nationwide leader on behavioral health delivery.
The committees will be made up of eight House members (five Republicans and three Democrats) and five senators (four Republicans and one Democrat).
The chairs of the committees will be negotiated.
Governor’s staff change
Dawn Knudtson is moving from the chief legal counsel’s office over to head up constituent services for the governor.
The governor’s office announced Friday that Knudtson was the new director of constituent services.
She previously had been an assistant to Clay Britton, the governor’s chief legal counsel. She also work as an accounting specialist at the University of Kansas.
Dena Sattler, the governor’s former communications director, had been responsible for overseeing constituent services before she moved back to the Commerce Department.
