Good morning everyone:
We’re back in the comfort of our home headquarters this week bringing you the latest news Kansas has to offer.
We’ll start as always with the most significant stories we published and move on to other headlines you may have missed but need to know.
- Governor signs executive order intended to end economic development border war with Missouri.
- Potential U.S. Senate candidate Usha Reddi visits Johnson County.
- ACLU files a lawsuit accusing a state regulator of retaliating against environmental activists protesting fracking activities.
- Sara Hart Weir declared her candidacy for Congress in the Kansas 3rd District. She then defended herself against tweets suggesting that Republicans are recruiting attractive female candidates to hide their “radically extreme conservative” agenda.
- A judge dismissed Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning’s defamation lawsuit against columnist Steve Rose.
- Legislative leaders revive an electric rate study after it was derailed.
- Family, friends and former staffers gather to remember former Congresswoman Jan Meyers.
- Lawyer for state Rep. Adam Thomas seeks to have the contest of his election to the Kansas Legislature dismissed.
Changing parties rare
About a week ago, we reported that state Sen. John Doll was moving back to the Republican Party after becoming an independent to run on Greg Orman’s ticket for governor.
He was one of three Kansas senators to change parties in the last year, joining Barbara Bollier and Dinah Sykes, who left the GOP to become Democrats. A fourth lawmaker — Rep. Stephanie Clayton — bolted from the Republican Party for the Democrats, as well.
All them are in a rare class of legislators, according to Ballotpedia. Since 1994, just 123 lawmakers nationally have changed parties, including just 35 state senators and 88 state representatives.
Seventy-one legislators — 22 senators and 49 representatives — have changed from Democrats to Republicans.
Nineteen lawmakers — six senators and 13 representatives — moved from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party.
Another 21 legislators moved from either the Republican or Democratic parties to independent.
A smattering of others joined the Green or Libertarian parties or moved from independent to join the Republican or Democratic parties.
Emerging tax dispute
A dispute is starting to emerge over a notice sent out by the Department of Revenue instructing out-of-state retailers to collect Kansas sales tax.
Bloomberg is reporting that Gov. Laura Kelly’s administration might be going beyond a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that allowed for internet sales tax collections even if a business doesn’t have a physical presence in the state.
Bloomberg reports that the agency directive doesn’t establish a minimum sales threshold, a key component of passing constitutional muster in the landmark decision out of South Dakota.
In South Dakota, for instance, sales tax collections are applicable to merchants that do $100,000 worth of in-state sales or more than 200 orders in state.
Revenue officials have told lawmakers that they do not have authority to set a minimum threshold – although there was one established in the tax legislation the governor vetoed.
They also have acknowledged that Kansas is the only state without a minimum standard.
Senate President Susan Wagle said Friday she is asking Attorney General Derek Schmidt to intervene. She predicts the state will face litigation over the issue.
Inaugural fundraising
The final reports came in last month showing that Gov. Laura Kelly raised about $360,000 for her inauguration.
She reported raising $16,023 for the period from March to the end of June in addition to the $343,950 for the period from last Nov. 29 through Feb. 28. The governor had no cash left in her inaugural account on June 30.
For comparison, former Gov. Sam Brownback raised $299,656 for his 2014 inaugural and more than $500,000 for his 2010 inauguration.
Legal fees
Ever since Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning’s defamation lawsuit against The Kansas City Star and columnist Steve Rose was dismissed, there have been questions about the legal fees in the case.
The judge awarded what could total about $90,000 in legal fees to The Star and Rose, prompting speculation about whether it’s something that could be covered by campaign funds.
For his part, Denning said he does not plan to use campaign funds to pay for what he says is an “injustice.” He believes the judge erred when he dismissed the lawsuit. Denning said he will cover the cost personally, although the final amount could still be debated in court.
“Both lawsuits ended up being very expensive,” he said. “What I proved at great personal expense to me, now without a doubt, is that the court ruled that newspapers can print false information and not be held accountable.”
But if you’re still interested, there are a number of ethics opinions that address using campaign funds for legal expenses.
Generally, campaign funds may be used for legal costs when it is for the purpose of holding political office.
The Ethics Commission has previously held that campaign funds can defray the legal costs associated with the defense of a candidacy or an election, the demand for campaign-related documents in a civil action not involving wrongdoing and the defense of a recall petition.
Here are several opinions on the matter:
- One opinion that says campaign funds can be used to pay legal costs associated with a civil ouster proceeding.
- Anther opinion that says campaign funds can be used to pay legal costs for defending against a recall.
- A ruling that says campaign funds can be used to pay legal costs relating to the demand for campaign-related documents in a civil action not involving wrongdoing on the candidate’s part.
- Generally, campaign funds funds cannot be used to pay legal defense costs for criminal allegations.
New job for Meier-Hummel?
The Hutchinson News’ Mary Clarkin used a recent state ethics opinion to connect the dots and conclude that Gina Meier-Hummel, the former secretary of the Department for Children and Families, may be going to work for Attorney General Derek Schmidt as the Kansas youth suicide prevention coordinator, a job created by the Legislature this year.
Davids critic gone
The chief of staff for Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who authored the tweet criticizing U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids’ commitment to Democratic principles is out. Saikat Chakrabarti is leaving AOC’s office after emerging as a divisive figure on Capitol Hill, fueled partly by a tweet saying that Davids’ vote for a border security bill “enabled a racist system.” Davids shrugged it off, but the tweet angered party leaders. The New York Post is reporting that Chakrabarti is under a federal investigation.
Kobach controversy
Kris Kobach is barely out of the gate in his campaign for the U.S. Senate and he’s already running into problems.
It’s been hardly even a month since he announced his candidacy, and Kobach is already being accused of campaign finance violations in connection with a fundraising email he sent to a list maintained by We Build the Wall, the nonprofit 501(c)(4) group raising private funds to build a wall along the southern U.S. border. Kobach is the group’s general counsel and a board member.
On Friday, the government watchdog group Common Cause filed complaints with the Federal Election Commission and the U.S. Justice Department, charging the email violated multiple campaign finance laws. The complaint stemmed from this report by the Daily Beast on Thursday night.
“One way or the other Kris Kobach appears to have violated federal campaign finance laws through this solicitation for contributions to his U.S. Senate campaign,” said Paul S. Ryan, Common Cause vice president for policy and litigation.
“This looks like an illegal in-kind corporate contribution from We Build the Wall, Inc. to the Kobach campaign,” Ryan said in a statement “But even if the Kobach campaign paid fair market value for distribution of this fundraising email, it neglected to include the ‘paid for by’ disclaimer required by law.”
Kobach told The Kansas City Star that Common Cause is a “radical leftist organization” that tries to cause distraction wherever Republican candidates are leading in important political campaigns. He said the complaint was frivolous.
Meanwhile, Kobach released this campaign video last week that has already been seen (and widely commented on) throughout the political world. In case you missed it, here it is:
Sports wagering
No sports betting in Kansas? There’s always sports wagering in Iowa. Sports betting starts there Aug. 15 — just in time for football season — after the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission approved new rules for the activity and gave licenses to 18 casinos. Here’s more coverage from the Des Moines Register and The Associated Press.
Medicaid expansion
The Gatehouse newspaper chain examined how rural hospitals fared in states where legislatures have refused to expand Medicaid. The story found that rural hospitals in Mississippi, South Carolina, Georgia, Kansas and Oklahoma lost money from 2011 through 2017. The newspaper’s investigation concluded that states that didn’t expand Medicaid were more likely to see rural hospitals close or lose money.
Meanwhile, supporters of Medicaid expansion in Oklahoma have launched a petition drive to force a vote on the issue. They have until Oct. 28 to collect 178,000 signatures to put Medicaid expansion on the ballot.
In fact, petitions have become an increasingly popular way to get Medicaid expansion approved in states that won’t budge on the issue.
The Hill newspaper reports that Oklahoma is one of three states where there are efforts to put Medicaid expansion on the ballot.
Here’s more fallout from Utah, where the federal government denied a request to cover 90% of the cost of partial Medicaid expansion that would only apply to someone earning up to 100% of the poverty level.
And on the political side of Medicaid expansion, the Idaho secretary of state has thrown out a campaign finance violation complaint lodged against a group that supported expansion.
Moran takes on Olympic Committee reform
U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran made a national splash last week when he and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal introduced legislation to reform the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee after revelations that USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar abused hundreds of athletes.
Moran and Blumenthal introduced the bill after conducting an 18-month investigation into abuse in Olympic sports.
Their probe found that coaches and other individuals within the Olympic ranks could assault young athletes because of insufficient oversight and a lack of transparency.
Here’s the coverage from McClatchy, ESPN, Time Magazine, Colorado Public Radio and KSHB television in Kansas City.
Also, here’s Moran’s announcement, which pretty much has links to everything you might want, including the investigative report and the text of the Olympic committee legislation.
While we tend to shun opinion pieces here, we thought we would include the op-ed piece authored by Moran and Blumenthal, since this is such a transcendent issue.
Hemp farming
The Kansas City Star takes a look at the advent of hemp farming in Kansas. The newspaper reports that more than 200 growers will harvest hemp in Kansas this year. The state has issued licenses to 20 distributors, 34 processors and nine state educational institutions.
Economic incentives accountability
A state audit out last week questioned how the Department of Commerce administered a special fund to help create jobs and spur economic development.
Created in 2011, the fund is paid for through 2% of the money withheld from the paychecks of Kansas workers.
The audit criticized the department’s process for awarding funds as being inconsistent and lacking transparency.
“The department lacks written policies or procedures to guide which companies are awarded job creation funds or how much funding they are given,” auditors concluded.
Here’s McClatchy’s story via Governing Magazine and the Capital-Journal. Here’s also The Associated Press version of the story.
Here’s a link to the full audit and the abstract. What’s cool is the Legislative Post Audit website also has a podcast about the audit if you want to hear the auditors discuss their findings.
New broadband map
There’s a new broadband map showing internet connectivity across the state. High Plains Public Radio reports that the new map shows that nearly 100,000 people do not have internet access. The map was created by the nonprofit group Connected Nation with a $300,000 grant from the Information Network of Kansas. The organization developed the map with assistance of internet service providers.
Farm subsidies
Bloomberg reveals that more half than of the subsidies intended to offset the impact of an ongoing trade war went to about 10% of the program’s recipients. Bloomberg based its analysis on data collected by the Environmental Working Group. Using the EWG data, Bloomberg reports that 82 farming operations received more than $500,000 each through April.
Kansas Electric Cooperatives personnel moves
Kansas Electric Cooperatives has promoted Leslie Kaufman to vice president of government relations and legal counsel, and Tara Mays to director of government relations.
Kaufman joined KEC in November 2017 as director of government relations and legal counsel after previously serving as president and chief executive of the Kansas Cooperative Council, the statewide association representing all forms of cooperatives.
Kaufman leads the government relations team at KEC and works as a lobbyist at the Kansas statehouse, before regulatory agencies and in Washington.
She also serves as executive director for the rural electric cooperatives’ political action committee, Kansas Committee for Rural Electrification.
Kaufman earned her law degree from Washburn University Law School. She also received a bachelor’s degree in history from MidAmerica Nazarene University.
Mays joined KEC as manager of government relations in September 2018.
Before joining KEC, Mays served as executive director for Kansas Operation Lifesaver, a statewide group of volunteers working to improve railroad track safety awareness.
She also worked at Economic Lifelines, a highway transportation advocacy organization.
She also worked as government affairs director for the Kansas Turnpike Authority and as legislative liaison for the Kansas Department of Transportation.
Mays earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Washburn University.
Wagle videos
Senate President Susan Wagle’s campaign for U.S. Senate has released two new videos, both casting her as a “relentless fighter.” One of those videos is related to abortion. Here they are in case you haven’t seen them, although they are essentially shorter versions of the four-minute video that she rolled out when she announced her candidacy.
