• Work begins in 4^th week
•  Budget update
• Insurance score bill seems unlikely
• K2 bill passes both House and Senate
• Medical Marijuana introduced in House
• Proposal repeals some licensing requirements for teen drivers
• Secretary of State briefs House Elections Committee
• Budget cuts impact tax filing fee
• Reader survey

Work begins in 4^th week

We began to see some movement in Topeka during the fourth week of the session.  We started to see some bills on the House floor and committees are in full swing.  The House Appropriations Committee finally began work on the FY 2010 rescission bill and passed it out of committee on Thursday.  I am hopeful that we will see it on the floor early next week so we can focus on FY 2011.

As a member of the appropriations committee, I also serve on one of the six budget committees, General Government.  Hearings began this week to review budgets of government agencies.  This week we held hearings and reviewed budgets for the following:

• Department of Administration
• Labor Department
• Kansas Lottery
• Governmental Ethics Commission
• Kansas Human Rights Commission
• Department of Administration
• Court of Tax Appeals
• Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission
• Department of Revenue

The committee has indicated that any enhancements or increases to the 2011 budgets will be cut to the FY 2010 level.

The House adjourned on Thursday for the weekend, and due to inclement weather many legislators headed home. 

Budget update

The House Appropriations Committee finally began work this week on the FY 2010 rescission bill, which reconciles last year's budget and is supposed to ensure we end the fiscal year with a positive ending balance.  Unfortunately, revenue estimates have been consistently lower than anticipated, and we learned late last week that state will be almost $40 million short by July 1, even with the latest round of cuts included in this bill.

We should all be deeply concerned about further cuts, but the House Appropriations Committees' job is to pass a balanced budget bill.  It has failed to do so in spite having four weeks of session and six extra working days during the interim.  The Legislature is constitutionally required to end the year with a positive ending balance.  We must either hash out $40 million more in cuts when the bill comes before the House floor, or force the Governor to make additional cuts later.  It is much harder to come to a consensus when we debate budget bills on the floor.  This only makes the job of further cuts more contentious.  However, by leaving it up to the Governor, he will have only a month or two left in the fiscal year. That does not give agencies enough time to make the adjustments to their operating budgets.

During the debate there were some notable amendments offered and debated:

• Rep. Doug Gatewood attached an amendment limiting the number of leadership days that leaders of the Senate and House can claim in any one fiscal year to 25.  This would be a retroactive measure, starting on June 1^st 2009 until June 1^st of 2010.

• An amendment with an 11.1% reduction in legislative pay, totaling $247,000 was passed on a voice vote. This would be a 5% salary cut, a $7 a day cut in per diem, and three furlough days.  This cut is a 15% reduction in legislative compensation.  It also will require the legislature to finish its work in 87 days instead of the usual 90.

• An amendment to transfer $180,000 from the hazardous mitigation fund to the Kansas National Guard failed to gain support.  The funding would have allowed the 18 National Guard Armories slated for closure to remain open until the end of the fiscal year.  It would not have stopped the closing of the armories but would have allowed time to set up procedures to decide which armories close.  This would have allowed the state to work with local communities to make sure the closures would happen as seamlessly as possible.

• Wichita Rep. Joe McLeland tried unsuccessfully to cut $5 million from the supplemental aid to public schools and $5 million from base state aid to schools.  Supplemental aid is calculated on the number of poor, at risk, and special education students in a district.  Base aid is calculated on enrollment.

With a $40 million gap still left to fill in FY 2010, this is far from the final product.  The committee passed the bill out on Thursday.  I am hopeful we will debate it on the House floor next week so we can begin to work through the cuts necessary to balance.

Insurance score bill seems unlikely

Early in this session, I introduced HB 2563 that would require casualty insurers to allow consumers who have experienced extraordinary life circumstances to freeze their credit/insurance scores.  It now appears that the committee chairman will not even give this bill a hearing, let alone consider it for passage.

Property and casualty insurers base their premiums on a multitude of factors.  Past claims, age, driving record all play a part in setting the rate.  Another of the factors considered is the applicant's credit score.  The algorithms used to determine a given applicants risk is proprietary information that is not available to your representative to examine.  Therefore, it is uncertain just how heavily those credit scores influence the premium.  What is certain is that the extent of the layoffs has been injurious to consumers and their credit score.  Through no fault of their own, they may experience a considerable increase in their insurance premium as they purchase or renew a policy.

My bill would have allowed consumers who have experienced a lay-off, death of a spouse, identity fraud, or other circumstances to freeze their credit score, before it deteriorates, when they apply for a new policy or at renewal.

I am extremely disappointed that the politics of this session seem to block even common sense legislation that would help thousands of laid-off workers across this state.

K2 bill passes both House and Senate

On Wednesday, the House followed suit with the Senate by passing a bill that will add three chemicals to the state's list of illegal drugs.  Two of the chemicals, called "K2" or "Spice", are added to herbs and smoked like marijuana.  The substance is typically sold as incense.  Under this legislation, it will become illegal to possess or sell those chemicals.   No other state has banned this substance. The third is a form of the drug Ecstasy. 

Opponents of this bill stated the measure was a bit of a knee-jerk reaction based on one particular newspaper story last summer and no scientific evidence of harmful effects.  Additionally, it has been argued for years that marijuana has a medicinal effect.  If K2 is a synthetic version of marijuana, illegalizing it so quickly eliminates one possible option for easing the discomfort of cancer patients without exposing them to THC.

Similarly, there is no evidence the drug is safe.  If I error on this issue I will error on the conservative side.  In addition, we have no assurance that minors will not have access to the drug.  I supported the ban.

The bill passed the House 110-11.  There are some differences between the House and Senate versions, so the two chambers must reconcile those differences before the legislation can go to the Governor for his signature or veto.   A ban would take effect within two weeks of the Governor's signature.

Medical marijuana introduced in House

Also this week Rep. Gail Finney from Wichita introduced a bill to allow physicians to prescribe marijuana to patients undergoing chemotherapy or for other medical purposes.  The bill would establish state-registered "compassionate care centers" to sell the product.

The bill was introduced on the heels of a House bill that would criminalize a substance called K2 which is sold as a synthetic marijuana.  Proponents of medical marijuana site polls that show 80% of Americans support medical marijuana.  Former Kansas Attorney General Bob Stephan has championed passage of a bill like this in the past.  He states he expects this measure to pass sooner or later.

Currently 14 states and D.C. have passed medical marijuana legislation.  Those states are Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia,

Proposal repeals some licensing requirements for teen drivers

Last year a graduated drivers licensing system was passed and signed by the Governor.  A provision of that law required that 15-year-olds must complete driver's education before obtaining a restricted license.  We are now in the process of repealing that requirement. 

Schools across Kansas have eliminated driver education classes and private driver training can cost a student $300-$400 for a four-week session.  This is not generally affordable for students, especially those whose parents are laid off.  In rural Kansas private driver education may not available at all.  Proponents argue that it is unreasonable to expect fulfillment of this course before obtaining a restricted license when the course is no longer available. 

The Legislature has made great strides in recent years preparing teens for the important responsibility of operating a vehicle, most notably with the passage of the graduated driver's licensing law last year.  I believe that lessening the effectiveness of that law is counterproductive.  However, this is now  necessary as schools cope with 10% cuts to their budgets.

Secretary of State briefs House Elections Committee

Secretary of State Ron Thornburg briefed the House Elections Committee Wednesday about the 2008 election cycle, predictions for 2010, and various tactics that have been enacted to protect the voters and the voting process.

Kansas saw a record-breaking turn out of registered voters in 2008, as did the rest of the country. In our state specifically, the way voters are choosing to cast their ballot has dramatically shifted.  Between 2006 and 2008, there was an increase from 22 percent to 34.7 percent of votes cast prior to the election (advance balloting). In counties such as Sedgwick and Johnson County, an astounding 50 percent of votes cast were prior to Election Day.  Satellite voting has also helped this increase of advanced voting options for constituents.

This is terrific news for Kansas and for the Democratic process.  The Secretary of State predicts that the 2010 election should be another successful election year with regard to turnout, although not record breaking. The turnout of voters during presidential election years is often much higher than gubernatorial cycles.

For the first time, disabled voters now have the right to a secret ballot thanks to the Help America Vote Act.  Voters with a disability were previously required to have someone with them to help them vote, that is no longer required. 

Increased voter turnout and increased voting options in Kansas is good news.  Democracy does not work unless the people participate.  As technology continues to advance, even more voting options will be offered for your convenience.  In fact, just this year online voter registration is available to Kansas citizens for the first time ever.  If you are not registered, if you have gotten married and changed your name, or if you have moved, I encourage you to visit this website and register today: https://www.kdor.org/voterregistration.  The 2010 election is just around the corner, and it is critically important for you to make your voice heard next November.

Budget cuts impact tax filing fee

In another example of how you and I are impacted when a billion dollars is cut from a six billion dollar budget, the Department of Revenue has proposed a fee on Kansans who file a paper tax return instead of filing electronically.  When agencies have to lay off staff, furlough employees, and leave positions vacant there will be inconveniences to Kansans who rely upon the everyday services of state government.

House Bill 2521 will institute a $25 fee for filing a paper return, $10 for requesting a paper refund check and $5 for submitting a paper sales tax report. The new fees are to offset the cost incurred by processing paper returns and to encourage individuals and businesses to submit documents electronically.  If approved, it will reduce the Department's administrative expenditures by $860,000.

 Although lawmakers are never anxious to impose new fees onto constituents, the Department simply cannot afford the staff it requires to process paper returns.  The Department projects that recent layoffs will create a four-month backlog in sending 2009 income tax refunds to taxpayers.

I share all of your concerns about this proposal and I have been working with the Department to provide exemptions and relief for seniors and low-income families.  Many are not aware that they can file their state forms on line, for no charge at https://www.accesskansas.org/ssrv-webfile/index.html.

Reader survey

The Governor and some in his administration have proposed some revenue increases to close the gap in the deficit.  I would very much like to hear from you on what you think of these suggestions.  Please email your response to repdillmore@cox.net.

There is a proposal to increase the state sales tax by one cent for the next three years in order to prevent further funding cuts for education, Medicaid, prisons, roads, and social services. Do you think the sales tax should, or should not be increased? 

• Should
• Should not
• Unsure

Do you think the state allows too many organizations to be exempt from sales taxes?

• Yes
• No
• Unsure

The tax on cigarettes in Kansas is currently 79 cents per pack. Do you think the tax should be increased to $1.34 per pack, or left at 79 cents?

• Should be increased to $1.34
• Left at current rate
• Unsure

Should smoking be allowed or banned in public places in Kansas?

• Allowed
• Banned
• Unsure