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Photograph of Charlie RothCharlie Roth - State Representative - 71st District of Kansas - Republican

Legislative Updates

Legislative Update - Week 10 - March 16-20, 2009


There were protests about the proposed coal-fired power plants, angry tempers flaring over budget shortfalls and smoldering embers with a smoking ban proposal that re-ignited. Those were the issues that grabbed the headlines at the statehouse this week, but they barely scratched the surface of activity under the dome.

This week marked the deadline for all non-exempt bills to be out of committee if they were to see action this session. That being the case, bills that didn’t advance will now either be held over for possible consideration in next year’s session or become candidates for amendments as other bills are debated. There are lots of moving parts and plenty of sausage being made.

As always I welcome your questions and comments. To do so, you may click reply to this email or contact me at croth46@cox.net or 785 827-3712.

BUDGET

The dominate issue for the session continues to be the budget shortfall. This week both chambers’ budget committees put finishing touches on their versions of the FY 2010 budget measures, and are poised for debate in their respective chambers next week. The House will debate its budget measure Monday and the Senate will follow suit on Tuesday. Then, Thursday and Friday will be dedicated to ironing out the differences between the two measures. Both measures take advantage of at least a portion of the federal economic stimulus dollars and attempt to hold k-12 public education harmless. Reductions in transfers to local units of government and cuts in higher education funding are two of the biggest areas of state cuts in this first round of FY 2010 budgeting.

However, there are other sharp differences between the two measures and even more differences could emerge if major changes are adopted once the budgets are debated by the full House and Senate.

SMOKING BAN

Some issues never die in the statehouse and a good example of that is this year’s proposed smoking ban. The measure was first drafted in the Kansas Senate and then sent to a very skeptical House of Representatives for consideration. As expected, the House considered the measure and promptly “tabled” it.

Within the same news cycle, Senate Public Health Committee members who had originally crafted the measure resuscitated it by putting the original smoking ban provisions into a bill that the House had earlier passed dealing with disclosure of child care providers. This sets the stage for the membership of the House to vote on the measure, effectively bypassing those in their chamber who have worked to oppose it and keep it from reaching the House floor for debate. As currently drafted the measure would allow smoking in a handful of public places including smoke shops, casinos, private clubs and a small percentage of hotel rooms. The measure also contains important provisions to keep tobacco products out of the hands of minors by requiring that they be sold behind the counter, away from candy, gum and other similar products.

ANNEXATION

Annexation is still alive in the House. The House Local Government committee inserted the contents of HB 2029 into a Senate bill (SB 51). This was the annexation measure that prohibited any annexation of unplatted agricultural land of 21 acres or more without consent of the landowner. Inserting the bill into a Senate bill will allow the Senate to concur on the measure after a second House vote, bypassing the Senate committee process.

The House Agriculture committee was also working to keep annexation alive in the House this week. HB 2084 and HB 2032 were both inserted into Senate bills (SB 254 and SB 204 respectively) in an attempt to allow the Senate quick action on the bills. It is obvious that the proponents do not believe their bills will get action in the Senate committee and are attempting to find any vehicle possible to force a vote on the Senate floor.

    Key Aspects of HB 2029:
  • Reduce the time following an annexation before the board of county commissioners is required to hold a hearing to consider whether the city has provided the services promised in the annexation plan.
  • Reduce the time after it is shown that the city has not provided the municipal services stated in the annexation plan, before a landowner may petition to the board of county commissioners to de-annex the land in question.
  • Prohibit annexation of any portion of unplatted agricultural land of 21 acres or more without the written consent of the landowner.
  • Larger population counties like Johnson, Shawnee and Sedgwick would be required to hold an election for any proposed annexation to be made through approval by the board of county commissioners. The election will consist of qualified voters residing in the area proposed to be annexed, and if a majority of those voting reject the annexation, the city would be prohibited from annexing the land for at least four years from the election date.
    Key Aspects of HB 2084:
  • HB 2084 would prohibit the unilateral annexation of a narrow corridor of land to gain access to noncontiguous tracts of land.
  • It would require the corridor of land to have a tangible value and purpose other than for enhancing future annexations by the city.
  • The bill would specify that the section of law allowing a city to annex adjoining land upon consent of the landowner may not be used to annex a portion of an individual’s tract of land.
  • Effective retroactively to January 1, 2008
    Key Aspects of HB 2032:
  • HB 2032 would prohibit the unilateral annexation of land unless the board of county commissioners adopts a resolution stating the proposed annexation will not have an adverse effect on the county. Failure to adopt the resolution would be deemed approval of the annexation by the board of county commissioners.

2010 TRANSPORTATION PLAN

The House Transportation committee passed out their version of a 2010 comprehensive transportation plan. The bill does not have a funding stream identified and delays implementation of the plan until funding becomes available. The measure will be up for consideration in the House next week. This action is largely seen as a way to demonstrate to the highway construction lobby that there is continued support and interest in a comprehensive program, but just no economic firepower to support it.

SALES TAX HOLIDAY

The House Taxation committee passed HB 2328 which would impose a sales tax holiday for the state on back to school items such as clothing, computers and computer software. The committee added an amendment which would delay implementation until 2011. With the delayed implementation proponents of the bill were able to alleviate concerns in regards to the $5.7 million fiscal note.

CONCEALED CARRY

The House voted to forward on to final action a measure that would allow prosecutors to carry concealed firearms in county courthouses and other county facilities. The measure clarifies that the chief judge of any judicial district still holds the authority to restrict or prohibit firearms in the courtrooms of that particular judicial district. This measure is meant to provide an added level of security to prosecutors in counties where, due to budget constraints, the county courthouse does not have security personnel on duty. It was first heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee as SB 19, authored by Senate Majority Leader Derek Schmidt.

TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS

The House Taxation committee passed out SB 78 which allows transportation development districts the ability to use sales tax revenue generated from the district to pay for projects directly. Currently, projects must be paid by the issuance of bonds and the sales tax generated can only be used to pay towards debt service of the bonds. Proponents of the measure testified that this will provide greater financial flexibility for cities and counties in transportation related projects.

PROPOSITION K

The subcommittee on Proposition K, HB 2150, is scheduled to present its report to the full committee this week. The subcommittee is reportedly going to recommend an interim study to look at various proposals regarding property tax and the state’s current ad valorem system. Prop K is the latest proposal to place an arbitrary lid on property taxes. It has the backing of anti-tax groups, several prominent large corporations in Wichita and others known for their zeal for limiting government spending.

Next week promises to be an exciting one in Topeka with only two weeks remaining in the regular session and the usual garden variety of thorny issues left to be resolved. Lawmakers are scheduled for first adjournment April 3 and will return for the veto session April 29.

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