Category: Kansas Legislature

Senate approves three nominees to Kansas Board of Regents after unprecedented scrutiny

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — Bipartisan majorities in the Kansas Senate voted Wednesday to confirm three nominees to the Kansas Board of Regents recommended by Gov. Laura Kelly.

The process of considering nominations of former BNSF Railway executive Carl Ice, retired Kansas City, Kansas, school superintendent Cynthia Lane and former banker and state Sen. Wint Winter took on an unusually high level of political intrigue as some GOP lawmakers sought to derail Kelly’s picks of Lane and Winter to the state board with oversight of more than 30 public universities, community colleges and technical colleges.

The Senate Education Committee conducted an extensive evaluation of the nominees despite a unanimous vote of support last year by the interim Senate Confirmation Committee. The three nominees had been participating fully in Board of Regents meetings for months.

Sen. Molly Baumgardner, a Louisburg Republican and chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee, said evidence raised in the extended process resulted in a recommendation Ice be confirmed. She said the other nominees — Winter and Lane — were forwarded to the Senate without a recommendation because some lawmakers were convinced the nominees hadn’t been sufficiently transparent in answers to 44 written questions and a series of additional oral inquiries.

“They did have a fair hearing,” Baumgardner said. “It is up to this body to assure that the nomination process and the appointment process isn’t perfunctory.”

Sen. Gene Suellentrop, R-Wichita, urged senators unwilling to vote against a nominee to consider passing on the Board of Regents nominations. That same tactic could be relied upon by senators not 100% convinced in viability of a nominee, he said. If there were enough passing and no votes to block nominees, he said, Kelly would be forced to come back to the Senate with new picks for the Board of Regents.

Ice won unanimous support from the Senate with a 38-0 vote. The margin for Winter was 24-9, while Lane was confirmed 23-11. Four Republican senators passed on Winter and Lane. Two GOP senators were absent.

Before the votes, Sen. Marci Francisco, D-Lawrence, delivered a speech endorsing each of the governor’s nominees for the Board of Regents.

“Having active and engaged members of this board will help in planning and oversight of secondary education in Kansas,” Francisco said. “I would be remiss if I didn’t specifically express my support for Senator Wint Winter. He was a member of the Kansas Senate for 10 years and did a good job.”

During the Senate Education Committee hearings, questions were raised by GOP lawmakers about political allegiances of the individuals selected by the Democratic governor. They quizzed Winter about his opposition to re-election of then-Gov. Sam Brownback, while Lane was questioned about her involvement in a school-finance lawsuit that led to a finding the Legislature’s approach to funding K-12 public schools was unconstitutional.

The political dimension of the Senate’s consideration of the nominees was unusual given that three of six members of the Board of Regents, aside from the three just confirmed, previously served in the Legislature.

In addition, Brownback selected Helen Van Etten, who served as Republican National Committeewoman, to serve on the board in 2013 at the same time she served in that high-level Republican Party position.

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/03/02/senate-approves-three-nominees-to-kansas-board-of-regents-after-unprecedented-scrutiny/

State tax revenue tops February estimate, Kelly calls for food sales tax exemption

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — The half-billion dollars in state tax collections during February came in nearly $19 million above bullish estimates revised three months ago to reflect revenue growth.

The Kansas Department of Revenue said the state tabulated $502.5 million in tax revenue last month, which amounted to 3.9% more than anticipated by fiscal analysts. The total was $46 million, or 10.2%, beyond state revenue for February 2021.

“The positive trend in tax receipts continues with all of the major tax types — individual income tax, corporate income tax, retailer’s sales tax and compensating use tax — performing well,” said Mark Burghart, secretary of the state’s revenue department.

The department processed 15,000 more income tax filings and refunded $21 million more in February compared to the same month last year. Overall, the state has issued 281,000 refunds totaling $147 million in the current filing season.

Refunds for electronically filed returns can be expected to be deposited in taxpayers’ bank accounts in 4 days to 7 days, Burghart said.

“We are pleased to be able to get individual income tax refunds paid more quickly and into the accounts of taxpayers,” he said. “But for the larger number of refunds issued in February, individual income tax receipts also would have surpassed the February estimate.”

In February, state individual income tax collections in Kansas were $183.4 million. That was $6.6 million or 3.5% below the monthly estimate. Corporate income tax collections settled at $23.4 million or $12.4 million more than anticipated. The monthly total on corporate income tax was $15.2 million more than in February 2021.

Retail sales tax revenue outperformed predictions by $5.2 million or 2.8% for a monthly total of $195.2 million. That was $16 million, or 8.9%, more in retail sales tax revenue than experienced in February 2021.

Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat seeking re-election in November, said her administration had taken steps to promote fiscal responsibility and restore the state’s economy. She renewed a request that the Republican-led Legislature approve a bill removing grocery purchases from the state’s 6.5% sales tax.

“I urge the Legislature to work together to send me a clean bill eliminating the state’s tax on food immediately so that we can put this money back into the pockets of Kansas taxpayers,” Kelly said.

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/briefs/state-tax-revenue-tops-february-estimate-kelly-calls-for-food-sales-tax-exemption/.

Kansas agrees new mail ballot restrictions are unconstitutional, will pay legal fees

by Sherman Smith, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — A federal court on Friday struck down parts of a new Kansas law that criminalized the distribution of advanced mail ballot applications.

The state agreed not to object to arguments raised by nonprofit organizations that said the 2021 law violates the First and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The state also agreed not to appeal the decision and will pay attorney fees and court costs of the plaintiffs.

Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed House Bill 2332 last year, but the law was upheld by the GOP supermajority in the Legislature. Motivated by bogus claims of widespread voter fraud in other states, lawmakers targeted out-of-state groups that bombarded voters in 2020 with applications to receive advanced ballots.

VoteAmerica and the Voter Participation Center, which were represented in court by the Campaign Legal Center, filed the lawsuit last year against Secretary of State Scott Schwab, Attorney General Derek Schmidt and Johnson County District Attorney Stephen Howe.

U.S. District Judge Kathryn Vratil issued a temporary order in November blocking enforcement of the law. In her Friday order, Vratil said the contested sections of the law violate the U.S. Constitution.

“This is a big win for civic engagement groups nationwide,” said Danielle Lang, voting rights director at Campaign Legal Center. “Legislators are taking needless aim at folks that are just trying to give voters the materials they need to participate. This decision should serve as a warning to those who target them.”

The law banned the distribution of mail ballot applications by out-of-state groups and made it a crime to send mail ballot applications with the voter’s name and address already filled out.

Tom Lopach, president and CEO of the Voter Participation Center, said the court order will allow civic engagement groups to continue working to make voting access easier.

“We’re proud that we fought back against this effort to limit access to our democracy and won,” Lopach said. “At the Voter Participation Center, we will keep fighting to overturn anti-voter efforts and ensure every American can make their voice heard.”

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/02/28/kansas-agrees-new-mail-ballot-restrictions-are-unconstitutional-will-pay-legal-fees/