Kansas Lawmakers Vote to Phase Out Sales Tax on Groceries
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - The months-long debate over how much and how fast to cut the state sales tax on groceries ended late Thursday night when the Kansas House approved a compromise measure to gradually phase it out. Democratic Governor Laura Kelly started the debate by proposing to eliminate the 6.5% grocery tax by this summer. Republicans were reluctant to go along. But ultimately, they came up with a plan to gradually take the tax off the books. To take it down to 4% next year, down to 2% the year after that and down to zero by 2025. That compromise - which the Senate approved earlier - passed the House 114 to three. But a lot of Democrats - and a few Republicans - like Representative Dave Baker supported it reluctantly. “I’m going to choke this down. This is a good bill. It’s not a great bill. It could have been. We had the money in the bank in January. We could have taken the food sales tax to zero in January," he said. Shortly after the bill passed, Governor Kelly issued a news release saying she’d sign it.
(AP version...)
Kansas Lawmakers Vote to Phase Out Sales Tax on Groceries
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas is moving to phase out the nation's second-highest state sales tax on groceries, but Republican lawmakers wouldn't have the state lower consumers' bills until after Democratic Governor Laura Kelly faces reelection in November. The House voted 114-3 Thursday to approve the GOP's tax-cut proposal after the Senate voted 39-0 Wednesday to pass it. Eliminating the 6.5% tax is Kelly's most visible legislative initiative this year. She and fellow Democrats have been waging a public campaign for weeks to get the GOP-controlled Legislature to eliminate the whole tax on July 1. The Republican plan would phase out the tax over three years, dropping it to 4% in January. Kelly promised to sign the bill.
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Kansas Lawmakers Vote to Use $1.1 Billion to Bolster Pension System
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas legislators have voted to commit more than $1.1 billion in surplus state funds to shoring up the state pension system for teachers and government workers. The Republican-controlled state Senate on Thursday voted 26-10 for a bill that would put the funds into the pension system between now and the end of the year. The GOP-controlled House approved the measure last month, and it goes to Democratic Governor Laura Kelly. Lawmakers opened their annual session in January with Kansas projecting record high cash reserves for the end of June 2023. The state pension fund has a $4.4 billion gap between its projected funding and long-term commitments for benefits to retirees.
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Kansas Lawmakers Give Final Approval to Sports Betting Plan
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas legislators have given final approval to a bill that authorizes betting on sporting events. Most of the state's revenues from the new legal gambling would go to efforts to lure the Missouri-based Kansas City Chiefs to the Kansas side of the metropolitan area. The Republican-controlled Senate voted 21-13 early Friday to approve the gambling bill. The Republican-controlled House passed the measure, 73-49, so it goes next to Democratic Governor Laura Kelly. She is expected to sign it. The bill says that 80% of the state's revenues would go into a fund to provide incentives for professional sports teams to come to Kansas. Supporters were thinking specifically of the Chiefs.
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Kansas Legislature Votes to Curb Public Health Emergency Mandates
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) - Early Friday morning, the Kansas Legislature passed a bill that would outlaw mandates as a response to an infectious disease outbreak and bar local government from requiring or issuing vaccine passports. But the margins the bill passed the House and Senate were relatively narrow, suggesting lawmakers don’t have the votes to override Governor Laura Kelly if she vetoes it. Conservatives backing the bill say they think state and local public health officials went too far in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(–AP version–)
GOP Lawmakers in Kansas Approve Ban on State, Local Mask Mandates
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Conservative Republican lawmakers have approved a measure that would prohibit Kansas or its cities, counties or school districts from imposing mask mandates to control the spread of any infectious disease. But the measure’s supporters fell far short early Friday of the two-thirds majorities necessary in both chambers to override a veto from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. She has not said what she will do. The vote in the Senate was 23-17, four votes short of a two-thirds majority. The tally in the House was 64-53, or 20 votes shy of a two-thirds majority. The bill represents a response from conservative Republicans to mask mandates imposed during the coronavirus pandemic.
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Redistricting Has Kansas Lawmakers Planning to Return May 23
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The possibility that the Kansas Supreme Court will overturn new political redistricting laws has prompted the Republican-controlled Legislature to plan on reconvening May 23. Lawmakers wrapped up almost all of their other business for the year early today (FRI) and adjourned for almost a month. In a typical year, they'd come back only for a single day set aside for an annual adjournment ceremony. But the state's highest court is reviewing new congressional and legislative districts, and it's expected to rule on whether they comply with the Kansas Constitution by May 23. Reconvening gives lawmakers a chance to enact new maps just ahead of the June 1 candidate filing deadline.
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Vetoes Stand in Kansas for Bills on Trans Athletes, Parents' Bill of Rights
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Kansas have failed to override Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s vetoes of measures dealing with transgender athletes and parents’ ability to challenge books and other materials in public schools. Both proposals that failed Thursday were priorities for conservative legislators. One of the measures would have banned transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s sports in K-12 schools and colleges. The House voted 81-41 to override the veto, but supporters needed 84 votes in the 125-member chamber. The other bill would have required school districts to draft policies for handling complaints from parents about classroom and library materials. The vote in the House to override was 72-50.
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GOP Ties Boost in Kansas School Funding to 'Open Enrollment'
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Kansas have approved an increase in funding for public schools but tied the extra money to allowing parents to send their children to any school with room for them. The measure passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature on Thursday goes next to Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and would boost direct state funding to local school districts by about 6%. The votes were 24-14 in the Senate and 75-45 in the House. Conservative Republicans argued that the “open enrollment” provisions in the bill would give parents more options while using competition to push schools to improve. Democratic lawmakers argued that some schools would be hurt as funding followed students.
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Law Enforcement Commission Hopes to Hold Kansas Police More Accountable
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) - A Kansas law enforcement commission wants to close loopholes police can use to avoid discipline for lying during interviews or when being arrested. The commission is proposing changes to existing state regulations. Police in Kansas are not currently required to report when they have been arrested in other states. But that could soon change. Doug Schroeder is the executive director of the Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training. He says police should be required to report when they’ve been arrested out of state. “I wouldn’t say it is a significant problem. We don't want to get to the point where it is a significant problem," he said. Officers would have to report to the commission those arrests within 10 days. Schroeder says agencies run background checks on officers annually, and out of state arrests might be flagged during that report. Adding the new regulation, he says, gives the commission the ability to discipline officers for failing to report, something they cannot do now.
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Kansas Tightens Rules for Adults Receiving Food Assistance
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas will be tightening its rules for adults receiving food assistance even though critics have warned that its new law is so sloppily written that it will apply to thousands more people than supporters intended. The Republican-controlled Legislature on Thursday overrode Democratic Governor Laura Kelly's veto of a GOP bill imposing a new job-training requirement for non-disabled adults. The changes take effect July 1. The votes were 86-36 in the House and 29-11 in the Senate. Republicans said only non-disabled adults from 18 through 49 without children will be covered, but Democrats argued the new rules could apply to any adult not working at least 30 hours a week.
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Kansas Lawmakers Still Considering Medical Marijuana this Session
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - Kansas lawmakers have restarted medical marijuana talks with little time left in the session. Kansas Public Radio reports that discussions come after weeks of inaction. A small group of lawmakers is meeting to work out differences between a medical cannabis bill passed by the House last year and a version written by a Senate committee this year but never considered by the full Kansas Senate. Both measures would establish tight rules for the cultivation, sale and use of medical marijuana to treat roughly 20 conditions, including AIDS, cancer, seizure disorders and several that cause chronic pain. Doctors would need a state certificate to recommend the drug to patients. Kansas, Nebraska and Idaho are the only states that haven’t legalized medical cannabis.
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Group Rallies at Kansas Statehouse to Draw Attention to Teen Missing Since 1988
TOPEKA, Kan. (LJW) - Alberta Leach, the mother of a teenager who has been missing for 34 years, is hopeful that a rally at the Kansas Statehouse helped draw more attention to her son’s case. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that on Thursday, Alberta and a couple dozen other supporters held a rally before requesting a meeting with Governor Laura Kelly. Alberta would like to meet with Kelly to discuss the establishment of a cold case task force to complete an investigation into the disappearance of her only child, Randy Leach. Alberta said that Leavenworth County Commissioner Mike Stieben, family members and others who have been supportive of the family’s efforts to find out what happened to Randy gave speeches as part of the rally. She said the governor was in a meeting, but she spoke to someone in Kelly’s office and requested a meeting. Randy was last seen in the early morning hours of April 16, 1988, at a party in Leavenworth County only about 5 miles from his family’s home in the small town of Linwood. Alberta, her late husband Harold, and family friends have undertaken various efforts over the years to find out what happened to Randy, but neither Randy nor the car he was driving that night have ever been located.
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Priest to Return to Topeka Parish After No Charges Filed
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A priest who was accused of sexual abuse of minor will return to his parish in Topeka after prosecutors decided not to file charges against him. Archbishop Joseph Naumann of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas announced Friday that Rev. John Pilcher will resume his duties as pastor of Mater Dei Parish immediately. Pilcher was on a leave of absence since September after the allegations were made against him. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation investigated the allegations and Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay announced this week that he would not file charges. The archdiocese also investigated the allegations. Naumann said Friday he had “full confidence” in Pilcher.
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Two Mexican Nationals Indicted for Drug Trafficking in Wichita
WICHITA, Kan. (KPR) - Two Mexican nationals have been indicted in Wichita for drug trafficking. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Kansas says a federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging 46-year-old Jose Rodriguez-Cardenas and 42-year-old Felix Rodriguez-Flores with conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl and possession of heroin. The men, residents of Wichita, also face other drug charges, including the distribution of methamphetamine. The FBI and Wichita Police Department are investigating the case. The indictment is merely an allegation and both men are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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Dry U.S. Southwest Braces for Stiffer Winds, "Epic" Fire Danger
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Thousands of firefighters have continued to slow the advance of destructive wildfires in the southwest part of the nation. But they're bracing for the return of the same dangerous conditions that sparked and spread the wind-fueled blazes a week ago. At least 166 residences have been destroyed in one rural county in northeast New Mexico since the biggest U.S. fire started racing through small towns northeast of Santa Fe last Friday. Winds gusting up to 50 mph are now forecast in the drought-stricken region. Fire behavior experts say it's a recipe for disaster where timber the size of a 4-by-4 piece of lumber has a fuel moisture drier than kiln-dried wood.
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Police: Paint Identified in Kansas Water Tampering Case; 2 Juveniles Suspected
LINDSBORG, Kan. (AP) — Police in the central Kansas town of Lindsborg announced two boys are suspected of being involved in the contamination of a water cooler used by the Kansas Wesleyan baseball team during a doubleheader at Bethany College last weekend. Both schools contacted police to file a report about a foreign substance found in Kansas Wesleyan’s water. Police did not say how it connected the juveniles to the tainted water and said no one associated with either college was responsible for tampering with the water cooler. The substance mixed into the water was paint used to put lines on the field.
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Report Questions Why Kansas Trucking Company Got Pandemic Relief Loan
UNDATED (Midwest Newsroom) - A Congressional report released Wednesday raises questions about how Kansas trucking company Yellow Corporation got a coronavirus relief loan from the federal government. The report says Trump administration officials intervened to make sure Yellow got a $700 million loan from the U.S. Treasury Department. The loan was through a program meant to keep businesses critical to national security afloat during the pandemic. And Yellow handles freight and shipments for the Defense Department. But Defense Department officials questioned whether Yellow actually qualified for the loan, according to the report.
Yellow has struggled financially for years. A U.S. House subcommittee investigating the matter says that Defense Department officials doubted whether Yellow was as important to national security as they made it seem. Despite that, Trump administration officials were said to have intervened to make sure Yellow got the loan. Marc Kasowitz, an attorney representing Yellow and who has represented Trump in the past, called the report’s allegations demonstrably false.
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Missouri House Approves Limits on Transgender Athletic Participation
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri's GOP-led House has voted to limit which high school sports teams transgender athletes can compete on. House members on Monday voted 93-41 to require transgender students to compete on teams that match the sex listed on their birth certificates. Missouri’s current public high school sports rules already prohibit transgender girls from competing on girls teams unless they’re undergoing hormone therapy. Two transgender girls have been approved to play on Missouri girls’ teams in the past decade.
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Missouri Faces More Lawsuits over Lack of Redistricting Map
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri is now facing lawsuits in both federal and state court over the Legislature's inability to pass new U.S. House districts. Republicans control the Missouri House, Senate and governor's office, but they have been unable to agree on a final plan to redraw the state's eight congressional districts based on the 2020 census. Missouri is the only state that has not at least passed some proposal, though several others also face uncertainties because of court challenges or vetoes. The Missouri Legislature faces a May 13 deadline to pass bills. Hearings have been set in federal court for May 9 and in state court for May 23.
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Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Gets 24-Hour Security Due to Threats from Iran
WICHITA, Kan. (KMUW) - Former Kansas Congressman Mike Pompeo has a 24-hour security detail because of ongoing threats by Iran. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week that Pompeo remains under protection by the federal government. Pompeo served as secretary of state himself, under former President Donald Trump. Pompeo coordinated the Trump Administration's efforts to impose economic sanctions against Iran. Pompeo left Congress in 2017 to become CIA director. A year later, Trump named him secretary of state. The U.S. State Department says it's paying more than $2 million dollars a month to provide security to Pompeo and a former top aide.
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8 Midwest States, Including Kansas, Seek Permanent Waiver to Sell E15 Gasoline
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Governors from eight Midwest states asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Thursday for a permanent waiver that will allow each state to continue selling ethanol blended gas year-round without restriction. The EPA’s decision last week to suspend restrictions of summer sales of the lower-carbon, lower-cost E15 gasoline is temporary and only applies to the 2022 summer driving season. E15 is usually prohibited between June 1 and September 15 because of concerns that it adds to smog in high temperatures. The bipartisan group of governors from Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin sent a joint letter to EPA Administrator Michael Reagan formally requesting the waiver.
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Prosecutor Won't Bring Charges Against Accused Topeka Priest
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Catholic priest in Topeka suspended from his public duties after being accused of sexually abusing a minor will not face criminal charges in the case. The Capital-Journal reports that Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay decided not to file charges against the Rev. John Pilcher after reviewing the results of an investigation conducted by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas announced last September that it had suspended Pilcher, of Mater Dei parish, but said Pilcher denies the allegation and has fully cooperated with the investigation. The archdiocese says it will continue evaluating Pilcher's status as a priest.
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Missouri Proud Boy Pleads Guilty in Capitol Breach Case
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City member of a far-right extremist group has pleaded guilty to a felony charge for his role in the January 2021 breach of the U.S. Capitol. Federal prosecutors in Washington say 45-year-old Louis Enrique Colon, of Blue Springs, Missouri, pleaded guilty Wednesday to obstructing law enforcement officers. Prosecutors say Colon was a member of a chapter of the Proud Boys that included members from Kansas when he took part in the January 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. Colon had faced a charge of conspiring with other Proud Boys members to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden's 2020 electoral victory. He faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he's sentenced at a later date.
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Kansas Officials: Agriculture Exports Surpass $5 Billion for First Time in a Decade
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - Kansas Governor Laura Kelly says the state exported $5.35 billion in agricultural goods in 2021, marking the first time Kansas agriculture exports exceeded $5 billion in at least a decade. Those exports were also $1.30 billion, or 32.35%, more than 2020. “Kansans have long-known that farmers, ranchers, and agriculture producers are vital to our state’s economy,” Kelly said. The top export for Kansas in 2021 was meat, which made up 54% of all agriculture exports. The second was cereals making up nearly 40% of total ag exports. Other products exported include oilseed, vinegar, beverages, dairy products, milling products, fats, vegetables, flour, starch and other products. Mexico, Japan, and China were the top three countries to purchase Kansas agricultural goods. ( Find the full report here.)
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University of Kansas Ranked as No. 5 Best School in the Nation for Veterans
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KU/KPR) — For the second year in a row, the University of Kansas ranks fifth nationally among Tier 1 research institutions in the 2022-23 “Military Friendly Schools” survey. The annual survey is the longest-running review of college and university investments in serving military-affiliated students. Institutions earning the Military Friendly School designation were evaluated using public data sources and survey information. More than 1,800 schools participated in the 2022-2023 survey, with 665 schools earning special awards for going above the standard. KU has ranked as a Military Friendly Top 10 school since 2018 and has earned “Gold” award status since 2017. The Military-Affiliated Student Center at KU, in Summerfield Hall, serves as a centralized resource for students. It includes a lounge with 24-7 access, study spaces, headquarters for the KU Student Veterans of America student organization, VA work-study opportunities, GI Bill and military tuition assistance and more. KU has several scholarships and an emergency fund for military-affiliated students, a Veterans Upward Bound program and a series of Graduate Military Programs. ( Read more.)
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Chiefs Actively Considering Future of Arrowhead Stadium
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs are actively considering the future of Arrowhead Stadium, pushing ahead with plans far earlier than expected following the Kansas City Royals’ decision to investigate a new downtown ballpark. Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt said Friday that the Chiefs, who have shared the Truman Sports Complex with the Royals since the early 1970s, would help the Major League Baseball team evaluate what is best for them. But the Chiefs also have to plan for the future of their own stadium, which will celebrate its opening 50 years ago during the upcoming season.
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Kansas City Chiefs Address Defense with McDuffie, Karlaftis in 1st Round
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Brett Veach kept eyeing the draft board as the first round ticked away, knowing full well that two picks Thursday night and 10 more over the next couple of days gave him plenty of options on both sides of the ball. The Chiefs' general manager decided to address the defensive side first.
In a serendipitous first round in which the best players left on their board also fulfilled the Chiefs' biggest needs, Veach traded up to select Washington cornerback Trent McDuffie with the 21st pick and then added Purdue defensive end George Karlaftis at No. 30, all while holding onto both of his second-round choices Friday night. "We wanted to add some depth on defensive line, add depth in the secondary — it worked out. It's usually not the case," Veach said. "We have a lot of picks and we wanted to make sure we used them selectively."
They wound up sending the 29th pick along with selections in the third and fourth round to New England to jump ahead of the Bills, who also were targeting a cornerback, and land one of the most versatile players at the position.
McDuffie, a track standout in the 100 and 200 meters, has the speed and athleticism to play in the slot or on the outside, making him a good fit for Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's scheme. He allowed just one reception of at least 20 yards last season for Washington, and he did not allow a touchdown catch in his past two seasons. "I look at myself like Tyrann Mathieu, somebody that is going to be able to go in and play a bunch of different positions and help the team as much as I can," McDuffie said. "That's the biggest thing for me: However, I can get on the field, however I can help this team, I'm going to do whatever I can to do it."
The Chiefs had a pressing need at cornerback after Charvarius Ward left for the 49ers in free agency. But they were expected to address the position with one of their original first-round picks or in the second or third round, rather than making an aggressive jump up the board for one of the top players the position.
McDuffie was the third cornerback taken after the Texans selected LSU's Derek Stingley Jr. at No. 3 and the Jets grabbed Cincinnati's Ahmad Gardner No. 4. The Bills took Florida cornerback Kaiir Elam two picks after Kansas City. "Very seldom do you have the highest player on the board at that time for us, and it's a position of need," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said, "and that's when you try to go up and get a guy."
It was the first time the Chiefs chose a cornerback in the first or second round since 2015, when they took Marcus Peters out of Washington at No. 18 overall. But unlike Peters, whose character questions in college followed him to Kansas City, the 21-year-old McDuffie has earned rave reviews for his leadership and maturity.
McDuffie's job in the new-look Kansas City secondary, where safety Justin Reid was signed in free agency to replace All-Pro safety Mathieu, should be made a little easier with Karlaftis getting after the quarterback.
The native of Greece, who moved to the U.S. when he was 13 and picked up football relatively late, had 39 tackles and 4 1/2 sacks for the Boilermakers last season. Karlaftis wound up with 14 sacks and 29 tackles-for-loss during his three seasons in West Lafayette, and is a natural fit for the 4-3 scheme run in Kansas City. "I've only played football for six or seven years now," he said. "I feel like my best football is ahead of me."
The Chiefs had just 31 sacks last season, better only than three other teams in the NFL. "I get after the quarterback. I stop the run. I feel like I'm a three-down player that can do anything and everything asked of them," Karlaftis said. "I had some meetings with the Chiefs and just couldn't have asked to be in a better situation."
Most expected Veach and Co. to chase one of the top wide receivers in the first round after dealing three-time All-Pro Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins for a package of draft picks earlier this offseason. But they've already plugged the hole in part by signing JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and they still have plenty of picks at their disposal.
Their trade with the Patriots, sending them No. 94 and No. 121, allowed the Chiefs to keep their two second-round picks at No. 50 and No. 62. The Chiefs also have a third-round pick at No. 103 on Friday night, along with a fourth-rounder and four picks in the seventh round when the draft concludes on Saturday. "As much as I love Thursday, our staff loves Friday and Saturday even more," Veach said. "This is when we have a lot of fun the next few days and I'm looking forward to it."
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Royals Shortstop Adalberto Mondesi Has Torn Knee Ligament
CHICAGO (AP) — Kansas City Royals shortstop Adalberto Mondesi’s season is in jeopardy after tests Thursday revealed a torn anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee. The 26-year-old Mondesi, who played in only 35 games in 2021 because of left hamstring and left oblique injuries, had started 14 of 15 games this season. Mondesi, who was batting .140 with five stolen bases in five attempts, suffered the injury on an attempted pickoff play Tuesday night against the Chicago White Sox. Nicky Lopez, who started 141 games at shortstop in 2021, likely will move from second base to shortstop.
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These area headlines are curated by KPR news staffers, including J. Schafer, Laura Lorson, Kaye McIntyre, and Tom Parkinson. Our headlines are generally posted by 10 am weekdays, 11 am weekends. This news summary is made possible by KPR listener-members. Become one today!