The Night is more of a day-long event for city leaders, chamber and corp members, Dodge City Community College representatives and other Dodge City organizations, businesses and residents to meet will lawmakers at the Statehouse to discuss issues important to our community. It’s capped off with a BBQ featuring the best steaks in the state – from Dodge City, of course.

This is by far my favorite event during the session. It is a great opportunity to highlight all of the positive things we have going in Dodge City.

Session Pages

Each legislative session legislators have the chance to have students from their district come to Topeka to serve as pages in their respective chambers. This year Taylor Fischer, Christian Fischer, Caleb Fischer and Hannah Harrold spent the day at the statehouse on March 19th.

Here they are with Janae Jones in my office. They got to go with me to a few of my committee meetings as well as to the full House when it was in session. There they ran errands for the representatives who could not leave the House chamber.

Autism Commission

Members of the Kansas Governor’s Commission on Autism delivered homemade candy this week to Kansas Legislators to draw attention to the Governor’s declaration of April being Autism Awareness month. Among the group was Tony, Jeanie and Mikela Zortman and Emma Cecil from Dodge City.

Many of you know Jeanie and Tony Zortman who founded Autism SW Kansas soon after their daughter Mikela was diagnosed with autism. They have worked hard to raise awareness about Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in our community and across the state. Jeanie is now the Commission’s Chairperson.

I have introduced a number of bills aimed at providing support and programs to Kansas children with ASD and their families. The commissioners’ visit helped remind my fellow lawmakers about several autism-related bills that are before them and especially ask for their support of Senate Bill 12, Kate’s Law. Senate Bill 12 would require health insurance companies to include ASD in their coverage.

Here's a picture of the Zortmans, Emma, myself and some of the other legislators they met with during their visit to the statehouse. For more information abut the events and programs planned during Autism Awareness month, send an e-mail to autismswkansas@yahoo.com.

LEGISLATIVE ACTION

Budget Progress
Legislators have agreed on the budget bill for the Fiscal Year 2010, which begins July 1st. Those spending decisions are based on financial projections that are more than four months old. Since then, the state has seen a dramatic drop in its revenue compared to those projections. This has raised concerns among many lawmakers about what the economic future truly holds for Kansas.

We will receive an update on the state’s financial picture later this month when the April Consensus Revenue Estimate is released. It’s hard to say whether the Estimate will predict an improving revenue forecast but whatever is reported most likely will have an impact – good or bad - on the 2010 budget and the remainder of the session.

DCCC Funding
During the House debate on the 2010 budget bill, I offered an amendment that would have equalized the funding for all Kansas community colleges.

As you may know, Dodge City, Pratt, and Cowley County Community Colleges merged with their local technical schools back in 1993. In 1999 the state changed the funding rules to encourage the other community colleges to do the same. But those new allotment levels did not apply to the three schools that had already merged. Today DCCC, PCC and CCCC receive $2400 per student while the other schools get $8500 per student.

Each year the Legislature has promised that it would address the unfair funding levels the next year. My amendment would have leveled the playing field by using federal stimulus funding to bring the three schools up to the same amount as the others for two years. I argued this would give the newly formed Postsecondary Technical Education Authority time to review the situation and come up with a permanent solution where all schools are funded equally.

Unfortunately, my colleagues in the House did not agree with me and rejected the amendment. I will continue to press this issue until it is resolved.

Kansas Legislature Approves Energy Bill
The Kansas Legislature approved the Kansas Comprehensive Energy Plan by overwhelming majorities in both chambers. I support the energy plan because it does so many positive things for our state and for Western Kansas.

The measure would return regulatory certainty to our state and allow Sunflower Electric to build two of the cleanest power plants in the country – maybe the world. The bill also would clarify how the Kansas Department of Health and Environment may use its emergency powers by involving judicial review and taking politics out of the process.

A large part of the energy plan would direct the state to be a good steward of the environment through energy efficiency and conservation programs as well as expansion of renewable energy production in Kansas. It also would grant Kansans who produce their own electricity the ability to sell the excess power to their utility provider.

The Governor has stated she will veto the bill so I expect the Legislature will attempt to override her veto when we return to Topeka at the end of the month.

The Right to Own and Bear Firearms Constitutional Amendment
There has been much debate in Kansas about a 1905 Kansas Supreme Court ruling that determined the Kansas Constitution provides only for a “collective” right to own a firearm.

The House and Senate passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 1611 that would clarify an individual’s right to own a firearm.

The proposed constitutional amendment would make it clear that “a person has the right to keep and bear arms for the defense of self, family, home and state, for lawful hunting and recreational use, and for any other lawful purpose."

Kansas voters will decide whether to amend the Kansas Constitution in the 2010 General Elections.

Honoring Our Cowboy Heritage
This week I and Representative Melvin Neufeld introduced two resolutions to honor our state and country’s rich cowboy history.

House Concurrent Resolution 5020 would designate the fourth Saturday in July as National Day of the Cowboy and encourage Kansans to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

House Concurrent Resolution 5021 would recognize the contributions of the Kansas Cowboy Hall of Fame in preserving and honoring the life of the Kansas Cowboy. Each year the Hall inducts five honorees. The five categories are Rancher/Cattleman, Cowboy Entertainer, Cowboy Historian, Working cowboy, and Rodeo Cowboy. The inductees are honored each year at the induction ceremony held at Boot Hill Museum.

Both the House and Senate approved the measures. They do not require the Governor’s okay to become final.

Some of the Bills signed into Law
So far, the governor has signed 43 bills passed by the Kansas Legislature into law. Here a few I thought you might find interesting:

Senate Bill 115 gives firefighters authority to temporarily block any public highway while conducting official duties. Previous law had limited that power to when fighting a fire.

Senate Bill 123 allows the owner of a registered antique vehicle to display a vintage or reproduction of a vintage license plate issued by a city in Kansas. It can be displayed in place of a state-issued plate on the front or rear of a vehicle.

Senate Bill 148 establishes the Kansas Silver Alert Plan which provides for public notice of a missing elderly person.

Senate Bill 238 requires abortion clinics to provide women a chance to see an ultrasound image and hear the heartbeat of her fetus. The bill compels abortion clinics to display signs explaining women couldn’t be coerced into having an abortion. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment will be required to produce video and print information about the stages of fetal development.

House Bill 2297 adds geriatric medicine to the Kansas Medical Student Loan Program or Osteopathic Medical Service Scholarship Program. For every year of financial assistance the medical student receives, he or she must complete one year of service in a rural or medically underserved area.

House Bill 2143 establishes the Graduated Drivers’ License program. It puts certain restrictions on new teenage drivers. It makes no changes to existing farm permit provisions or restricted license provisions.

And finally...Miss Kansas Visits Statehouse

Earlier in the session lawmakers had the opportunity to meet Miss Kansas 2008 Emily Deaver. She is a very impressive young woman and an excellent role model for our children to look up to. Here I am with Rep. Dave Crum and Miss Deaver:

I was especially impressed by the platform she is promoting during her reign as Miss Kansas: “Crossroads of Abuse and Addiction: The Road Less Traveled.” She is working with a number of state and local organizations to bring more attention to the problem of drug and alcohol abuse among Kansan teenagers and young adults and the attitudes and behaviors that put them at risk.

As you know, this is a passion of mine and I am encouraged to see someone of her stature and influence putting her resources towards such an important issue in our state.

Upcoming Events

Monday, April 6th – 10:00 a.m. Rep. Melvin Neufeld, Senator Tim Huelskamp and I will be at Ft Dodge for a legislative update & discussion concerning the Soldier Home. I hope you can join us.

As always, it is an honor to serve you. Please do not hesitate to call or email me if I can be of any assistance.

Sincerely,
Pat

Rep. Pat George
119th House District
785/296-7655