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E-NEWSLETTER
REPRESENTATIVE PAUL DAVIS
46TH DISTRICT

OFFICE:

423-South, State Capitol
Topeka, KS 66612
785-296-7642
davis@house.state.ks.us

DISTRICT OFFICE:

900 Massachusetts Street, Suite 601
Lawrence, KS 66044
(785) 843-7674
(785) 843-7672 (fax)

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1731 Indiana
Lawrence, KS 66044
(785) 749-1942

Greetings from the Capitol! Unfortunately, the Legislature is still attempting to pass a school finance plan. I frankly believe the Legislature should have finished its business by now. But unfortunately, a coalition has not been able to form in both the House and Senate to support a school finance plan.

The Legislature has adjourned for the weekend so that conference committees can meet. Also still unresolved are the omnibus budget, sexual predator/private prison legislation, the business and machinery property tax exemption and a few other issues. Hopefully, conference committees will be able to come to agreements on these issues over the weekend and we will be able have votes on Monday.

I'm pleased that the Legislature hasn't gotten too bogged down with the "Nuss Fuss", but it certainly has been a distraction. We need to focus on passing a school finance plan that addresses the Legislative Post Audit study and not spend our time taking shots at the Supreme Court.

In other news, I'm very pleased to report the passage of an initiative that I have been working on for several years. The first is the creation of a judicial evaluation system that will provide voters with unbiased, objective data about judges how stand for retention. This is much overdue and will greatly aid voters beginning in the 2008
election.

Here is an update on some of the other happenings in Topeka:

JESSICA'S LAW AND PRIVATE PRISONS SPLIT

On Wednesday, the House voted 74 to 49 to send a bill containing provisions for private prisons back to conference committee. The proposal, which allows contracts between the state and private prison contractors to build private prisons in Kansas, had recently been attached to the popular "Jessica's Law" sex offender bill.

"Jessica's Law," named for a nine-year-old Florida girl who was killed after a sexual assault, would create up to a 25-year prison sentence for first-time sex offenders. Although Jessica's Law has received great support from the House, many felt that the private prisons bill proposed by Senate Majority Leader Derek Schmidt was just an attempt to pass controversial legislation on the coattails of a bill that is highly favored. Schmidt has also been criticized because a town in his southeast Kansas district has been seeking a private prison to help stimulate its economy.

The private prisons measure would allow private contractors to build facilities for an additional 1,000 convicts who are expected to enter the prison system in the next 10 years. The bill, however, fails to establish where private prisons would be located or if they would house only Kansas prisoners.

Wednesday's vote sends the joint proposal back to a conference committee where the panel is likely to separate the two provisions for reconsideration by the House. I'm very pleased with this action because I have significant concerns about private prisons and believe we should not take this step.

TABOR-LITE REJECTED

A bill requiring a 2/3 majority vote, 84 votes, on any legislation that would cause a change in state statutes was sent back to conference committee after a lengthy debate, and several amendments, yesterday.

The Constitutional Amendment originally proposed that the Kansas Constitution be amended to require a 2/3 majority vote on any legislation that would raise taxes. Considering that it is rare for any major policy to receive 84 or more votes on one side, this proposal would likely only increase legislative gridlock.

When the bill came up for discussion, several amendments were quickly added, including those that exempted expenditures for social services, highway construction and higher education. The passage of an amendment by Rep. John Edmonds, Great Bend, requiring a 2/3 majority vote on virtually all legislation that would cause a change in Kansas state statutes, essentially made the bill unworkable.

Initially, the bill did not have the votes to pass out of the House Appropriations Committee, but Speaker Mays took the unusual step of referring the bill to the full House. Proponents and opponents were not given the opportunity to present an argument to the committee, thus, many believed that more study was needed to see if this was good policy for the state of Kansas.

I have studied a lot of information regarding TABOR, including its results in Colorado. I do not believe it is good policy and fear that its adoption would greatly hamstring the ability of state government to deliver its essential services (i.e. education, highways, social services). I'm pleased that the Legislature did not take positive action.

SEX PREDATOR LOCATION BILL APPROVED

The passage of a sexual predator release bill will help keep Kansas children safe by prohibiting sexual predators from moving within 2000 feet of facilities where children are located. The bill, which was proposed by two House Democrats, will also require that facilities housing predators released from the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) Sex Predator Unit comply with local zoning and codes.

The Kansas Supreme Court recently upheld efforts to prevent the placement of a convicted sexual predator, Leroy Hendricks, into a group home in Leavenworth County. In its unanimous ruling, the justices upheld a lower court ruling, blocking the location of a treatment facility for sexually violent predators without a special use permit. The court found it was unsafe for sexual predators, like Hendricks, to be placed closer than 2,000 feet from children because they may place a danger to others.

Hendricks, 71, was convicted and imprisoned in 1985 for molesting two teenage boys. He was the first person to be confined indefinitely for treatment after release from prison, under a 1994 law.

HEALTH INSURANCE FOR STUDENTS BILL APPROVED

State universities will have greater ability to provide low-cost health insurance for students under a compromise bill sent today to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. The Senate voted 21-19 for the measure, worked out by negotiators from the two chambers. The House approved the bill, 98-24, on May 3rd. The bill would allow the Board of Regents to offer health insurance for students and graduate students employed on campuses, instead of having those policies offered through the individual universities. Backers expect insurers to offer lower-cost plans to a larger group of students.

The original House version said no plan offered by the Board of Regents could cover abortions for students. Negotiators reworked the bill to prohibit the policies from covering procedures that aren't medically required.

MARRIAGE AGE RESTRICTIONS SENT TO GOVERNOR

A bill restricting underage marriages in Kansas will be sent to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius after the House voted to approve it unanimously on Thursday. The bill, which was requested by the governor, forbids anyone younger than 15 from obtaining a Kansas marriage license unless a judge agrees that it is in that person's best interest to marry. Those 16 or 17 can marry if they have permission of both parents and any legal guardian; a parent or legal guardian and a judge; or a judge in cases where the child's parents are deceased and there is no legal guardian.

Republican Senator Kay O'Connor, who led opposition to the bill, claimed that the state's desire to protect children would pressure pregnant teens to get an abortion if they were not allowed to marry. She also cited that many prominent women have been married as young teens in the past, including Loretta Lynn and Mary, the mother of Jesus.

The issue was brought to the attention of the legislature last year after a 22-year-old Nebraska man impregnated his 14-year-old girlfriend and then brought her to Kansas to get married. Nebraska law prohibits the marriage of people younger than 17, regardless of parental consent. Currenty, Kansas law does not have a minimum marriage age, as long as those younger than 18 have the consent of a parent, legal guardian or judge.

FUNERAL PICKETING BILL PUT ON HOLD

Members of the House voted today to send a watered down version of a funeral picketing bill back to conference committee after it was decided that most members wanted to strengthen the bill to prevent protesters like the Phelps family from disrupting funerals.

The bill, which was written by House and Senate negotiators, prohibited protests within 500 feet of a funeral. The bill also prohibited the making of any noise that would potentially disturb funeral proceedings, but didn't provide for restrictions at funeral homes or other related private properties. In an attempt to prevent potential first amendment lawsuits from funeral protestors, the bill also lacked restrictions to public areas, including streets, sidewalks and parks. As a result, many legislators feared that the protests would occur on streets and sidewalks in front of funeral locations, thereby making the new law meaningless.

Picketing restrictions were sparked by the protests of Rev. Fred Phelps and members of the Westboro Baptist Church. Phelps and members of his
congregation have picketed the funerals of several fallen soldiers in Kansas, including the February funeral of Spc. Jessica Davila, who was killed while serving in Iraq. Members of the Phelps group often carry signs such as "Thank God for Dead Soldiers" when picketing funerals. Phelps says that soldiers are being killed as part of God's punishment of the United States for accepting homosexuals.

Many legislators voiced concern that the latest version of the bill wouldn't do enough to protect the families of fallen American soldiers. While I share some of these concerns, I'm also concerned about making sure that we pass a bill that meets constitutional muster.

In late March, legislators approved an earlier version of the bill, which barred protesters from picketing within 300 yards of mortuaries, churches or cemeteries for one hour before and two hours after a funeral. It also banned protestors from streets, sidewalks and other public places during funeral proceedings.

KEEP IN TOUCH

It is a special honor and privilege to serve as your voice in the Kansas House of Representatives. I value and need your input on the various issues facing state government. Please feel free to contact me with your comments and questions. My office address is Room 423-South, State Capitol, Topeka, KS 66612. You can reach me at (785) 296-7657 or call the legislative hotline at 1-800-432-3924 to leave a message for me. Additionally, you can e-mail me at davis@house.state.ks.us. You can also follow the legislative session online at www.kslegislature.org.

Paul

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