Members of the Kansas Legislature’s Special Committee on Kansas Emergency Act are meeting this week, and adjustments to the state’s emergency management policy could be recommended before the week is over.
This follows compromise action by Governor Laura Kelly and lawmakers in June to extend the state disaster declaration. Several changes in past policy were approved, including the need for the governor to request an extension from the State Finance Council as well as the ability to spend federal relief funds.
Some state media are painting the meetings this week as a way to limit Governor Laura Kelly’s emergency powers. 60th District House Republican Mark Schreiber says the goal going in is to make emergency response efforts easier at the ground level.
Schreiber says a Kansas Emergency Management Act that addresses every possible issue would be so convoluted that very little might actually get done or could lead to multiple declarations with different conditions or response procedures, depending on the disaster.
Recommendations will be deliberated Thursday before going to the full Legislature.
