State lawmakers are done with the veto session after two days of discussion and action in Topeka.
Starting Thursday and ending late Friday afternoon, the Republican-led House and Senate were both busy passing a flurry of overrides after vetoes by Democrat Governor Laura Kelly.
17th District Senator Mike Argabright of Olpe says there was a lot of healthy discussion and debate during the veto session.
Audio Player60th District Representative Mark Schreiber of Emporia says he sided with the majority on five of the 13 override votes in the House, including one pertaining to entities helping people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities like Hetlinger Developmental Services.
Audio PlayerSchreiber says he voted to sustain vetoes on a bill offering continuing budget resolutions in a similar way that Congress handles short-term budgetary matters, as well as a bill removing a health officer’s authority to halt public gatherings in cases of health emergencies.
76th District Representative Brad Barrett of Osage City says the Legislature’s overrides were important in several regards.
Audio Player13th District Representative Duane Droge of Eureka did not return a message from KVOE News seeking comment.
While the regular and veto sessions are now both done, there are some concerns about a possible special session in June, depending on new projections from the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group, both in the short term and in the so-called budget “out years” for fiscal 2028 and beyond. There are some current projections indicating the state’s general fund budget could be in the red by as much as $500 million by fiscal 2028.
