State lawmakers always have a lot of topics to comb through during legislative sessions, and the official work begins Monday.
17th District Senator Jeff Longbine of Emporia was KVOE’s Newsmaker 2 guest Wednesday as KVOE continued its legislative previews. A topic likely to see a lot of discussion is medical marijuana policy, especially with several neighboring states approving medical marijuana and testimony through a special committee in the Kansas Legislature last year. Longbine was on the committee, and he says lawmakers are considering a 500-page bill as the session begins.
Longbine also sees a lot of conversations ahead on a range of tax matters, starting with Kansas Governor Laura Kelly’s goal of eliminating the state food tax after lawmakers approved a phased elimination last year.
Education funding will have several main points. At the public school level, Longbine anticipates conversations about fully funding special education — although he sees that as the state being asked to cover for federal decisions to not uphold its end of the bargain — and more tak about state funding for private schools. At the higher education level, ther will be talk about increasing the overall budget so colleges and universities can handle a combination of inflation, deferred maintenance and lower enrollments. For Emporia State specifically, Longbine says the university’s reinvestment push involving a new emphasis on programs was “absolutely the right direction” going forward.
Budgetary matters are always a concern, and Republican lawmakers have mentioned concerns about a potential recession for months — although the December tax collections beat the official estimate by almost 15 percent and the December 2021 total by almost 22 percent.
Longbine will serve on the Financial Institutions Committee; Federal and State Affairs Committee; and Select Committee on Federal Tax Code Implementation.
KVOE’s legislative previews conclude with House 76th District Representative Eric Smith of Burlington at 8:40 am Thursday. Recently-appointed 13th District Representative Duane Droge of Eureka has declined an interview until after the session begins.
