The 2026 Kansas Legislative Session is a week away and 17th District Kansas Senator Mike Argabright is looking forward to getting back to the state capital for his second go-round.
Argabright, who had a fast-paced introduction to the legislature in 2025, says the word he has heard is to be prepared for an even faster pace this year.
In preparation for the upcoming session, Artgabright has had several conversations with local constituents, with the main topic, as expected, being property taxes. He tells KVOE that a major priority for him will be finding a path to developing a fair and balanced tax plan, which could be a challenging endeavor given the different approaches the Senate and House tend to take on the matter.
Aragabright is also anticipating “Some difficult conversations” when it comes to the state budget, saying there needs to be some reductions as the state was “Overspending from what we are bringing in.”
Like last year, Argabright says he is expecting little to no discussion on Medicaid Expansion; however, with this being Kansas Governor Laura Kelly’s final session in office, he does anticipate she will push for the matter more heavily than in the past, as Medicaid expansion has been a major focus for her administration throughout her terms in office. While the governor will likely push harder in the coming months, Argabright says the matter still needs to reach the legislative floor, and that is where the true challenge lies.
Speaking on rural healthcare, Argabright says he expects some attention to be paid to federal programs that help oversee pricing, among other matters, related to prescription drug costs getting some attention.
This year, Argabright will be serving on the transportation, financial institution and insurance, judicial, education and veterans affairs committees. You can listen to Argabright’s full interview with KVOE online in the KVOE.com Audio Vault.
KVOE will continue its 2026 legislative session previews with 60th District House Representative Mark Schreiber Tuesday and will close down its preview series with 76th District House Representative Brad Barrett on Wednesday. Both interviews will take place at 7:20 am.
