Blog

On February 3rd, a hearing was held on a bill that would consolidate multiple districts in Kansas. “Opponents of a measure that would consolidate school districts packed a House committee meeting Wednesday, offering impassioned testimony against it. “Rep. John Bradford, R-Lansing, defended his bill against critics, saying it wouldn’t lead to the effects that patrons of rural and small districts fear. “’It does not close schools, it does not affect teachers, nor does it fire principals,’ Bradford said. ‘It does not sell school buses, it does not change any boundaries except by the State Board, it does not...

We’re sharing the content of a newsletter from Rep. Patton on the judicial selection constitutional amendment. We agree with his statement. Keeping politics and corruption out of our Kansas courts Dear Friends: Today, the Legislature debated a controversial Constitutional amendment that would have dismantled the Kansas system of judicial selection and replaced it with the same system being used by President Obama with our federal courts. Like many of you, I haven’t liked some of the recent decisions handed down by our state courts. They go against my long-held personal beliefs. Of course, in our system of government,...

On February 3rd, the House voted on the bill to change how Supreme Court Justices are appointed in Kansas. The bill had a simple majority which means it went up for final action on February 4th. Between those days, leadership was expected to twist the arms of 15 “no” votes so that they get the 2/3 majority needed to pass it out of the House. This bill is a power grab, a move to make our Supreme Court subject to political will, and a means of retaliation for school funding decisions favoring Kansas public schools. Our courts are...