#governor laura kelly

[theacecouple]

It's official! We got the state of Kansas to formally recognize Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week this year!

February 18-24, 2024 DON'T YOU FORGET!

[harriswalz4usabybr]

Speeches from the Wichita Campaign Rally!

Taylor Swift performed two songs, The Man and Change, before campaign speeches resumed.

Taylor Swift returned to the stage for two more songs, Karma and ... Ready For It?. Travis Kelce then met Taylor Swift on stage to introduce Vice President Harris to the audience at Interest Bank Arena.

Taylor Swift returned to the stage to close out the Rally with a final performance, singing Only The Young.

~BR~

[transformationsproject]

On April 12, Kansas governor Laura Kelly vetoed SB 233 which, if enacted, would have banned crucial, medically necessary health care for Kansas trans youth. The bill was returned to the Kansas Senate to override the veto which prevailed, but the Kansas House narrowly voted to sustain the veto. As a result, trans children in Kansas will not lose access to their life saving medication! This was a narrow win for Kansas kids. Watch this video to find out how you can make a difference.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Sherman Smith at Kansas Reflector:

TOPEKA — As the Kansas Legislature renewed its yearslong assault on transgender children, Sen. Mary Ware told her Senate colleagues Monday she had a “simple” question for them.

“What is the acceptable number of youth suicides?” Ware asked. The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is a hotline for individuals in crisis or for those looking to help someone else. To speak with a certified listener, call 988. Crisis Text Line is a texting service for emotional crisis support. To speak with a trained listener, text HELLO to 741741. It is free, available 24/7, and confidential. Ware’s question set the tone for debate in the Senate, which voted 27-13 to override Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto of Senate Bill 233, legislation that would ban gender-affirming care for anyone younger than 18. But the override attempt fell short in the House on an 82-43 vote, two short of the two-thirds majority required.

The bill would have blocked teenagers from receiving hormone therapy and other treatments recognized as necessary by medical professionals. And it would have banned state employees from supporting “social transitioning,” which is defined to include an individual changing their preferred pronouns or manner of dress. Rep. Susan Concannon, R-Beloit, and Rep. Jesse Borjon, R-Topeka, flipped their votes from earlier in the month to sustain the governor’s veto. Two other Republicans — Rep. Mark Schreiber of Emporia and Rep. David Younger of Ulysses — also joined Democrats in blocking the legislation from becoming law. “We hear about mental health, about suicide, and ask why,” Concannon said. “We’re not listening to the impact of youth. Government involvement is not the answer.” On the Senate side, Sen. John Doll, R-Garden City, and Sen. Carolyn McGinn, R-Sedgwick, joined the chamber’s 11 Democrats in supporting the veto.

Opponents of the bill pointed to extensive medical research that shows transgender children, who are already at an elevated risk for suicide, are more likely to die from suicide if they don’t receive gender-affirming care. “This bill ignores, or should I say tramples, on the rights of some Kansas citizens to live peaceably, lawfully and free to make their own decisions about their own bodies,” Ware said. Republicans argued the bill would protect children from life-altering decisions they could end up regretting.

[...] The House delayed taking action as Republican leadership tried to secure enough votes to override the governor’s veto. Before closing the roll call, Republicans locked the chamber doors and issued a procedural declaration that requires every member to cast a vote, rather than abstain. Borjon said he would support a ban on gender reassignment surgery and limits on the use of hormone blockers for minors. But for him, the bill went too far in restricting speech and behavioral health care for transgender youths. Rep. Tobias Schlingensiepen, a Topeka Democrat and pastor, said it was clear the “politically motivated bill” would make the lives of trans kids and their families more difficult.

Good news: Kansas's anti-trans gender-affirming care ban for trans youths will not take effect, as Gov. Laura Kelly (D)'s veto of SB233 has been sustained in the House. #KSLeg

See Also:

Erin In The Morning: Kansas Republican Votes No On Trans Ban: "Govt. Involvement Is Not The Answer"

[progressivepower]

Laura Kelly became governor of Kansas with the help of rural voters. Can her playbook help other Democrats? http://ow.ly/9kb410505LH

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

The Kansas Legislature sent Gov. Laura Kelly a bill directing the judicial system to recognize child-support claims on behalf of fetuses from conception to birth.

The legislation introduced on behalf of faith-based Kansas Family Voice and endorsed by anti-abortion lobbying organizations was described by a supporter as “simple and short” and by a critic as “very dangerous.”

It wouldn’t authorize child-support payments for medical expenses incurred during pregnancy if the woman received an “elective” abortion. The exception in Senate Bill 232 would be if an abortion was performed to save the life of a pregnant woman.

The bill was approved 82-38 in early April by the House and adopted 25-12 by the Senate on Friday following brief debate. Neither chamber adopted the bill by the two-thirds majority required to overturn a potential veto by the governor. She recently vetoed an abortion regulation bill for being excessively intrusive and a separate measure that would have created a crime of compelling someone to get an abortion.

“This bill is simple and short and does not effect a fundamental change in current Kansas law about the definition of a person, a human being or an unborn child,” said Sen. Kellie Warren, R-Leawood. “The real impact of this bill is helping women — helping women to pay for things.”

The Kansas Department for Children and Families said parental relationships were not legally established under state law until a live birth. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported 12,700 children were born out of wedlock last year in the state.

Sen. Ethan Corson, a Johnson County Democrat, had urged colleagues to reject the bill. He said the innocuous-appearing legislation added a layer to state statute declaring Kansas law conferred personhood on a fetus at the moment of conception.

The legislation resembled an Alabama law relied on by the Alabama Supreme Court to declare embryos to be “extrauterine children” and that destruction of embryos created through in vitro fertilization could be illegal, Corson said.

“The impact of this bill is likely to be much more serious, much more sweeping and much broader in its application. Particularly, I think, if we’re going to say that fetuses now have legal rights,” Corson said.

He said the legislation conflicted with the decision of Kansas voters in August 2022 to defend the right to bodily autonomy in the Kansas Constitution, which was interpreted by the Kansas Supreme Court to guarantee a person’s right to end a pregnancy. Voters of Kansas overwhelmingly defeated a proposed amendment to the constitution that would have nullified the high court’s decision and make it easier for state lawmakers to impose additional restrictions on abortion.

“I know Kansas women right now are scared,” Corson said. “They want to make sure that this body (Senate) is going to protect their access to reproductive technology. Enacting a bill like this … is very dangerous.”

On the contrary, Warren said there were multiple references in Kansas health, family, criminal and probate law that advanced the belief human life began at conception. Signing SB 232 into law, she said, would merely add a factor for courts to consider when making determinations of child support.

“Fetal personhood is not what this bill is about,” the senator said. “Kansas statute has already determined the question. It is a settled issue. It’s not going to be some sea-level change of how our codes are looked at or our statutes are looked at.”

Other factors relied upon by state courts to work through child support cases included the basic needs and age of a child, financial standing of parents, educational requirements of a child as well as financial resources of the child.

[the-sayuri-rin]

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A new Kansas law requires the state to reverse any previous gender changes in its records for trans people’s birth certificates and driver’s licenses while also preventing such changes going forward, the state’s conservative Republican attorney general declared Monday.

Attorney General Kris Kobach also said public schools’ records for students must list them as being the gender they were assigned at birth, whether or not teachers and staff recognize their gender identities.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s office said she disagrees with Kobach’s views, though it did not say whether state agencies under the governor’s control would follow or defy them, setting up the possibility of a court fight. In 2019, a federal judge began requiring Kansas to allow transgender people to change their birth certificates to settle a lawsuit over a no-change policy.

[theacecouple]

For the first time in history, we are pleased to announce that the state of Kansas is formally recognizing Ace Week!!!

[harriswalz4usabybr]

Saturday, October 12, 2024 - Kamala Harris

Today Vice President Harris and the surrogates headed west to Missouri and Kansas. Throughout the day they met up with some additional individuals, including Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce and US Congressional Candidate Esau Freeman. The 'official' schedule is below.

Ferguson, MO Event Location: Elicious Souther Style Breakfast and Brunch Event Type: Breakfast and Door Knocking/Canvasing Event Time: 8:00 - 10:00 CT *The Vice President and surrogates had breakfast at a local business, before heading out into local Ferguson neighborhoods to door knock and canvas on-behalf of the Harris Walz ticket, "Yes" on Missouri Prop A, and Wesley Bell.

Kansas City, MO Event Location: Kansas City Union Station Event Type: Memorial Ceremony Event Time: 14:00 - 16:00 CT *The campaign driving on the way to Wichita, believed it was important to hold a press briefing about gun control in Kansas City at the site of the 2024 Super Bowl Parade Shooting. Before taking press questions, there was a small memorial service where Vice President Harris and Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce laid a wreath on the west side of union station where the shooting took place. After this the VP took questions concerning gun control. Travis Kelce also traveled with the campaign to the campaign rally in Wichita tonight, where he would introduce Governor Laura Kelly.

Wichita, KS Event Location: Interest Bank Arena Event Type: Campaign Rally Event Time: 14:00 - 16:00 CT *The campaign in Wichita had a major surprise, which was that Taylor Swift would be joining the campaign to play some songs for the rally between speeches from various surrogates and candidates. Speeches were made by Governor Kelly, Congressional Candidate Esau Freeman, Former VP Al Gore, and VP Kamala Harris. Full-text of each speech will be released shortly joined by the setlist played by Taylor Swift.

~BR~

[voskhozhdeniye]

Kansas has passed what has been described as the “broadest” anti-trans bathroom bill in the United States, the confines of which could see some cis women barred from female toilets. 

Lawmakers in the state overturned a previous veto by governor Laura Kelly, who has continually spoken out against anti-trans legislation. 

SB 180, entitled the Women’s Bill of Rights, bans trans and intersex women from toilets, changing rooms and prison facilities that align with their gender, as well as barring trans women from accessing domestic abuse shelters and rape crisis centers.   

The legislation has been criticized as legally erasing trans people by stating an “individual’s “sex” means an individual’s sex at birth, either male or female”. 

Definitions outlined in the bill also state a female is a person who produces “ova” – in other words, eggs – meaning cis women who are infertile and are unable to produce eggs could barred from spaces under the legislation’s legal terms. 

The bill was passed by 84 votes to 40 in the House and subsequently 28-12 in the Senate. 

The new law is expected to take effect on 1 July. 

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Ryan Adamczeski at The Advocate:

The governor of Kansas vetoed anti-LGBTQ+ bills while simultaneously passing a law requiring ID to view "acts of homosexuality." Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly issued vetoes on Friday against a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, as well as two anti-abortion measures. She also let pass without her signature a law requiring age-verification to view content "harmful to minors." Under Kansas criminal law, material "harmful to minors" includes nudity and "sexual content," which is defined in part as "acts of masturbation, homosexuality, or sexual intercourse."

The bill, which will go into effect on July 1, requires users to share their government-issued identification in order to view adult content. Websites can be fined up to $10,000 for each instance a minor accesses their content, and parents are allowed to sue for damages of at least $50,000. This could theoretically apply to family-friendly media with queer characters, LGBTQ+ charities and community resources, or even medical websites that include information on gender and sexuality. Such websites could soon be forced to block access to young users — cutting off their access to vital resources and information — or face hefty fines. Kelly did not comment on the age-verification bill, but gave justification for each of her vetoes. She said that a ban on gender-affirming care for minors “tramples parental rights” and targets “a small group.” She vetoed a similar bill last year, and the legislature did not have the votes to override it.

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D) vetoes ban on gender-affirming care for minors (SB233), but allows the controversial anti-LGBTQ+ "age verification" policy (SB394) to take effect without her signature.

[beardedmrbean]

Kansas lawmakers have sent to Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s desk a bill to establish a flat income tax and eliminate the state food sales tax a year early.

The Kansas House voted 85 to 38 and the Senate voted 24 to 13 early Friday to send a tax package to Kelly that establishes a flat income tax of 5.15% for individuals.

The bill taxes any income above $6,150 for individuals and $12,300 for married couples.

Under current law, the food sales tax will be eliminated on Jan. 1 of 2025. The bill moves that elimination up a single year to 2024. The full package will cost roughly $485 million annually once it is fully implemented.

The House earned enough votes to override a veto from Kelly while the Senate fell three votes short.

Kelly, who took office after the repeal of former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback’s income tax cuts following years of budget shortfalls, is unlikely to sign the bill. Speaking to reporters at an event in Olathe Wednesday, Kelly indicated she would reject any version of a flat tax - even as numerous Democrats in the House voted in favor of a bill with a 5.25% rate.

She said it would remove the state’s ability to take any other tax relief actions.

“I have looked at the numbers and I have yet to come up with a flat tax that is sustainable over time,” Kelly said.

Kelly has sought the immediate elimination of the food sales cut for more than a year. Last year Republicans opted to implement the phase in rather than an immediate cut and the governor campaigned last year on giving Kansans an immediate cut if she was reelected.

The vote came after two back to back debates late Thursday night and early Friday morning.

Advocates of the flat tax argue it simplifies the tax system for Kansans, offering a tax cut to everyone.

“States that are doing well fiscally have lower income tax and single brackets,” said Sen. Caryn Tyson, a Parker Republican. “It just makes sense.”

But the policy ultimately provides a far larger cut to the weather Kansans than it does to low income taxpayers.

According to an analysis from the Kansas Department of Revenue, the bill would provide around $3,000 in annual tax cuts to Kansas’ highest earners while Kansas’ lowest earners would receive less than $50 annually in tax cuts.

The flat tax alone is expected to cost the state about $318 million annually once it is fully implemented.

Rep. Tom Sawyer, a Wichita Democrat, argued that package as a whole was too expensive for the state and prioritized high earners over the average Kansan.

“I can’t support this bill,” Sawyer said.

Rep. Adam Smith, a Weskan Republican who chairs the House Tax committee, said Sawyer was correct that the bill would help high income Kansans more than low income Kansans.

He urged his colleagues to support the policy regardless, pointing to an increase in the overall standard deduction for all taxpayers included in the bill.

The bill also accelerates a planned corporate tax cut that comes as a result of Kansas using a new incentive program to lure Panasonic and Integra Technologies to start major business developments in the state.

The bill reduces Social Security tax for retirees and includes a provision that would gradually reduce the tax over time. The Social Security decrease had been part of Kelly’s tax plan alongside an immediate elimination of the food sales tax. and sales tax on diapers and feminine hygiene products.

House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, applauded the package as a good use of the state’s surplus funds. But during House GOP caucus meeting, he acknowledged that a veto was likely.

“Our governor’s not going to sign any flat tax, she’s told us that,” Hawkins told GOP lawmakers. “Our task was to find a package that we could all agree on and keep our votes together.”

House Minority Leader Vic Miller, a Topeka Democrat, said he had voted for an earlier version of the flat tax because he thought it was the best possible bill. The final package, he said, he could not support.

The overwhelming majority of Democrats voted against the bill citing the cost.

“This just hearkens back to the good old Sam days,” said Sen. Tom Holland, a Baldwin City Democrat, referencing Brownback.

[thatstormygeek]

I know we all know that the cruelty is the point and the GOP is immune to charges of hypocrisy and all that, but still occasionally legislators say something and I just stop and wonder how they got this way.

The governor said she has met with leaders in health care, child care, retail, hospitality, banking, real estate, aerospace, law enforcement and the medical community during her statewide campaign to support Medicaid expansion. House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, and Senate President Ty Masterson, R-Andover, responded by calling her efforts a “welfare tour.”

These smug fucksticks have made it their mission to make things as awful as possible for residents of Kansas. They sneer at Medicaid expansion even as over half the rural hospitals in the state are at risk of closing. Now, anyone who has been paying attention to US politics knows that rural areas tend to vote more conservative. That's how much this party doesn't feel the need to even pretend to care about their constituents. Definitely a real representative government we have going on there.

At the Trox Gallery, she was approached by Jean-Ellen Kegler, a former director of the city’s visitor’s bureau, who said she moved back to Kansas after being gone for 25 years because Kelly was governor. Kegler, now retired, also expressed dismay about the messaging from GOP leaders that Medicaid expansion would benefit people who are too lazy to work. “We’ve heard that ever since the New Deal: ‘People are lazy. People are trying to bilk the government.’ And I think if we’re honest with ourselves, we see who is bilking the government, and it’s not the poor,” Kegler said. “It’s those who have money. And I don’t like to use the word ‘greed,’ but in this case, we’re seeing the greedy side of capitalism.”