By DAVID HALEY, Kansas Senator
After
73 days of Regular Session, the Kansas Legislature adjourned last week failing,
in my opinion, to pass any major legislation and leaving a number of critical
issues to be hurriedly considered during the Veto (previously known as the
“Wrap Up”) Session scheduled to commence on April 25th.
Perhaps
THE most egregious delay is the Kansas House’s refusal to debate a state budget
needed to keep vital state services afloat this fiscal year.
For a week, House
and Senate negotiators worked out details for a compromise budget plan. After
countless hours of debate, the Kansas Senate gaveled in at 4 p.m. last Friday
afternoon with the understanding that an agreement on the $14 billion state
budget had been reached.
But
in a totally unexpected turn of events, House negotiators announced that they
would no longer honor their agreement. Shortly thereafter, the House
adjourned the 2012 Regular Session leaving a majority of the Kansas Senate
angered and bewildered.
More
than just numbers and sums, a budget represents the values we hold as
Kansans.
With
no budget in place, the House has left funding for K-12 schools and the
Children’s Initiative Fund in jeopardy; employees of the Judicial Branch (our
court system) will be furloughed; local parks will be unable to hire seasonal
employees; and necessary renovations at Rainbow Mental Health Facility
will be postponed.
These are quality of life issues that ALL Kansans
should expect.
By
spending the past three months driving privatized health care and attempting to
gerrymander state legislative and congressional districts through the
legislative process, the Governor and House leadership have postponed the
restoration of full funding to Kansas public education; failed to reduce
waiting lists for services on which seniors and disabled Kansans rely; to
reform taxes in a way that is fiscally fair and responsible; or to pass a state
budget.
How ridiculously sad.
The
people of Kansas elect all of us to represent interests in Topeka.
We passed a
few good pieces of legislation this year – including new laws to help military
spouses get jobs; bringing state law into compliance with federal ADA
standards; and improving the rights of grandparents – but the conservative
“leadership” spent far too much time on partisan political issues.
Legislators
will have to tackle the entire budget – in addition to redistricting, Medicare
and taxes – when the Veto Session begins April 25th. To me,
it’s completely inexcusable that so much has been left on the line so late in
this “election year” Session.
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Senator David Haley (D-Wyandotte Co.) is Ranking
Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He also serves on the
Redistricting; Federal & State Affairs; Public Health & Welfare; Joint
Corrections & Juvenile Justice; and State Tribal Affairs committees.
