4-9-2010 Newsletter

4-9-2010

Health Care Lawsuit Resolution

An issue that will be considered in the House when we return for the Veto Session will be HR 6036, a resolution that would require our state’s Attorney General to bring an action challenging the constitutionality of the Federal health care reform.  HR 6036 asserts that “The United States Congress does not possess the constitutional authority to compel individuals under threat of government fines or taxes to purchase an unwanted product or service.”  Also, many have strong opposition to the provision in the Federal law of the “individual mandate” that requires all individuals to purchase health insurance products and services.  This would appear to be in conflict with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that has already recognized each individual’s freedom to refuse health care treatment.

The Kansas Resolution must pass one chamber of the legislature by a simple majority (63 votes in the House).  If passed, it forces the Attorney General to take action.  HR 6036 would add Kansas to the list of states including South Carolina, Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Pennsylvania, Washington, North Dakota, South Dakota, Alabama, Michigan, Virginia, Idaho and Colorado participating in the lawsuit.

School Funding Bill

I would like to respond to the letters and e-mails I am getting on HB 2739, a complicated rework of school funding.  HB 2739 will NOT run. I went to our leadership and explained my strong opposition after studying the effects of the proposal, which would have required a local mill levy increase compounded with less funding from the state for our Miami County schools.  I am sure that several of our legislators had the same reaction and that is why this bill has been stalled at this time.  However, we will need to be very careful during the Veto Session to discern the real effects of any proposed legislation concerning the school finance formula.  One change that will be considered would be to allow local school districts more flexibility during these times of reduced revenues.   A “Local Activities Budget” option which would expand the list of funds that excess revenues could be transferred to the district’s general fund.

Bills Governor Parkinson has signed into law:

Unemployment Fund Rates

HB 2676 will help businesses by lowering the increases in unemployment rates as the state works its way through the national recession.  I had first heard from several local business owners at the very beginning of this year’s legislative session.  They had been notified that they would have an increase that didn’t give them any consideration for their positive fund balance. This bill that Governor Parkinson has signed makes an adjustment by reducing the contribution rate for employers in rate groups 1 through 32 to the 2010 original tax rate computation table.  Contributing employers in rate groups 33 through 51 remain at their current capped rate of 5.4 percent.  In addition, HB 2676 gives employers 90 days past the due date to pay their contribution taxes without being charged interest. This bill goes into effect upon its publication in the Kansas Register. It makes sense to do all we can to help employers survive in this tough economy so they can provide jobs vital to economic recovery.

Social Worker Safety

House Sub. for SB 25 will amend the continuing education requirements for baccalaureate, master, and specialist clinical social workers. After January 1, 2011, social workers (when they apply for first-time to renew their license) will be required to have completed, as part of their continuing education requirements, six hours of safety awareness training.   If they have already taken the training as part of a previous level of social worker licensure, the hours will qualify to satisfy the requirement.  Most of us remember the terrible tragedy that happened in Johnson County when a young social worker, Terri Zenner, was murdered by a 17 year old client who she was working to help. Her husband has been working to pass the safety education requirement. He has stated he believes his wife’s life could have been saved if she had been better equipped to respond to potential violent situations.  The new law is a logical step in providing that every effort is made to protect the lives of social workers.

Offender Registration

HB 2468 will change the Kansas Offender Registration Act to require a person convicted of any attempt, conspiracy, or criminal solicitation of certain sex crimes to register for life. The sex crimes that would require lifetime registration would be the attempt, conspiracy, or criminal solicitation to commit aggravated trafficking, rape, aggravated indecent liberties with a child, aggravated criminal sodomy, promoting prostitution (if the prostitute is less than 14 years of age) and sexual exploitation of a child.  The current law had required registry for ten years for these convicted criminal acts.

Victim Notification

HB 2440 expands the requirement for victim notification to include those who
are being held in facilities (for the treatment of the mentally ill) if there is a change in the status of a person who had committed a violent crime.  The Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) will be required to notify crime victims of the status of a defendant when the defendant is diverted from the criminal justice system for an evaluation of competency to stand trial or for involuntary commitment.  State security hospitals, county or private institutions, courts, and the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) are required to notify KDOC for any changes in defendants’ custody resulting from hearings or proceedings for the purpose of providing victim notification. Current law only provides for notification to victims regarding a defendant’s status after a criminal conviction, particularly when a convicted defendant is remanded to the custody of the KDOC.

The current law provided for notification to crime victims regarding the status of the defendant after a criminal conviction, particularly when a convicted defendant is remanded to the custody of the KDOC.   However, current law did not address notification to crime victims regarding the status of those criminal defendants who are placed in the custody of the SRS or other mental health treatment facilities for an evaluation as to whether the defendant is competent to stand trial or is acquitted due to the defendant’s lack of mental capacity and subsequently committed under the Care and Treatment Act for Mentally Ill Persons.


Budget News

Approving balanced budgets for Fiscal Years 2010 (current budget) and 2011 (begins July 1st) will top the Legislature’s to do list when we return on April 28th to wrap-up the Session.  While early reports show the state’s tax revenues for March came in as expected (the first month to hit the mark since October), the state still faces a nearly $500 Million dollar budget gap between approved spending and tax revenues. Our budget faces another $25 million expense as the developer that had planned to construct a Casino in Wichita has backed away from the project.  The St. Louis based partnership has requested its licensing fee to be returned although under the provisions of the enacting law the money is still in reserve until the plan had passed through the regulatory process.  It was believed that the money would be available in the next budget cycle which is now not going to happen.

The April Consensus Revenue Report due out April 16th will guide much of our discussion.  It would be fantastic if the report were to show our economy recovering and our states revenues increasing.  However, most everyone is doubtful that will be the case.  Most of us expect it to show our state’s economy will continue to struggle for the next year or two.  The April 16th revenues will be used to project the amount of revenue that the state will likely be working with the next fiscal year.

It is Great to be Home

For the next couple of weeks if you need to contact me, just call me at my home
at 913-837-2585 or you can e-mail me at vickrey@jenevickrey.org.   I do find time
to check my e-mail every day.  It is great to be home with Teresa, my wife, and
our 11 year old twins Josh and Johanna, and our 15 year old Jazz.  Our son Jacob
and his wife Kori live close in Pittsburg and we have a granddaughter, 8 month
old Emma. Selling flooring has really picked up since I’ve been home.   I hope it
is an indicator of an upswing in the economy.