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Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly cleared to return after doctors say COVID-19 test was inaccurate
TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly’s office says she doesn’t have COVID-19 after all. The office issued a statement Thursday saying her physician and state health officials believe an initial test earlier this week produced a “false positive” result. Her subsequent tests have been negative, the statement said. The governor appeared at a series of events […]
‘We need to wake up’: Kansas celebration of MLK urges end to divisiveness
TOPEKA — Angela Bates told a crowd gathered Thursday at the Statehouse to celebrate the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. there is one thing we all have in common. We’re all going to die. The question, she said, is what footprint will you leave on the free soils of Kansas? “I urge us all to have […]
Kansas Supreme Court chief justice points to attorney shortage, specialty courts, behavioral health
TOPEKA — Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert in her State of the Judiciary speech Wednesday asked lawmakers for support of specialty courts, behavioral health services, and pay raises for judges and court employees. Luckert also sounded an alarm about the severe shortage of attorneys in rural areas. “Judges across the state report they […]
Kansas officials pursue new megadeals with semiconductor makers
TOPEKA — Kansas officials are pursuing megadeals for six new projects, including two companies that make semiconductors, by using the same tax incentives that landed Panasonic’s $4 billion investment last year. Paul Hughes, deputy secretary for business development at the Department of Commerce, briefed lawmakers Tuesday on the status of Panasonic’s operation and the potential […]
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly picks budget director to lead Department of Administration
TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly has appointed her budget director to serve as secretary of the Department of Administration as she kicks off her second term. Adam Proffitt will take over the agency formerly led by DeAngela Burns-Wallace, whose last day is Friday. Proffitt has been the governor’s budget director for the past two years. […]
Telehealth ‘another arrow in the quiver’ for Kansas providers, but barriers remain
TOPEKA — Kansas patients and health care providers value telehealth as a convenient and accessible option, new research shows, but they also recognize its limitations and technological challenges. Dorothy Hughes, an assistant professor of population health and surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine’s Salina campus, spent 18 months studying the use of […]
Federal lawsuit says Dodge City’s election system keeps Latino candidates out of office
TOPEKA — A coalition of voting rights groups says Dodge City’s election system is designed to prevent the community’s Latino population from holding office on the city commission. In a complaint filed late Thursday in federal court, the coalition argues the “at-large” election system is unconstitutional and a violation of the Voting Rights Act of […]
Kansas share of federal broadband cash in jeopardy because of ‘grossly inadequate’ map
TOPEKA — Kansas officials worry the state will lose part of its share of a $42.5 billion federal investment in broadband expansion because the Federal Communications Commission commissioned a “grossly inadequate” map of existing services. The map, released in late November, shows broadband is available everywhere in Kansas. The state faces a Jan. 13 deadline to […]
Kansas House Democrats pick Vic Miller for minority leader
TOPEKA — Vic Miller told fellow House Democrats on Monday they can overcome their “numbers problem” by sticking together and being smarter than their Republican rivals. The caucus narrowly selected Miller, a Topeka Democrat, as the minority leader for the upcoming session. Miller beat out Lenexa Democrat Brandon Woodard in a 21-19 vote. In his […]
Wichita has spent $150,000 on legal fees in defense of police gang list
TOPEKA — The City of Wichita has paid a private law firm more than $150,000 in legal fees to defend itself from litigation over the police department’s use of a gang list. The American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas and Kansas Appleseed filed a class action lawsuit against the city in April 2021, arguing that […]
New York Times investigation shows how sports gambling industry exploited Kansas legislators
TOPEKA — A New York Times investigation into the gambling industry’s bare-knuckled lobbying efforts provides insight into concessions Kansas lawmakers provided when they legalized sports betting earlier this year. Among the revelations from the report, published Sunday as part of a series on “a relentless nationwide campaign” to expand sports betting: Kansas lawmakers slashed an […]
‘Complete bulls***’: Kansas Democrats scrutinize internal polling offered to House candidates
TOPEKA — Three weeks before Election Day, Kim Zito received internal polling and analysis of voters in her House district that could help her focus campaign efforts in the closing days of a tight race. Zito, a Democrat running for state office for the first time, viewed the assistance as a gesture of faith and […]