February 13, 2018
Legislative update
This week marks the sixth week of the Kansas Legislature. This is the final push for hearings in the House of Representatives and Senate Committees to get bills to the House and Senate floor before Feb. 22, Turnaround Day, the deadline for bills to move out of the original house to the second house.
On Feb. 12, Professors Peter Tomlinson and Scott Beyer from K-State's animal sciences and industry department testified before the Senate Committee on Agriculture on legislation regarding poultry housing.
Also, this week the House Higher Education Budget Committee will make recommendations on the governor's budget for higher education institutions. As the governor's budget contains no changes from the budget passed for fiscal year 2019 for the university there are no recommendations for Kansas State University. The agency was not asked to provide testimony, though President Myers wrote to the chairman and members of the committee urging the committee to restore the fiscal year 2017 reductions.
On Tuesday, Feb. 13, the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee will host hearings on House Bill 2042. This bill now requires the state of Kansas to recognize all valid concealed carry licenses and permits issued by other states to non-Kansas residents. The bill would lower the age to obtain a concealed carry license in Kansas to 18 and would allow postsecondary institutions to prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons by certain persons who are not licensed by the Kansas Attorney General.
The Kansas Legislative Session's first adjournment will be Friday April 6. The veto session will convene on Thursday, April 26. The 90th day is May 4.
Please see the weekly updates every Tuesday in K-State Today through the 90th day or Final Adjournment.
In addition, the Office of Governmental Relations will host Kansas Legislative Review Sessions from noon to 1 p.m. Feb. 16 in the K-State Student Union's Bluemont Room; and March 2, 16 and 30 Hale Library's Hemisphere Room. These sessions are open to the public and feel free to bring a brown bag lunch.