Capitol Comments
March 20, 2001
Long hours await the Senate as we complete the final action on a host of House bills and a few Senate bills yet to be debated and acted upon. Much work will now be put into conference committees in an attempt to reconcile the differences.
CLEAN WATER BILL
The Senate passed SB 204 which would require the Kansas Department of Health
and Environment (KDHE), prior to December 31, 2002, to review all stream segments listed
in the 1999 Kansas Surface Water Register to determine whether the stream segments meet
certain requirements. The bill passed by a vote of 32 to 8. There
have been many concerns that have come forth thinking this legislation is going to harm
clean water in Kansas. The reality is that all current stream classifications
and designated uses listed on the Kansas Surface Water Register 1999 shall remain in
effect until December 31, 2005, or until deleted or changed through the procedures set
forth in the subject bill.
SB 204 does not in any way dilute KDHE's ability to deal with point source pollution nor
change their authority from current law in dealing with non-point source
pollution. The bill protects, through
classification, those stream segments that are actually inhabited by threatened
and endangered species regardless of the flow. All streams will be classified
at the point of discharge and downstream from such point for point source
pollution. I believe SB 204 presents a good balance between the agricultural
needs of our state and our continually striving for the highest water quality
possible.
GOVERNOR'S EDUCATION PLAN
The legislature has been in a "non-action mode" regarding any serious
debate on school financing which will make a positive impact on our educational
system. There is no excess in this year's budget for additional education
funding. We are $50 million below the FY 2001 estimated revenues. We are facing
a fiscal challenge in that we have many more legitimate state needs that exceed the
state's resources to fund them.
Governor Graves unveiled his proposal to fund education and urged lawmakers to increase
two-tenths of a cent in the 4.9 percent sales tax and add two cents per gallon increase in
the motor fuels tax to pay for his plan. I believe legislators who are the most
vocal against the Governor's plan should first review the tax cuts which have
been enacted over the past seven fiscal years. To say we haven't made progress
in decreasing taxes for our constituents is simply not accurate. I applaud the
Governor for stepping forward with his proposals to support public education.
CONSOLIDATION STUDY UPDATE
The Augenblick and Myers Study on School Consolidation continues to be of great concern to our area school districts and patrons. Thus far, the only legislation to emerge is a bill that would make the decisions about closing buildings be uniform statewide and leaving it to the local school boards. Other proposals call for interim studies concerning school finance. It has been suggested that the State Board of Education and legislators look at what impediments exist for districts to merge or cooperate, such as provisions allowing combined districts to receive a shared budget for two years to get a handle on the costs.
Also, the Chairman of the House Education Committee has indicated he would welcome input from the State Board of Education on any legislative study that might be held this summer or fall. As I follow committee meetings, it would be my opinion at this point that the only other action which might come out of the committee would be proposed incentives to help school districts better attain their goals of higher student performance.
KEG REGISTRATION BILL PASSED BY SENATE
The Senate passed a bill that would require beer kegs sold in Kansas to be "tagged" and records kept of who purchased the keg. The bill's specific intent is to allow law enforcement officials check purchase records in case of a criminal act. Supporters of keg registration see the bill as a step towards curbing underage drinking. I feel this is not a "perfect" bill, but if teenagers are aware that a keg they are drinking from can be traced and that they can be penalized for buying it, they may think twice about drinking.
IN CONCLUSION
I ask for your patience as we spend longs days on the Senate floor. Some of my return calls may not be made as promptly as you or I would like but feel free to continue to call. Betty will be glad to take your calls in my absence from the office.You can reach me via E-mail at ggoodwin@ink.org.. OR Goodwin@senate.state.ks.us.. My address is State Capitol , Room 403-N, Topeka, KS 66612, telephone (785) 296-7381or l-800-432-3924. You can visit my web page at https://members.tripod.com/~Ggoodwin.
Copyright © February, 2001 by Jamiebro Web Publications. All rights reserved.