Melanie’s Memo
40th District
Kansas House of Representatives
Week 3: January 26-30, 2009
FROM THE STATEHOUSE
My third week in Topeka passed like a whirlwind! In between committee
meetings and sessions on the floor of the House, many folks from the
40th District visited Topeka. Wendy Scheidt, the Executive Director of
Leavenworth's Main Street Program, stopped by to visit and give me an
update on the program and downtown Leavenworth. Ken Miller, from the
City of Lansing, also stopped by to visit and give me an update on
Lansing's priorities and Lansing's development. Many folks from the
City of Leavenworth came to meet with me and the Kansas Department of
Agriculture, including the City Manager, Scott Miller; the Assistant
City Manager, Michael Tubbs; the Mayor, Lisa Weakley; and City
Commissioner, Ken Bower.
The House passed Resolution No. 6006 recognizing and thanking the city
of Emporia for the dedication of an American Braille tactile flag to
hang in the Kansas Statehouse. This flag is dedicated to the over 1
million blind and low-vision veterans in the United States and the
estimated 16% of those injured in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation
Enduring Freedom that suffer from severe vision loss. Congressman
Tiahrt had sponsored a bill that placed a flag just like it in Arlington
Cemetery.
The next few weeks will be extremely busy as bills are introduced and
committees begin their work. Complete daily calendars are available at
www.kslegislature.org along with other useful information. The Senate
passed its version of the amended FY09 Budget SB23, which was introduced
to the House and sent to the House Appropriations Committee. The House
Appropriations Committee worked its bill on Friday so that it can be
debated on the floor of the House this week. Everyone is very tense as
the necessary cuts to balance the FY09 budget will be large and
especially painful because they are so late in the fiscal year, which
ends on June 30th.
MY COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
All three of my committees met this week:
AGRICULTURE & NATURAL RESOURCES
The committee meets at 3:30 Monday through Friday.
Reports: This week Lance Russell from the Kansas Sunflower Commission
gave the committee their annual report. Chairman Norm Jennings of the
Kansas Grape and Wine Industry Advisory Council gave his annual report.
The grape and wine industry in Kansas is growing. It is up to 22
wineries and 8 outlets from just 7 wineries in 2004. The Chairman
requested the committee initiate legislature to allow farm wineries to
sell wine at farmer's markets, to allow farm wineries the option to
obtain a manufacturers license, and to allow production facilities at
each winery outlet.
Bill Introductions: A bill was introduced concerning the veterinarian
scholarship program at Kansas State University and a bill was introduced
concerning identification of wells.
Hearings: We had a hearing on HB2050 concerning adjustment of the fees
for water rights and applications. The Kansas Department of Agriculture
supports the bill to raise application fees and get rid term permits.
They testified that the fees need to be raised to support the water
rights program. The Kansas Aggregate Producers Association also
testified that they support the bill. Farm Bureau testified that they
oppose the bill because the fees that are in place now were raised in
2002 with a date to expire and go back to the original fees. This bill
would make the raise in fees permanent in addition to raising them. The
Kansas Livestock Association testified that the 50% proposed raise in
fees was not modest and suggested that the raise in fees be extended
rather than made permanent. They also stated that the suggested fee for
enrollment in the State's water rights program is a disincentive to save
water. The Committee Chairman appointed a sub-committee to further
study this proposal and I have been appointed to be part of it. We also
had a hearing on HB2049 concerning hunter safety orientation in schools.
Jordan Austin from the National Rifle Association opened the hearing by
testifying in support of mandating that schools offer hunter safety
orientation instruction as part of its curriculum if there is student
interest and available instructors. Tom Krebs from the Kansas
Association of School Boards testified that his organization is neutral
in this issue. Sue Storm from the State Board of Education testified
that the board does not have position yet, but will discuss this issue
in the next meeting. Chris Tymeson, the Chief Legal Counsel for the
Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks testified that Wildlife and
Parks is neutral but they have the curriculum already designed for
6-12th grades, they already work with 18 schools that offer the
instruction, and that it is a successful program.
VISION 20/20
The committee meets at 1:30 on Monday and Wednesday.
Reports: This week the reports on the status of the Kansas State owned
reservoirs continued. Dr. Mark Jakubauskas from the Kansas Biological
Survey, described how to measure lake depths and sediment. Tracy
Streeter from the Kansas Water Office described the current policies and
planning for Kansas' reservoirs. Kerry Wedel, the Chief of the
Watershed Management Section of the Kansas Department of Health and
Environment, described the Watershed Restoration and Protection program.
Greg Foley, the Executive Director of the State Conservation Commission
described the current status of management practices to control sediment
and the impacts of voluntary and federal programs. Ken Stark and John
Groathouse from the US Army Corps of Engineers described how sediment
can be used as a resource and how the Corps is developing a regional
plan in conjunction with the State of Kansas. Dr. Robert Atkinson from
Washington DC gave us a report on Federal Reservoirs and Drinking Water
Lakes and reported that the 2008 State New Economy Index rated Kansas as
8th in the nation for "Gazelle" jobs (new jobs created by
entrepreneurs). We wrapped up the week with recommendations by the KS
Water Authority, the KS Biological Survey, the KS Water Office, and the
KS Department of Wildlife and Parks for a "Call to Action" to do
something about the state of Kansas water infrastructure. The Committee
Chairman requested the agencies produce an Action Plan and to report on
its progress on 25 April 09 and then produce the actual plans for the
legislature next session. Our next topic will be the use of
tele-medicine in Kansas.
VETERANS, MILITARY AFFAIRS & HOMELAND SECURITY
The committee meets at 1:30 on Tuesday and Thursday.
Reports: At my request, Jack Walker, the Deputy to the Fort Leavenworth
Garrison Commander, and two Majors from the Command and General Staff
College gave an introduction to the missions of Fort Leavenworth and the
military in Kansas. The two Majors were both from Kansas: Major Rich
Wellman is an Army Major who graduated from KU and MAJ David Farmer is
an Air Force Major who graduated from KSU.
Bill Introductions: This week we introduced several bills for
consideration by the committee: 1) a House concurrent resolution
concerning the possible transfer of GTMO detainees to Fort Leavenworth,
2) a bill to provide a buffer of land around military installations in
Kansas, 3) a State Vietnam Veterans recognition, 4) a bill to allow
active duty military who plan to retire in Kansas to purchase lifetime
hunting and fishing licenses, 5) a bill to allow active duty military to
acquire a concealed carry license without having to give up their "home
of record" drivers license, 6) a change to the Kansas Constitution to
count college students and the military in the Kansas census, 7) a bill
to add the Legion of Merit to the awards that are recognized on
specialized license plates, 8) a Resolution to recognize an "Agent
Orange" month.
Hearings: Next week we will be hearing HB 2085 concerning grants to
service organizations and HB 2086 concerning who will be appointed to
the Veterans Claims Assistance Advisory Board.
FROM THE 40th DISTRICT
Thursday night I attended the Leavenworth Main Street organization's
Annual Meeting and Banquet at the University of Saint Mary's St. Joseph
Hall. It was a gala event with great food, many many awards, and an
informative and entertaining presentation from the Kansas Sampler
organization. On Saturday, I had lunch at the Veteran's of Foreign
War's Post 56. They were hosting the VFW's district winter convention.
Lunch was great and I got to see the future site of a veteran's memorial
for Leavenworth. Jeanie Hazels has donated some land behind the post
for the memorial and she will be at the Post for the February 12th
meeting to formally present it. City Manager, Scott Miller, is working
with the post on the plans for the memorial that will be along the new
riverwalk that is currently a work in progress.
COMING UP
Remember, if you know of any young men or women in junior or senior high
school (minimum age of 12) who would like to come to Topeka and
participate in the page program this legislative session please be sure
to let me know. I have slots for March 3rd and March 5th.
I introduced a bill to establish a license plate to raise awareness and
money for the spaying and neutering of pets and am currently
coordinating with pet friendly organizations to be a sponsor for the
plate. I also met with the Attorney General's Concealed Carry
department, the NRA, and several other State Representatives about my
proposal to amend the Concealed Carry License law that clarifies Kansas
residency for active duty military. We may be able to remedy the
residency problem without an amendment, so I will continue to work on
that. My intern, Katherine and I, continue to research and work on a
number of suggestions from the 40th District. Most recently is a
possible extension of the Nez Perce Trail into Leavenworth.
I have been working on the list of unclaimed property being held by the
State Treasury's Office. I am verifying addresses and sending a card,
but you don't have to wait for me. You can go to www.kansascash.com or
call 1-800-432-0386. There are no fees or charges to claim your assets.
We called and found out that my husband Tom had some cash to claim!
KEEP IN TOUCH
It is a special honor for me to serve as your state representative. I
value and need your input on the various issues facing state government.
Please feel free to contact me with your comments and questions. My
office address is Representative Melanie Meier, Docking State Office
Building, Topeka, KS 66612. You can reach me at (785) 296-7668 or call
the legislative hotline at 1-800-432-3924 to leave a message for me.
Additionally, you can e-mail me at Melanie.Meier@house.ks.gov. You can
also follow the legislative session online at www.kslegislature.org.
FYI (for your information) and TIPS of the WEEK
Save@School is a new special program that introduces students to the
concepts of money management and has stirred excitement from educators
and students all over the state. Participants open savings accounts and
make deposits to their accounts on scheduled savings days at their
school. The students learn the importance of savings through hands-on
experience and classroom exercises with the guidance of an employee of
the financial institution and the curriculum provided by the State
Treasurer's office. To date, most of the financial institutions who are
participating are local credit unions. For more information on the
program and how to get started, visit the Kansas State Treasurer Website
at http://www.kansasstatetreasurer.com/prodweb/school/index.php.
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