Loud Light Kansas Politics Review: Vouchers, Medicinal Marijuana, The Election’s Result, And The Veto of The Trans Sports Ban!

The Pitch collaborates with Loud Light, a local group that raises political awareness. In order to strengthen community power, they seek to involve and empower members of marginalized populations. decision-makers are impacted by this.

A brief movie summarizing the activities of the legislature is released each week that the Kansas statehouse is in session throughout the year. The only way to remain involved with how local government affects your life is to be aware of the specifics of what is going on with your officials.

By clicking here, you can donate to help Loud Light with their efforts. This week’s video and transcription are provided below: Davis Hammet here from Loud Light. These are the events of the 10th week of the Kansas legislative session in 2023.

Election Ruling

A lawsuit challenging voter limitations enacted in 2021 was unjustly dismissed by a District Judge chosen by Brownback, according to a majority decision by the Kansas Appeals Court. The action was launched by Loud Light and other civic organizations. The decision determined that voting is a fundamental right under the Kansas Constitution and that laws restricting voting are subject to the strictest legal review.

The Appeals Court did not overturn any laws; rather, it established a requirement that the state must be able to demonstrate that any voter restrictions are reasonable and do not unreasonably impede Kansans’ ability to vote and have their votes tallied. Kansans do not have a basic right to vote, according to Attorney General Kris Kobach, who has said he intends to fight the decision.

Medical Marijuana Dies (SB135)

The Senate held a hearing on medical marijuana this week after giving opponents two more days the week before. Immediately following the hearing, Republican Senator Alicia Straub argued that the committee needed to safeguard children and made a motion to table the legislation, thus killing it for the year and signaling that Chairman Mike Thompson would not bring it up again.

Democratic Governor Laura Kelly reacted by stating that she was dismayed that the legislators had essentially disregarded veterans, people with chronic pain, and people who had seizure problems. The Governor went further, advising Kansans to get in touch with their lawmakers and request that they support the legalization of medical marijuana this year.

Trans Sports Veto (HB2238)

Republican lawmakers passed a bill prohibiting transgender females from participating in sports for the third consecutive year, but Democratic governor Kelly overrode his veto. According to estimates, the law would subject up to half of the state’s K–12 athletes to invasive genital examinations. Republican leaders intend to make an effort to override the governor’s veto and pass the bill. To attempt an override, the House has 30 days.

Defining Women (SB180)

By defining women as individuals who produce ova, a Senate bill nicknamed the “women’s bill of rights” tries to eliminate all mention of transgender people. Some difficult issues with the definition were briefly addressed by a House Committee, including the fact that not all women develop eggs and that there are numerous circumstances that can lead to the birth of children that are not clearly categorized by sex.

By stating that everyone outside the binary shall be considered disabled and provided with accommodations, the House adopted an amendment to avoid these realities. The bill would probably be contested as unconstitutional if it were passed, according to the Attorney General’s office, incurring unknown legal expenditures.

Vouchers (SB83)

Legislators’ disagreements over a bill that would demand vouchers for unregulated private schools in exchange for special education funding have not abated. The bill was discussed on the House floor, where a number of amendments were added despite lawmakers’ inability to explain them.

It was initially expected to fail, but the Speaker allowed voter rolls to remain open until just enough votes were switched for it to pass by a very small margin. The bill was subsequently sent to the Senate, which rejected the revisions and sent it to a conference committee for House-Senate deliberations the next week.

Coming Up

The final week for most committee meetings is coming up, but in actuality, anything may pass at any time if Republican House Speaker Hawkins and Senate President Masterson want it to. The traditional path for a bill to become a law is becoming smaller by the day. Thank you for your likes, remarks, and shares. Thank you so much Kansas; stay tuned; remain involved; and till next time.