Takeaways: Lisa Reynolds pulled her son out of school because educators struggled to handle his symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. He was called a distraction. Or lazy. He regularly ran into disciplinary issues. Olathe Public Schools or online school — it didn’t make a difference. Special education teachers kept giving him failing grades, and […]
Blaise Mesa
Blaise Mesa is The Beacon’s former Kansas Statehouse reporter. He covered the Kansas Statehouse for The Beacon from 2023 to 2026 after reporting on social services for the Kansas News Service and crime and local government for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He has a bachelor’s degree in multimedia journalism with a concentration in radio from Columbia College Chicago.
Posted inState Government
Kansas foster kids could soon pick their families
Takeaways: Kids who age out of foster care face a heightened risk of homelessness, unemployment, drug and drinking problems or stubborn mental health issues. They leave the system with few close, personal connections. But Kansas is preparing for a drastic shift that would give them more say in their lives. The state could be the […]
Posted inKansas State Government
Kansas foster kids could soon pick their families
Takeaways: Kids who age out of foster care face a heightened risk of homelessness, unemployment, drug and drinking problems or stubborn mental health issues. They leave the system with few close, personal connections. But Kansas is preparing for a drastic shift that would give them more say in their lives. The state could be the […]
Posted inState Government
Chiefs, Super Bowl and sports bets. Millions will be wagered, but Kansas will see little
Takeaways: The Kansas City Chiefs are back in the Super Bowl, which means millions more will be wagered in Kansas on the game. But sports betting remains illegal in Missouri — lawmakers continue to wrangle on a law that would change that — and bettors regularly travel to Kansas to wager on who might win […]
Posted inKansas State Government
Chiefs, Super Bowl and sports bets. Millions will be wagered, but Kansas will see little
Takeaways: The Kansas City Chiefs are back in the Super Bowl, which means millions more will be wagered in Kansas on the game. But sports betting remains illegal in Missouri — lawmakers continue to wrangle on a law that would change that — and bettors regularly travel to Kansas to wager on who might win […]
Posted inKansas State Government
Kansas public defenders got raises. But their dissatisfaction with pay almost doubled
Takeaways: Kansas lawmakers gave public defenders a historic raise in recent years, yet a survey of those attorneys found that their concerns over pay almost doubled. In 2019, the State Board of Indigents’ Defense Services lost a fourth of its attorneys. In 2022, it lost another fifth. That led lawmakers to raise wages last year, […]
Posted inState Government
Kansas flat-tax plan vetoed by Gov. Laura Kelly. Here’s what happens next
Takeaways: A Republican-led Kansas tax plan that would bring $1.6 billion in tax cuts over three years was vetoed by the state’s Democratic governor on Friday. Now, the Legislature and governor prepare for a bitter fight over taxes that makes it unclear whether Kansans will get a tax break — or what form it might […]
Posted inKansas State Government
Kansas flat-tax plan vetoed by Gov. Laura Kelly. Here’s what happens next
Takeaways: A Republican-led Kansas tax plan that would bring $1.6 billion in tax cuts over three years was vetoed by the state’s Democratic governor on Friday. Now, the Legislature and governor prepare for a bitter fight over taxes that makes it unclear whether Kansans will get a tax break — or what form it might […]
Posted inEconomics, State Government
A Kansas business tax credit can offset the cost of child care. But almost nobody uses it
Takeaways: The child care shortage in Kansas costs families dearly, yet a business tax credit to offset those costs goes mostly unused. The credit is designed to encourage small businesses to offset costs for their employees and get money shaved off their state tax bill as a reward. A business spending $5,000 a year contracting […]
Posted inEconomics, Kansas State Government
A Kansas business tax credit can offset the cost of child care. But almost nobody uses it
Takeaways: The child care shortage in Kansas costs families dearly, yet a business tax credit to offset those costs goes mostly unused. The credit is designed to encourage small businesses to offset costs for their employees and get money shaved off their state tax bill as a reward. A business spending $5,000 a year contracting […]