Kansas Republicans plan to try to ban gender-affirming care for minors again. That means cutting off access to puberty blockers and hormone treatments for children with gender dysphoria, and banning gender-affirming surgery for minors, which is incredibly rare. The GOP has tried and failed to pass this ban. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly consistently vetoes the […]
State Government
Posted inState Government
Kansas nearing ‘constitutional crisis’ as small-town lawyers become a scarcity
Kansas judges in rural counties struggle to find qualified attorneys to represent defendants in cases where the right to a lawyer is guaranteed. “We are approaching a constitutional crisis,” said Kansas Supreme Court Justice Keynen “K.J.” Wall. Forty-seven rural counties are legal deserts, or areas without adequate access to legal help. One-third of rural attorneys […]
Posted inState Government
Millions in Kansas juvenile justice dollars sit unused
Steve Stonehouse has seen it before. Children come to the Sedgwick County Department of Corrections youth intake facility, where he’s the director. They’re already kicked out of school and have nothing to do all day. So, the county corrections department started offering classes. The kids get at least four months of schooling, and they might […]
Posted inState Government
Abortion, insulin prices and period products: Here are the Missouri health bills to watch in 2025
Missouri lawmakers will return to Jefferson City in January ready to launch on dozens of health-related bills, including an effort to chip away at abortion rights approved last month by voters, limit how recipients can use government food assistance cards and eliminate the state sales tax on food. Legislation already filed for consideration for 2025 […]
Posted inState Government
Kansas hired a felon to manage $100 million. An audit says that fits with a sloppy hiring system
The Kansas Department of Commerce doesn’t run criminal background checks on nearly any of its prospective employees. That’s one explanation of how the agency hired a felon with a history of financial crimes to handle over $100 million in American Rescue Plan Act money. Former Commerce employee Jonathan Clayton is suspected of embezzling public funds. […]
Posted inHealth
Missouri ended its cannabis prohibition. Now it’s looking at the public health consequences
Since Missouri legalized marijuana in 2018, Dr. Bob Batterson has noticed a change in attitudes. The Children’s Mercy Hospital psychiatrist more often hears from parents wondering if cannabis could help their child’s anxiety, autism or OCD. “I tell them there are no studies,” said Batterson, the medical associate director of the hospital’s Division of Developmental […]
Posted inHealth
Stealing from Kansas City’s poor: Thieves use bogus machines to scan EBT cards and rob food stamp accounts
A scam to steal food stamp benefits from some of Kansas City’s poorest families picked up again this summer. Thieves installed inconspicuous gadgets at grocery store checkouts, many along Independence Avenue in Kansas City’s northeast, and skimmed the data — and dollars — right off the EBT (electronic benefit transfer) cards the state issues to […]
Posted inKansas
Kansas Republicans gain even more control over abortion, taxes and transgender rights
Kansas Republicans have an even tighter grip on state politics after dominating in local legislative elections. Republicans expanded their supermajority in the state Legislature in Tuesday’s elections. Democrats failed to unseat Republicans in the Kansas City suburbs and lost key races in Hutchinson, Leavenworth and Manhattan. Democrats had seen this cycle as their best chance […]
Posted inElections
Amendment 5 results: Missouri voters reject casino at the Lake of the Ozarks
Missouri voters rejected Amendment 5 on Tuesday, which would have amended the state constitution to allow a casino to be built at the Lake of the Ozarks. The measure failed to reach the simple majority needed to pass, with 47.6 of Missouri voters giving their approval according to unofficial results. The measure would have amended […]
Posted inKansas City
Missouri election results: Republicans sweep lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer
Missouri Republicans are sweeping state office contests by wide margins with incumbents Andrew Bailey and Vivek Malek joined by Denny Hoskins and Dave Wasinger. More than 93% of the precincts were reporting as of midnight Tuesday. Attorney general After serving as attorney general for two years, Bailey cruised through his first election bid. Bailey was […]