Daily Archives: March 25, 2009

Drug testing costs tax dollars, too

March 25, 200912:27 p.m.

urinetestPeople are newly hungry for accountability in how tax dollars are spent, so it wasn’t surprising that the Kansas House voted 99-26 today to authorize random drug testing of the 14,000 low-income Kansans receiving cash assistance from the state. As Rep. Brenda Landwehr, R-Wichita, argued when the bill passed out of her committee last week, legislators have a “fiduciary duty to taxpayers” to ensure that tax dollars aren’t paying for a drug habit. The $800,000 for the testing has yet to be approved, and there’s some question about whether such testing is constitutional (Congress has authorized it, but a federal court nixed Michigan’s testing in 2003). If the program is approved by the Senate and funded, will it save more money than it spends? Last year Kansans learned that complying with a federal requirement that Medicaid recipients prove their U.S. citizenship cost the state $1 million as it turned up exactly one illegal immigrant.

By Rhonda Holman | Filed under Kansas government | Comments (45)

Carbon regulations are coming

March 25, 20096:03 a.m.

coalplant38In another move toward carbon regulations that would affect the proposed coal-fired power plants near Holcomb, the Environmental Protection Agency has officially concluded that greenhouse emissions are pollutants that endanger the public’s health and welfare. In 2007 the U.S. Supreme Court instructed the EPA to decide whether greenhouse gases should be regulated under the Clean Air Act, but the Bush administration put off that decision. President Obama’s preference is for Congress to pass caps on greenhouse-gas emissions. But if Congress doesn’t act, the EPA could impose restrictions based on the Clean Air Act.

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Environment, President Obama | Comments (49)

Open thread 3/25

March 25, 20096:02 a.m.

thread370

By The Editors | Filed under Open thread | Comments (482)

Crack down on pro forma getaways

March 25, 20096:01 a.m.

mcginncarolyn2State Sen. Carolyn McGinn (in photo), R-Sedgwick, is bothered by lawmakers who skip work on Fridays. So she proposed a budget amendment to block daily pay to legislators who are absent without receiving written permission from top House or Senate leaders. “I think we should maximize time we have when we’re in Topeka,” she told The Eagle editorial board.

Lawmakers are paid a daily rate for a 90-day session. But the House has been declaring some Fridays to be “pro forma” days, on which the House doesn’t meet and take motions. The stated purpose of the days is to give committees more time to meet and allow lawmakers time to do constituent work. But some lawmakers take it as an opportunity for a three-day weekend.

Sen. Ty Masterson, R-Andover, tried unsuccessfully to remove the mandate during budget debate Tuesday. He argued that the Senate shouldn’t interfere with House operations.

Former Rep. Terry McLachlan of Wichita complained about the paid pro forma days in a letter to the editor last week. “With the state budget shortfall, why aren’t we getting our money’s worth?” he asked. Good question.

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Kansas government | Comments (6)

Congress, Obama need to lighten up on travel industry, too

March 25, 20096:00 a.m.

spaThe travel industry is feeling the same Capitol Hill and White House heat felt by Wichita’s aviation companies, and it’s fighting back by charging members of Congress with hypocrisy and pushing a “Meetings mean business” campaign. It seems that after voting last month to limit “excessive or luxury expenditures” for corporate travel by companies receiving federal bailout funds, about two dozen senators headed to Florida coastal resorts for political meetings. Meanwhile, according to the U.S. Travel Association, the hotel industry saw $1 billion in cancellations in January and February. “We’ve seen companies cancel meetings last minute, leaving 100 percent on the table just to avoid criticism and ridicule,” said Frits van Paasschen, president and CEO of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. A spokesman for the Republican Senate Committee defended the GOP senators’ meeting: “This was not paid for by taxpayers or the government. It’s private donations from contributors.” Sorry, but taxpayers may not be reassured to learn that special interests are buying senators’ $475-a-night hotels and spa “indulgences.”

By Rhonda Holman | Filed under Congress | Comments (8)