The Overland Park City Council is rethinking its decision last month to allow the open carry of guns. The council approved open carry after an opinion by Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s office that cities “may not completely prohibit the open carry of a loaded firearm on one’s person.” Wichita also removed its restrictions on open carry. The change didn’t go over well in Overland Park. “The public has not been pleased,” council member Jim Hix told the Kansas City Star. The council is now considering restrictions on open carry that would mirror the state’s concealed-carry gun law.
Ken Willard, chairman of Gov. Sam Brownback’s school efficiency task force, said that an online portal that allows the public to anonymously report examples of waste and inefficiency in public schools wasn’t intended to be negative. “If it sounded accusatory, that’s unfortunate because that certainly is not my position,” Willard told the Lawrence Journal-World. “But I think there probably are some things that could be done more efficiently, and if that’s the case we want to identify them in as positive a manner as possible to make recommendations.” Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, D-Topeka, had complained that the website “seems like nothing more than a forum to demonize educators.” As a result, Democrats launched their own website seeking examples of how funding cuts have affected local schools. Democrats also have accused Brownback of creating the task force to provide cover for more budget cuts, noting that he initially didn’t appoint anyone to the task force who worked in education.
The Overland Park City Council is rethinking its decision last month to allow the open carry of guns. The council approved open carry after an opinion by Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s office that cities “may not completely prohibit the open carry of a loaded firearm on one’s person.” Wichita also removed its restrictions on open carry. The change didn’t go over well in Overland Park. “The public has not been pleased,” council member Jim Hix told the Kansas City Star. The council is now considering restrictions on open carry that would mirror the state’s concealed-carry gun law.
