May 15
Benghazi emails show internal jostling within agencies
White House releases dozens of emails regarding the 2012 attacks in Libya.
May 15
KC Council committee endorses more stringent ethics rules
The City Council’s Finance and Ethics Committee supports new rules that require more frequent disclosure of gifts and that call for an ethics compliance officer. The full council votes May 23 on the new ethics code.
May 15
Obama fires IRS chief
Moving to quell a growing scandal, President Barack Obama on Wednesday fired the acting chief of the Internal Revenue Service and vowed to work closely with Congress in determining who ordered lower-level employees to target tea party groups and other conservative organizations.
May 15
I-70 upgrade in Missouri might take the scenic route to ballot
The bill is one Senate roll call away from the November 2014 ballot. But with only two days left before the end of the legislative session, a filibuster has put its chances in doubt. If supporters of the bill — primarily construction companies and organized labor — truly want to raise the sales tax, Republican Sen. John Lamping said, they can put the question on the ballot themselves.
May 15
Possible Kansas tax compromise in the works
A simmering standoff between the Kansas House and Senate over taxes cooled Wednesday amid a compromise extending part of a controversial addition to the state’s sales tax. House negotiators offered to extend three-tenths of a penny sales tax that was approved in 2010 to help the state limp through a recession-driven dip in revenues.
May 15
AP source: Acting IRS head to be named this week
An administration official says President Barack Obama will name a new acting commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service this week to replace ousted commissioner Steven Miller.
May 15
School district takeover bill goes to Nixon
The Missouri Senate voted 32-1 in support of a bill allowing the State Board of Education to immediately intervene in an unaccredited school district. Current law mandates that the state wait two years before taking action. Kansas City Public Schools has been unaccredited since Jan. 1, 2012.
May 15
Missouri lawmakers pass bill halting the scanning of personal documents
Republicans contend that new driver’s license procedures, initiated after a fraud case in St. Joseph, invade the privacy of Missourians. They send Gov. Jay Nixon a measure to stop the scanning of birth certificates and other documents.
May 14
Kansas education official defends use of racial slur
Steve Roberts of Overland Park said he used the “N-word” “clinically” during a discussion of state history standards. Several black leaders in Topeka say it was unnecessary and inappropriate.
May 15
Safety board’s call to lower blood alcohol limit for drivers stokes criticism
Critics pounced immediately. “Why don’t they just outlaw drinking?” one bar owner said. But the National Transportation Safety Board says it would save lives. It’s just a recommendation, and the decision to adopt the new threshold would be up to individual states. There is precedent for political muscle, though.
May 14
Projected lower deficit could slow any budget deal
The good news is the budget deficit for the current year is projected to come in well below what was estimated just a few months ago. The bad news for deficit hawks is that the development could further curb the already slowing momentum for a budget pact this year.
May 14
FBI starts criminal probe of IRS as report details unfair treatment
The Internal Revenue Service asked “unnecessary, burdensome questions” of conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status, questions that unfairly delayed the applications, according to an investigative report obtained by McClatchy.
May 14
KU may get money it didn’t ask for, but not what it wanted
The University of Kansas has struggled throughout the legislative session to win support for $10 million recommended by Republican Gov. Sam Brownback for a new building to train doctors at its medical school in Kansas City, Kan. At the same time, however, lawmakers eagerly embraced the governor’s proposal to fund a new adult stem cell research center for the university.
May 14
Court and legislators spar over Kansas judicial selection
Chief justice says lawmaker tied court budget to judges’ endorsement of new plan to fill vacancies on the bench, which the lawmaker denies. But selection plan is unlikely to pass because Kansas Bar Association opposes it.
May 14
School takeover bill may come too late for KC
Missouri House members have passed the bill and the Senate seems receptive to the changes they made. But only three days remain in the 2013 legislative session, so time is running short. And the long wait to get it across the finish line has left some wondering whether passage will have any real impact in the Kansas City district.
May 15
Transportation sales tax blocked in Missouri
A penny sales tax that would be dedicated to state and local transportation projects cleared the Missouri House on Tuesday, but it immediately ran into resistance in the Senate.
May 14
House panel set to OK cut food stamps
The House Agriculture Committee is set to consider small cuts to the $80 billion-a-year food stamp program in an effort to appease conservatives who say the food aid has become too expensive.
May 14
The IRS, the tea party and money in politics
The way the IRS has targeted tea party groups feels like something from Nixon era. The problem, at root, is money in politics.
May 14
Kansas Senate debating $202 million for national biodefense lab
Gov. Sam Brownback has said the measure on Tuesday’s agenda in the Senate will fulfill the state’s commitment to fund part of the cost of the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility at Kansas State University.
May 14
Missouri bill would require annual consent for public employees’ union deductions
The Missouri Legislature is sending a bill to Gov. Jay Nixon that would make public employee unions ask their members each year if they want to continue being members.
- previous
- Page 4
