We are coming to the first major deadline in the Kansas legislature. Turnaround, when bills need to be passed out of the first chamber to be passed to the other for consideration is in two weeks. This coming week is the last time for our committees to meet, finishing our work in the full House the following week. Staff works to get the bills “turned around” to the other chamber to begin the following week.

In the pension committee, I was made aware of the historically low rates currently available in the bond market. This issue is familiar to me, as we bonded $1 billion of the KPERS debt in 2015. That bond, and a previous one in 2004, have both performed well for us, saving the state several hundred million over the last few years.

The interest on bonds is estimated in the 2.7 percent range. While we have reduced the KPERS liability significantly, about $7 billion remains. We currently owe this money to employees through the KPERS trust fund, at an interest rate assumed to be 7.75 percent. The bond would reduce the interest rate by 5 percent. We introduced a bill to look into the details in the coming week.

The appropriations committee heard several budgets. One that generated some controversy was for higher education. Concern was expressed about the value students receive for tuition with shorter semesters and online courses. This will receive more attention with the institutions, the board of Regents and the budget committee in coming weeks.

The commerce committee continued looking at unemployment and reforms. Last week, I mentioned it appeared that fraud had dropped significantly. We were not certain of the measure that first week because the department was shut down for a few days. They did not process claims for the whole week due to time to implement the changes and get ramped back up. Now with a full week of data, claims dropped to 10 percent of the level they were the week before the changes. It was significant enough that we could see the unemployment trust fund halt its free-fall and manage a small increase in value.

Our civil discourse group met via Zoom Tuesday evening. We were following up with how we continue the discussion we started on Kansas Day. That day, we had over 80 participants from the legislature and partner organizations in additional to a dozen facilitators and presenters from the National Institute of Civil Discourse. We don’t have the answers, but look forward to seeking a better process to make policy together. The ideas were around communication and how to overcome some of the barriers created by our factions and the pandemic. We are fortunate to have the Kansas Leadership Center, K-State Extension and several faith-based groups working toward this goal across the state.

In the absence of our House Chaplain, I was able to share a prayer to start the legislative session on Thursday. It was a good time to remember to focus on His kingdom and His will above our own. (If you would like a copy of the prayer, let me know, or check my Facebook page for a link.) The cold weather was a challenge for many, especially those of you who had to work in it every day. We all learned more about the Southwest Power Pool and have more to learn and discuss about how we meet our energy needs in extreme conditions. The utilities committee will continue to lead this work.

It is my honor to represent you in Topeka. If you have questions, please contact my office at (785) 829-0319 or e-mail at steven.johnson@house.ks. gov.

E-mail can be challenging as some issues (currently deer hunting permits) can bring several hundred e-mails, making it hard to find individual communication. Please don’t hesitate to re-send an e-mail on issues important to you!