The week started with 250 4-H’ers from across the state coming to Topeka for Citizenship in Action.

They have been working on their own community conversations with the Institute for Civic Discourse and Democracy at Kansas State.

I had the chance to observe their deliberations and then speak at their banquet about 4-H and the programs regarding civility. The 4-H’ers, true to their past, are likely to be among those who teach us how to be better at dialogue.

Over the weekend, a sprinkler head burst in the Capitol, flooding a portion of our staff offices and getting water into a part of the electrical system. Specifically, it was the system that operates the microphones and the ability to record and livestream proceedings in four committee rooms.

The staff at the Capitol work so hard to keep everything running and in good shape. While it was difficult to manage the logistics and run committees, they are to be commended for all the effort put in to keep everything operating. The vendors who manufactured or installed the sprinkler head earlier on Saturday are the ones responsible for the failure. If you had trouble listening to one of our committees, that was the reason.

Monday we announced our first “Word of the Week” and had our third civility event for legislators. I am excited about the work of several of my colleagues. The group came up with ways to increase our understanding of each other and improve communication.

We reviewed and discussed the “Unlikely Friendship” video from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Active listening is critically important to enabling good dialogue. We recognize civility is more difficult to maintain as the intensity of our issues increase.

We started the Word of the Week to see how many folks across our communities engage in the conversation.

If you are interested, you can engage on Twitter #kscivility or through me #johnsonforkansas or on Facebook. You can also e-mail or call my office.

This week’s word is “truth”. If you have a chance, I would appreciate hearing your thoughts on truth and how it plays in civility or civic engagement.

Debate on the floor picked up with the chance to advance a few of our less controversial bills. Budget work continued in appropriations. The tax committee heard from the Department of Revenue and members of the Kansas Chamber on issues related to corporate tax.

We also talked about several issues which would affect our county officers. Most of these issues will be considered in early March.

At the end of the week, I had a chance to hear from several folks across the district. Friday night, I was able to participate in the Kansas Legislature hour on Smoky Hills Public Television. Saturday morning, Wilson and Ellsworth both held legislative forums.

Medicaid expansion was the topic that was most discussed, with those weighing in asking when it would move forward. It has passed the House and is currently in the Senate committee. It is stalled there awaiting action in the House on the constitutional amendment.

The Senate committee is concerned that if the courts currently interpret the constitution to provide a right to an abortion, then state funds could be used through Medicaid to partially fund abortions. Until that concern is addressed, it will be unlikely to move out of the committee.

A special thanks to everyone who made it to the forums and talked about what is needed in Kansas. Thank you for the honor to represent you in Topeka.

Please continue to share your thoughts with me at steven.johnson@house.ks.gov or (785) 296-7696.