Latest news with #HouseBill2062
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Kansas House overrides vetoes of fetal child support, mandatory school video bills
Rep. Susan Humphries, a Wichita Republican, urged her House colleagues on April 10, 2025, to override Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of a bill offering pregnant mothers child support from the date of conception. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — Kansas House lawmakers overrode Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's vetoes of two anti-abortion bills Thursday, sending the measures on to the Senate. Kelly vetoed both bills Wednesday. The required two-thirds of the House members, who were all Republicans, voted to overturn them. Wichita Republican Rep. Susan Humphries called on legislators to override House Bill 2062, which creates what pro-abortion critics call 'fetal personhood' language within a bill that cements child support payments for mothers based on pregnancy costs before a baby is born. It would also add a personal income tax exemption for any unborn child. 'This bill is about being compassionate to pregnant women,' Humphries said. Kansas Family Voice and the Kansas Catholic Conference were major proponents and architects of the bill. Nicholas Heald, an anti-abortion protester who regularly demonstrates outside of the House and Senate chambers, said following the House vote that Kansas law and human biology affirm that fetuses are people. 'We don't throw fetus showers,' said Heald, a 39-year-old who traveled from Wichita to Topeka to demonstrate at the Statehouse nearly every Wednesday. In a roughly 25-minute speech, Rep. Nikki McDonald, an Olathe Democrat, addressed how expensive pregnancies can be and proposed what she thought were more effective strategies to aid pregnant women, including a raised minimum wage and increased access to affordable health insurance. She said the state needed to avoid unnecessary litigation and regulation. 'If we were serious about ensuring the well-being of a pregnant person, we would be passing bills that expand health care access, make health care affordable, broaden our sex education programs to include more than just an abstinence-only sex ed approach,' she said. Rep. Stephanie Sawyer Clayton, an Overland Park Democrat, challenged the bill's constitutionality, arguing it violated the Kansas Constitution's 'two-subject rule,' which prohibits bills from legislating more than one topic. The two topics at hand were child support and tax breaks, she said. Minutes after overriding HB 2062, House Republicans overrode Senate Substitute for House Bill 2382. It mandates school districts show a video of a developing fetus to students at any grade level during any course that deals with human growth, development and sexuality. The video shown to students must be at least three minutes long, show the development of vital organs and be 'a high-quality, computer-generated animation or high-definition ultrasound,' according to the bill. The bill also allows Kansas State Board of Education members to set their own salaries. An earlier version of the bill set state board member compensation rates at $286.81 per meeting day, which was based on legislative salaries, but the passed bill didn't designate any funds for raises. Opponents criticized the measure for its lack of standards and for overriding local control. Rep. Linda Featherston, an Overland Park Democrat, said she didn't believe the bill was appropriate and the Legislature was 'overstepping.' 'Actually, what really bothers me about this bill is that it interferes with parental rights,' Featherston said. Parents ought to have the ability to determine when they want to talk to their children about sex, she said. Republican leadership characterized fetal education as a 'commonsense' measure, said House Speaker Dan Hawkins of Wichita and Senate President Ty Masterson of Andover in a joint statement.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kansas governor vetoes fetal personhood bill, allows experimental drug treatment passage
Gov. Laura Kelly tours the Axe Shedd during an April 25, 2024, visit to Emporia. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — Democratic Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly condemned Republican overreach in health care as she announced Wednesday evening a list of seven vetoes and bills passed without her signature. The condemnations came after she announced her signature of more than three dozen bills ahead of the Legislature's veto session, which is scheduled to begin Thursday. Kelly characterized the two health-related bills she vetoed — House Bill 2062 and House Bill 2240 — as 'questionable' and an 'unconstitutional overreach.' She allowed Senate Bill 250 to become law without her signature. Republicans vowed to try to override the governor's vetoes. HB 2062 sought to offer child support payments to a mother from the date of conception. It was initially written and promoted by anti-abortion groups while Democrats criticized the bill for cementing the concept of 'fetal personhood' in Kansas law. 'At first glance, this bill may appear to be a proposal to support pregnant women and families,' Kelly wrote in an announcement. 'However, this bill is yet another attempt by special interest groups and extremist lawmakers to ignore the will of Kansans and insert themselves into the lives of those making private medical decisions.' In a joint statement, GOP leaders said the bill was a 'common sense' measure. 'But because of the governor's unreasonable pro-abortion ideology, even more funding to help pregnant women, fetal development education, and holding deadbeat dads accountable are too extreme for her,' said House Speaker Dan Hawkins, of Wichita, and Senate President Ty Masterson, of Andover. The governor said the Legislature 'has become all too comfortable' in that place. The bill is a 'dismissal,' she said, of the will of the voters, referring to nearly 60% of voters rejecting a 2022 constitutional amendment meant to eradicate abortion rights. 'Furthermore, the provisions of this bill are questionable, and it is surprising it has been put forward,' Kelly said. A Democrat from Topeka, Sen. Patrick Schmidt, amended the bill as it was debated on the Senate floor to include a child tax exemption for fetuses. House Democratic Leader Brandon Woodard, of Lenexa, supported the governor's veto. He said in a statement Wednesday that fetal personhood is 'a common and well-known tactic that is used across the country by the anti-abortion movement.' He added: 'Our family court systems are already able to provide backdated child support that includes pregnancy-related expenses.' Senate Substitute for HB 2240 was a proposal from the Senate Committee on Government Efficiency that would require legislative approval for any change to public assistance programs in Kansas. That includes programs like Medicaid, or KanCare as it's known in Kansas, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and intellectual and developmental disability services. Any requests to federal agencies for waivers for existing rules and changes to funding or modifications of services for disability assistance would not be allowed without approval from the Legislature or, when the Legislature is not in session, the Legislative Coordinating Council, which is made up of the governor, legislative leadership and other state officials. Kelly called the bill 'an unconstitutional overreach by the Legislature into the executive branch' to create undue influence over KanCare. Republican leadership said the bill is within the scope of the legislative branch's powers to appropriate state funds. 'Any effort to expand or alter public programs that drastically affect the state's financial bottom line should be done with legislative approval — not executive fiat,' said Hawkins and Masterson. 'It's disappointing that the governor decided to put her own power above working together.' They called the veto a 'power grab' from the executive branch. The governor's office estimates the bill would add hundreds of hours of work and research and jeopardize 'the very functioning of the underlying programs.' 'Our doctrine of independent governmental branches is firmly entrenched in the United States and Kansas constitutional law and significant intrusion by one branch into the duties of another has been held to be unlawful,' she said. 'There is little question in my mind that this represents such an intrusion.' Kelly added: 'This bill and the subsequent backlog that it would create threatens food and medical assistance benefits for our most vulnerable Kansans at a time of increased inflation and overall financial uncertainty.' The governor allowed SB 250, known as the Right to Try for Individualized Investigative Treatments Act, to become law without her signature. The bill will allow people with rare, life-threatening or debilitating conditions to access investigational treatments, also known as experimental drugs. Sen. Beverly Gossage, a Eudora Republican, was a major proponent of the bill and defended it on the Senate floor, citing American patients who had to travel outside of the country to receive needed treatments. Kelly was supportive of the bill. 'Now,' she said. 'I think it's time for the Legislature to finally legalize medical Marijuana, giving the Kansans suffering from chronic pain or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and children suffering with Dravet's Syndrome (epilepsy) the choice of the treatment they and their doctors determine best suits their needs.'
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Paying child support for unborn children could become a reality with new law in Kansas
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Lawmakers are sending a bill to Kansas' governor that would force people to pay child support before a baby is born. Lawmakers in the Kansas House and Senate passed House Bill 2062 with veto-proof majorities earlier this week. If passed into law, this legislation would require unborn children to be given a taxpayer ID number, giving families a tax break. Supporters of the legislation say the bill provides critical support for pregnant single mothers. Opponents say the bill sets a dangerous precedent. 'Providing for child support orders for unborn children from the date of conception, including the direct medical and pregnancy-related expenses of the mother as a factor in child support orders and providing for an income tax exemption for unborn children.' House Bill 2062 short title description. HB 2062 would require child support to be calculated from the date of conception of the mother's child with accruing interest being determined by the current statutory rate. The bill would limit the maximum amount of child support to the direct medical and pregnancy-related expenses of the mom, excluding any costs related to an elective abortion. New 'blackout' style license plates may be coming to Kansas Governor Kelly may choose to veto the bill, sending it back to the Legislature for re-approval with a two-thirds majority in both chamber, or sign it into law. She may also choose to allow the bill to become a new law without her signature. For more Capitol Bureau news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Should child support begin before or after birth? KS Lawmakers argue both sides
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Lawmakers are pushing for a bill that would include unborn children in child support cases, however, a recent amendment is receiving major pushback. House Bill 2062 is making progress after passing overwhelmingly in both chambers. Anti-abortion advocates like Kansans For Life (KFL) say many women in this situation believe this bill is a crucial way to support them during pregnancy. 'If they had the financial support or the emotional support that they wanted, they would have preferred their babies rather than have an abortion,' KFL government relations director Jeanne Gawdun said. 'This is a way to help relieve some of that financial burden so that she feels more confident about choosing life for her baby.' EXCLUSIVE: Satanic leader breaks silence on 'Black Mass' at Kansas statehouse Abortion rights advocates say it attacks a woman's right to an abortion. They say Kansas courts can already consider pregnancy expenses in child support agreements. 'The only new thing that this bill is doing is it's adding fetal personhood language into child support law,' Loud Light advocacy director Melissa Stiehler said. 'Using that logic, you couldn't possibly have a legal abortion.' In a move that got lots of blowback from Democrats, Kansas Senator Patrick Schmidt, (D), Topeka, proposed an amendment, which the Republican controlled legislature adopted. It would change the tax code, giving unborn children a taxpayer ID number which gives families a tax break for these children. 'It forces the house and the senate to vote on the bill again. They will have to determine if they want to take it out,' Schmidt said. 'If that doesn't work, then it provides the best grounds to challenge the bills constitutionality and defeat it.' Because of the amendment, the bill heads back to the house and senate committees. For more Capitol Bureau news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kansas Senate Democrat breaks from party to add tax credit to fetal child support bill
Sen. Patrick Schmidt at a March 12, 2025, meeting of the Senate Committee on Government Efficiency, or COGE. (Grace Hills/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — Republican legislation to establish child support payments for pregnancy-related costs — and, in turn, establish 'fetal personhood' — revealed tension among legislators as one Democratic senator inserted a bipartisan tax credit provision. Senate Democrats agreed that House Bill 2062, which requires courts to consider fetuses when determining child support judgments, risked providing legal precedent for treating fetuses as people. But with an amendment that expands eligibility for tax credits for families, Sen. Patrick Schmidt, D-Topeka, said he took an opportunity to make 'lemonade out of lemons,' while his Democratic colleagues disagreed. Most Republicans, initially hesitant, were in favor of Schmidt's amendment Tuesday and approved it in a preliminary vote. On the Senate floor Wednesday, before legislators took final action on the bill, Schmidt said he had 'the most pro-choice legislator' in the delegation. He ultimately voted against the bill along with the rest of the nine-member Democratic caucus. While fielding flack from Democrats and abortion rights advocates, Schmidt told Kansas Reflector he expects his amendment will either kill the bill because of it's added nuance or give families tax credits, both of which he considers a win, especially for his constituents in central Topeka. The amendment created a child tax credit for all pregnant parents, not just those involved in child support judgments. Parents would be allowed to claim 'an unborn child' on their tax returns, and a taxpayer identification number would be assigned to a fetus. 'It's a bad bill, with or without an amendment,' Schmidt said. Melissa Stiehler, a spokesperson with Loud Light Civic Action, said Schmidt made 'serious mistakes' in declining to consult fellow Democrats, advocates and policy experts before proposing the amendment. 'It is pretty disappointing to hear Senator Schmidt declare himself the most 'pro-choice lawmaker' while simultaneously adding the most anti-abortion language I've ever seen a democratic lawmaker intentionally amend into a bill,' she wrote in a statement. Stiehler called the amendment 'bad economic policy,' claiming Schmidt's proposal was a regressive flat tax. She said it was 'bad constitutional policy' because it added a new subject to the bill. She said he utilized 'bad political strategy' in trying to alter the bill without consulting experienced lawmakers and playing into anti-abortion efforts. 'He just gave it to them without a fight and now with bipartisan support,' she said. Schmidt stuck by his strategy. If Democrats want to stop legislation they disagree with, they have to try something new, said Schmidt, who is serving his first year in the Legislature. 'The same tactics are not going to work in perpetuity,' he said. 'They haven't been working.' Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes, D-Lenexa, in an explanation of her 'no' vote Wednesday, said the bill was disguised as a child support bill but was 'far more insidious.' 'This bill grants legal recognition to a fetus as a separate person, even providing a state tax ID number, which would have sweeping consequences beyond financial support,' Sykes said. Instead of helping women, the bill makes reproductive rights vulnerable to attack, she said. The bill passed the Senate in a 30-9 vote, with all Democrats voting against it. It passed the House in February in an 85-34 vote, but House and Senate negotiators would have to work out differences in their versions of the bill before sending it to the governor. Anti-abortion organizations were the architects and primary proponents of the legislation during the bill's hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The committee's chair, Sen. Kellie Warren, R-Leawood, said Tuesday on the Senate floor that the bill wouldn't change anything about how paternity is assessed or who is required to pay child support. 'It just adds it to the list of the other nine factors that a court shall consider when considering an order of child support,' Warren said. Sen. Cindy Holscher, D-Overland Park, proposed an amendment to remove large portions of the bill's text. Expanding child support obligations establishes 'legal personhood' for fetuses, she said. 'That move is a foundational step to restricting access to forms of reproductive health care,' Holscher said. Her amendment failed.
