Latest news with #SuzanneWikle
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Kansas families with SNAP can still buy soda, candy, but new law adds red tape to assistance
Rep. Suzanne Wikle raised concerns that House Bill 2240 will slow down state agency processes by requiring legislative approval for state assistance changes, among other things. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — A bill barring Kansans who use food benefits from buying soda and candy failed to move forward last week, while another bill passed that opponents said would stall stage agencies' ability to react to changes in assistance programs and intellectual or developmental disability services. Senate Bill 79, which would have stopped anyone using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits from purchasing soda and candy, died when the House failed to take up the bill to override Gov. Laura Kelly's veto. The Senate voted to overturn the veto, 29 – 11. Both chambers, however, voted along party lines to override the governor's veto on House Bill 2240. Opponents expressed concerns that it would create obstacles for state agencies to move quickly in making needed changes in Medicaid, SNAP and other assistance programs. The bill requires legislative approval for any changes expanding eligibility for public assistance programs, increasing state costs or making certain changes for individuals receiving IDD services. If the Legislature isn't in session, decisions will be made by the Legislative Coordinating Council, which has 14 days to act. 'Just the Medicaid ones, every single administration that we've had since I've been an adult has over 100 things that would have had to go before a legislative body,' said Rep. Suzanne Wikle, a Lawrence Democrat, during a March debate. 'I don't think we understand how many things we're talking about. This bill requires that all changes — simple, mundane changes that all states make to programs all the time to keep in compliance with federal regs, update certain things for Medicaid, for SNAP, for child care assistance, for TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) — those are all going to have to go before some sort of legislative body now.' Sen. Cindy Holscher, a Democrat from Overland Park, echoed those concerns before the Senate override vote last week. 'It shifts power away from actual experts in our agencies, and this will hurt our response time for critical programs and cause bottlenecks in our processes,' she said, adding that there are appropriate processes in place for oversight of spending. Sen. Renee Erickson, a Wichita Republican, said this bill puts the responsibility for spending where it should be. 'The reason for this is that the Legislature, not bureaucrats, should be overseeing the allocation of funds and making those decisions,' she said.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Freshman Kansas representative asks: Why won't GOP bosses focus on state's cost of living?
Rep. Suzanne Wikle, D-Lawrence, speaks during a March 11, 2025, debate in the House. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) Suzanne Wikle, a Democratic representative from Lawrence, wonders when the Kansas Legislature will get serious about addressing the state's cost-of-living crisis. 'I think one of the things that's been most frustrating for me, and perhaps most telling about priorities of Republican leadership, is that we haven't really done anything this year on the floor that I feel like really helps bring down the cost of everyday life for most Kansans,' she told me Monday. 'I certainly don't think that we can control how much eggs cost, right? But I do think we can do other things to take pressures off of other aspects of budgets. So those would be things like making health care more accessible and more affordable, bringing down the cost of prescription drugs. Obviously, Medicaid expansion is something I talk about a lot. We could do a lot more around affordability around child care and some of those early learning expenses. We could do a lot more around housing. … There's a minimum wage bill out there that hasn't been heard.' Of course, those in charge at the Statehouse have made other choices. Harmful ones. That makes Wikle's job and the jobs of others like her even more challenging. They have to keep going, keep working for positive changes, and keep working for constituents. There's no other path forward. I've been following Wikle during her first term as a Kansas lawmaker. We first checked in with her on Jan. 29, as she settled into her office and new role after a long career in advocacy. In the weeks since she has navigated an intense calendar and a Republican supermajority concentrated on its own partisan agenda. They have indulged in conspiracy theories, plotted power grabs and used private school kids as political props. That's not much of a surprise, to either Wikle or me, but it can discourage nonetheless. 'I feel like any bill that is brought to the House floor … it's safe to say it's going to pass, right?' Wikle said during another conversation in late February. 'In my first stint in the Statehouse on the other side, that was not always the case. There were votes that were very close, and sometimes you didn't know if a bill was going to pass before final action was taken on it. And I just feel like that's very different now.' In other words — and this is just me speaking now — the fix is in. Wikle told me that she had enjoyed robust feedback from her constituents. I wondered if that had been prompted by the high political drama in Washington, D.C., but the representative said the calls and email messages focused on state issues. 'I have heard a lot about opposing the elimination of the three-day grace period for mail-in ballots,' she said. '… I've heard when we were were focused on Senate Bill 63, the anti-trans legislation. I heard a lot from constituents in Lawrence about opposing that. I've heard a lot about opposing the changing how judicial selection happens. I've heard a lot about school funding and special education funding.' Working as a state legislator may sound exciting. You do get a title, after all, and an opportunity to work in the soaring halls and chambers of the Kansas Statehouse. But it's hard work for those who take the job seriously, as Wikle does. When I've talked to her for these stories, she's either finished with one hearing or another, heading home, or planning for the next day. It doesn't stop — at least until next month. As we careen through the second half of the session, I asked what Wikle was looking for as lawmakers wrapped up their work. Would everyone come to their senses? Or would the bad vibes persist through April? 'I'm hoping that at the end of the day or end of the session, we are able to meet our like obligations as a state for school funding,' she said. 'The budget right now does not have adequate funding for special education. I think that's a huge concern, and I hope that if there is a tax package that passes that it you know that doesn't put in jeopardy the state being able to meet our required obligations.' Good luck, then. To the representative, to her colleagues and to all of us. Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
From Kansas advocate to Kansas legislator: Lawrence's Suzanne Wikle launches inaugural term
Kansas Rep. Suzanne Wikle, a Democrat who represents a Lawrence district, speaks on Jan. 22, 2025, in her office at the Statehouse. (Grace Hills/Kansas Reflector) Suzanne Wikle, a first-term Democratic representative from Lawrence, hurried into the buzzing Statehouse around noon Monday, Jan. 13. She had worked for nearly two decades in public policy and advocacy, but this was her first official day as a lawmaker. I happened to be there at the entrance to the complex, and I tagged along as she headed to her office. I though that Kansas Reflector readers might appreciate a peek into the journey, and I plan to check in with Wikle multiple times during this year's session. We headed up to her office on the building's fourth floor, a space shared by several other Democratic legislators. It featured its own, lower-volume buzz as officials chatted away. Wikle settled behind her desk to answer a handful of first-day questions. 'I think I can bring a lot to conversations internally about policy development,' she told me. 'And then I really wanted to run to be a strong voice for Kansas children and Kansas families. I have two young children, and I really believe in public education, early education, access to health care, and I just want to be a strong voice on that.' Wikle filed to run for the office in February 2024, after then-Rep. Christina Haswood decided to run for a Senate seat. After winning the August primary, she had effectively won the District 10 seat, as no Republican ran against her. She stared talking with future constituents right away. 'People have been asking to meet with me. I've met with community groups. I've met with stakeholders,' Wikle said. 'So, today is the day I get sworn in, but I feel like I've been doing a lot of the work for several months already.' She serves on three committees: Agriculture and Natural Resources, Legislative Modernization and Health and Human Services. The last of those, given her professional background, has special resonance. 'We are scheduled to adjourn before we receive revenue estimates in April,' she said. 'Typically, the Legislature finalizes the state budget after tax day, after we have a pretty solid understanding of what the fiscal outlook for the state looks like. And according to the calendar this year, we'll be finalizing that budget before we have those fiscal revenue estimates. And that makes me a little concerned about how the budget situation was going to play out.' From an opinion editor perspective, this looks quite alarming. Could GOP lawmakers be planning to pass a budget without knowing final revenue numbers and leaving any potential cuts — and the associated risk — to Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly? We shall see. At this point, I should note that I know Wikle and her husband, United Methodist Health Ministry Fund president David Jordan, from my time in nonprofit advocacy. (I've also appeared as a guest on Jordan's podcast, for any who might be interested.) They are adjusting to a new dynamic with Wikle serving in the Legislature. 'We've had to hire extra child care help to accommodate my different schedule because of my husband's travel that he does for work,' she said. 'So I think we have to kind of see how it all shakes out. … But I knew all that going into it, and we're gonna make it work.' A week-and-a-half later, Wikle looked more settled and chatted in her office with intern Kate Eckert, a University of Kansas freshman. I asked Wikle how her first days at the Statehouse had gone. 'It's been pretty slow, right?' she replied. 'The first week is a lot of pomp and circumstance and being sworn in, and going to committee for the first time and kind of doing all of that.' While some lawmakers have to travel hours to work at the Statehouse, Wikle's Lawrence home base makes it easier to spend time in Topeka. She works in the building five days a week, even though few meetings have been scheduled for Fridays thus far. (Memo to other lawmakers: That pay raise you all received should motivate a few more to follow that example.) The biggest difference from her earlier work at the Statehouse and serving as a lawmaker, Wikle told me, was the separation between the House and Senate. She described the two chambers as 'siloed' from one another. 'I'm not interacting with senators on a daily basis, like I was when I was an advocate and interacting with both,' she said. 'And that's different and a little surprising. … Comparing it to my days as an advocate, I was sitting in various committees or I had colleagues that were sitting in other committees, and we go back to the office and talk about what was happening. It just seemed like you had a broader view of what was happening.' She acknowledged that a broader view could come with time and caucus meetings. In the meantime, she was digging into scope of practice issues with the health committee. Not every discussion in Topeka hinges on ideological or partisan fights, after all. As I left that Wednesday afternoon, I considered the 125 representatives and 40 senators who meet every year in Topeka. Lord knows I don't agree with all — or perhaps most — of them. But these lawmakers sacrifice of time, energy and effort for a greater cause. They have put themselves forward to do the business of Kansas. That's worthy of acknowledgment, today and every day of the session. Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
