Welcome to our online chat with Kansas Senate President Steve Morris.

The chat took place at noon Thursday, Jan. 20, and is now closed, but you can read the full transcript on this page.

Moderator: Welcome to our Chat with Senate President Steve Morris.

Rob Scheib, Supt. USD 208 WaKeeney: 1. The Salina Journal ran an article on Sunday that linked test scores to school finance. In a 2A or 1A school district, one or two students has a huge impact on the test scores of the whole, and great variation in highs and lows from year to year. What is your position on tying funding to student achievement in small districts?
2. A vote for reducing low enrollment weighting is a vote for forced consolidation in masked form. Given that urban representation is in the majority, what is your plan to preserve rural Kansas school districts and communities?

Senate President Steve Morris: 1. I don’t believe I’ve heard anyone tying in school funding to test scores. That’s not to say that some time in the future that won’t be discussed. That may be discussed. But I don’t see that being a part of the Legislature’s school finance plan that we ultimately develop this year.
2. I’m very supportive of our small rural schools as well as other schools around the state, but specifically I am supportive of low enrollment weighting. In addition, I am not supportive of any kind of forced consolidation. However, I am supportive of removing whatever barriers that are out there that would prevent voluntary consolidation.

Jacob, Quenemo: A number of conservative Senators are complaining that they got stuck with the worst committee assignments because assignments were given on the basis of ideology and not qualification. How do you respond to these allegations?

Senate President Steve Morris: We have 14 standing committees in the Senate. Out of that 14, we have six that are chaired by folks that would philosophically be called conservatives. The committees that they chair are very important committees. For instance, Commerce Committee, Transportation, Agriculture, Natural Resources, Health Policy Strategies, Local Government. In addition to the standing committees, we have joint committees that are in the House and the Senate. There are eight of those that are chaired by conservatives. Those include Legislative Post Audit, Children’s Issues, the Committee on Technology and Information, Arts and Cultural Resources, Rules and Regulations, Economic Development, Special Claims Against the State. We also have a number of conservatives who are vice chairs of our standing committees. Overall, I feel like conservatives have a lot of responsibility. We depend on them in chairing these important committees.

Pat, Topeka: I’m a State Employee. When I took my job 10 years ago, I was informed that I would be eligible for yearly merit raises, COLA’s, and longevity pay. However, the Kansas Legislature hasn’t funded ANY step increases or longevity pay in 4 years. Please advise what priority the Legislature intends to give to employee pay issues this session in order to be a responsible employer to its 25,000 statewide employees. Thank you.

Senate President Steve Morris: We have actually had longevity pay during the last 10 years. That has not been changed. We’ve had several financial constraints over the last several years. Because of that, we’ve been unable to fund step increases. But we have tried to do what we could on pay increases. Last year we did a pay increase, 3 percent. The governor, in her budget this year, has a 2.5 percent increase, which I am anticipating being approved by the Legislature. I am certainly sympathetic to the state employees and their needs. I feel that the Legislature has done everything that they could do to respond to those needs within our financial resources.

Ray, Overland Park: What are the budget items that provide any kind of funding or grants to Planned Parenthood, and can they be cut out this year? (A man shot himself 2 years ago in front of Planned Parenthood’s Overland Park abortion mill, on what would have been his son’s day of birth.)

Senate President Steve Morris: I’m not aware of any budget item in our state budget that funds Planned Parenthood.

Karen, Baldwin: Could you please explain how same sex marriages are a threat to the sanctity of my marriage?

Senate President Steve Morris: We actually took action the first week of the 2005 session to give voters the opportunity to vote on a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages. We had a lot of study and a lot of discussion in the 2004 legislative session on this issue. We felt like there were many other important issues to address this year and that’s why we took action to finish this item and deliver it to the House so we could move on to other important issues.

Sean, Topeka: Why is the gay marriage ban more important than funding education in Kansas? With a deadline looming for education why does the legislature find it important to address an issue that is completely unnecessary to the well-being of our state?

Senate President Steve Morris: First of all, there are a number of important issues that need to be addressed in the 2005 session. Among those are school finance, health care, budgetary issues and many others. Same sex marriage is considered by many to be an important issue. Since we had extensive debate and discussion on this issue during the last session, we felt like we could take quick action on this issue and spend the rest of our time on the other important issues that I have listed.

Kathy, Topeka: What is the best thing about the Kansas Senate this year?

Senate President Steve Morris: We have 14 new senators. And I feel like those senators are a great asset to the state of Kansas and to the Kansas Senate. And along with our returning senators, I feel like the Senate is in good hands with the amount of talent that these senators and returning senators have and I look forward to the Senate to produce good public policy for the citizens of this state.

Lance of Lawrence: Mr. President: Do you support the expansion of gaming in Kansas? If yes, should it be state-owned and operated or tribal-owned and state regulated?
Thank you for your consideration. Lance

Senate President Steve Morris: Since I’ve been in the Senate, I’ve opposed expanded gambling. I do realize there are two sides to this issue. The amount of money that goes across the state line into Missouri and other places by those citizens who do like to participate in the gambling process is money that the state does not share in. And the proponents of gambling certainly make a point with that information. However, I feel that the social consequences of the state relying on gambling money is not good public policy.

Moderator: This is our last question.

Mark, Olathe: When will the Juvenile Justice Authority down size their institutional approach. I see where they have opened two new facilities as replacements, but no closings of the other two remaining antiquated facilities?

Senate President Steve Morris: Our juvenile justice facilities have been overcrowded for many years. Fortunately we have opened two new facilities over the last couple of years. But unfortunately, we still have the need to keep the older facilities open because of the number of juvenile offenders that keep appearing in our court system. We have tried, with these new facilities, to keep these offenders incarcerated for an average of at least 12 months, in order to try to have a chance of rehabilitating them. We need all of the beds in both the new and the old facilities in order to carry out that policy.

Moderator: We’d like to thank the senator for participating in today’s online discussion. And we’d also like to thank our readers for providing us with such topical questions.
This will wrap up our first Capital Chat for this legislative session.

Our next chat will be at 1:45 p.m. Monday, Jan. 24, with Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, a Topeka Democrat.