Topeka ? The Legislature is looking for a lawyer it can call its own.

Members of the Legislative Coordinating Council voted Thursday to take bids from people interested in providing legal services to the Legislature. Applications will be accepted through September and a decision made in November.

The legislative counsel position was created in the midst of a school finance lawsuit that resulted in the Kansas Supreme Court ordering lawmakers to spend additional money for public education. That led to a special legislative session in 2005.

The job has been vacant since Stephen McAllister, a University of Kansas law professor, resigned in early 2007 to serve as the state’s solicitor general in the attorney general’s office, assisting with important constitutional litigation.

“It would be in our best interests to have someone in a permanent position or on contract,” said Senate President Steve Morris, a Hugoton Republican.

House Minority Leader Dennis McKinney was the only LCC member to vote against the proposal. He said it didn’t make sense to hire a lawyer earning $300 an hour while leaving state government jobs open because of budget limitations.

“Do we really need to fill this position? It seems a good one to leave open,” said the Greensburg Democrat.

Morris said there was no pressing legal issue a legislative counsel would be expected to address. However, he said the person or firm hired to represent the Legislature wouldn’t be paid unless issues demanded attention.

It would take too long for Democratic and Republican leaders in the House and Senate to approve legal counsel if trouble emerged, Morris said.

Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley said the LCC should adopt precise rules to limit work demands by legislators on the new counsel.

“We haven’t established these policies,” the Topeka Democrat said. “We can and should avoid proliferation.”

The LCC is comprised of the House and Senate leadership and handles legislative business when the Legislature isn’t in session. It met shortly after the two chambers adjourned for the year.