Topeka ? Kansas lawmakers are about to head into the final stretch of the 2015 regular session, and Republican leaders say they are generally pleased with their progress so far.

But the next two weeks will be filled with long days of debate over issues ranging from the state budget to abortion to concealed handguns.

“I think we’re on track,” said House Majority Leader Jene Vickrey, R-Louisburg.

Vickrey said the biggest accomplishment so far was passage of the school finance bill that repeals the existing funding formula and replaces it for the next two years with a system of block grants to the state’s 286 school districts.

“The block grant bill was the most important legislation we’ve passed through here probably since I’ve been here, said Vickrey, who was first elected in November 1992, the election immediately after the current funding system was adopted.

“Get the state’s finances back on track and do what’s right for our students in the classroom,” he said. “Get a formula designed that’s about the student, based on fact. And that’s a huge step toward those goals. And we all agree. That’s something that everybody wants to see, the classroom being the focus of our school formula.”

But Rep. Tom Burroughs, D-Kansas City, the House minority leader, was less enthusiastic.

“The session has been reflective of the policies we’ve witnessed in the past from this administration,” Burroughs said. “We’ve seen the education bill passed by a very, very thin margin, and it took a couple of hours to reach the votes to do that.”

Budget and taxes

Chief among the bills pending on both calendars are the budget bills that appropriate money to fund state agencies for the next two fiscal years.

The Senate is expected to vote on its bill Wednesday, while the House hasn’t yet settled on a date, although some House aides say it will likely be Tuesday.

Senate Majority Leader Terry Bruce, R-Hutchinson, said he thinks both chambers are in position to pass initial budget bills without much controversy.

“The main goal is to get something into conference committee with the House,” Bruce said. “That way, when the (April) consensus revenue estimates come in, they can give us some better projections based on what passed the Senate chamber.”

The revenue estimates come from the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group, a panel of economists from Kansas University, Kansas State University and Wichita State University, as well as both administration and legislative budget officials.

They meet behind closed doors, usually twice a year, to analyze economic trends in the state and project what total revenues will be for the current fiscal year and the next year. By law, their numbers must be used as the basis for the budget that the governor submits to the Legislature as well as the final appropriations bill the Legislature passes in the spring.

The main difference between the two versions of the budget is that the Senate Ways and Means Committee stripped out funding for the judicial branch and put that into a separate bill, a move that could invite various amendments dealing with judicial selection and makeup of the courts.

But according to the Legislative Research Department, both bills call for spending about $135 million more than the state is expected to have available for upcoming fiscal year.

Republican Gov. Sam Brownback has called for significant tax increases on alcohol, cigarettes and other tobacco products to fill in that gap, but there is significant opposition to that idea, even among Republicans.

Both chambers plan to begin working on major tax plans when they return in late April for what’s known as the veto session, which begins shortly after the new official revenue estimates will come out.

“We’re going to have to see where we stand on the budget at the end of the day,” Bruce said. “We’ll see where we are, see what kind of obligation we still need to meet, and that’ll be the topic of discussion in veto session.”

House Democratic leader Burroughs, however, says he doesn’t think it will be an easy process.

“I find it kind of ironic that, if those who are willing to support the budget, then I’m anticipating they’re going to be willing to support the tax increases necessary, or the revenue increases necessary to support the budget,” Burroughs said.

Other bills pending

Meanwhile, both chambers have scores of bills sitting on their calendars that they plan to deal with in the next two weeks, many dealing with highly controversial issues beyond budget and taxes.

The House calendar currently includes a bill to legalize carrying concealed handguns without a permit, and an abortion bill that would prohibit what the bill’s supporters call “dismemberment abortions.”

And further down the calendar are two proposed constitutional amendments to change the way Kansas Supreme Court justices are selected, and a bill to move municipal and school board elections to November of even-numbered years.

On the Senate side, there is a bill to make it more difficult for the state to impose carbon emission standards on power plants or enact any other regulations to implement the federal Clean Air Plan.

And there are bills recently passed by the Senate Commerce Committee aimed at weakening the power of public employee labor unions.

First adjournment of the Legislature is scheduled for Friday, April 3. After that, lawmakers will leave for about three and a half weeks while awaiting the new revenue estimates.

They are scheduled to return Wednesday, April 29, for the start of the veto session.