James Jordan, Sumner Newscow — On Friday, the Kansas House passed a measure that would put an abortion question on the 2022 election ballot. The matter goes to the Senate next week for debate and a possible vote.

Kyle Hoffman

The House vote went along party lines with Republicans voting for and Democrats voting against. Only one Democrat broke the party line.

The measure failed in the House last year. It was done in response to a 2019 state Supreme Court ruling that said abortion is a fundamental right given in the state constitution. This meant the state could do little to regulate it, and that it would remain a right even if Roe v Wade was overturned at the national level.

The amendment would say there is no fundamental right and would give the state the ability to regulate the procedure.

Those pushing for the measure say they are trying to keep restrictions that had been agreed to and were in place before the supreme court ruling. Abortion rights supporters say it is a means to ban abortion in the state eventually.

State Representative Kyle Hoffman (R-116) said he supports getting this on the ballot for voters to decide.

Unemployment fraud

In another matter, the house listened to the Dept. of Labor officials for about two days concerning unemployment fraud in the state.

Last year there were a lot of fraudulent cases related to identity theft. Hoffman said he had someone apply in his name, and there are a lot of people around the state this has happened to.

Some people find out when they go to file for unemployment.

Hoffman said they are trying to find out how widespread the problem is and how it is being done.

“Either they don’t know, or they are not wanting to tell us,” he said of the Dept. of Labor officials.

It may be an organized fraud attempt, as opposed to people doing it individually.

Governor’s power

The House also passed this week a measure extending the Governor’s powers during an emergency until March. The current set of rules was set to expire on Jan. 26, and it has now been extended to March.

By March state officials are hoping to have a more comprehensive set of rules for the Governor.

One is whether the Governor can close schools, businesses, churches, and other public gatherings. Hoffman and other Republicans want to have that call go with local county officials instead of the governor.

The rules put in place a few years ago applied to things like tornados or an outbreak of animal illness. The Coronavirus is a different situation and needs different guidelines, Hoffman said.

The other point also involves local control. Currently, county commissions may reject suggestions concerning diseases from the local county health departments. The Governor wants to remove that ability, and Republicans want to keep that option in place.

Here is a link to watch all proceedings.

Here is a link to any meetings that have passed.

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