Kansas laws

House Bill 2352 adds fully ordained ministers to the list of professions required to be mandatory reporters if they suspect a child has been harmed as a result of physical, mental or emotional abuse, as well as abuse, neglect or sexual abuse.

House Bill 2497 would add language that allows lenders to charge prepayment penalties for investment properties but leave the ban in place for consumer personal loans.

The two bills would increase the severity of penalties for theft to level 5 or 6 nonperson felonies and set new thresholds for implementing penalties.

Abortion is Murder, a Christian group known for protesting with graphic signs, was permitted to protest inside the Kansas Statehouse just a few months after the Satanic Grotto was blocked from doing the same. The group says it is planning a counterprotest.

Democrats have proposed reducing child care costs, making housing more affordable and raising the minimum wage. Republicans want to pass property tax reform, cut waste and address rural health care costs.

Some people could see a lower property tax amount with a cap in place compared to previous years. But because local governments still retain the authority to set tax rates, lower property taxes are not a given.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is asking for civility and compromise in the face of national political divides. She starts her final session in office with a Republican supermajority that can override her if it holds together.

Stadium deals in Kansas and Washington — both involving relocations within the same metropolitan area — have set separate records for taxpayer subsidies to sports teams. That's despite decades of research suggesting stadiums are a wasteful use of limited tax dollars.

Residents describe fires, floods, infestation, and deterioration while living in Olive Park Village apartments controlled by a Cleveland-based housing management company. With the city citing unsafe conditions, remaining families now have to scramble for new homes.

The newly released state data shows it’s the second consecutive year abortions in Kansas have exceeded annual numbers prior to 2022, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.