Kansas Government News

The state's budget problems means some Kansans aren't getting the new license plates on their cars.

Gov. Mark Parkinson has appointed Michael Moffet to a second four-year term on the Kansas Corporation Commission.

Margaret Tascar would probably be in a nursing home, the 84-year-old says, if not for a state program that helps the elderly stay in their own homes.The service pays for a cleaning woman to stop by Tascars Overland Park apartment to do the type of housework Tascars bad knees no longer permit.

The State Finance Council approved the settlement Monday. The council is the governor and eight top legislative leaders.

Democratic Gov. Mark Parkinson has been friendlier toward the Republican-controlled Legislature than his predecessor, making the debate over Kansas' budget problems less contentious.

Kansas Gov. Mark Parkinson has proposed a plan made up of revenue gains and spending cuts to generate $160 million to balance the state budget.

Kansans don't know who Mark Parkinson is either, as the governor explained in a delightful blog post this week: Last week, we decided to order pizza to Cedar Crest.

Secretary of Agriculture Adrian Polansky has been tapped to head the Farm Service Agency in Kansas for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a position he held during the Clinton administration.

LAWRENCE a ' Kansas will get a new poet laureate this week. The current holder of that position, Denise Low, ends her two-year term Wednesday.

As one state fiscal year nears its completion and the 2010 year begins next week, state agencies are being advised to use their dollars wisely.

The other day, I asked Bob Dole how he was doing. His first two words: 'I'm busy.' Funny, but that's exactly why I was calling.

Gov. Mark Parkinson has appointed Martin Kennedy as the interim secretary for the Department on Aging.

The increases range from a 3.9 percent increase for Kansas residents at Kansas State University to 8.5 percent increase for in-state residents at Wichita State University.

After more than two decades of struggle, the Kansas minimum wage is finally getting a boost where it no longer will be the nation's lowest.

Jun 24, 2009 1:45 pm US/Eastern 1 of 1 Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee during her confirmation hearing to be secretary of Health and Human Services on Captiol Hill March 31, 2009 in Washington.

TOPEKA, Kan. - Environmentalists sent a letter to a state agency on Monday demanding that it hold public hearings on plans to build a new coal-fired power plant in southwest Kansas.

Sam Brownback holds up a 7-year-old's drawing of an embyro to argue against stem-cell research.

Kansans lawmakers again are being urged to tighten restrictions on drunken drivers - even first-time offenders.

Kansans lawmakers again are being urged to tighten restrictions on drunken drivers -- even first-time offenders -- and expand the use of vehicle ignition interlock devices.

Jun 16, 2009 4:16 pm US/Central 1 of 1 Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee during her confirmation hearing to be secretary of Health and Human Services on Captiol Hill March 31, 2009 in Washington.